Most of our judges rated this toothbrush very highly, finding it to be solidly comfortable, with even our judges with sensitive gums giving it their stamp of approval. However, there was a small minority of judges that weren't the biggest fans of this brush. They didn't think that it was overly abrasive, like some of the oscillation-rotation models from Oral-B, more than the frequency of the vibration to be high enough to be slightly off-putting. Slightly disappointing accessories aside, particularly the bog-standard travel case, the Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 is a top electric toothbrush. Yes, it’s comparatively expensive, but it’s smart brush-head technology and excellent cleaning ability make it a winner. If you want clean teeth with the minimum of fuss, this is the best sonic toothbrush that I’ve tested. Verdict

Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 Electric Toothbrush with Travel Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 Electric Toothbrush with

Another thing to mention is that this toothbrush is super quiet, especially compared to some of Oral-B’s high-end offerings. Sure, it produces a high-pitched buzz, but that won’t prove too annoying during use. When you aren’t rinsing your toothbrush under the tap, you’ll find some easy-to-use controls on the handle of the ProtectiveClean 6100. While the top button turns the toothbrush on, the one underneath acts as a mode selector. The brush head also tells the toothbrush which mode to select: using a gum care brush head will select the optimal mode, although you can always override the setting. On the front are two controls. The first turns the toothbrush on. The second is a mode selector button. With the brush on, it adjusts the power, with three settings available. With the brush off, this button lets you choose the mode: clean, white or gum care.

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As with most sonic toothbrushes, this model is very quiet, at just 71.2dB. That’s loud enough that you can hear it, but the high-pitched buzz isn’t distracting or annoying. Why buy the Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100? The first thing we scored for each electric toothbrush is how comfortable it is to brush with, which is responsible for close to half (40%!) of the final score for each toothbrush. We compared the noise level of each toothbrush and if it had a sensor to detect if you are brushing too hard to determine points, but the bulk of the score for this metric depended on the opinion of our panel of judges after they had used the 6100. As with most electric toothbrushes, the ProtectiveClean 6100 has a built-in timer that will pulse every 30 seconds to encourage you to move onto the next quadrant of your teeth. It’ll turn itself off after two minutes of cleaning to tell you you’re done with brushing for now. The brush also sports a pressure sensor. Press too hard while brushing and this will give you pulse and red light on the brush handle warning you to ease off. To start with, the toothbrush begins in EasyStart mode, which slowly increases power over 14 initial uses, to help you get used to it.

Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 review - Which? Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 review - Which?

However, we should note that this probably won’t last very long, especially if you don’t fully wash away all the toothpaste from the toothbrush after use. After a few weeks of allowing remnants of toothpaste to remain on the handle, our beautiful handle was soiled in white stains that we cannot scrub off for love nor money. This can be easily avoided, however, by simply giving it a good rinse after use.Our experience with the Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 was nothing but pleasant. Brushing performance is excellent, and the sonic vibrations do a great job cleaning your teeth and leaving you with a fresh-feeling gob. Testing on myself, the lightweight brush was easy to manoeuvre, and the sonic vibrations did a good job cleaning my teeth and leaving me with a fresh mouth. On inspection, my teeth were impeccably cleaned. The intensity setting is great to have, letting you to adjust the power for more sensitive areas. When the brush is powered off, this button lets you choose the brush mode, alternating between clean, white or gum care. Once the toothbrush is powered on this same button adjusts the power, with three intensity settings available. The Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 ships with two W2 Optimal White brush heads, which have bristles around the outside for getting between teeth, and a pad inside for whitening and polishing. The toothbrush has a pressure sensor. Press too hard while brushing and you get a pulse through the brush handle warning you to loosen up. It’s a neat way of keeping you brushing properly. As with other models, there’s a two-minute timer, with a pulse every 30 seconds encouraging you to move onto the next quadrant. Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 – Brush performance

Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 Review | Tested by GearLab Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 Review | Tested by GearLab

Brush performance from the Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 6100 was excellent. To test, I loaded up my test teeth with beetroot and spinach, pushing bits of food between the gaps in the teeth.