Philips Sonicare HX6972 FlexCare Plus Rechargeable Electric Toothbrush Review

 Rating: 4,5 of 5 stars====================Product price: Check new Price in amazon====================Buy with Secure Transaction Amazon now…====================
Product DescriptionWith nearly 80% of adults suffering from gum disease, Philips Sonicare, the #1 recommended brand by dental professionals, brings you FlexCare+. Clinically proven to improve gum health in only 2 weeks, FlexCare+ features a unique Gum Care mode, which provides 2 minutes of overall cleaning plus 1 minute to gently clean problem areas and along the gumline, reducing gum inflammation and bleeding, and protecting against gingivitis. Patented Sonic technology drives fluid to stimulate gums, while the contoured brush head removes plaque along the gumline. FlexCare+ also includes a UV Brush Head Sanitizer, which helps you keep select bacteria away from your brush head, and out of your mouth. The sanitizer helps eliminate up to 99 percent of select bacteria and viruses. Includes: 1 Philips Sonicare FlexCare+ toothbrush with 2 ProResults brush heads, 1 UV Brush Head Sanitizer, 1 travel charger, 2 hygienic travel caps, 1 hard travel case.

Philips Sonicare HX6972 FlexCare Plus Rechargeable Electric Toothbrush

Customer Reviews:* The differences between this model and the "older" Flexcare are minimal, that is probably why all they did is add a + to the end of the name. But there are a few differences between the two.1. Most notably is the "new" look. It has a cleaner appearance with most of the front being a dark chrome look, also instead of the green led's, it has a backlight behind the selected brushing mode.2. Gone are the 'Go Care' and 'Max Care' and in their place are 'Gum Care' and 'Refresh' mode. They do exactly what the other one did except for one important change on the 'Gum Care' mode which replaced 'Max Care (which is why I picked the new one over the old) '. Instead of having a 3 minute routine with 45 seconds each quad (30 normal + 15 massage) for a total of 3 min; they now have it where it goes 30 seconds each quad with an added 1 minute at the end for 'problem areas' which is broken down into four 15 second intervals.3. 'Different' color, looks very similar - its 'Soft Sky Blue' instead of 'Medical Blue'. Basically bluer color than the old one which was more of a green color.4. Supposedly lasts longer - 42 2-minute brushings, vs. 20 2-minute brushings of the old one5. Case is now hard plastic instead of the soft case that comes with the old modelThere is also a few changes in what the battery display shows with its charge but I'm not going to go into it that far with this review. I decided to upgrade from the Sonicare Elite as I was getting tired of seeing the nasty gunk that would grow inside of the handle. It was time to get a new brush head so I decided to go ahead and get a new brush while I was looking around. Overall I think it has been a good decision as this brush shouldn't need the constant cleaning of the old one and I like the new 'Gum Care' routine. So if wanted to know the differences, there you go, you probably now know more than you wanted about a toothbrush. If your like me and wanted to know at least some of this, it should help you decide between the two. I hope this helps you out.UPDATE 10/2011 - After more than 1.75 years the head of the brush was starting to make loud noises and had become "loosened" from the pressure of brushing. Luckily it comes with a 2 year warranty. I called them up and was sent a replacement brush immediately, excellent customer service! The brush I received is perfect and I have been using it since. Great product with great customer service to back it up! * I am thoroughly impressed with the Philips Sonicare FlexCare Plus. I was somewhat skeptical about what to expect from a teeth cleaning system promising such great things, and the price also caused me some hesitation. On the whole, however, this toothbrush delivers as advertised.MODES: There is no shortage of brushing options here. The Sonicare has five modes: Clean, Gum Care, Refresh, Sensitive and Massage. After reading the directions and making several trials with each one, I still can't quite figure out why Refresh is on here. There appears to be no distinction between Clean and Refresh, and the directions only indicate that the Clean mode is designed for a two minute brush, while the Refresh is designed for a one minute brush. The difference is also subtle between Clean/Refresh and Gum Care. Nothing wrong with having too many modes per se, but it almost seemed like Philips just wanted another selling point by offering five modes.The other Sensitive and Massage modes, however, demonstrated their unique value. Notably, the Sensitive option offered a much gentler brushing, and the Massage option was a nice change of pace along the gum line.As a side note when using any of the modes, and you will probably learn this within five seconds of your first use, make sure the toothbrush is in your mouth before turning it on. As I found out, a brush this powerful can and will spray toothpaste everywhere.PERFORMANCE: There is no denying that my teeth feel cleaner after each use of this toothbrush. The Sonicare does all the work, so there is no actual "brushing" involved on your end. The brush head is designed well. It gets into all the crevices and does a great job between the teeth and on the gums.I discovered one interesting thing upon reading the directions. The Sonicare comes defaulted to setting called Easy-start. Basically, this feature starts you off with a gentler brushing experience for your first use, and the power gradually builds throughout the first week (i.e., 14 brushings). The directions say this feature is there for you "to ease into the Sonicare experience." If you don't feel the need to ease into a toothbrush, don't worry, there's a way to turn off Easy-start. Further, I could not detect any difference in intensity during my first 14 brushings, but this may be the point of the feature.Also, I noticed that while brushing, the Sonicare sometimes stopped its buzzing for brief moment. After looking this up in the manual, I learned that this is the toothbrush's way of letting you know it's time to move to a new part of your mouth (e.g., after 30 seconds it's time to go from the front of the lower teeth to the back of the lower teeth).DESIGN: The handle of the toothbrush has a nice grip. The brush head is small, but I find this a good thing, because anything bigger would be a nuisance once it started buzzing in your mouth. The front of the handle will highlight which mode you are in, and it is very easy to tell which mode is highlighted. You can only switch modes when the Sonicare is turned off.UV SANITIZER: The UV sanitizer takes 10 minutes, if that. The brush head fits right inside the compartment on a small peg, and the door shuts firmly even though there's no latch. You push a button to start the cleaning process, and the UV light will turn off automatically. Also, if you open the door at any time during the cleaning, the UV light will immediately shut off (tried it). This is a safety feature. The brush head will come out slightly warm, but only slightly. I like this feature. I can't imagine what a hotbed of germs a toothbrush is, and the UV light kills 99% of bacteria and viruses.CHARGERS: It takes 24 hours to give this product a full charge, but once it's charged, you won't need to do it again for a long while. I've heard this from other reviewers, and I can tell you from my own experience that after a week of use, I still have full bars (3 of 3) showing on the display. The device comes with a travel charger as well, but you may just want to leave it in the drawer if you're only going out of town for a week or so. You can also leave the toothbrush in the charger after each use, and once the device is fully charged, it is designed to draw only minimal power from the outlet.The base of the charger also has a way for you to wrap the power cord under the device. This just allows you to shorten the amount of cord you have exposed to view. I first found this annoying because it's not that easy to fit the cord into the grooves in the bottom of the charger. Once done, however, it was nice to get the excess cord out of the way so it wasn't bunched up on the counter top.BOTTOM LINE: I know this product is expensive, and I know there may be more bells and whistles than you're looking for on a toothbrush, but I think it's worth it. Dental health is important, and we too often take it for granted.