Supermouth Ultim8 electric toothbrush review: Gentle giant

Best Prices Today: Supermouth Ultim8 electric toothbrush

The electric toothbrush market is dominated by Oral-B and Philips Sonicare but whenever we spot a brush from a new or independent brand, we like to test it out in our ongoing search for a hidden gem.

That brings me to dental care brand Supermouth, which makes all manner of dental care products – from mouthwash and floss to tongue cleaners and sprays – and a sonic toothbrush called Ultim8, which I’m reviewing here.

Design and Build

• Two-minute brushing timer
• Two intensity settings
• USB charging

As well as an old-school ravey name, the Ultim8 also comes freighted with a number of extravagant promises: the Supermouth website describes it as “a new era in oral care”.

And it does look the part. It’s luxuriously boxed and attractively designed, with long, curved lines and a redesigned, S-shaped toothbrush head with fine, soft, densely packed bristles.

It has the key features we recommend looking for in an electric toothbrush: a two-minute brushing timer with alerts every thirty seconds to let you know to move onto the next quadrant of your mouth, and a visible pressure sensor that glows red when you press too hard and green when you get it right.

It’s waterproof and the simple, sealed build means it’s easy to keep clean

It has two brushing intensity settings, which isn’t exactly a feast of options but should be enough if the brush cleans well.

The design has some practical benefits too. It’s waterproof (so it’s suitable for brushing your teeth in the shower, if that’s how you roll) and the simple, sealed build means it’s easy to keep clean.

But the first thing I noticed about it was the width of the handle. It’s extremely chunky to hold and although it’s not quite a long as an Oral-B iO, its width and the fact that its cleaning head is double the size means that it feels much larger.

This is likely not a problem for men or people with larger hands but it felt comically large in my hand and slightly uncomfortable to grip.

The Ultim8 comes in three colour options: pearly white, sapphire and rose gold, all of which have a metallic sheen on their handles, giving them a luxe look.

The Ultim8 comes with a USB charging cradle, to which it attaches magnetically. This means that it charges lying down, which I like as it’s less easy to knock over. It’s a really nicely designed accessory

Supermouth doesn’t say exactly how long the brush will last between charges but I found I could easily use it for three weeks, which means it’s a good option for travelling. And if you need to bring the charging cradle along, it’s tiny and light.

You can buy the brush alone, or with the SmartHub, a matching, vase-like unit that cleans the brush using UV light. The SmartHub does give an extra reason to buy, but it also ups the price significantly. Plus, at around 26cm high, it’s a big piece of kit you’ll need to find space for in your bathroom.

Performance and Features

• Quiet in use
• Large brush head
• Gentle cleaning

The Ultim8 is easy to use. A single button on the handle turns it on. Press again and it’ll switch intensity settings. A third press will turn it off, but if you’re brushing your teeth, it’ll switch off automatically after two minutes has elapsed.

It’s quiet in use, doesn’t spray toothpaste everywhere and its vibrations are gentle. Altogether, if you’re someone who doesn’t enjoy an intense electric toothbrush, it could be a good option for you. It’s certainly pleasant to use.

It felt unwieldy to use and I kept clumsily banging it against my teeth

It’s also a brush that could help you to protect your gums and tooth enamel, which makes it a good choice for people who have brushed too hard in the past and damaged their gums.

But it wasn’t right for me: it was just too big. The toothbrush head is almost twice the size of the Oral-B iO’s and it was much harder to clean my back molars. It felt unwieldy to use and I kept clumsily banging it against my teeth.

But this won’t be a problem for everyone.

The only other issue I had was that the pressure sensor didn’t feel responsive enough. I had to mash it against my teeth before the warning light appeared. But as it’s such a gentle brush, this isn’t a huge problem.

Supermouth does have an app, but it’s there to encourage kids to brush and doesn’t have features for adult users.

Price and Availability

The Ultim8 costs $99.99 from Supermouth and Amazon US. In the UK, you may be able to find it on Amazon but it’s much more expensive and you’d be better off buying from the manufacturer and paying for international shipping.

$99.99 isn’t outrageous for a sonic toothbrush – but it’s not exactly a bargain, either. You’ll get better value or more features for the price, depending on what you want to spend, if you buy an Oral-B brush. We rate Oral-B highly but they are powerful brushes and you can find a gentler option in our round-up of the best electric toothbrushes we’ve tested.

Plus, the Ultim8’s accessories are expensive. If you want the SmartHub UV cleaner, the bundle costs $169.99. There’s also a third buying option: throw in a travel SmartCase as well, for $199.99. Replacement brush heads cost $19.99 per pair from Supermouth.

Should you buy the Supermouth Ultim8?

The Ultim8 has aesthetic appeal and a smooth, sealed design that means it’s showerproof and easy to keep clean. Feature-wise, it has everything you need, although not as much as you could get elsewhere for the same price.

Overbrushing is a genuine problem and the high-end Oral-B iO and Philips Sonicare models have settings that are arguably too strong. Supermouth’s Ultim8 provides a welcome alternative, with its gentle vibrations and soft bristles. But its size is a problem and I can’t recommend it to everyone.

Best Prices Today: Supermouth Ultim8 electric toothbrush