Oclean X Pro Elite smart electric toothbrush review

Oclean is a sub-brand of Xiaomi, a company best known for its phones. But it also makes a number of other smart health and beauty products, including smart scales.

There are several models of Oclean electric toothbrush. The X Pro Elite, which we’re reviewing, is at the pricier end of the range but still excellent value considering its features.

Brush design and battery life

• Battery life of over a month
• 3.5 hour USB fast charge
• Slim, waterproof design

In the box, there’s one brush handle, one brush head, a wireless USB charger, a magnetic wall mount and a user manual. There’s no travel case, but you can buy one separately. 

The 16cm toothbrush is limestone grey with a non-gloss surface for extra grip. With a diameter of 2cm, it’s smaller and slimmer than rival brushes and fits nicely into the hand.

It’s IPX7 waterproof, which means you can keep it one meter deep in water for almost 30 minutes. That’s more than enough waterproofing to allow you to take it into the shower, if that’s your thing.

Oclean expects you to keep the toothbrush on the provided magnetic wall mount. It’s an absolutely genius idea because it keeps the toothbrush off your wet sink or bathroom surface, and you can place the toothbrush just where you need it, at a height that’s convenient. It’s a cleaner, tidier solution. 

Keeping it in the mount and not on a charger is made feasible by the brush’s long battery life. As you’ll only need to charge it once a month, you can keep the wireless base in a drawer until it’s needed again, reducing bathroom clutter. Plus, as it charges via USB, you’re not reliant on a shaving power socket or a shaver plug adapter, and you can use the same adapter that you use for your smart phone or laptop.   

The brush handle holds an 88mAH battery, which charges in about 3.5 hours. After 26 days of use twice a day for two minutes each, the toothbrush still had 27% left, meaning you lose roughly 1-2% of battery life every time you brush your teeth for two minutes.

Oclean says that the toothbrush is compatible with multiple wireless chargers, although we weren’t able to test this feature.

Touchscreen control

• Colour touchscreen
• Four brushing modes
• Over 30 brushing settings 

The toothbrush is controlled via a colour touchscreen on the front and a single button that switches it on and off and selects menu options.

Swiping the touchscreen down launches the menu, which displays model information, the brushing duration options of 2, 2.5 and 3 minutes, brushing intensity levels and four brushing modes: clean, sensitive, massage and white. 

Between the modes and intensities (which range from extremely gentle to a more powerful vibration), Oclean claims that the brush has 32 different brushing settings. There’s even a profile quiz in the app to help you find the right one.

But in everyday use, it’s just a question of pressing the button once to switch it on and pressing it again to start the brush going.

During a brushing cycle, the display counts down and shows your mouth quadrant coverage. However, there’s a slight problem in that you can’t see the display while brushing and sometimes the mouth quadrant graphic, which Oclean says is an 8-zone blind spot monitoring display, didn’t entirely chime with where you’d brushed.

The biggest issue with the X Pro Elite, however, is the lack of a pressure sensor. People often brush too hard as a substitute for brushing well and most high quality electric toothbrushes feature a pressure sensor, which will help them to protect their gums and tooth enamel.

If you find that your toothbrush bristles part in the middle like a palm tree after some use, it’s a sign that you’re brushing too hard and should opt for a brush with a pressure sensor to help change this habit. 

Using the Oclean X Pro Elite

• Quiet performance
• 30 second alerts
• 2 minute countdown timer

One of this toothbrush’s best features is its quiet performance. Oclean claims an operating volume of less than 45dB, but we think it’s even quieter. It is not going to wake anyone up, and the 30 second reminder to change the brushing quadrant of your mouth is just a quick pause in the cycle, rather than an audible tone.

We also loved the Oclean’s design, with its notably slim brush head and long neck. Only 5mm in width, this slimness means it is far easier to reach the sides of your back molars and get better brushing coverage. Our teeth felt clean after using the Oclean and looked noticeably better after two weeks of use.

The back of the brush also has a rubberised tongue cleaner. But you should note that the compact brush head and slim design is common to all Oclean brushes: you don’t have to opt for the priciest model to get them. 

Oclean app

• Pre-set brushing programmes
• In-app quiz to tailor brushing
• Must re-pair every time you open the app

To use the smart functionality, you’ll need to download the free to use Oclean app, which requires Android 4.4 or IOS 8.0 with Bluetooth 4.0. We couldn’t get the QR code in the manual to navigate to the right page, so we downloaded the Oclean app from Play store.

You’ll need to register, which might put off the more data conscious user, but you then set up your profile through a set of profile quiz questions that cover your age, whether you smoke or wear braces, and whether you drink coffee, tea or wine. The app then suggests a brushing profile for you and asks whether you want to try it.

You then pair your toothbrush to your phone app through Bluetooth, and the brushing profile exports to your phone, ready to go when you next start brushing. The app also gives you pictorial directions on how and where to brush according to the preset programme.

There are twelve app pre-set programmes: from strong cleaning for those with periodontal disease to newbie whitening and braces cleaning, and you also get an update to your main screen when your session has finished and a calendar that records your sessions.

One thing to mention is that the toothbrush needs to be powered on to pair with the app, and you tend to need to re-pair every time you open the app, which can be a little annoying. 

That said, the toothbrush operates just fine without the app. That means you can set it up, get the benefit of the tailored brushing programme, and ignore the app for day-to-day use.

Price and availability

The Oclean X Pro Elite brush is available in the US and internationally. Its US price represents excellent value for its feature set. In the UK, it’s currently available on Amazon, but its price jumps around, so you’ll need to buy at the right time.

If you like the idea of the Oclean’s shape and long battery life, but aren’t set on this model, you can browse options on Amazon, if you’re in the UK and on the Oclean site from the US. 

Replacement brush heads are available at the time of writing for around $5 each from Oclean in the US or £6.50 each from Amazon in the UK. If you wait for a deal, you’ll undoubtedly be able to get them for less but they’re unlikely to be as budget-friendly as replacement heads from one of the big brands like Oral-B, where you can buy compatible replacement heads for less than £1 each. 

Verdict

What makes a good electric toothbrush? Well, that really depends. If you want a sonic toothbrush with 42,000rpm cleaning power, a battery that lasts over a month from one full charge and is quiet, pleasant to use, and has great reach, you should consider the Oclean X Pro Elite.

Its standout feature is its long battery life and quick USB charging. There’s no need to have charging stands in your bathroom, nor do you risk getting caught out on a trip with a dead battery.

We think that the smart features are a good add-on at this price point, particularly the tailored programmes, but the brushing feedback is not nearly as accurate or effective as the Oral-B iO9.

For more electric toothbrush options, have a look at our round-up of the best electric toothbrushes and the best cheap electric toothbrushes we’ve tested.