For Sonicare’s first attempt at a true oral irrigator, the 3000 is
really quite special. I am impressed. The 3000 does lack some textured grip
on the handle and the nozzle isn’t that easy to actually rotate, but,
this is more than made up for by the excellent cleaning performance and other features it offers.
As good as it is, youu might want to consider a different model entirely.
Hey, it’s Jon from Electric Teeth here. Cordless water flossers are very popular
and for good reason. They are more travel friendly. Their size and rechargeable batteries
are convenient and you are not restricted by wires like you are with their corded counterparts.
However, you generally still need to use it by a sink to expel
the wate water that is produced by water flossing.
On the bottom of the 3000 is an 8.4oz or 250ml water tank
that can be refilled 2 different ways. You can twist it off, fill it
and twist it back on again. Or you can open the hinged door on the lower edge of the tank.
In use you can get anywhere between 60 and 85 seconds of use from a full tank
subject to the cleaning mode and pressure setting chosen.
The 3000 offers 3 different pressure settings and 2 different cleaning modes.
This gives 6 different combinations to choose from.
Whether you want a more powerful an intense flossing action or a more gentle and massaging
experience the 3000 has you covered. It isn’t the 10 pressure levels of countertop units, but
together these offer more than enough variety to suit almost all users.
A full clean should take about 60 seconds. That is 15 seconds on the front tooth surfaced
in the upper arch and 15 on the inside surfaces. Repeat again for the bottom arch and you are done.
But, cleaning he interdental spaces evenly isn’t always that easy.
Built into the 3000 is a pacer that encourages even cleaning.
At 15 second intervals a pause in the water flow is your cue
to move from one section of the mouth to another.
2 styles of nozzle are provided in the box. You have the classic jet tip
and Sonicare’s new, quad stream tip. The Quad stream tip is quite unique in that
it pushes the water out in an X shape rather than the classic jet approach.
The X creates a larger surface area and should help achieve better cleaning results, even when
your flossing technique might not be perfect. Sonicare claims up to 9 times more plaque removal.
Using the quad stream tip certainly felt different and I could tell how more of the gum
and tooth were being cleaned. Post use though I can’t say I noticed a meanignful difference
in how clean my mouth felt with the quad steam nozzle vs the standard jet tip.
Either felt like they did a good job at removing plaque and debris and I haven’t been disappointed.
Philips own testing has proven that it can remove up to 99.9% of plaque on treated surfaces.
The 3000 comes with a travel pouch in the box to give a bit of protection to the flosser when
traveling. And I really like how a nozzle can be stowed in the base of the flosser handle
so it doesn’t become damaged when on the go.
It isn’t perfect though.
The 3000 is very smooth to the touch and doesn’t feel as grippy and secure in hand as you might
hope. It isn’t necessarily a big issue, but there is a lack of textured surfaces that
give that peace of mind when handling it. A trade off for the clean look the flosser has I guess.
The issue with grip is perhaps exaccibated when you discover that although the nozzle
can be rotated a full 360 degrees like most cordless water flossers,
doing so is a bit tricky. The mechanism is a bit stiff.
You certainly can’t reasily roate it one handed. Ideally you need one hand to hold the 3000
and the other to twist the nozzle. This isn’t a problem you have with most Waterpik models.
The flappy rubber cover over the charging port isn’t my ideal setup.
These are prone to breaking. But, Philips have designed the cover well.
There is enough play in the cover that it isn’t being stressed so should stand the test of time.
Despite a claimed 14 days of battery life,
I achieved up to 54 days in my testing. This is superb.
And thankfully Philips have done something too few others
do and that is to include a USB type C connector on the 3000 for charging.
A power adapter and USB cable is supplied, but being USB type c,
it is very convenient option and increases the power sources you can use to recharge it.
The price of the power flosser will vary around the world.
The reatil price $79.99 in the USA and £119.99 in the UK.
Typical selling prices should be a touch lower at approximately $70 and £100.
This is comparable to the alternatives from market leader Waterpik.
Going against the power flosser is the cost of replacement nozzles. A Sonicare
F1 standard nozzle costs about $6.50 or £12.50 each. That is about $1.50 or £8
more expensive than the Waterpik alternative.
The cordless power flosser 3000 is a great product
that really takes the challenge to Waterpik and their top of the line cordless advanced model.
You could do a lot worse than opting for the power flosser 3000. But it is
the cordless advanced from Waterpik that is the better value purchase,
that is more grippy in hand and allows for the nozzle to be rotated more easily.
In the description below are links to buy either the 3000 or the cordless advanced. You will too
find my written review that accompanies this video and goes into even more detail.