Amid airtight secrecy surrounding its launch, Allure's beauty director Sarah Kinonen and an editor from the magazine recently found themselves in the bathroom of a suite at the Aman hotel on Fifth Avenue in New York, brushing their teeth while members of Dyson's public relations team watched. To test this next-generation toothbrush, the editors could meet in the hotel bathroom or, an alternative that was proposed, visit Dyson's offices in Soho each morning and evening for a couple of weeks and leave the CameraJet device there at all times. They opted for the hotel bathroom meeting.
After filling their brushes with mouthwash from the docking station reservoirs, Sarah and the editor brushed their teeth side by side, which was a first professional experience for both. They both agreed that this toothbrush is a joy to use—even fun—and their teeth felt impeccable after two minutes with it. It is lighter than they expected, barely over eight ounces (the weight of a roll of quarters), and quieter than their current electric toothbrushes and certainly than any water flosser either of them has used.
The stream produces a slight "psst" sound when it sprays into each interdental space, but the sensation was pleasant. The editor experienced no fluid overflow in his mouth, though Sarah experienced some drooling—observers present noted that this is very normal for a first-time user. Overall, the experience was dry; you would even feel comfortable using the CameraJet after applying makeup, something you would definitely avoid with other water flossers. Both Sarah and the editor were impressed that the fluid irrigation continues not only when the handle is horizontal but even when it is inverted. The reservoir is controlled by pressure to eliminate all air pockets and will deliver fluid in any orientation. However, the editor had an issue when cleaning the inner lower teeth: after hitting all the spaces perfectly, the stream stopped working. One of the people standing behind in the bathroom commented that this can happen because it is very dark in that area and suggested opening the mouth a bit more. The issue was resolved.
The CameraJet allows for simultaneous irrigation and brushing, brushing only (with the option to manually activate the stream), or irrigation only. Sarah and the editor brushed and irrigated past the two-minute mark, and neither exhausted their mouthwash supply. The editor also recently tested another hybrid brush-and-fluid irrigation device, the Soocas NEOS II Ultra electric toothbrush, which holds 1.7 ounces in its handle. It irrigates for 80 seconds after completing two minutes of brushing. However, when held horizontally, it cannot draw from a low reservoir, so it ran out of water.
This device is an impressive engineering achievement, and the editors were impressed to see it in action. But based on Allure's staff combined experience of approximately 300 seconds with this device, they cannot claim that the CameraJet is ultimately more effective than using a much more affordable electric toothbrush and conventional dental floss.
