VALO X: Something Borrowed, Something New

Q: How does the VALO family stand out from its market competitors?

A: By far, the leading reason that clinicians buy from the VALO family of curing lights is its quality, and our flagship VALO curing light set the bar by demonstrating the high quality that a doctor should expect. A lot of LED curing lights are kind of plasticky and feel about as durable as a TV remote. While a TV remote can survive a lot of years in a living room, it is not being wiped down with cleaners or handled like this kind of instrument. That is why our first goal when making VALO was to start with an aerospace-grade aluminum. We also built its patent-protected, unibody construction considering a common law in engineering, which says that by reducing the number of parts a product has, you reduce the failure modes.

Q: What makes the VALO X LED curing light different from its VALO predecessors?

A: At Ultradent, we were and still are the leader when it comes to beam size and beam collimation. We also delivered the first broadband LED curing light, incorporating different colors of blue inside our LED array—with light blue, royal blue, and even violet. This transcends in the VALO X. When compared side by side with previous VALO curing lights, the VALO X has a much larger LED. It is now one of the lowest-profile curing lights with the largest uniform footprint at 12.5 mm. The large beam can get into any area of the mouth, so users don’t feel like they are playing target practice. It reaches the spot they want it to reach with ease. Having this form and function was a hard thing to achieve, yet we have now nailed it, and our customers are fully aware.

Q: How do the VALO X’s batteries affect the user experience during and after use?

A: The VALO X has different battery configurations that allow for its sleeker, cordless design. The batteries are circuit protected to ensure the utmost safety and are low cost and replaceable. They will last up to 120 curing cycles without recharging and can be recharged up to 500 times before investing in a new battery. We are proud to have kept such a high-value proposition with the VALO X and its batteries by continuing to hold fast to our quality statement with a reasonable price tag and excellent performance.

Q: Can you discuss the benefits of VALO X’s accelerometer and its buttonless functionality?

A: The majority of curing lights have modes to deliver more energy or different colors of light for various purposes via pressing and/or holding a button. However, some curing lights have been made too complicated with too many modes or functions. The VALO X is as simple as it gets, as the accelerometer function lets users change modes with just a drum-tap motion. The intensity of the light can be changed with a forward drum-tap motion, allowing you to move quickly from standard to high power and back while also speeding up the curing process. A sideways drum tap lets you move into other types of light modes, such as the White Light Diagnostic Aid mode for shade matching. It took a lot of engineering to ensure this feature not only works but also is fail-safe. The drum-tap motion ensures that if the VALO X is dropped, it won’t accidentally change modes; it requires a decided drum tap, keeping the clinician fully in control. Keep in mind, clinicians can still choose to use the button on their VALO X to change modes if they prefer. The activator but-ton doubles as an indicator, telling users which light mode their VALO X is set in either way.

Q: How has Ultradent remained at the forefront of innovation with each curing light upgrade?

A: The VALO X emerged because the original VALO was so groundbreaking and cutting edge when it debuted 14 years ago. VALO X just takes it to a whole different level and puts all that we ever wanted back then into existence today. We are a company that has been owned and started by a clinician, Dr. Dan Fischer, so having that authentic perspective from a doctor has helped us shape our well-established reputation rooted in trust through today. We have 10 clinicians working in our business now to maintain that bridge between real-world practitioners and the technical, engineering side of this industry. On a personal note, my wife is also a dentist, so you can imagine our romantic evening talk about VALOs. Ultimately, all of this know-how has driven each VALO generation. With more than 250,000 VALOs out there in the world, doctors have recognized the quality and reliability of VALO curing lights. They know they have a workhorse that will work for them for years to come.

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