Live Science Verdict
The Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush offers a great brushing experience with a fun, Disney-themed app that lengthens brushing time.
Pros
- +
Works with Disney-themed app
- +
Customizable design
- +
Round brush head for small mouths
Cons
- -
Handset may be too large for young children
- -
Just one brush head supplied
Why you can trust Live Science
This review takes a closer look at the Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush, its features, functionality, and performance as well as taking a look at the app. It also checks out the latest user reviews to see what customers have said about their purchase. We reviewed the Disney Frozen design, but you can also get Disney Electric Cars, Marvel Spiderman and more.
Connected Disney app
2 cleaning modes
Customizable design
8-day battery life
Timer & quadpacer
2-year limited warranty
Rechargeable battery
Suitable for kids aged 3+
Round brush head with extra-soft bristles
The Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush features two cleaning modes:
- Sensitive: Gentle, yet through, cleaning for sensitive areas.
- Daily clean: Standard for daily mouth cleaning.
Younger children unused to electric toothbrushes may benefit from starting off with the sensitive mode before moving on to the daily clean mode.
The small, round brush head with extra-soft bristles is ideal for younger teeth and gums.
The brush also features a built-in 2-minute timer and a quadpacer, to encourage your little one to move about their mouth and brush for the recommended length of time.
The brush also comes with a prompt to download the accompanying Disney Magic Timer app, designed to encourage kids to brush for longer.
And if you’re not convinced whether the Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush is the right toothbrush for your child, you’re certain to find the perfect toothbrush in our guide to the best electric toothbrushes for kids.
Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush review: Design
The Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush is a fun and colorful toothbrush designed with kids in mind. Available in bright blue with a soft, textured blue handle to improve grip, it’s customizable too, with up to four themed stickers to enjoy. Since we tried the Disney Frozen design, these were the stickers that came with it.
The toothbrush comes with just one brush head, so if you have two children who want to use the brush, you’ll need to purchase more. There are no brush head covers supplied, unlike the Philips Sonicare for Kids toothbrush.
The brush head itself is slightly smaller than an average Oral-B brush head. This makes it easier to maneuver around the mouth. Extra soft bristles are designed to be gentle on little teeth and gums. The brush head features Elsa, though other brush heads are available to purchase with other characters.
A single power button makes the handle easy to control and operate, while the toothbrush is nice and light in feel.
The stickers are applied to the base of the handset. They are easy to add and remove as needed, or you can leave them off completely if you wish.
A charging unit is also included, which is the same design as any other Oral-B toothbrush charging unit.
Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush review: Functionality
The Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush is simple to use and operate straight out of the box as it comes partially charged and ready to go. Simply fit one of the four Frozen-themed stickers provided to the base of the handle and get going. There’s no need to use the accompanying Disney app unless you wish to.
Push the power button once to start operating the brush in sensitive mode, and twice for daily clean mode. A third push of the button turns the toothbrush off.
The accompanying app is easy to set up too, with no registration or verification process to go through before your child can start using it. The app opens with Mickey Mouse, and users can scan their Oral-B toothbrush to unlock the character featured on their toothbrush.
When your child is ready to brush, simply click ‘Brush’ and the app features an image slowly being uncovered over the two minutes of brushing time. There is some basic guidance on which areas of the mouth to brush, but parents will need to supervise their child to ensure good coverage. The quadrant pacer built into the toothbrush will also help with this.
The app also features AR mode where you can see your Disney character come to life in your own home. It’s a little basic and underwhelming, though younger children will probably love it.
Unless your little one is an avid fan of Frozen (or whichever other design you purchase), it’s likely they may tire of using the app before long. However, younger kids will enjoy the experience of brushing along with their favorite characters, while older children who don’t brush for long enough may be encouraged to brush for longer.
- Related: How to use an electric toothbrush
Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush review: Performance
At around 65 decibels, around the same volume as normal conversation, the Oral-B Kids Disney Frozen electric toothbrush can cause quite a racket. This is because it’s an oscillating-rotating toothbrush, which are always more noisy than the quieter sonic toothbrushes available.
If you’re worried about the volume, you may prefer the Philips Sonicare for Kids, which operates at around 38 decibels. Some younger children, or children with sensitivity to loud noises, could be put off by how noisy it is during operation.
A full charge can take up to 16 hours, but once charged, the toothbrush is designed to last for around eight days of use, although we couldn’t confirm that in our at-home testing due to limited time.
Oral-B says its toothbrush is waterproof, so during our testing, we submerged it in water for a full brushing cycle. It worked perfectly afterwards without any problems.
Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush review: What’s good about it?
The customizable aspect of the brush, while simple, is effective. It’s also super easy to change the stickers whenever you want. The whole design works well without stickers too, so once you run out, it’s fine to have it without any customization.
The built-in timer and quad pacer works well, using a stuttering sound to alert your child to move the toothbrush to the next quadrants, and a longer stuttering sound to tell you when brushing time is up.
The app is also fairly easy to use and will keep younger children occupied while brushing their teeth.
We also liked the textured handle of the toothbrush, which improved grip, especially with wet hands.
Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush review: What’s not so good about it?
The accompanying app is pretty basic - there’s not much coaching other than to brush for the recommended time. However, it’s bright and colorful, and features lots of Disney characters to choose from, provided you are able to scan an oral-B product to unlock them.
There’s always a chance that your little one will tire of the Frozen theme before they are ready to change their toothbrush. However, it’s possible to purchase other brush heads without the Frozen theme, and you can remove the stickers if needs be.
Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush review: User reviews
The Oral-B Kids Disney Frozen gets an impressive 4.7 stars out of 5 on Amazon.com, with 82% of users giving it the full 5 stars. Positive reviewers say it’s easy to keep clean, and works well to encourage good brushing techniques in their children. They also say the Magic Timer app works well to improve brushing time. Some adults even use the brush with an adult brush head, as a cheaper alternative to adult electric toothbrushes.
Negative reviews mention that the quadrant pacer is too subtle for younger kids to notice, the toothbrush is too noisy during operation, and there is no auto-off function after the two minutes of brushing time have elapsed.
Should you buy the Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush?
Oral-B are well-known for their reliable range of effective oscillating-rotating toothbrushes, and this brush is no different. It gives an effective clean, and the accompanying app encourages your little one to brush for longer. Its affordable price also makes it a good choice. The app isn’t too distracting and the in-built quadpacer and timer are helpful features Replacement brushes are also fairly cheap and easy to get a hold of in most retailers.
Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush review: If this product isn’t for you
If you’d prefer a quieter sonic toothbrush for your child, check out the Philips Sonicare for Kids electric toothbrush. It’s suitable from three years of age, features a quadrant pacer and 2-minute timer, plus a smaller toothbrush head for younger kids. It also comes with a free accompanying app to help your child improve their brushing technique.
If your child loves augmented reality (AR), the Colgate Hum Kids uses AR to track your child’s brushing via a connected app, bringing their brushing technique into a live game. It also has a slim, ergonomic handle and a small brush head for younger kids.
For a truly stylish bathroom shelfie, look no further than the Foreo ISSA kids. Available in four bright colors and featuring a sad or happy face based on brushing time, this uniquely designed toothbrush gives up to 265 brushing sessions on a single charge.
Joanne Lewsley is a UK-based freelance writer and editor, covering health and lifestyle news and features. She mainly creates evidence-based health and parenting content and has worked with a number of global sites, including BabyCentre UK, Medical News Today, Fit & Well, Top Ten Reviews, and Yahoo!