Is Your Toothbrush Connected?

07 Mar Is Your Toothbrush Connected?

Is your toothbrush connected? I know. You were just asking yourself the same question. Procter & Gamble Oral-B has come to answer all of our prayers by creating the “World’s First Available Interactive Electric Toothbrush!” This toothbrush connects to your smartphone, via Bluetooth, while an app gives you mouth care tips. The app actually communicates with your brush to give you personalized brushing advice. It helps the brusher to focus in on the parts of your teeth and gums that need the most attention.

Hold on, hold on. Haven’t we heard this jaw dropping idea before? French start up company, Kolibree, claims that they were first to design the “World’s First Connected Electric Toothbrush.” Do I sense a bad taste in my mouth? According to Mr. Serval from Kolibree, “They are not stealing. I want to be very, very clear about that, but there are some ideas and even some worldviews in what they are doing that are very close to my pitch.”

When Oral-B presented its new toothbrush as the “first available” before the Mobile World Congress, Kolibree claimed that they had done just the same during January’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. However, according to Mr. Cohen-Dumani of P&G, it would be impossible to copy an idea like that in the span of just a few months. The competition continues to grow fierce. P&G is exploring the idea of adding “detection and motion-sensing” to future versions. Kolibree is playing around with the idea of a companion device with sensors to identify dental disease.

Whether the chicken or the egg came first, I don’t really care. I am more concerned with when and where I can get one of these things!!