What the cleaning experience is like and how clean our teeth felt after brushing.
How well it cleans Score SummaryWhat the brush is like in-hand; how grippy it is, what the balance is like, how easy it is to remove brush heads.
How it feels Score SummaryDoes the brush have our recommended features of a timer, pacer & pressure sensor and how well do they perform?
Recommended features Score SummaryHow long does the battery last, how long does it take to charge and does the brush have a battery level indicator?
Battery performance Score SummaryWhat are the total ownership costs over the space of several years and how expensive are replacement brush heads?
Price Score SummaryHow easy is it to clean the brush, how noisy is it, does it come with a travel case or any other useful items?
Additional items & features Score SummaryHow long is the warranty, what is the manufacturer's reputation and how strong are its environmental efforts?
Support & reputation Score SummaryApplies to smart toothbrushes only. How well does the smart technology work and how useful is the app?
Smart features Score SummaryOur verdict
I like the 4100 Series a lot. It has the essential features required, as well as some extras.
If it's on offer and priced at £50-65, the 4100 is a must-buy.
The Series 5300 is a slightly newer brush from Sonicare, but they are very much comparable. If it's only £5 to £10 more, it's worth going for.
Pros |
Cons |
|---|---|
Slim, stylish & easy to keep clean |
No indicator lights to show which mode is selected |
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2 cleaning modes |
Sonic motor configured differently to premium models |
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Reminds you when to replace your brush head |
How well it cleans
I've given the 4100 Series full marks here. The plaque disclosing tests I conducted during testing confirm that the 4100 does a very good job of cleaning your teeth. I got that deep and invigorating clean feeling after each use. I certainly have no complaints.
The motor is configured differently, but it doesn’t impact results
The 4100 doesn’t have 62,000 movements like some of Sonicare’s premium brushes.
Existing Sonicare users might notice the slight difference in power. Even for me, as someone who has tested scores of brushes, this difference isn’t immediately obvious due to the way the motor has been tuned.
The power and the number of bristle movements are only part of the equation in achieving clean teeth, so the fact that the motor in the 4100 is programmed slightly differently isn’t a massive issue.
It's reassuringly simple and easy to use
The 4100 Series includes 2 cleaning modes, Clean and Sensitive, which keeps things reassuringly simple and easy to use.
Clean is my preference and the mode I recommend you use daily.
Pressing the power button switches between the two modes, giving the option of a more gentle or more intense setting.
The Sensitive mode is ideal for when your teeth and gums feel a bit tender or inflamed. It’s good for new toothbrush users too. Should you be a new electric toothbrush user, the 4100 does have an EasyStart mode that gradually increases the brushing intensity over the 14 sessions to ease you in.
You can tell the difference between the two modes based on their sound and intensity. The more powerful mode is my preferred setting for everyday brushing. There are no labels or icons on the handle to confirm which is selected, but it's easy enough to distinguish between the two.
There is no whitening or gum care mode. Additional cleaning modes and their benefits are often overrated, rarely do they bring significant benefits.
It might be worth switching from the supplied brush head
Philips offers a diverse range of interchangeable brush heads that are compatible with the 4100 Series.
A single W2 Optimal White brush head is provided with the 4100. It achieves a good overall clean. It is perfectly usable but is designed to maximise stain removal. I prefer the soft G2 Optimal Gum Care or C2 Optimal Plaque Control heads for everyday cleaning.
Sonicare does offer premium alternatives of these push on and pull off heads, but they cost more and don’t provide any significant benefit. The main difference is the silicone backing to the head.
Worry more about your technique and brushing time than brush head style. None are going to provide dramatic differences in the cleaning results.
How it feels
First impressions of the 4100 Series are great. It has a minimal design that is easy to keep clean. It’s lighter and slimmer than its predecessor, which impacts battery life, but thankfully not too much.
Durable and quality feeling in the hand
It definitely isn’t the most grippy of toothbrushes I have used. There is a lack of raised notches and rubber panels compared to others. Yet the matt finish somehow gives a reassuring resistance against the palm and fingertips. The squarer edges to the handle - which isn’t a perfect cylinder - help too.
The minimal design and lack of textured surfaces make it easier to keep clean.
It looks good and feels quality in the hand. Squeezing the handle doesn’t result in any dubious sounding creaks or groans from the plastic.
It looks good and feels quality in the hand. It’s water resistant too — you can use it in the shower or rinse it under the tap.
If you like variety, it’s available in a number of different color options:
- 4100 with no travel case
- White - HX2681/33
- Black - HX3681/54
- 4100 with travel case
- White - HX3683/33
- Black - HX3683/54
The power button gives a nice clicky feedback
The only button on the handle has a concave shape, with a rubber finish and power icon embossed. It’s easily detected by the fingertip and when pressed gives reassuring feedback whilst producing a clicky sound.
It isn’t very firm, which is great for those with limited dexterity.
Recommended features
The 4100 comes with the essential, dentist-recommended features you need. They are well-implemented and perform as expected.
The timer and pacer help you to brush for the right amount of time
Most dental professionals, our in-house dentists included, recommend cleaning your teeth twice a day, for at least 2 minutes each time.
The 4100 Series helps you to achieve this. The timer kicks in as soon as you press the power button. It then turns the brush off automatically after a 2 minute brushing session. So, if you turn the brush off, you know you haven’t brushed for long enough.
To keep your teeth healthy you need to give them all equal attention. The QuadPacer or 30 second timer pauses the bristle motion. It creates a change in sound and brushing sensation. This is your cue to move between the 4 sections of the mouth until all have been brushed.
The pressure sensor alerts you when you brush too hard
Too much pressure can cause wear on the teeth and gums and in the long term result in irreversible damage. The 4100’s built-in pressure sensor can help you if you know you brush too hard.
The handle vibration pattern changes when it detects too much force is being applied. At the same time, the brushing sensation and sound alter.
Where you get a large visible light on many Oral-B brushes, you don’t on the 4100. The BrushSync replacement reminder LED does flash amber, but given its position and size, it is not the easiest to see.
Don’t worry if you end up activating the pressure sensor occasionally, I still do. You just want to correct frequent forceful brushing.
Additional items & features
The 4100 Series scores below average in this category because it comes with the essentials only. This is great because it means you are not paying for unnecessary extras. Additional features can enhance daily user experience, but their benefits can be hard to justify once you factor in price.
The optional travel case provides protection when on the go
The 4100 Series is available with or without a travel case.
My pick is the variant with the case, assuming it’s no more than £10 more expensive. It’s incredibly useful for those nights away from home.
Holding the handle and up to 2 heads, it’s basic but functional.
BrushSync reminds you when your brush head needs replacing
The provided W2 head, along with the majority of other brush head options now have Radio Frequency Identification Chip (RFID) built-in.
Communicating with the 4100 handle, the usage time of the head is tracked. After the equivalent of 3 months use, a light illuminates on the handle and a vibration is emitted to alert you that it’s time to change the head.
Continuing to use it for a bit longer isn’t a big issue, but it could be cleaning less effectively and the tips will likely have become worn and could be more abrasive on the surfaces in your mouth.
If you’re not too hot on remembering when you last replaced your head this can be a handy reminder.
This clever system is otherwise known as BrushSync technology. Our guide to BrushSync explains the things you need to know.
USB charging has some advantages
The provided charging stand is a newer design for Sonicare. It has a slightly smaller footprint than previous designs. It still has a protuberance that fits into the base of the brush handle. The 2 pin adapter is replaced with a USB cable (approximately 110cm / 43 inches long) hardwired into the round charger.
USB connectivity enables you to power it from more sources, such as a computer or portable battery bank. It does also make it more travel-friendly.
It’s for environmental reasons that no 2 pin USB power adapter is provided. Now that USB cables are so ubiquitous, Sonicare doesn't include one based on the logic that you will already own at least one (for phone charging, for example).
Unless you source a 2 pin USB power adapter (they are not readily available), you will have to charge it from another socket in your home rather than your bathroom. This isn't a dealbreaker, but something to be aware of it you're used to charging your brush in the bathroom.
A full charge can take up to 24 hours.
An LED on the handle gives feedback on the charge level when on and off the charger.
Battery performance
The battery gives a minimum of 2 weeks use.
I achieved 17 days of use on the higher of the 2 brushing intensities but a staggering 41 days on the lower. So it is safe to say that the minimum you will achieve is the 2 weeks Philips claim.
This is more than acceptable from the rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery, but the industry average does tend to be around 3-4 weeks. So the 4100 perhaps falls marginally behind here. The benefit is the slimmer and lighter handle.
In the table below we've compared the battery life of the 4100 with the Sonicare Series 5300, Oral-B iO3 and SURI 2.0, which are our most recommended brushes.
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Philips Sonicare 4100 Series + Travel Case
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Philips Sonicare Series 5300
|
|
Oral-B iO Series 3 (iO3)
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|
SURI 2.0
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Price & buying advice
The 4100 Series is fairly priced for the features included.
£99.99 is the retail price, but don't pay this. Discounts are available and you should be able to get it for around £50-60. At this price, it's a great buy.
If you want the travel case, you’ll be looking at £55-65 compared to the £109.99 retail price.
The 5300 Series is the Sonicare brush we recommend the most. We rate it slightly better than the 4100 but there's not a lot in it.
It's worth noting that replacement brush heads contribute to the long-term ownership costs. At around £5 each, The 4100 Series (without the case) will cost around £105 to own over 3 years.
In the comparison table below, I've included the other two brushes we recommend alongside the 5300 Series, the Oral-B iO3 and SURI 2.0.
| Overall Score |
| How well it cleans |
| How it feels |
| Recommended features |
| Additional items & features |
| Battery performance |
| Smart features |
| Price |
| Support & reputation |
| Approximate 3 year cost |
| Buying options |
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
81
|
83
|
87
|
81
|
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
100
|
|
88
|
88
|
97
|
88
|
|
82
|
82
|
82
|
100
|
|
47
|
47
|
68
|
22
|
|
60
|
67
|
77
|
53
|
| - | - | - | - |
|
43
|
57
|
57
|
43
|
|
77
|
77
|
73
|
90
|
| £123 | £125 | £157 | £115 |
Support & reputation
A 2 year warranty is included as standard with the 4100 Series.
I can often find any notable weaknesses in the product design having handled so many toothbrushes. I’ve no reason to complain or be concerned about the 4100. The handle looks and feels well built, with no meaningful gaps between parts.
Philips has many years of manufacturing, research, and design experience. I trust that they have done a good job and learned from any previous mistakes. I nor Sonicare would ever suggest 100% reliability, but the failure rate should be very low indeed.
Unfortunately, no parts on the brush are designed to be user serviceable thus, should it fail, in most cases they will send you a new brush.
With a need to move to more sustainable approaches the lack of repairability is disappointing.
Environmental impact
Philips exclude a 2 pin power adapter from the box contents, citing the environmental benefits. This is good, but feels somewhat silly when the handle and charging stand still come wrapped unnecessarily in plastic.
The paper based packaging is recyclable and the box is relatively small all things considered.
We don’t know the exact environmental impact of this particular model, but as a general rule the impact of electric toothbrushes is around 11 times more than a manual brush.
Not being a smart brush reduces the total number of components used and means not as much waste is created when the brush no longer works.
RFID enabled brush heads do add to the impact of e-waste though.
Petroleum based plastic is used in the construction of the brush which uses up the planet’s finite resources compared to using plant-based plastics.
It has not been designed to be easily repaired at home. Trying to replace parts like the battery will likely break the brush. This makes it more likely to be discarded rather than repaired if broken.
According to product listings on the Sonicare website, some of its brush heads are now made from 70% bio-based plastic. Although it's still plastic, bio-based alternatives are preferable to petroleum-based plastics as they make use of renewable resources instead of finite ones.
Previously Sonicare had partnered with Terracycle for recycling brush heads, but this has now been discontinued. We would like to see it introduce its own recycling program to help manage the waste it produces. SURI is an example of a manufacturer that has implemented this.
Conclusion: a brush you should buy if the price is right
Slim and stylish, equipped with the essential features recommended by dentists, and priced reasonably, there’s little to find fault with here.
The price is the only catch. It's not always on offer, but if you can buy at around £50-65, you won’t be disappointed.
If it's similarly priced, the Series 5300 is a newer model that's worth going for instead.
Video review
You can watch my Sonicare 4100 Series video review below.
Size guide
- Toothbrush height with head - 23.4cm / 9.2 inches
- Toothbrush height without head - 17.3cm / 6.8 inches
- Width - 2.5cm / 0.9 inches
- Depth/thickness - 2.7cm / 1 inches
- Weight with head - 97g / 3.4oz
- Weight without head - 92g / 3.2oz
- Travel case size - 19cm / 7.5 inches (L) x 5cm / 2 inches (W) x 3cm / 1.2 inches (D)
- Travel case weight - 49g / 1.7oz without brush or 146g / 5.2oz with brush
- Package weight - 388g / 13.7oz
Noise
- 60dB
Country of manufacture
- China
