REVIEW – My dentist tells me I brush my teeth too hard. Been telling me that for years. I tried softer brushes, but my teeth never felt as clean. As a result, I went with an electric toothbrush. It was just a cheap one my wife found on Amazon. It was fine. My dentist said my gums looked better, but the hygienist still had to scrape my teeth more than I would’ve liked. So when the Laifen Wave electric toothbrush came along, I was eager to try something better than what I was currently using. I mean, it’s an electric toothbrush. How much better could it be? Well, let’s talk about that.
What is it?
The Laifen Wave is an electric toothbrush that vibrates and oscillates with three different finishes and three different types of brush heads for all your dental cleaning needs.
What’s included?
- The Laifen Wave toothbrush base
- 3 different brush heads; 1 for gum care, 1 for super cleaning, and 1 for whitening
- Magnetic USB charging cable
- Quick start guide
- User manual
- Warranty information
Tech specs
Click to expand
Handle dimensions
(w/o Motor shaft/Brush head)
Length 31.6 mm*
Width 28.2 mm*
Height 142.7 mm
Handle weight (w/o Brush Head) 135±3 g
Handle material Food-grade ABS plastic
Handle production process Double-shot injection molding
Indicator light type Hidden indicator light
Motor Proprietary servo system that combines an industrial-grade permanent magnet synchronous motor and an electronic control system.
Maximum torque 440 gf.cm
Operating voltage 7.6V
Operating power 6W (Actual operating range: 1.0W-8.5W)
Rated Power Input 5V⎓1A
Noise level As low as 55dB (Tested from a distance of 10cm. Mode 1: ~55dB, Mode 2: ~57dB, Mode 3: ~60dB)
Waterproof rating IPX7 (Can be immersed in water that is 1m deep for 30 minutes)
Battery Li-ion high energy density battery
Battery capacity 900mAh (Two 900mAh batteries connected in series)
Battery life 30 days on Mode 2 when used twice a day, two minutes each time. (under the same conditions, Mode 1 is 44 days and Mode 3 is 18 days).
(If used twice per day, the average battery life is 43.5 days on Mode 1, 29.5 days on Mode 2, and 17.5 days on Mode 3)
Charging method Wired magnetic charger
Charging time Approximately 2.5 hours (cannot be charged during use)
Charge percentage & indicator light
100%: Steady green light
0~99%: Blinking green light
Power percentage & indicator light
50% – 100%: Steady green light
20% – 50%: Steady yellow light
10% – 20%: Steady red light
1% – 10%: Red light that blinks every 0.5s
0%: Red light that blinks every 0.5s until the motor stops
Default mode setting
Low: Vibration frequency: 26000 Vibrations/min (vibration strength 23°, oscillation range 13.2°, oscillation speed 3.9 Hz)
Medium: Vibration frequency: 26000 Vibrations/min (vibration strength 27°, oscillation range 19.8°, oscillation speed 4.6 Hz)
High: Vibration frequency: 26000 Vibrations/min (vibration strength 31°, oscillation range 19.8°, oscillation speed 4.6 Hz)
[Daily mode] Operating frequency
The vibration frequency in daily mode is 26000 vibrations/min.
Vibration strength: 7.6° – 20.8° (10 levels)
Oscillation range: 0° – 66° (10 levels)
Oscillation speed: 3 – 8.2 Hz/s (10 levels)
Brushing time reminder
2-minute brushing time reminder: After 2 minutes of brushing, the toothbrush will vibrate before entering sleep mode.
The brushing time can be changed in the Laifen App from between 1 – 5 minutes.
30-second brushing area change reminder: The toothbrush vibrates 2 times every 30 seconds to remind you to change brushing area (this feature must be manually activated in the Laifen App).
Sleep mode
While the toothbrush is on, press the button to pause.
After being paused for 10 seconds, it will automatically enter sleep mode.
Smart wake-up
Raise the toothbrush to an upright position to wake up the toothbrush. The battery and mode indicators will both light up.
Flight mode
Press and hold the button for 2 seconds to enable flight mode.
Long press for 2 seconds to disable.
Backpack mode
Moving with the toothbrush for 3 minutes will activate backpack mode.
This mode requires a button press to unlock.
Design and features
To get this out of the way, the Laifen Wave electric toothbrush comes in three different finishes. They have one in ABS plastic, one in an aluminum alloy, and one in stainless steel. I received the ABS version and I’m perfectly fine with that. It looks much better than the one I currently use and not as much as the torture devices my kids chose. Laifen uses “nano molding technology in an electric toothbrush, a process commonly employed in flagship smartphones. This process creates a secure bond between the outer shell and internal structure, guaranteeing extraordinary stability and durability”. I can attest that the Wave feels pretty premium in the hand. It has a good heft and the body is pretty much seamless. The seam you see in the picture below is a sticker with instructions to get you started. Once that’s removed, it’s as smooth as glass. The button is pressure sensitive using an optical sensor that detects pressure and distance to activate the Wave.
The Laifen Wave electric toothbrush has three different brush modes and can connect to a Laifen app on your phone. The app gives you the ability to change the intensity of brushing so you can make it faster or slower via Bluetooth. I’d love to show you some pics of it in action but the app stopped working correctly and I can’t get it to connect correctly to the toothbrush anymore. Do you need it to use the Wave? No. It works just fine without it. I played around with it when I first got the toothbrush but, the default settings for mode 1 are plenty strong enough. Additionally, you can switch modes on the brush itself.
And because it does use Bluetooth, it even has an airplane mode.
To charge the Laifen Wave electric toothbrush, it comes with a nice braided magnetic USB cable.
The problem I see here is if the cable stops working, you can’t go and grab another from the neighborhood department store. You’d have to order it directly from Laifen and currently, it’s not offered on their website. It is nice though, not have to line anything up perfectly to get it to charge. If you get close enough, the magnets take care of that for you. The only thing I don’t like is the charging contacts are on the bottom of the Wave, so it has to lie on its side to charge.
As I said earlier, the Laifen Wave comes with 3 different brush heads.
The blue one is for super cleaning and is the one I’ve decided to use. The grey one is for gum care and feels to be softer than the other 2, while the purple is for whitening and seems to be the stiffest. These heads appear proprietary, but I don’t know that for certain. None of the other heads I have for my previous toothbrush would fit since the hole for the shaft is way too big. Here’s a shot of the shaft on the Wave for reference.
Performance
I love the Laifen Wave electric toothbrush. I’ve always heard and read how other brands of toothbrushes leave you with that just left the dentist feeling, but the ones I used always came up short. The Laifen Wave has a powerful motor and allows for the brush to oscillate at 60 degrees while simultaneously vibrating up to 66,000 times a minute. Battery life has been great as well. I’ve used it for almost a month now and haven’t had to recharge it since I initially charged it when I first got it. Laifen says the Wave has an IPX7 waterproof rating which I guess is good since, you know, it’s a toothbrush and water will be a factor. The grey and blue brush heads work well. The grey feels very soft and has already started to age on me so I switched to the blue. I’ll probably steer clear of the purple one since it seems to be the stiffest and I was already getting the stick eye from my dentist for brushing too hard. Speaking of replacements, when I first got the Laifen Wave, replacements weren’t available on their site. I get it. It’s a new product so they were still in the process of getting everything ready for launch. They are now available for purchase, and much to my relief and surprise, they’re only $9.99 for a pack of 3. I’ve included a video with a portion in slow-mo to try to give you an idea of what it looks like during use.
What I like about Laifen Wave electric toothbrush
- Excellent build quality
- Multiple configurable modes of use
- Affordable replacement heads
- Long battery life
- Strong motor
- Oscillation and vibration
What needs to be improved?
- Proprietary charging cable
- Charging contacts on the bottom
Final thoughts
If anyone is in the market for an electric toothbrush, they should really look into the Laifen Wave. It’s much less expensive than others available. It also does a better job of cleaning my teeth than any other ones I’ve used in the past. Replacement heads are less expensive too. I will continue to use the Laifen Wave for the foreseeable future and I will be buying some more heads for it. I’m in for the long haul with this one. Now I just have to wait for my next dental appointment to see if my dentist approves.
Price: $69.99 for the ABS model
Where to buy: Laifen and Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by Laifen. Laifen did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
