Product test

Happybrush review: the electric toothbrush that gives you a sustainable smile

7/7/2023

I like stories with a flavour of David versus Goliath. Which is why I decided to review the Happybrush electric toothbrush and take a closer look. It’s a tale of a small company competing against the big industry leaders – and doing really well.

When it comes to sonic toothbrushes, there are two models that dominate the market: Philips’s Sonicare and Pulsonic from Oral B. The battle of the giants ensures seemingly revolutionary features year after year. It could be apps that evaluate how well you’ve cleaned your teeth; other times, it’s sleek models in a new colour. There’s only one area where the market leaders fall short when it comes to innovation. And that’s sustainability.

Can an electric toothbrush even be sustainable? The inventors of the Happybrush think so, at least. They gave me a device to put to the test so that I could get a feel for the quality and sustainability pledge.

Electric toothbrush

happybrush ECO VIBE 3 Starter Kit All Black + 4 Refills

Sonic toothbrush

The Eco Vibe 3 gives a good impression right from the moment you unpack it. Instead of being wrapped in plastic and film, the toothbrush comes in a recycled cardboard box. With all kinds of sustainability pledges printed on it:

The housing on the handpiece and charging station is made of 100% recycled material.
The brush heads are made from almost 100% renewable raw materials.
The Eco Vibe 3 is a climate neutral product, a status that’s attained and documented via offsetting through the Climate Partner organisation.

When it comes to the battery, which is the most problematic component for environmental reasons, Happybrush still has its work cut out. There’s no information about where this material comes from. According to Happy Brush’s corporate social responsibility guide from 2020, a replaceable battery that could extend the life of an electric toothbrush is still only in the planning stages. When I asked Happybrush, the company said the new model with replaceable battery would be available by mid-2024 at the latest.

Usability and features

The Eco Vibe 3 falls into the short and chubby category. Its handpiece is just under 14 cm long, excluding the metal pin the brush is attached to. In terms of shape, it’s slightly oval; the thick section is about 31 mm, and at its thinnest point, the diameter is 27 mm. Competitors tends to build their handpieces one or two millimetres thinner, but also longer. So at 16.5 cm, my Sonicare Protective Clean is tangibly a bit longer. Given my large hands and long fingers, I find the longer handpiece more comfortable, as it offers more grip. On the other hand, the Happybrush is lighter. Coming in at 99 g, it clearly beats the Sonicare (135 g). Not only that, it feels better and isn’t as smooth and slippery.

Apart from this, the differences between the electric toothbrushes from market leaders are there but probably irrelevant for most people in day-to-day life. Attaching brush heads to the drive pin works, and the brush fits well. I turn the electric toothbrush on via a button on the upper part of the handpiece. I can also feel the button with my thumb on my black test model. Pressing it repeatedly after turning it on lets me switch between cleaning modes. The Eco Vibe 3 offers three: regular, sensitive and polishing.

Start button and LED for the cleaning modes on the handpiece.
Source: Martin Jungfer

An LED on the handpiece indicates which mode is currently activated. After 30 seconds of brushing, the handpiece vibrates briefly. This is the signal to switch to another quadrant of your mouth. After four times 30 seconds, I’m done. The Eco Vibe 3 signals this with its own vibration rhythm, but it doesn’t switch off. I have to do that myself if I don’t want to continue cleaning. If you like to brush your teeth a bit more thoroughly, this will come in handy. But as I’m always done brushing my teeth after two minutes, I’d rather it switched off automatically.

Two friends are behind the Happybrush brand, along with their concept of releasing an electric toothbrush that brings «a breath of fresh air to the outdated oral care industry». Stefan Walter and Florian Kiener, the two Happybrush founders, hail from this industry and so know the ins and outs of it very well. In 2021, the Haniel Group joined Happybrush as a major investor. According to the group, it strives to «be Europe’s leading purpose-driven investor» and «build sustainable companies for a future worth living.» Mattress manufacturer Emma is one of the multitude of companies within the Haniel portfolio

Good vibrations and long-lasting battery

The Eco Vibe 3 brushes my teeth at as many as 40,000 vibrations per minute. This places it in the middle of the field in terms of what the market currently has to offer. 30,000 vibrations is the minimum for a sonic toothbrush, while bestsellers manage over 60,000. However, what’s more important than vibration is the amplitude during these oscillations – in other words, how much the brush moves back and forth. In this case, the electric toothbrushes from all the major manufacturers range between three to four millimetres.

I noticed a real difference in battery runtime when I put it to the test. The Eco Vibe 3 lasts significantly longer than the models from other manufacturers I’ve used so far. My test encompassed three cleans per day. During that time, I only had to put the Eco Vibe back on the charger after just under four weeks. With Philips devices, I needed to do this after two weeks.

Performance data is printed on the bottom of the handheld unit.
Source: Martin Jungfer

Attachable brushes – sustainable and (somewhat) cheaper

With a price tag of just over five francs, the Happybrush replacement brushes aren’t much cheaper than the competition. That being said, it’s difficult to draw comparisons here because Sonicare, for instance, offers a fairly wide range in all price categories, from premium plaque defense and optimal white to sensitive, and the most expensive all-in-one (brush comes in at just under 16 francs).

Happybrush follows the less is more motto here. You just have to make sure it’s compatible with the handpiece. For instance, the Eco Vibe 3 supports the following attachments:

Toothbrush heads

happybrush ECO VIBE 3 attachment brushes Ocean

3 x

Toothbrush heads

happybrush Eco Vibe 3

3 x

Toothbrush heads

happybrush ECO VIBE 3 Attachable Brushes All Black

3 x

What sets them apart is sustainability. Apart from the bristles and a small core, the brushes are made entirely of renewable raw materials, more specifically polymers derived from wood waste. Hardly any new plastic needs to be made for the Happybrush attachments. The bristles are made of a synthetic material. As always, the bristle head indicates when it’s worn out. On my black test device, some clusters of bristles lighten over time and form a sort of smile. If the brush grins at me in a very bright and friendly way, it’s time to change the brush head.

It’s hard to tell with the black brushes, but in fact, some clumps of bristles are getting lighter on the left brush. I used these more.
Source: Martin Jungfer

Until the company switches from plastic brushes, there’s still a sustainability gap. Happybrush is trying to strike a balance. The price of brushes and other products includes a donation to a drinking water project in the West African state of Mali (site in German).

Verdict

I still have a few attachment brushes from my Sonicare sonic toothbrush lying around. As soon as I’ve used them up, I’m going to switch to the Happybrush. The brand’s sustainability concept has won me over. This black brush is really green when you think about it. The verifiable facts win me over, and I trust the reputable partners Happybrush works with for its certification. For me, the cleaning performance of the Eco Vibe 3 is at least on a par with comparably priced models from established manufacturers. I’ll get a second opinion at my next hygienist visit.

The finish and ease of use are compelling, while its long battery life is a real treat. I can leave the induction charging station in the drawer and only need to fish it out for occasional charging. That’s one less thing that's constantly lying about the bathroom.

Header image: Martin Jungfer

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Martin Jungfer

Head of Content

Martin.Jungfer@digitecgalaxus.ch

Journalist since 1997. Stopovers in Franconia (or the Franken region), Lake Constance, Obwalden, Nidwalden and Zurich. Father since 2014. Expert in editorial organisation and motivation. Focus on sustainability, home office tools, beautiful things for the home, creative toys and sports equipment.

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