Oral-B iO Series 10 Review

The Oral-B iO Series 10 tested well in nearly all metrics with effective cleaning power and the utmost comfort. Paired with its mobile app, this premium toothbrush is a great match for the data-driven user. However, it has some small weaknesses you should consider before making your purchase in terms of comfort and battery life.

Cleaning

The Oral-B iO Series 10 efficiently removed all the pink plaque, leaving the testers' mouths exceptionally clean. Even with light pressure, it successfully eliminated the pesto and coffee ground mixture as well. I was left feeling clean and refreshed after every use.

Previous Next

The accompanying mobile app also highlights brushing progress and any missed quadrants. It also times your brushing session, ensuring that you spend the right amount of time on each quadrant of your teeth.

Comfort

I used a decibel reader to test the sound emitted by the brush. The Oral-B iO Series 10 registered 50 decibels from 6 feet away and 62 decibels from 3 inches away. While falling within an acceptable range, the sound was still noticeable to our testers, but not overly grating. The Series 10 is also noticeably quieter than its predecessor, the Series 9, by 11 decibels at 3 inches away.

The pressure sensor performed as advertised, alerting us when brushing too vigorously as an indicator ring around the neck of the handle that changes colors to indicate intensity. The vibration of this unit also felt smooth and consistent. With both sensitive and super-sensitive modes, it caters to those with touchy gums, preventing discomfort.

Ease of Use

The iO Series 10 has a whopping seven modes to choose from: Tongue Clean, Gum Care, Sensitive, Whiten, Daily Clean, Intense, and Super Sensitive. Swapping modes is made easy with the dedicated button. While some may find the abundance of modes overwhelming, others may enjoy exploring the variety. In our experience, more modes don't necessarily equate to more functionality. Nevertheless, everything you need is here, and the brush conveniently remembers and defaults to the last used setting.

The Oral-B can be paired with a companion app, providing a wealth of information to track your brushing progress, particularly in hitting those quadrants. As an added bonus, the app provides a score based on how well you brushed. The app must remain open during your brushing sessions to utilize these features. I found the app and all of its functions simple to operate. Additional brush heads can also be ordered through the smart app, and brushing reminders can be set.

Even the charging dock on this device has smart capabilities. You can see the two-minute timer from the iO Sense™ Smart Charger. Users can choose to have the smart stand serve as a timer for the two-minute duration, or you can choose to have it track your cleaning. When it's tracking, a quadrant will glow, then change colors when it's finished and start on a new quadrant until all of the quadrants are fully displayed.

I was quite displeased with the three holes on the brush head, as they can lead to a messy brushing experience, with liquid trickling down into the interior of the handle. This poses an additional step for keeping the brush, and for this reason, points were deducted. This issue seems to be a consistent challenge across the Oral-B line. That said, the water resistance is a plus, allowing usage in the shower and allowing brush cleaning under the faucet.

Battery Life

While not an industry leader in overall battery life, the Oral-B iO Series 10 held up okay, lasting a total of 22.5 days. However, I expected significantly more battery life from such a pricey device, as leading electric toothbrushes in this metric can often last for over 40 days, almost twice as long as the Series 10.

If used primarily at home, it conveniently charges on the base station, eliminating concerns. This unit also comes with a travel case that functions as a charger. I appreciate that this case features a display that indicates the battery level when it's plugged in.

Should You Buy the Oral-B iO Series 10?

Undoubtedly, the Oral-B iO Series 10 is an excellent electric toothbrush. I appreciated many of the features mentioned above, such as its smart app, exceptional cleaning performance, and comfortable brushing. For anyone with periodontal concerns or simply willing to pay up for top notch cleaning performance, the Oral-B is an outstanding choice.

What Other Electric Toothbrush Should You Consider?

Within the same line, the Oral-B iO Series 9 has many of the same great features as the Series 10. It pairs with a mobile app and is effective at cleaning. Plus, the Series 9 has a longer battery life. However, if a premium model isn't what you're searching for, the Philips Sonicare 4100 is an excellent alternative. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the iO models, but it does a great job cleaning at a fraction of the price. See how this unit stacks up in our review of top-ranked toothbrushes.