Existing smart brushes have tracked how long and how often users brush, displaying the data in a mobile app and, upon request, sharing it with the user’s dentist. But a newcomer to the field, Kolibree, tracks not just the quantity but the quality of brushing behavior.
“Right now you get your feedback from your dentist maybe once or twice a year, and for the first time you can actually get that real-time feedback twice a day from this smart app,” Renee Blodgett, the company’s PR person, told the Wall Street Journal in a video interview.
Admittedly, oral hygiene isn’t a thrilling topic for most, so $99 – $199 may be a steep price for a Bluetooth-connected toothbrush. But Kolibree is hoping to appeal to gadget nuts and to that mother of all consumer segments, parents, who currently use such low-tech methods to ensure their kids’ oral health as asking them a couple times a day if they remembered to brush.
The parent can be the master of the app that stores and displays data from several up to five brushes, and the app compares their brushing performance in a gamified way in hopes of turning sibling rivalry into better technique.
Meanwhile, for parents who are just looking to make sure the kids brushed for a reasonable amount of time, Beam Brush’s first-gen smart toothbrush costs just $24.99.
Photos: Kolibree, Beam Brush