The Oclean X Lite is a more basic electric toothbrush than Oclean’s other devices — but that can be a good thing.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Efficient brushing action | Official Australian RRP is too high |
| Range of brushing modes | Included manual uses tiny print (and is badly translated) |
| Easy USB-C recharging | No included charger |
Score: 3.5/5
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Buy The Oclean X Lite! | Buy On Amazon |
In this review
Oclean X Lite Specifications
Oclean X Lite Design
Oclean X Lite Performance
Oclean X Lite Conclusion
Ethical disclaimer: The Oclean X Lite toothbrush used in this review was sent to me by Oclean, and, well… it’s a toothbrush. Most companies don’t ask for those back after they’ve been tested, because… eww… but in any case, this means it gets reviewed, with Oclean having no input into this review beyond that fact. The rest of the review is below, but I do feel that ethical disclosure is an oft-overlooked factor in online reviews – and one that doesn’t build trust. For more on ART’s Ethics Policy, see here.
Also read:
Oclean Airpump A10 Review
Oclean X Ultra S Review
Marchpower 2-in-1 Electric Toothbrush Review
Colgate Pulse Series 2 Review
Design
As its name suggests, the Oclean X Lite is the less expensive – more on that in a minute – sibling to smart toothbrushes like the previously reviewed Oclean X Ultra S. This is reflected in its simpler, lighter packaging, as well as what you actually get for your RRP of $199.95.
That scores you the Oclean X Lite toothbrush in either gray or blue finishes; it’s the latter that Oclean Australia sent my way. The body of the toothbrush measures at around 24cm high with a toothbrush head installed, and features a single button sitting above a colour LCD display that uses the same basic iconography as the more expensive X Ultra S for its cleaning functions.
Inside the minimalistic packaging you’ll find the main Oclean X Lite brush body, a single brush head and a short USB-A to USB-C type charging cable. You also get an instruction manual that covers off the basic functions of the Oclean X Lite, but here I have two complaints.
Firstly, while I do like that it’s multilingual, it’s printed at an incredibly small font size, making it hard to read. That’s no doubt a cost-saving measure, but it doesn’t make setup and understanding its functions all that easy.
Secondly, it’s been rather poorly translated, and I can give no better example of this than step 5 of the English instructions, which reads:
5. Please keep the phone dry before charging, wipe it dry with a soft cloth, and clean the charging interface with a dry cloth regularly to prevent stain deposition.
There’s no phone in the box – I know, you’re shocked – and it does not require a phone for setup. At best guess, it’s a bad AI translation of “device” that absolutely nobody bothered to check before printing.
Performance
Setup of the Oclean X Lite is quite simple, with a choice of languages the first time you start it up, selected with a single press of its solitary button to cycle between languages, or a long press to select your language of choice. From there, you use the same kind of button pressing to cycle between the five available cleaning modes – Daily Cleaning, Whitening Polishing, Deep Cleaning, Sensitive Gum Care or Massage Soothing.
The one big difference here from most other high-end “smart” toothbrushes is that the Oclean X Lite doesn’t rely on a paired smartphone or app of any kind for setup or ongoing use. That does mean that you don’t get ongoing brushing metrics, though it does employ the same somewhat shaky “AI’ algorithms to try to give you a picture of your brushing prowess after each time you clean. If you forget to look at the Oclean X Lite’s display once you’re done, however, that data is gone forever.
The flip side here is that, unlike the pricier Oclean X Ultra S, you’re not left waiting for a Wi-Fi/Bluetooth pairing connection to actually work, an issue I had with the more expensive model more than once during testing.
The default brushing head in the Oclean X Lite is somewhat smaller than the brush head on the X Ultra S, but this is a step I actually prefer, because I find it makes it easier to get the toothbrush up to the very top corners of my mouth.
No, there’s no pictures of that, believe me, you don’t want to see. Like Oclean’s other brushes, it uses a high intensity motor – Oclean insists that it’s a Maglev motor, but don’t think this means that it’ll float in your mouth in any way – and on its heavy duty cleaning cycles you’ll certainly feel that level of power in the way it brushes your teeth.
I honestly didn’t expect to rate the Oclean X Lite above its pricier sibling, but if you just want the basics – and most of us just want clean teeth – then skipping out on the app route makes a lot of sense. Its post-clean mapping of my mouth didn’t always match up to the reality of where I’d brushed, but I’m quite used to those kinds of maps being a touch on the “best guess” side anyway. Being reminded to brush more (within reason) is rarely a bad idea.
There are still some caveats to bear in mind with this approach, however. You don’t get a carrying case of any type, so it’s not particularly travel friendly. While I did personally find the vocal nature of the Oclean X Ultra S’s directions to switch cleaning zones a little creepy when testing it, they’re definitely distinct, where the Oclean X Lite just has a brief pause in vibration to let you know when to switch up your cleaning area.
It’s also built lightly, which means that the base of the toothbrush, which is where you’ll find the USB charging port often shakes open while brushing. This doesn’t massively affect the actual performance of the toothbrush, but it’s not exactly great either.
A powerful motor — great for teeth, less great for keeping the charging cover on the base of the Oclean X Lite.
Speaking of charging, Oclean’s claims for the Oclean X Lite are that it’s suitable for up to 40 days of usage before needing recharging.
I haven’t quite tested it to that extent as yet, though extrapolating out from the testing I have done, that does feel like it’s achievable. The lack of a charging stand and the very short nature of the supplied charging cable could make balancing the Oclean X Lite and keeping its toothbrush head clean while charging a little tricky however – I settled this by gently resting it on top of a coffee cup when recharging its battery.
Oclean X Lite: Alex’s Verdict
The Oclean X Lite isn’t a fancy, high-end smart toothbrush, but it is quite an effective one, and a device I rather like… with one rather notable catch.
I mentioned pricing before, and this has been a bit of a constant with Oclean products in Australia. Buy the Oclean X Lite in the US, and you’ll pay around $US69.99 for it, which should equate to around $107 or so, though even in the US I could find it cheaper than that.
Oclean Australia’s official pricing for the Oclean X Lite is $199.95. At the time of writing even it seemed to be backing away from that price on its own web site, and I could find it locally through some online resellers (including the affiliate links in this article at the time of writing) at considerably better pricing than that.
Oclean’s done this for many of its products, and while international models are available so you can get it cheaper, I’m never not going to call out companies for applying egregious “Australia Tax” price differences to their products.
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