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Dyson has launched an electric toothbrush in a turn of events nobody expected. On Tuesday, at a keynote-style event in Paris, James Dyson took to the stage to unveil the world’s first toothbrush with a camera inside. Its internal computer uses this footage to track the gaps between the teeth and uses precise jets of mouthwash to floss there. It also comes with its own range of toothpaste and mouthwash to boot.
We caught a brief glimpse of the CameraJet at IFA in Berlin, but I was lucky enough to attend the official launch in Paris, speak with Dyson engineers and get hands-on with the brush both at the event and at home. Having tested a huge range of toothbrushes in my time, it’s safe to say this is the wackiest and messiest of the lot.
What is the Dyson CameraJet?
The homecare giant’s latest invention is the world’s first toothbrush that includes a camera to track your brushing. It tracks the gaps between your teeth and fires a precise jet of mouthwash there, to floss while you brush.
According to Dyson, this concept was borne out of the worrying statistic that 9 out of 10 people don’t floss as often as they should. Their solution, to build a full dental routine with sonic brushing, flossing and mouth washing in one device, is as innovative as it is complex.
How does it work?
The central component here is the 100,000-pixel macro lens camera, which is just 1mm2 in size and sits below the brush head. This is connected to a computer inside, which has been trained on 470,000 dental images and allows the brush to track and predict the gaps between the teeth. There’s also a light next to the camera, allowing a clear and stable picture, despite the vibrations. When the brush detects a gap using this “Gap Optical Targeting” it fires a jet of mouthwash into the area within 100 milliseconds.
The aim of this jet of mouthwash is to prevent plaque buildup. Unlike a typical water flosser, which uses a thin needle jet, the CameraJet uses a conical jet. This covers a wider surface area which, according to Dyson’s in-house tests using proxy plaque, is gentler on gums and can sweep and remove plaque in one spray, unlike needle jets which pierce holes through plaque but fail to remove it all.
Also, unlike other water flossers, the 12.5ml tank on the CameraJet has an anti-gravity system, which eliminates air pockets and allows even jet pressure from every angle. And, since the mouthwash is dispensed in small, dosed jets, it doesn’t flood the mouth like a typical water flosser.
The tank can be filled manually, or using the USB-C charging dock, which is enormous and looks a lot like a Soda Stream, thanks to the mouthwash tank on the back. Using the dock is quick, simple and mess-free, but since it’s so massive, it isn’t ideal for travel, even with the plastic travel sheath. Luckily, there’s a small charging cable and a travel lock if you want to travel without the dock.
The brush head bristles are contoured to reach a greater portion of the tooth’s surface, while the brush uses ‘variable sonic oscillation’ to prevent the bristles from stalling on the teeth, keeping them in constant motion for a better clean. Its heads are also fitted with an RFID tag that detects when it’s time to replace them after three months.
Replacement brush heads cost £24 for two and are made from a clear plastic that slots cleanly over the camera setup.
As you might expect for a brush this high-tech, it’s wi-fi and Bluetooth connected and has an app. Typically that would turn my stomach, but this app allows you to view a live feed inside your mouth and watch the tracking in action, which is unlike any brush tracking I’ve seen before. Dyson calls this “seeing what your dentist sees”, which should allow users to spot any changes before they arise. After brushing, Dyson shows a handy, and remarkably accurate, diagram of your brushing, which depicts missed spots and instructs you on how to clean them properly next time.
Since foaming dental products can obstruct the camera’s vision, Dyson has also developed a range of toothpastes and mouth washes. These don’t contain the foaming agent SLS and will be available in two main flavours: Ginger Mint and Spearmint. Those with sensitive teeth should opt for the third Peppermint toothpaste. While you can use the brush with other mouthwashes and toothpastes, Dyson warns this may impact the performance of the brush.
Dyson CameraJet: Early verdict
I’ve been using the brush since I returned from Paris two nights ago, and while I’m very impressed by the brush’s engineering and easy to use design, it hasn’t been without its *ahem* teething problems.
Firstly, and Dyson is very clear about this in its instructions, you’ll likely need to use a modified brushing technique. This involves holding the brush perfectly parallel to the teeth, to keep the camera in line with the teeth. This is very easy on the front surface of the teeth, but far trickier on the inside surface. I often found the mouthwash failed to fire on the back surface of my front bottom teeth, since the angle was tricky and the area quickly filled with slurry, blocking the camera’s view. This means it’s important to regularly spit out slurry during brushing, which was a messier process than usual, and I worried that I was losing toothpaste for the upper teeth. Further, since you have to smile wide when brushing the front teeth, I ended up with an enormous and unavoidable spray of mouthwash all over my bathroom mirror. Cleaning this up twice daily is a hassle.
I also found the toothbrush’s app-based tracking more accurate than in other brushes and the in-app instructions proved particularly useful in my first tests of the brush. But, as with most toothbrush tracking apps, I know I won’t use it every day; I really don’t fancy tuning into a twice daily live stream inside of my mouth. That said, at least the app has a clear purpose, which would allow me to see inside my mouth clearly if any tooth pain or soreness crops up.
While my teeth do feel incredibly clean after using the brush, and it saves me a messy flossing job every day, I still need more time to test the brush. We’ll be testing the brush using our normal parameters, so check back soon for a full review.
