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The Fairywill Sonic is an affordable electric toothbrush that’s packed with premium features, but is this a case of style over function or does it brush teeth as well as any other?
First Glance
The Fairywill Sonic electric toothbrush comes with several features that aren’t often available in such affordable brushes. A good battery life supports the brush through long-term use, and there are several different brushing modes.
Pros
- Lightweight and easy to hold
- Five different brushing modes
- 3 different heads included including an interdental head
- Fast charging, with long battery life
Cons
- May not actually brush teeth much better than a manual brush
- Relatively flimsy, feels cheap
- Prone to faults
About the brand
The Fairywill brand launched in 2016, specifically producing electric toothbrushes and teeth whitening products. You can also buy Fairywill water flossers.
Most people won’t have heard of the Fairywill brand. It’s relatively new and still small, so the likelihood is that you’re putting your faith in something new and unknown when buying Fairywill dental care products.
Fairywill produces both oscillating and sonic brushes. Their products are typically sold at low prices, so you’ll be comparing a Fairywill toothbrush to a basic entry-level offering from a larger brand like Oral-B or Philips.
Fairywill aims to provide innovation at an affordable price, but how well with their sonic toothbrush perform when it’s put to the test?
What’s in the box?
Fairywill’s innovative approach is clear from the moment you open your electric toothbrush box. Within the box you get a soft-bristled toothbrush head and a hard-bristled one, but also receive an interdental brush to help get into small gaps.
The Fairywill brush comes with a USB charger. You can plug it straight into your computer or laptop, or can use a USB plug adaptor to charge your brush from the mains. Any similar USB adaptor, like a phone charger plug, will work. The toothbrush is fast charging, and a complete charge should take as little as four hours. It’s quick and easy to charge your brush, even from a portable power bank.
The Fairywill Sonic is available in black, white or pink. However, the black colour is much more prevalent and a lot easier to find.
For slightly more money, you can upgrade to a larger starter pack. This includes eight toothbrush heads, rather than the original two, though you’ll lose the handy interdental brush. This option also includes a travel case to keep your toothbrush safe.
You’ll need to change your toothbrush head roughly every three months. Though the standard Fairywill Sonic brush does come with two toothbrush heads, one is firm and one is soft so you may not want to use both. Instead, use these toothbrush heads to experiment and decide which is right for your brushing style. The larger pack has four of each toothbrush head – enough to get you through your first year of ownership, at least. New toothbrush heads, when they’re needed, cost around £10 for four.
Look and Feel
The Fairywill Sonic looks stylish and cool but ultimately has a flimsy feel. You can tell that it’s made from cheaper materials, though in its favour it’s very lightweight and is completely waterproof.
On the front of the brush, there are six different lights. These tell you which of the five modes the brush is in, or whether it’s properly connected and charging.
The most readily available Fairywill Sonic is the black toothbrush. White and pink are also available, though not in the larger pack with eight toothbrush heads and a travel case.
Effectiveness
The Fairywill Sonic may look quite good but is really let down by its effectiveness. It’s more like a manual brush with a gentle vibration, so you’re likely to find that it does little more and won’t drastically improve your dental hygiene.
To use the Fairywill Sonic toothbrush, you need to rest the bristles only very gently on your teeth. The idea is not to apply any pressure at all. The toothbrush heads aren’t built for pressure, and it feels counterintuitive to be so gentle with a brush, so the likelihood is that you’re going to need to replace your toothbrush heads more often due to damage from pressure. This brush has no pressure sensor, which means that you won’t know if you’re pressing a bit harder than expected.
Though the Fairywill Sonic advertises that it vibrates 40,000 times every minute, other sonic brushes with smaller claims seem a lot more effective and more powerful. If you’ve ever had a different electric toothbrush, you’re likely to find that the Fairywill just feels underpowered.
Choose from five different brushing modes. These are White, Clean, Sensitive, Polish and Massage. Though the Sensitive makes this already-gentle brush even less powerful, there is little to distinguish between the other modes or why you’d use one rather than another.
Really, the Fairywill electric toothbrush is only good for temporary use. It’s a handy lightweight travel brush if you don’t want to take your day-to-day one, but doesn’t have the power that’s needed to do a proper job.
Battery Life
On a single fast charge, taking as little as four hours, this brush can keep working for weeks. The long battery life is, perhaps, the best thing about this sonic toothbrush. Unfortunately, the low build quality means you might not enjoy this for long. These brushes have a habit of completely failing after they’ve been charged a few times.
You can’t replace the battery in the Fairywill Sonic – it's built into the brush handle. Once your toothbrush stops charging, there’s nothing more that can be done. You may, however, be lucky enough to get one that continues to work. If that’s the case, you’ll really enjoy how little you need to charge this toothbrush.
Price
The Fairywill Sonic costs around £20 and is often sold for a little less. This makes it one of the cheapest electric toothbrushes. With two toothbrush heads in the standard pack, this could give you half a year of use. In that time, you would have used two manual brushes for a total of around £6. Find the Fairywill Sonic on special offer and it’ll only cost £10 more.
Invalid table id.Watch out for the slight price rise when buying replacement toothbrush heads. Replacements cost around £10 for four, which is not all that different to the ongoing costs for some of the better-known brands.
If you’re simply looking for one of the cheapest electric toothbrushes available, the Fairywill does fit the bill. However, you could find a much better toothbrush for only a little more money.
Using the Fairywill Sonic with clear aligners
If you’re one of a growing number of people using clear aligners for teeth straightening, you’ll know that it’s very important to keep aligners in top condition. Just like your teeth, your clear aligners need to be frequently cleaned. The Fairywill Sonic can be used to clean your aligners if you wear them. Cleaning your aligners stops them from becoming discoloured, and can remove invisible bacteria that could put your dental health at risk.
Always check with your aligner providers to see what they recommend for cleaning. Some will recommend just using warm water, whilst others might suggest a mild soap. Follow the directions provided by aligner manufacturers. Don’t use hot water, as this could cause your aligners to melt or become misshapen.
In most cases, an electric toothbrush is a great tool for cleaning clear aligners. The Fairywill includes a head that can be used for interdental or tiny spaces, so this could be useful when cleaning your aligners. Very occasionally, a provider will ask that you only use a manual toothbrush. If the recommendations are to use a manual brush, make sure that you follow these instructions. Some clear aligners are softer than others and might be damaged by an electric toothbrush.
Final Verdict
The Fairywill Sonic may look the part, but style wins out over substance. Underpowered and relatively flimsy, it’s unlikely to keep your teeth clean. It may even be less effective than a manual brush since you’re encouraged to just gently rest the bristles on your teeth rather than applying any pressure.
Easy on-the-go charging and a long battery life are this brush’s most appealing features, but you should also be aware that many Fairywill brushes stop charging after a few months. Assuming you get one that doesn’t break, you’ll be able to charge your brush just once a month, whilst brushing your teeth twice a day.
Don’t expect any particularly tempting features for your money. You get five very similar cleaning modes, though the brush does have a two-minute timer that’s split into 30-second intervals.
For a similar amount of money, you could get a more effective toothbrush. You may get a shorter battery life and you’re unlikely to get five cleaning modes, but arguably those features aren’t as good as a thorough clean for good dental hygiene.
