Review (5/5): FANTASTIC for my receding gumline, and my teeth look and feel pretty darn good too (see review for important note)
*Important note* Amazon says they sent me a model EW-DL82-W (this toothbrush), but the toothbrush I got was [[ASIN:B00JTUOVAM model EW-DE92]]. I don't know what you'll get if you order from this page, but the DE92 is a BIG step up from the DL82. For starters, there's the silicone gum care brush. My brush also came with a point brush, which isn't something I need but would be useful if you can fit a brush between your teeth. And the DE92 has four settings: White, Soft, Sensitive, and Gumcare. The DL82 has only White and Soft.
*/note*
Skip to the last paragraph if this is way too long. There's lots of detail here.
Ok, no promises that this will work for everyone, but I've had receding gums for as long as I can remember. Even my dentist had no real solution--just use extra soft toothbrushes, he warned, and he always reminded me of the correct way to brush. And with every visit, my gums were just a little worse.
Then I got this and started using the silicone gum care brush once a day, per the instructions. And inside of a month, it is actually helping. Not only have my gums stopped receding but they're actually improving, and that's in spite of the fact that I don't floss nearly as regularly as I used to. (My bad.) My teeth used to be very sensitive to cold, but this is also improving. If this toothbrush did a lousy job on my teeth I'd still keep it just for the gum brush.
But it does a great job on my teeth, too.
This isn't my first sonic toothbrush. I've had three others; the last one was a Braun/Oral B. They really didn't do anything for me that a manual brush didn't do, and eventually I got tired of recharging them when there was no apparent benefit. For that reason I didn't have a lot of hope for this brush. Imagine my surprise.
Before I get into detail (200+ words later--can you tell I'm thrilled?) I should mention that buried in the four pages of warnings in the booklet, there's a "Caution: To prevent the risk of injury or damage to teeth and gum, do not use toothpaste that contains a high abrasive content, such as toothpaste for removing tar or for whitening." Even with regular toothpaste I still feel like I just walked out of the dentist's office, so I can see where a highly abrasive toothpaste might cause damage.
The detail:
When the toothbrush first arrived I figured that instead of the White setting I'd better try Soft first, but I immediately switched to Sensitive. It was just too uncomfortable at first. I'm now using Soft and I think I'll probably stay with that setting for good. This is an intense toothbrush, and my gums are wimps. The Soft setting is also recommended for tongue cleaning.
The Gum Care setting is a pulsing setting that should only be used with the silicone gum brush.
The main part of the toothbrush can be washed under running water. I rarely have to do this. It's pretty easy to keep the toothbrush handle clean while brushing, unlike the other sonic toothbrushes I've tried.
It helps that I don't have to use much toothpaste at all. I probably use less than half of what I used to use, and I still get a mouthful of foam. The easiest way I've found to apply toothpaste is to put a little on the brush, and with the brush still off I spread it evenly around my teeth. Then I start the brush.
All of the brushes should be used with a minimum of pressure. I sometimes forget and start crushing it against my teeth, but it's not necessary. Light pressure leaves my teeth feeling very clean.
Even though there's a timer that stops the brush for a second every 30 seconds, and twice at two minutes, I find I'm brushing for longer than that. For the first time I feel like I'm actually cleaning my back teeth, something I couldn't do well with any other brush, and I'm spending extra time on that. I'll probably cut back to two minutes when the novelty wears off or when the dental hygienist doesn't have to get out the jackhammer for my back teeth.
In addition to the vibrating brush, this toothbrush has "sonic vibrations" and "ionic power" that provides a "very weak electric current" if you hold the handle properly. This may be an amazing feature or it might be an annoying hum and a load of nonsense. The brush works really well for me, so I'm good with it either way.
Charging the toothbrush: It takes almost a full day. But I got over three weeks out of the first charge.
Replacement heads: I can't find any! It's not a problem yet, and if I can remember to be gentle I might be able to make this brush head last a while, but I'm going to need replacements eventually. Come on, Panasonic!
TL;DR summary: The EW-DE92 model toothbrush has done a great job of cleaning my teeth and helping my receding gumline. The strongest setting is way too strong for me, but the Soft setting is fine now that I'm used to it. For the first time I'm not dreading a visit to the dentist. It's slow to charge but the charge lasts a long time. Replacement brushes don't seem to be available yet, and if they don't appear soon the toothbrush won't work without them. I'm not sure what's up with Amazon's product pages, so if the four settings and three different brushes are important to you, you might want to buy [[ASIN:B00JTUOVAM the EW-DE92 model here]].