First Medica’s Mini-Blast offers efficient, high-power curing in a lightweight, ergonomic unit.
"This is an awesome all-around curing light at a very fair price,” noted a dentist who gave First Medica’s Mini-Blast an overall rating of excellent.
The Mini-Blast cordless, wand-shaped curing light offers high, long-lasting power in a small, lightweight package, making both quick procedures and prolonged use easy and efficient. Fourteen dentists with a combined 349 years in practice participated in this Dental Product Shopper evaluation. They rated features such as ergonomics, ease of use, and curing time.
Ergonomics (Size and Weight)
Manufacturer Description: The wand-shaped Mini-Blast is small and lightweight, making it ideal for quick procedures and less burdensome for prolonged use.
Evaluator Feedback: Eight-five percent of the evaluators called ergonomics a “very important” or “important” consideration when selecting a curing light. When asked what features they liked most, 9 evaluators cited size/weight and/or ergonomics, describing the Mini-Blast as “lightweight and well balanced,” “very easy to hold,” and “easy to handle.” An evaluator who called it much better than similar products said, “[It is] easy to hold, lightweight, slim design,” when asked what he liked most. One dentist, who rated all features as excellent, said, “[It is] a little longer and heavier then my current curing light,” and another evaluator said, “I love the light weight, and the fact that it is cordless!” Size/Weight was rated as excellent or very good by 12 evaluators and 11 dentists rated ergonomics as excellent or very good.
Ease of Use
Manufacturer Description: Ease of use of the Mini-Blast is maximized by its small size and cordless design, timer settings of 5, 10, and 20 seconds, beeping every 5 seconds and when the device is turned on and off, a metal case that allows for easy cleaning, and a removable glass tip that can be sterilized and doesn’t require a sleeve that could obstruct the work area.
Evaluator Feedback: All 14 evaluators rated ease of use as excellent or very good, with several evaluators commenting on features such as size and weight, the removable tip, “clear controls,” the curing stand, the metallic case, and the cordless design. One dentist, who rated the Mini-Blast as excellent, said, “I love the curvature of the orange shield to prevent overhead light from bouncing back in my eyes,” and another evaluator noted, “I like the time options and the green flexible ring around the tip.” and 2 others called it “easy to clean” and “easy to disinfect after using.” Suggested improvements included, “[The product should increase] the beeping time to 10 seconds.” All 14 evaluators rated ease of use as excellent or very good.
When asked about ease of access, 13 evaluators rated it as excellent or very good. A dentist who called it much better than similar products said, “The light output end could be much shorter…to get to very tight posterior regions,” and another dentist, who reported doing large numbers of pediatric procedures, said, “The size allows me to get in small mouths.”
Performance (Curing Time)
Manufacturer Description: The Mini-Blast features high-power, efficient curing (5 seconds > 1,000 mw/cm2, 20 seconds > 700 mw/cm2) and a long-lasting lithium-ion battery for maximum efficiency.
Evaluator Feedback: Curing time was rated as excellent or very good by 11 evaluators. “It performed better than expected for its size and price point,” said an evaluator with 23 years of experience in dentistry. “The cure was deeper than expected.”
Overall Satisfaction
Upon completion of the evaluation, 13 evaluators inquired about purchasing the Mini-Blast. “It’s such a good product that I’m going to buy it,” noted a New Jersey dentist who rated it as excellent.
Overall satisfaction with the Mini-Blast was rated as excellent or very good by 13 evaluators, one of whom called it a “well-designed, user-friendly unit that I have enjoyed using.” This same evaluator, who has 38 years of experience in dentistry, added, “I would prefer the Mini-Blast to the [curing light] I’m using presently.”
