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Tantus Bound

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I've finally reached the bottom of my lovely box of new Tantus toys that I've been dutifully working my way through since August, and so I now present to you the Bound!

When Tantus announced the Bound last year it was a toy I took one look at and knew that I had to have, so when Peyton offered to send me a few new pieces to review it was right at the top of my list. The Bound is actually the product of a partnership between Tantus and those awesome folks at SheVibe, though their combined venture "Vibeology." When you think of Tantus's superb quality toys, and SheVibe's amazing artwork, it's almost a match made in heaven, and I was eager to see the fruit of their labours. You can catch the review below.

360 degree view
The Bound is easily the most unique dildo I've encountered in all my time blogging, and too one of the most beautiful. Looking at it there's just something incredibly sculptural about the whole piece and the way it's put together which such attention to detail. I could easily imagine it being hewn from a solid block of marble and erected somewhere as an ancient symbol of fertility, or even carved from a single log of wood and placed in a forest clearing, and that's not a feeling you get often in a market saturated by plasticy facsimiles of body parts which bear closer resemblance to chunks of melted wax. The whole premise of the design is reflected quite clearly in the name given to it, "Bound", and it manages to transform that most traditional of dildo shapes - the penis - by artfully coupling it with bondage in the form of Shibari, or Japanese rope tying.

At the centre of the Bound is the phallus, and wrapped around it tightly is this chunky rope which starts at the base and steadily coils its way up the shaft before securing itself beneath the head. The shaft is visibly engorged and resisting its restraints, bulging outwards in the sections between the lengths of rope, and with veins pronounced along the surface. There's so much detail everywhere, from the knots in the rope to the wrinkles and folds in the skin, and the shallow meatus carved out of the tip of the bell-shaped glans. It's hard not to be impressed by what's been created, and especially the way it comes alive and looks animated, like the Incredible Hulk's muscles swelling up and about to burst through the seams of Dr Banner's shirt.

The dildo is 7" from end to end, and after subtracting the base you're left with around 6 1/2" that are usable, which is a good size without being huge. In terms of girth we're talking between 4 3/4" and 5" circumference, which is a little on the slim side, especially for my taste, but when you consider all the detail and texture in the design it might be a practical measure. The base is nice and thick and strong, great if you're planning to use it in a harness, and it's 2 3/8" in diameter giving it a nice broad footprint to stand the dildo upright on.

Like all Tantus products the Bound is made from 100% platinum silicone, which is a wonderful odourless, tasteless, and completely body-safe material. The surface of the dildo has a matte finish to it, and the silicone itself is actually quite firm. This took me by surprise initially as I used it right after the Amsterdam, which has this wonderful soft squishy feel to it, and I'd assumed that with all the detail and texture on the Bound it would use the same, but this is something I'll come back to later.

Excess silicone
The construction quality of the Bound is generally good, but I'm afraid to say it does fall a little short of Tantus's usual impeccable standards, and I did highlight a number of imperfections on mine. These included: several pinhole-sized surface air bubbles; thin pieces of loose silicone flaking away from grooved areas of detail; lumps of excess silicone in places where they didn't belong, with a shiny surface as if someone had tried to partially remove them with a craft knife, including a piece almost entirely blocking the meatus; and also some areas where the detail seemed less pronounced than it should be when compared against photographs, due possibly to imprecise moulding. Now I'm not usually in the habit of making excuses for companies, but because I do like Tantus so much I feel a little more understanding about the situation. None of these problems really affect how the dildo will be used, and I can see how with such a massive amount of detail there are about a million extra things that could potentially go wrong in the manufacturing process, but with such a unique-looking dildo it is a shame for it not to be perfect. That said though I won't be too critical here because I love what Tantus are trying to do, and I wouldn't want to discourage them from another similar undertaking.

Flaky silicone
When it comes to using the dildo due to its size and shape it's pretty easy to insert, even without a warm up toy. With a nice thick coating of lube that tapered head will glide gently into the body, and then after than you're in for a bumpy ride. The texture on the shaft feels very pronounced, especially due to the firmness of the silicone, and you feel every part of it stimulating your sphincter as you slowly slide the whole thing in. Once the dildo is inserted it doesn't feel overly filling due to its girth, but it does have satisfying presence and isn't noticeably lacking. In terms of how it performs during thrusting this toy has the potential to be quite divisive, because it really does depend on how much you like texture, and I can't stress that enough. As soon as you get a steady back and forth rhythm going every single feeling you felt when inserting the dildo slowly gets magnified by at least 20 times. It really is intense. Well, intense is one word, but uncomfortable is more realistic from where I'm sitting. That combination of high texture levels and firm silicone just did not work for me at all and was far too much. I found it difficult to sustain thrusting for any length of time, or even get up a good speed, because the surface of the shaft seemed to be scraping my sphincter like crazy. I couldn't even ascertain if it had the potential to give good prostate stimulation because all of my attention was pulled back to the sphincter. It's unfortunate really because I'm someone who does enjoy texture, such as with the veins on the Original, but not when it gets silly like with the Cyborg, and the texture on the Bound does get close to that. Suffice it to say that this isn't a beginner toy, even with the size, because if this dildo feels this intense with a relaxed anus it's going to do no favours for one that contracts involuntarily. 

It's a bit of a disappointing result for me, because I fell in love with the look of this dildo, and had such high expectations for it, and I just know that if it was made of Supersoft silicone like the Amsterdam then it would be a total dream. All the texture would stimulate in the right way, in that gentle tickling way with every bump, and not in the abrasive way that has you wondering halfway through if you could grate cheese on your dildo afterwards.

Buried detail
So what's left to say about the Bound? Conceptually I love this piece; I love the look, the design, the artwork that goes with it, the whole damn idea. It's brilliant as far as I'm concerned. The execution of it on the other hand I'm less crazy about. The construction of it wasn't quite as perfect as I would have liked, and from my perspective, for my uses, the type of silicone just wasn't right. As an anal toy I couldn't recommend the Bound, and in its current form I think it's one best left to the ladies to enjoy. If there's ever a Supersoft version showing up in a grab bag somewhere then you can bet I'll be jumping on it, because I still see potential in this great design. For now though, this little Bound is off to live on a shelf somewhere, as a piece of phallic art and potential talking-point for visitors to my bedroom.

Thanks ever so much to Tantus for sending this to me, and you can grab your own Bound directly from them.


HedoVibes Round-up 75

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To check out this week's round-up of all the latest sex toy reviews and contests posted throughout the blogosphere click below.

My review of the Tantus Bound is featured in this edition.

Welcome to HedoVibes, a collection of reviews and giveaways that were posted in the past week or so from around the web. This is a collection of adult product reviews & contests from real reviewers. If you want to be included in the next edition start with the guidelines, then use the submission form.

Want to read more reviews? Check out HedoVibes for a list of the latest reviews and stellar reviewers. You can also follow on twitter for the latest round ups. HedoVibes is also accepting photo submissions for each edition.

CONTESTS

DILDOS

VIBRATORS

ANAL TOYS

RINGS & STROKERS

BONDAGE, IMPACT, & FETISH GEAR

STRAP-ONS/HARNESSES

STORAGE& FURNITURE

LUBES & CONDOMS

LINGERIE & SHOES

EROTIC BOOKS

MISCELLANEOUS

Bondara Silicone Realistic Suction Dildo

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A couple of weeks ago Bondara got in touch with me and asked if I'd be interested in reviewing their new realistic silicone dildo with suction cup, and I took one look at it on their website and replied with an emphatic "yes."

There was little chance of me turning down the opportunity to get my hands on such a glorious piece of silicone penis, and now you can catch the review below.

As someone who writes about sex toys, and has quite the extensive collection, people often ask me for recommendations when they're considering making a purchase, and my first response as someone who cares strongly about body-safe materials is to extol the virtues of silicone. The problem that will often arise though is that other seemingly-incompatible criteria for the toy exist, such as the desire for it to be affordable, or to have a suction cup, and unfortunately that holy trinity of silicone, suction cup, and affordable is largely absent from the sex toy market. This is why I was quite excited when I opened the product page for the very first time, because not only does the name of the dildo give away that it has 2 of the key attributes, but the baseline price is also only £14.99, which is certainly low enough to tempt anyone away from a smelly rubber alternative.

Bondara's new dildo is available in a total of 16 different variations, which is really quite impressive and shows how they've gone completely full out with their commitment to it. You can pick and choose precisely what you want, all depending on your size and colour preferences. It comes in either black, purple, pink, or flesh colour, and in a small, medium, large, or extra large size. For the purposes of this review I'm going to be looking at the extra large model.

The design of the dildo is as realistic as the name implies, which is why I opted for the flesh colour as it seems to only amplify that sense. I was surprised by how attractive the dildo was when I first popped it out of its packaging, because while it does looks nice in the product photos on the website, it's so much more impressive when you have it in your hands and are able to view it from every angle. I'm probably more fussy than most people about what I think constitutes an attractive penis, and some of the dildos out there can be bordering the horrifying, so this one is an absolute delight. It starts off with a lovely big flared head, featuring a prominent coronal ridge and a somewhat blunt tip lacking any significant taper. The surface of it is completely smooth, juxtaposing it against the highly detailed shaft below. The head connects to the shaft with the presence of a raised frenulum on the underside, and you can clearly see the folds of a retracted foreskin present along the surface. Most of the detail along the shaft comes in the form of veins, which twist and meander all across the surface of the dildo, and stand quite proud of it. The shape of the shaft itself is not especially uniform, but that merely reinforces the life-like qualities of it. The top half of it is fairly broad, with no prominent vertical ridge lying along the course of the urethra, but as you travel down the shaft towards the base it appears to get narrower, while the vertical ridge emerges substantially, all giving an interesting shape to experience. At the base of the shaft is the balls which are probably the least realistic aspect of the dildo, and slightly odd-looking, but not really anything to be concerned with. The level of detailing and realism on the dildo isn't quite as high as something you'd find from Fleshjack, but it's substantial enough that it does make you wonder if it was actually moulded from a real model rather than merely being sculpted. My inkling, judging from the organic nature of the shaft shape and the vein patterns, is that it was in fact modelled from a real person, which only makes me curious about who it might have been, though considering the 4 sizes available there's no way to know which one is the closest to the original. 


The dildo is of course made from silicone, which provides all the benefits of being body-safe, odourless, tasteless, and able to be sterilised and shared with a partner. The silicone itself is a little on the firm side, and not that lovely plush squishy sort that you get from Fleshjack, but it does have a little give in the surface when you squeeze it, and it can be bent and flexed about with a modest amount of effort. The firmness of the silicone is something that's really only going to be a factor with the Extra Large model of the dildo, because with the smaller ones the reduced thickness of material overall will make them easier to compress and bend. With one of this size though my personal preference would be to have it a little softer. The surface of the dildo is matte rather than having a high shine to it, but it still feels very smooth on the whole, and there's no graininess to it, even between all the texture on the shaft. 

The build quality of the dildo is generally excellent, and there are no mould lines anywhere along the surface, no frayed edges, no indications of material that was trimmed away, and the suction cup is a secure and integral part of it. The only defect I picked up on was a tiny little air bubble that left behind a small hole in the corona of the glans, but while unfortunate I can't see it being problematic, and my feeling it that it's a rare occurrence. 

The dildo measures a total of 9 1/2" in length, with about 7" that can actually be used, giving you a good amount to play with. The circumference around the widest point at the top of the shaft is 6 1/8", a smidge more than advertised, so it really is a girthy beast, perfect for anyone to really likes it thick. The usable lengths of the other available sizes are: 5" - Small, 5.5" - Medium, 6.5" - Large, and their girths are: 4.5" - Small, 4.5" - Medium, 5.5" - Large.

When it comes to using the dildo you're definitely going to want to use a warm up toy before tacking the extra large, and I say this from personal experience. It is just about possible to insert the head with nothing preceding it, but by the time you make your way down to the shaft you're going to be very tightly stretched, which will make all the firm raised veins along the surface feel quite intense on your sphincter. For this reason it's best to warm up first with a plug that's a little thicker than the dildo, so you can be fully relaxed when you insert it, and this makes all the world of difference. With plenty of lube applied to the dildo the smooth head will slide comfortably into the body, and you'll feel a pop or bump as the sphincter passes over that prominent corona. Because of the girth it really will give you a lovely sense of fullness as soon as it's inside, which is why I tend to consider a 6" circumference my favourite. Beyond the head you'll start to feel all the texture along the shaft as you insert the dildo deeper, and provided you did your preparation first it'll provide a lovely bit of stimulation all around the anus. Because of the shape of the dildo, and the rather blunt head coupled with the overall thickness, I found that it wasn't possible to insert it quite as deep as other dildos, and I was able to make use of around 2/3 of the shaft at most. This is a factor that will vary from individual to individual however, dependent on physiology and experience, and I'll point out that deep insertions have never been my strong suit anyway - girth is more my area of interest.

The are numerous ways that the dildo can be used, thanks in part to the inbuilt suction cup. You can thrust manually with it in any position, squat over it and ride it, stick it to a wall, you name it. Thrusting is where the dildo really comes into its own though, and it's a real prostate pleaser. The key to the success of the dildo is that big bulbous head on the end, because once you get into a good rhythmic back and forth motion with it there's no way that it can avoid hitting the prostate with every single in and out stroke. This tends to be a big part of why I enjoy the larger dildos, because not only is the fullness so satisfying, but they tend to be foolproof with the prostate. My preferred way to orient the dildo is with the top side of the head facing the prostate, so as you thrust you feel the rounded tip of it hit the gland, then the smooth broad surface area of the head firmly rubs and massages the prostate, and on the out stroke the prominent coronal ridge drags back over the surface of it for maximum stimulation. With a steady thrusting rhythm going this feels absolutely amazing, and to add to the pleasurable array of sensations all those textured veins along the shaft do a wonderful job of tickling and stimulating the sphincter, so every area has something to enjoy. The dildo does remain fairly rigid during thrusting, but it doesn't need to do a lot of flexing about to accomplish its job, nor does it need to go deep. Just riding the head and top portion of the shaft is enough to send you to prostate heaven.

One of the key features of the dildo is of course the suction cup, and it's a good sturdy suction cup which does its job well. It can securely support the weight of the dildo and hold it up against any smooth vertical surface such as a tiled wall. Equally it's great for anchoring the dildo to a floor, or the bottom of a bathtub, allowing you to ride the dildo completely handsfree, without the worry of it jumping up or sliding about.

The packaging for the dildo is just a simple clamshell which serves its purpose, and in fact I wouldn't normally even mention it, except for the fact that it's quite generic and devoid of information. All it really tells you is that the dildo is made in China and for Bondara - it doesn't even state the name of the product. Normally you'd expect some more information, such as what the dildo is made from, and what it measures, etc, so I found it ever so slightly strange, but when you consider that it's only being sold online, and all the information is presented there, it's not really an issue. It's a little bulky for long-term storage, so consider investing in a fabric toy pouch.

I have to say I'm really impressed with this dildo, especially considering the price. It's big, it's beautiful, it's made from a safe material, it works wonders on the prostate, it has a suction cup, and it's highly affordable at only £21.99 for the Extra Large and even less for the smaller versions. If you're looking for a great high-quality dildo with all the bells and whistles then I would gladly recommend this one to you.

You can pick one up right now from Bondara, and thanks to them for sending it over!

Blush Novelties 'Ai' and 'Cici'

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Last month I was contacted by Blush Novelties who asked if I would review a couple of their products, so I had good root through their website and found this rather lovely-looking pair of silicone dildos, the Ai and the Cici.

I've had plenty of time to thoroughly test them out now, so it's time for the review; check it out below!

It's not often that I review two toys at once, but thought I'd make an exception for this pair as they have quite a lot in common. Rather than review one now and another in a week's time, and end up sounding rather repetitious, instead you get two for one as I go in depth on the Ai and Cici. These are the two toys that really caught my eye when browsing through Blush's quite extensive catalogue, the size of which did surprise me a little as I don't think I've ever seen the brand being sold in the UK, but I'm always eager to try something new.

The dildos are made from 100% silicone and have a lovely velvety finish to the surface, meaning they feel delightfully soft when you run your hands over them. The silicone itself is a little on the firm side, with not a whole lot of give to it when squeezed, but because nether dildo is especially thick they still bend and flex about with relative ease. As they're silicone the dildos are completely odourless, non-toxic, and body-safe, and they can also be sterilised by boiling or dipping in a mild bleach solution, and then shared with a partner, so it really is the best material to have for an insertable toy.

The construction quality of the dildos is very high, with not a fault to be seen on either. There is a visible mould-line running around the entire length of each, but it isn't raised or rough, and blends almost undetectably into the velvety surface of the toys.

Rather like a comedy double-act the Ai is the taller and thinner of the pair, while the Cici is shorter and moderately thicker. The Ai has a functional length of 6 1/4", plus another 3/8" for the base, and a maximum circumference of 3 1/2". The Cici is harder to measure accurately due to the curvature of the shaft, but it has around 5 1/4" of usable length, and a maximum circumference of 4 1/4". Both dildos are on the smaller end of the scale and well suited to beginners.

Probably the first thing that struck me about the dildos was how similar the designs are to two of Tantus's products, the Charmer and the Acute respectively, and I've made a couple of side by side images to demonstrate this. The Ai has a very gentle curve to the shaft, and the tip of it is quite narrow and tapered, almost coming to a point. On the interior side of the curve it has this big stepped texture with 4 prominent ridges, which rather reminds me of a linear ratchet mechanism. The Cici on the other hand has a much more strongly curved shaft, and the tip is rather bulbous giving a slightly more phallic design. The shaft is largely smooth, though there are some very subtle ridges that can be felt by running a finger along it. Both dildos have nice broad bases which are sturdy and compatible with an O-ring harness. The only difference between the two is that the base of the Ai allows it to be stood upright unaided, whereas the Cici topples over under its own weight due to the extreme curve.

The dildos are available in a choice of three colours, turquoise, purple, or pink, with the turquoise being by far my favourite as it's a little unusual, though having said that I recently received two toys that I'll be reviewing in the coming weeks which feature a very similar shade. The purple is also quite a nice hue, having a Cadbury's Dairy Milk wrapper feel about it.

Using the Ai:
Left: Charmer | Right: Ai
The Ai is very easy to insert thanks to its narrow tapered tip, and with a little dab of water-based lube it'll gently slip through the sphincter. Despite the apparent prominence of the ridges any sensation of bumps during insertion is very subtle, and in fact even when you begin to draw the dildo out again slowly you only really feel them to a significant degree when you clench the sphincter firmly around the toy. With the dildo inserted as far as you can manage you want to be certain not to push any further as I found that the firmness and pointedness of the tip made for a slightly uncomfortable jabbing sensation when it hit the top of the rectum. In my case I reached the peak of the fourth ridge before I could go no further, about an inch shy of reaching the base. In terms of thrusting I found the Ai to be a little lacklustre. It slides in and out of the body well enough, completely comfortably thanks to the velvety finish of the shaft, but what I really look for is stimulation and that appeared to be absent. As well as those ridges barely being able to be felt by the sphincter, even at high thrusting speeds, they managed to have negligible effect on my prostate. I was hoping for something along the lines of the Tantus Echo, but with barely anything being registered I found myself feeling bored with toy rather quickly. The most successful position I found was to squat over the dildo and come down on it at an angle, and with speed, but even then I just couldn't get enough stimulation to make it worth my time.

Using the Cici:
Left: Acute | Right: Cici
The Cici is another relatively easy toy to insert, and though not as slender or tapered as the Ai, a warm-up toy will be unnecessary for most people with a moderate degree of prior experience, provided they don't rush. As the bulbous head passes into the body a slight bump can be felt in the muscle, but it's not as prominent as that 'pop' that comes with other toys. There are two alternative ways to insert the dildo: either with the curve going upwards towards the prostate, or downwards towards the spine. With it in the upwards position it can be a little more difficult to get the whole thing inserted as it will tend to stop and need a little wiggling or angling to help it find its path. With it the other way around it finds its way much more easily and will slip in all the way to the base in a matter of seconds. The curve of the shaft does rather limit how you can use the dildo, as you can't really squat over it and ride it, as if you move into this position with the dildo already inserted you'll find that the base doesn't sit flat against the floor, being instead at an angle, making it rather awkward to attempt. As such it's a case of needing to thrust manually with the dildo from a reclined position of your choosing. Again as with the Ai I found the thrusting to be underwhelming. The thicker shaft made it feel more filling, but no matter which way I had it orientated it did nothing for my prostate. With it curved upwards the bulbous head prodded around against the vicinity of the prostate, but not in a stimulating or pleasurable fashion, and with it curved downwards thrusting was much more fluid, but the back of the shaft seemed to ignore the prostate even more, failing to replicate that experience I had with the curve of the Tantus Adam.

So where indeed does this leave us with these two toys? Well they're very attractive, they're well made, they use safe materials, and all around they're good quality products. The downside - and it's a big one - is that I just don't find them stimulating. They leave me unexcited, uninspired, and frankly rather bored, and unfortunately that's a failing for a sex toy. They just don't work for me and my body, and that's not to say that they won't work for any other guys, but I'm struggling to think of any categories of people that I'd suggest them to as a good option. I'm appreciative to Blush for sending the toys over, but unfortunately they won't be making it onto my list of things I'd recommend to someone with a prostate.

The Ai and the Cici are both available from Blush directly.

HedoVibes Round-up 77

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To check out this week's round-up of all the latest sex toy reviews and contests posted throughout the blogosphere click below.

My review of the three dildos are featured in this edition, including the lovely Mr Realist from Bondara.

Welcome to HedoVibes, a collection of reviews and giveaways that were posted in the past week or so from around the web. This is a collection of adult product reviews & contests from real reviewers. If you want to be included in the next edition start with the guidelines, then use the submission form.

Want to read more reviews? Check out HedoVibes for a list of the latest reviews and stellar reviewers. You can also follow on twitter for the latest round ups. HedoVibes is also accepting photo submissions for each edition.

CONTESTS

DILDOS

VIBRATORS

ANAL TOYS

RINGS & STROKERS

BONDAGE, IMPACT, & FETISH GEAR

LUBES & CONDOMS

ADULT VIDEO

MISCELLANEOUS

Minna Life Limon

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A couple of weeks ago Em over at SexToys.co.uk got in touch with me and asked if I fancied reviewing anything for them. They're one of my favourite retailers, with whom I've worked a lot in the past (and even received their coveted Seal of Approval), so of course I said yes and went off on a hunt through their "what's new" section to find the perfect item.

I realised that I hadn't reviewed anything of the vibrating variety recently, so when I saw the Minna Life Limon I knew that it would be just the ticket. As always you can find out what I thought below.

I first became aware of Minna back in 2013 when they launched a crowd-funding campaign for the Limon - which at that time was a rather novel thing to do - and though everyone and his sister seems to have jumped on the crowd-funded sex toy bandwagon since, this is actually the first one I've got my hands on. I remember watching the pitch video initially and being intrigued by its claims, because in the world of sex toys innovation can be incredibly hit and miss, and yet here was a little start-up offering to bring something new. Now nearly two years down the line I'm relishing the opportunity to see if it really does live up to the hype.

With the arrival of the Limon the question is what do you get for your money, and if you've spotted the image at the top of the review then that should give a pretty good idea right off the bat. I was seriously impressed by the packaging for the product when I first saw it, because it all comes bundled up in this lovely little cardboard tube, complete with tasteful branding, and it's clear that effort has been put into the design. It looks classy, it looks elegant, and not at all cheap, and I love this approach that treats vibrators no differently from any other electronic gadget. Inside you find the Limon itself, a USB charging cradle for it, a small cloth storage pouch, and a multi-language instruction manual. The storage pouch is an especially nice touch in my eye, as it helps keep the dust at bay when you toss it back into your toy drawer after use.

The Limon is available in two different colours, and despite it being a translation of "lemon" neither of them has anything citrussy about them. There's a predictable pink, and then an absolutely delightful shade of teal that I chose for myself. It is a slight shame that there's no yellow Limon just to complete the theme, but the teal is so lovely that it makes for more than adequate consolation.

(Artistic Impression)
The Limon itself is designed as a pocket-sized external-use vibrator, which doesn't immediately jump out as being especially innovative, even with its cute lemon-shaped silicone shell. You have to scratch below the surface though to find out the secrets that the Limon holds, because it's the technology inside it and the way it's operated, that makes it stand out from the crowd. Unlike traditional vibrators the Limon doesn't come pre-programmed with a selection of different speeds and patterns, all available to be cycled through at the touch of a button. The Limon has none of that, and in fact when you press its singular button on the front that merely turns it on and greets you with a glowing green light. What makes the Limon unique is that it's pressure sensitive, and this is how it's controlled. Two of the sides of the Limon are soft and squishy, and when you squeeze them the Limon starts to vibrate. The harder you squeeze, the stronger the vibrations feel, and this gives you an amazingly direct control over the vibrator and opens up new possibilities. Not only can you precisely adjust the strength of the vibrations, but you can also make your own patterns by rhythmically squeezing the toy, and it's incredibly effective and simple to use. Instead of having to cycle through settings like you do with other toys, you can get exactly what you want, right when you want it, all in real time, and it puts you firmly in control. Another great feature is that it actually allows you to record your own patterns onto its memory and play them back to yourself, so you can develop the perfect rhythm to get you off, and then just sit back and enjoy it without manually inputting it into the toy each time.

The vibrations produced by the toy are of quite a deep rumbly variety, especially when compared to something like the Jimmyjane Form 2 which feels almost buzzy in comparison. What's interesting about the vibrations is that while strong they have a softer more mellow nature to them, rather than that intensity you feel from the surface of others such as both the We-Vibe Tango and the Form 2. The vibrations feel as though they're emanating from deeper within the toy, and then radiating out from the teat of the Limon, rather than being produced right in that spot, which gives a slightly different 'colour' to how they feel. 

When you apply the Limon to the penis the vibrations are instantly stimulating and penetrate effectively into the shaft. At first this "softer" feeling vibration appeared a little different to what I'm used to, but in direct comparisons with other toys I found it matched their power, but that I actually preferred how the vibrations felt against the sensitive skin. What's great about the method of control is that it allows you to vary the rhythm of the pattern, just how you would vary the rhythm of thrusting during sex. You can start off just teasing yourself with the toy, moving the smooth silicone surface all over the glans with just a low vibration dancing around, but when you're ready to climax you can put the tip of the Limon up against the frenulum and gradually increase from a slow mild pattern of vibrations, to a fast sequence of strong bursts of vibrations, and the ensuing orgasm does not disappoint.

There are a couple of minor downsides to the controls. The first is that when you squeeze the toy some of the vibrations get absorbed into your fingers, so in order to operate it you actually diminish some of the power. This can easily be fixed by saving your favourite pattern into the toy so you needn't hold it so firmly. The second is with regard to anticipation; because your brain knows precisely when you're about to make the vibrations stronger it comes as no surprise to the body when it feels it, in the way that it does with a pre-set toy, and this lessens the impact somewhat. Again you can get around this by programming in a pattern, but actually this is why I think the Limon would make a fantastic couples toy, because you can take all that precise control and use it to deliver tailored pleasure to someone else.

The whole quality and construction of the Limon is superb too, and it's made with body-safe silicone and has no nasty raised mould-lines sticking out where they shouldn't be. It has an inbuilt power indicator which tells you how much charge the battery has left. When you press the power button if it vibrates thrice it means the battery is great, twice it's half full, and once then you should think about charging it. In my experience though the battery life lasts a long time, but when it does need a top up it's a simple as popping it onto the magnetic cradle, and the benefit of this system is that you get a fully waterproof toy too.

I have to say that I really have been thoroughly impressed by the Minna Life Limon, so hats off to the guys who designed it and followed through with their own self-belief enough to make and sell it. It's a lovely powerful rumbly little vibrator, which uses an ingenious control system which I just love. It's the ideal toy for single guys and gals, and especially couples of any persuasion. I'm not sure it'll replace my We-Vibe Tango in all applications, but lately it's been the one I've been most keen to reach for first. I would happily give this toy my recommendation. 

You can pick one up right now from SexToys.co.uk


HedoVibes Round-up 79

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To check out this week's round-up of all the latest sex toy reviews and contests posted throughout the blogosphere click below.

My review of the Minna Life Limon is featured in this edition.

Welcome to HedoVibes, a collection of reviews and giveaways that were posted in the past week or so from around the web. This is a collection of adult product reviews & contests from real reviewers. If you want to be included in the next edition start with the guidelines, then use the submission form.

Want to read more reviews? Check out HedoVibes for a list of the latest reviews and stellar reviewers. You can also follow on twitter for the latest round ups. HedoVibes is also accepting photo submissions for each edition.

CONTESTS

DILDOS

VIBRATORS

ANAL TOYS

RINGS & STROKERS

BONDAGE, IMPACT, & FETISH GEAR

STORAGE & FURNITURE

LUBES & CONDOMS

MISCELLANEOUS

Three Years!

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My little blog turned three today; it almost doesn't seem possible, and yet at the same time it has become an established part of my life since I began it in earnest back in 2012.

I've been too swamped to really plan anything to celebrate it this year, so I thought I'd just make a brief post to mark the milestone.

As always thanks to everyone who's been a part of my blogging experience over the past year, from the humble commenters on my reviews, to the generous companies who've sent out products for me to test. I couldn't keep doing it without the support.

Before I sign off, seeing as today also marks another event, I hope all the couples out there have a great Valentine's Day together. As for the rest of us, pizza and Fleshjack would be a fine way to spend the evening.

L'Amourose Rosa

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Right at the end of last year an e-mail arrived in my inbox from L'Amourose, offering me the opportunity to review one of their products. As it happened I'd seen a number of very favourable reviews popping up all over the place for their Rosa massager, so naturally I was curious to see what all the fuss was about, and too if it would live up to its reputation.

I gladly accepted the generous offer and a couple of weeks ago a shiny Rosa showed up on my doorstep, courtesy of the folks at Pasante (whose condoms I have fond memories of, as they were handed out freely in several of the bars I frequented whilst at university). With some thorough testing done it's now time for the review, so head below. 

The Rosa is a rechargeable dual-motor vibrating toy, designed with unisex use in mind, and perhaps unsurprisingly in this instance I'll be looking at its capacity as a prostate massager. I'm a big fan of prostate massagers, or at least the idea of prostate massagers, but I'm also highly discerning and greedy for a lot of power, which means that many of the ones I've tried and tested fall short. I've reviewed around ten vibrating prostate massagers to date, and the typical flaws I find are weak vibrations, buzzy vibrations, vibrations in the wrong place, less than ideal shape - I'm sure you get the picture - and typically I'll end with a recommendation that the reader considers the Lelo Billy instead. I've had the Lelo Billy since late 2011, and in all that time I've kept asking myself "will something better ever come along?" and with the review of this product the question arises again, so I thought I'd put it right at the start. "Does the L'Amourose Rosa outperform the Lelo Billy?"

...The answer is "Yes." If you've read my Billy review you'll recall that as much as I liked it I ended by pointing out that I wanted something with more power, and more physical size, and the Rosa comes through and delivers both of these in an impressive way. Perhaps it's too early in the review to be declaring that I have a new favourite prostate massager, but it looks like I just have, so if you want to know precisely why then you'll have to keep reading as I break down the Rosa in more detail.

The Rosa has something of a simplistic design for a prostate massager, with a smooth and gently-curving body, unlike many of the strange and bumpy designs favoured by other manufacturers, and I'm actually quite glad of this. The shape of the insertable portion is somewhat similar to that of the Lelo Billy - albeit thicker - which could explain my fondness for it, though at the same time the bulbous tip is not dissimilar to a slightly thinner Tantus Ryder - another toy of which I am a big fan. The base of the toy is oval in shape, which in itself is a little unique, and on the underside of it is a hard plastic shell cut like a gemstone, into which the charging contacts are embedded.

The whole toy is 5 3/4" from top to bottom, with around 4 1/2" that are actually insertable when you take into account the curve. Around the thickest section of the shaft the circumference measures 4 3/4" which isn't massive in and of itself, but which is quite substantial compared to other toys of this type. Around the neck of the toy the girth is a more modest 3". The base is 3 1/2" long by 2" wide.

The construction of the Rosa is of an excellent standard, befitting its price-tag and placement as a high-quality luxury toy. The whole device feels very solid and firm, and it's covered with a reasonably thin coating of platinum silicone, which gives it a velvety soft feeling to the touch and a slight amount of give to the surface. The silicone is available in a choice of three colours, black, pink, or this absolutely beautiful emerald green which looks like the centre of a tropical lagoon. The Rosa is largely rigid, save for a flexible section of the neck right above the base, allowing the toy to be gently bent in any direction.

The Rosa features two motors in its design, which is a little uncommon for a prostate massager. Its primary motor is located in the tip of the insertable portion, while a secondary motor lies in the base to provide external stimulation - in this case for the perineum. The motors are activated by using the (+) and (-) buttons on the side of the base, and a central (~) button between them is used to cycle between the 7 different vibration patterns.

With the application of a little water-based lubricant the tip of the Rosa is very easy to insert - though a little less beginner-friendly than the Billy - and the smooth silicone body slides comfortably into place. The shape and the design of the toy gives a very pleasant sense of fullness, with the curved shaft pushing the bulbous tip up into the prostate and providing stimulation before the motors have even been activated. In my case I found that the shaft was ever so slightly too long, and with the Rosa sitting in a comfortable resting position the base didn't quite touch my perineum, though thanks to the flex in the shaft I could bend it up and into place without having to push the toy in deeper.

The position of the buttons makes them ever so slightly fiddly to operate unless you have your legs spread completely apart, as otherwise they get nestled up against your buttock / upper thigh, but it's very easy to identify what you're attempting to push just by touch alone, so you'll always know whether you're about to increase the power or change the pattern.

The vibrations start on a low purr with both motors activated and on constant, but even at that point it's apparent how rumbly the internal motor is. I turned the power up to maximum pretty quickly and I really was impressed by just how much the Rosa can put out. The vibrations are low, deep, rumbly, and ever so strong. In terms of sheer power it completely out performs the Billy, and the vibrations can be felt penetrating deep into the prostate gland itself. My immediate physical reaction to the sensation was twofold; I began to get a spontaneous erection, and secondly I found myself tightly clenching my anal muscles at intervals, which pulled the Rosa deeper inside me and pushed the bulb right into the prostate gland to a pleasurable effect. On this setting alone the Rosa felt amazing and I was quite happy to sit there for quite a while enjoying the deep vibrations and the sense of it being physically thrust into the prostrate by my own contractions.

The next two vibration settings are perhaps the least interesting of the lot, the first turns off the external motor which is quite useful if you simply don't see the use of it, and because it is the louder of the pair, and the setting after than does the opposite, turning off the internal motor and leaving on the external, which in my opinion is a little pointless. The four settings after that are all patterns, and patterns are what I really enjoy with prostate massagers, but I do have slightly mixed feelings about those on the Rosa. Because the Rosa has two motors the patterns are largely formed by alternating between the two, similar to in the Odeco Hedone, and I don't love that so much because the only pattern I'm really interested in is the one coming from the internal motor, and every time it switches to the external one it seems to put a break, or overly long pause in that pattern.

The first of the four patterns has pulses of vibrations coming out of the internal motor at one second intervals, which is unfortunate because that gap is just too much to get a good rhythm. A half second after the internal motor pulses the external motor then pulses, and that sensation alone isn't very satisfying, so I tend to get frustrated by this pattern. It feels like there's a lot of waiting for something to happen, punctuated by something unnecessary happening, so I just can't enjoy it.

The next pattern is one of my favourites, and it's similar to the one before only faster. The internal motor pulses at half second intervals which is perfect to establish a basic rhythm and it feels really good. This time the external motor actually compliments it, because it provides a nice extra tingle in between the main event of the wonderful internal vibrations. I call this the "printer" setting because of the way it sounds, with a longer deep vibration followed by a shorter higher pitched one, much like the sound of a printer carefully printing a line of text across a page, followed by another sound of the sheet of paper quickly being pushed forward by one line. This is assuredly the most stimulating of all the patterns, and it's the one I go straight to when I want to get off. At times it feels as though I could almost climax from the toy alone and no additional stimulation.

The third pattern is another one of my favourites, and this is what I think of as the relaxing pattern. The external motor vibrates constantly, while the internal motor starts off low and steadily increases to full power before dropping back down and starting again. This really is a massage setting as the vibrations almost feel like physical motion as they ramp up in power, giving the sensation of the prostate being deeply kneaded. Something about the slow pace of it and the deep vibrations just puts me into a completely relaxed state, and I feel like I could close my eyes and lie there feeling it for hours at a time. In this regard it's quite unique and definitely a winner.

The final pattern is one which again I'm less keen on. It's a completely erratic pattern with both motors vibrating seemingly completely at random, and I just can't enjoy that. Without some sort of rhythm it just doesn't work for me.

The second pattern is the one I choose to masturbate to, and it definitely has a significant impact on my orgasms. Not only do my pelvic floor muscles contract more strongly during climax, but I found myself unexpectedly shooting further, and too did my orgasm feel stronger. Not only did the Rosa feel fantastic anally, but it delivered measurable benefits for a regular orgasm which was a most welcome discovery.

One of the fun things about the Rosa is that it stays put when it's inserted, and the base nestles comfortably between the buttocks, so you can walk around a bit whilst wearing it, just like with a butt plug, or you can wear it whilst having sex with a partner, which is definitely something on my list of things to try eventually. You can also sit down whilst wearing it, and use the base to rock around on for extra stimulation, though the down side I found was that the vibrations from the external motor go straight into the mattress and create a lot of unwanted sound.

On the subject of sound the Rosa is actually a pretty quiet device, so you can use it confident that no one on the other side of a door or partition wall will be able to hear it. The external motor is the louder of the two, but I found I could muffle this by squeezing it with my thighs.

When you're done with the Rosa it's easy to clean as it's waterproof, and because it's silicone you can sterilise it too by wiping over with a mild bleach solution, allowing you to share it with a partner. To charge it you simply place it onto the provided magnetic charging dock, and afterwards it can be stored in the black velvet pouch that it comes with.

I really am a huge fan of the L'Amourose Rosa, largely because of the sheer power it puts out, but also because of the wonderful size and shape of it, and all the extra little details such as the charging dock. I've been waiting a long time for something to beat the Lelo Billy, and this feels like its bigger stronger brother has finally arrived; it's the upgrade I've been craving. The only point where I'm not 100% convinced is with the vibration settings, because of the 7 choices I like 4 and have no use for 3 of them, and considering that two of the 4 are nearly the same, it's closer to a 50/50 split. I'd really love if there was another pulsing setting that was even faster that what's currently available, but you know what, this isn't going to stop me from recommending this toy. When you couple together my favourite vibration patterns with the incredible power and design of the Rosa, it's enough to make this a must have toy for everyone. It's an investment, but it's worth it.

Thanks to L'Amourose and Pasante for sending me this fantastic product.

The L'Amourose Rosa is available right now from Lovehoney UK.

It's also available in North America from Lovehoney USA and SheVibe

HedoVibes Round-up 80

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To check out this week's round-up of all the latest sex toy reviews and contests posted throughout the blogosphere click below.

My review of the L'Amourose Rosa is featured in this edition.

Welcome to HedoVibes, a collection of reviews and giveaways that were posted in the past week or so from around the web. This is a collection of adult product reviews & contests from real reviewers. If you want to be included in the next edition start with the guidelines, then use the submission form.

Want to read more reviews? Check out HedoVibes for a list of the latest reviews and stellar reviewers. You can also follow on twitter for the latest round ups. HedoVibes is also accepting photo submissions for each edition.

CONTESTS

DILDOS

VIBRATORS

ANAL TOYS

RINGS & STROKERS

BONDAGE, IMPACT, & FETISH GEAR

STRAP-ONS/HARNESSES

LUBES & CONDOMS

STORAGE & FURNITURE

MISCELLANEOUS

Tenga Air-Tech Gentle / Regular / Strong comparison

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I've been a little inactive on the review front lately, and to make up for it I'm going to be doing a little something fun today: comparing all three of the new Tenga Air-Tech masturbators, courtesy of my long-time friends at SexToys.co.uk

This is exciting for me because typically when there's a range of toys to choose from you never see them all reviewed by the same person, and often I find it quite difficult to decide what's going to be the right one for me to buy when I'm piecing together different people's opinions and experiences. I had that very problem with the Tenga 3D, and I ended up picking poorly. I'm hoping that by me looking at the Air-Techs all at once I'll be able to offer some continuity.

The Air-Tech is Tenga's latest iteration of their popular original Deep Throat Cup masturbator, and the twist is that for the first time they're now re-usable. This is big news for a brand that predominantly focusses on disposable single-use toys (with the notable exception of the Flip Hole line), and this is achieved by replacing the interior structure of the toy with a removable sleeve made entirely from TPE, rather than the combination of TPE and foam that was fused inside previous models. The trade-off that comes with this however is the price, you're looking at around double the cost of the originals, but that's still around a third of the cost of a Fleshjack or a Flip Hole, so in my mind this is an excellent deal notwithstanding.

From the outside the Air-Techs are very much like their predecessors, duplicating their form in size and construction. The whole toy is 6 1/8" tall by 2 1/2" wide, which last time I compared to a beer can, and which I still feel is the most convenient way to convey how they feel to hold. The outer shell is made from a single piece of hard plastic in a vaguely hourglass-style design, giving a comfortable groove to wrap your thumb and fingers around whilst holding it. Again the toy is accessible only via an end cap at the base which pops on and off, and it features a small vent hole at the top.

Unlike the Deep Throat Cups the Air-Techs do not come pre-lubricated, which is understandable as they're a multi-use product, but instead Tenga includes a sachet of lubricant tucked within the channel of the toy, which is always handy to have.

The Air-Tech is available in three different options, each of which features not only a different coloured case, but a different tightness and internal texture too. The white one is the "Gentle" and the loosest of the three, the red is the "Regular", and the black is the "Strong" which is supposed to be the tightest and most intense texture. I'll discuss their differences and how they feel individually in just a little bit.

One of the other innovations common to all the Air-Techs is what they call the "Airflow Structure." The exterior of the removable sleeves features a spiral of ribs which are designed to channel air out of the plastic case via the vent hole as soon as a penis is inserted into the sleeve, and in the process create a sensation of suction during thrusting. The suction can then be adjusted by covering the vent hole with a finger to restrict airflow, much in the way that one would tighten the end cap of a Fleshjack. The only problem with this is that I found that when I covered the vent hole entirely I could neither insert my penis into the toy, nor pull it out again if it was already inside, because there was no other point for air to enter or exit the case, and this movement of air is necessary for the Air-Techs to function correctly. The only way to really adjust the suction is to try to carefully cover only part of the vent hole with your finger, and while this works it can be a little fiddly. With the vent hole left completely uncovered I didn't really notice any increased sense of suction in the Air-Techs compared to my experience with the Deep Throat Cup, so I'm not entirely convinced of the effectiveness of the Airflow Structure, but one thing I must point out is that the toys get very noisy during use, with air whistling and wheezing out of the vent holes with every thrust.

Air-Tech Gentle
The Gentle, as the name might imply, is marketed as the least intense of the three, so I decided what better place to start than at the bottom and work my way up. I wasn't quite sure what to expect beforehand, because normally when presented with a choice such as this my instinct would be to go right down the middle and pick the "Regular" one, as perhaps like most people I neither consider my penis to be particularly over-sensitive nor under-sensitive. As it turned out I was almost immediately taken aback by how good this Air-Tech felt.

The inside of the Gentle is lined with a spiral texture which is actually quite subtle. It's enough that you can tell from the feeling that there's there's some sort of ridging there, rather than it being completely smooth, but not enough that I could have actually identified what that texture specifically was without looking at the cross-section diagram. The central channel itself undulates and has a varying thickness, but the overall tightness of the toy was something that I found quite comfortable as someone who has an above average girth. With the toy well lubricated I was able to slip inside of it without needing an excessive amount of force, and once fully inserted it felt quite snug, but without exerting too strong a squeeze. With the first few slow thrusts you can feel that changing tightness within the channel, as well as the shallow fins of the spirals rippling over the head of the penis, and as you increase this to a more vigorous speed it becomes very pleasurable. What I love about the Gentle is actually how natural it feels; the whole combination of the texture, the tightness of the channel, it's all perfectly balanced and comes together to give this wonderful sensual massaging feeling to the head of the penis as you thrust with it. It glides smoothly back and forth and gives nothing but pleasure with each stroke. I almost had to tear myself away and move on to the next one, because it felt so good that I could have kept edging myself with it for hours. I'd go so far as to say it's an unparalleled level of satisfaction in this price bracket.

Air-Tech Regular
After how much I enjoyed the Gentle the Regular had a bit of a tough act to follow, and again I wasn't sure what to expect, because I almost felt like I'd just found the right foot for my glass slipper and yet I was still continuing the search.

The interior of the Regular is quite different to that of the Gentle, this time opting for clusters of round bumps along a channel that's otherwise mostly smooth, and each of these little bumps is quite readily identifiable during use. The channel is also notably tighter, requiring a greater degree of force to insert oneself into it, and once it is on as far as it will go it does have a tendency to want to shoot right off again if you're not holding it in place firmly. During thrusting the little round bumps feel quite firm and pronounced, and they do a wonderful job of stimulating the frenulum as they slide up and down the underside of the head of the penis, but elsewhere they have a slightly different effect. As the bumps catch the corona of the glans, because they're so relativity firm there is some mild discomfort, and likewise there is a slight sense of chafing in some areas of the shaft skin, exacerbated by the added friction caused by the tighter channel. On the whole though the toy does feel pleasurable to thrust with, and as you build up a good rhythm it drowns out the modest sensations of discomfort, but it just lacks the natural feeling that the Gentle has. In a way it's also a little boring in comparison, having a largely smooth channel punctuated by clusters of bumps, and in terms of sexual stimulation I wouldn't really consider it to feel any more intense.

Air-Tech Strong
And finally onto the Strong. This is supposed to be the tightest and most intense of the lot, so had I saved the best for last?

The Strong incorporates quite an interesting internal structure, which probably isn't completely apparent from the diagram I've included, but the lower half of the channel is covered in lots of little raised squares, much like the Tenga 3D Module. Beyond that it has a couple of tight rings followed by a slightly wider chamber, giving it the most varied texture of all three Air-Techs. In terms of tightness it really does increase this over that of the Regular, despite bringing back the undulating channel seen in the Gentle to mitigate it slightly. Even with plenty of lube it did require a significant amount of pressure to insert myself into the toy, but it was doable, though the issue of the toy wanting to go shooting off with the Regular was amplified here. When it came to thrusting with the toy there was a lot more going on than with the Regular, and those textured squares felt pleasurable all around the full circumference of the head - including the frenulum - and the sensation of tightness was quite obvious and heightened this. There was some slight chafing along the shaft, specifically around the inner lining of the foreskin, but I found it less bothersome than with the Regular. One of my favourite points in the texture was towards the end, where the two tight rings were situated, and as the head passed through these the ridges did a great job of stimulating the corona. The pocket at the end, despite appearing to have texture itself didn't really add much, as once the head had fully passed though the rings there was no further to go, leaving it sat stationary here. The Strong doesn't have that natural feeling of the Gentle, but it definitely couldn't be described as boring like the Regular either. It's a little too snug to be my ideal, but it's intensely stimulating and definitely enjoyable.


After considering all three my runaway favourite has to be the Gentle, followed by the Strong, and then with the Regular in final place, just going to show how my instinct to pick the middle option wouldn't have served me well. What I haven't said yet is who I think each of the models would be best suited to, so let's look at that now.

The Gentle - best suited to those with a thicker penis; Tenga don't have a U.S. (Ultra size) model of the Air-Techs available yet, so the larger canal can more comfortably accept greater girth. Likewise it's good for anyone who prefers less of a squeezing sensation. In terms of sensitivity it's perfect for anyone with an average level of sensitivity, I really wouldn't restrict it to just people who worry about being too sensitive; I know that the head of my penis is less sensitive now in my mid-20s than when I started masturbating in my early teens, and the Gentle has more than enough sensation. It's also ideal for those who want a natural sensation from their masturbators. I'd suggest that it's probably going to be less suitable though to men who are circumcised and typically require a lot of pressure and friction to stimulate themselves, and also to anyone with a considerably below-average girth.

The Regular - best suited to those with an average penis girth, or who prefer a slightly more snug grip from their masturbators. For guys who think that the head of their penis may be a little more desensitised, but who really enjoy stimulation specifically along the frenulum region. To be avoided by those who prefer a really slick masturbator and find any hint of friction/chafing unpleasant.

The Strong - best suited to anyone who prefers a tight gripping masturbator with a lot of varied texture. To those who really enjoy exploring the unique sensations of something manufactured, rather than something that feels realistic. Great for anyone with a thinner penis who needs that smaller channel to provide them with stimulation. Least suited to guys with a thicker penis as it's a real squeeze in there.

As a final point, if your girth is over 5 3/4" in circumference then I'd suggest holding off until a bigger version comes available, as you're looking at too tight a squeeze in any of them then.


Once you're finished with the Air-Tech it's quite easy to clean ready to use again in the future. You simply pop the TPE sleeve out of the plastic case, rinse it out, and leave it to dry. The instructions even suggest that you can use soap on it and turn it inside out (unlike with a Fleshjack), which aids matters. If you simply rinse it out then the inside can be very slow to dry as it's only open at one end, so I found it helped to turned it inside out and dab it off with a paper towel. As the insert is removable you can also pre-heat it before use in a basin of warm water, but I found it heats to your body temperature pretty rapidly during use anyway. Actually getting the insert back into the case when you're done can be a little fiddly, just due to the shape of the thing, as that narrow section of plastic around the middle hinders your ability to get the first part of the sleeve past it. There is of course also the option to use the sleeve without the case if you wish, though I didn't try it this way myself.

For me what's quite interesting about the Air-Tech range is actually how they've designed the interior textures compared to the Deep Throat Cup. The Deep Throat Cup had a little bit of everything going on inside it; there were bumps, there were ridges, there was something I can't quite describe at the end, and I rather liked that assorted medley of sensations all in one toy. The Air-Techs conversely stick more closely to a single texture each, with the spiral Gentle, the bumpy Regular, and only the Strong breaking out from that a bit. Personally I don't have a problem with a continuous texture throughout, but it's something to bear in mind.

So, what's the verdict going to be on the Air-Techs? Well honestly I'm a fan, and it's the Gentle one that really won it for me. This whole range of toys is well made, reusable, affordable, and instead of just being one-size-fits-all it actually has targeted products for different people. So long as you buy the right one I think you're going to be happy, because they all feel good in their own right, but the Gentle is my favourite. This is the one that I think feels the absolute best and which has no drawbacks in my eye. It's the one that I'm going to keep using, and the one that I'd feel most happy recommending to most people out there. It's also the one I foresee myself sending to people as gifts. The only possible drawback is that the Airflow system is a bit of a dud, but I only really care about that because they mention it so much as a feature, otherwise I wouldn't have given it a single thought.

I have to thank SexToys.co.uk for sending these to me to review, and if you'd like to pick one up and try it out then be sure to use my discount code below and save yourself 10%.


Tantus Vibrating Progressive Beads

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So a couple of months ago, back before life got in the way of blogging and I went AWOL for a while, my new customer service friend at Tantus, Captain Sparkle Bunny, sent me the brand new Tantus Vibrating Progressive Beads, and now I'm finally going to review them.

As always, follow the link below for more.

The Vibrating Progressive Beads are an interesting new product concept from Tantus, a company which is never afraid to shake things up in the world of sex toys. When I first heard about them admittedly I was a little on the fence; I don't have a great deal of experience with anal beads, but enough to know that I find them somewhat underwhelming, so I was intrigued to see where Tantus was going with this idea. These aren't the company's first foray into the world of beads, in fact I reviewed their older product a little over two years ago, but these are their most traditional set of beads yet, no longer employing that almost rigid style and marking a break into new territory.

The beads are 11 1/2" long in total, with 11" that can actually be inserted and the rest comprising of the base. The design features four ovoid beads of gradually increasing diameters, connected together by thin and flexible bridges of material. The first bead at the tip has a circumference of 2 1/2", the second  3 1/4", the third 4", and the fourth and final bead 4 3/4", so it's a steady journey up to something which still is pretty manageable for most people. Attached to the final bead is straight neck-like section with a 3" circumference which adjoins the anchor-style base that can be found in many of Tantus's latest designs.

Like all Tantus products the Vibrating Progressive Beads are made from 100% platinum silicone, guaranteeing you an odourless and completely body-safe product. In this instance it's quite a firm silicone that's been chosen, as you'll notice if you try to squeeze one of the beads, but in the bridge sections between the beads it's very flexible, and you can even stretch it a little if you pull gently on the beads. The surface of the beads is matte, and has this lovely soft velvety finish, which not only feels lovely against the skin, but all helps lube to adhere to the surface. As always the Beads are made to Tantus's impeccably high standards and there's not a defect to be found anywhere. There is evidence of a slight mould line running around the toy, but it's almost imperceptible and wouldn't bother even the most sensitive person. Trying to find it by touch is harder than finding the end of a roll of sticky tape.  

Because of the progressive design of the Beads it makes them incredibly easy to insert, and fun too. You simply press each one up against the anus and the body seems to readily swallow them up with very little fuss or resistance, as though you were feeding it series of hors d'oeuvres, from a small olive, to a grape, to quail egg, to a medium chicken egg. Each one pops in and then paves the way for the next size up moments later. The downside though is that when you take them back out again they have less of an impact. That first big bead comes out with a pop, but then because you're already relaxed to its size as the series of smaller ones follow they barely elicit any sensation from the sphincter. This even tends to be the case if you made a concerted effort to clench your sphincter tightly as you remove them. You just don't get that sequential "pop-pop-pop-pop" like you do with some other beads, which may result in disappointment if that's something you were specifically looking for.

The Vibrating Progressive Beads do have another trick up their sleeve though, and that lies in the other part of their name: they vibrate! If you examine the base of the beads you made notice that it's very similar in design to the Tantus Perfect Plug Plus, and indeed you can wear the beads just as though they were a butt plug. With all 11" inserted and gently snaking around inside your colon, the flat neck section provides the perfect place for your sphincter to rest up against, while the anchor base nestles comfortably between the buttocks, and then with a press of the button you can turn on the 7-speed vibrating bullet. Because of the nature of the toy you're only going to feel the vibrations in the immediate vicinity of the bullet, i.e. the sphincter, a little in the prostate, so don't go expecting them to travel all the way to the farthest bead, but they do provide a lovely bit of added sensation. It gives you the ability to play around inserting them like beads, then wear them all day like a vibrating plug, and finally go back to that bead experience again when you remove them. I can't think of any other product that offers that, so it's a nice mash-up. There's also the option to pop out the vibrating bullet and replace it with something stronger, such as a We-Vibe Tango, or even not use a bullet at all, so there's inbuilt flexibility.

On the whole I do quite like the Vibrating Progressive Beads; they're not enough to sway my mind on anal beads in general, but the fact that they're a combination toy means that they have a little more to offer, which is perfect for anyone just building their sex toy collection and looking to experiment with as many different sensations and modes of play as possible without breaking the bank. On this basis I could happily recommend the product to someone; you get an assortment of sizes to insert, something that goes deep, something you can wear, something that vibrates, and something you can pull back out and see how you like the sensation.

You can get the Vibrating Progressive Beads right now, directly from Tantus.

Remember to use the code "INCENDIAIRE" to get 15% off your order!

Straight to the Point penis plug stretcher

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This week I'm going to be delving back into the world of urethral sounding thanks to Uberkinky and a new one of their penis plugs they've sent to me. It's been a little while since I've tried a toy of this type, but when I saw the Straight to the Point penis plug stretcher I was quite intrigued by the general design of it and I thought it would be fun to try out.

Head below to catch the review!

The "Straight to the Point" plug - also known whimsically on the packaging as the "Tapered Elephant Dart" - is a little unusual in the world of urethral sounding in that it's not a uniform thickness throughout its length. In fact it's more akin to the Oxballs sounds that I reviewed a few years ago in terms of its general design. As the name might suggest it's designed to be used as a urethral stretcher, starting small at one end and gradually tapering up to a 10mm diameter at the other, allowing the user to slowly expand the size of their urinary meatus. At 4 1/2" in insertable length it's more sound than it is plug, but with its functionality it serves as something of a mid-point between the two toy distinctions.

The sound is made from a single piece of stainless steel and polished to a high sheen. As one would hope from a toy of this type it's manufactured to a very high standard, and the surface of the piece is completely smooth and free from any lumps, bumps, scratches, or indeed anything else that might risk irritating the urethra.

Left: angular tip. Right: fully rounded tip
The shape of the sound reminds me of a longer thinner version of the Metal Worx Teazer butt plug, with its rounded tip, tapered body, and then the way it narrows in again at the top before finishing with a spherical adornment on the end. One thing I did notice when I first examined it was that the tip isn't quite as round as it actually seems at first, and there's a slight angle where the rounded part of the tip meets the straight edges of the shaft. I've illustrated this to make the point more easily. This is something that I'd consider less than ideal because wherever you have a pointed part of an object it's going to create greater pressure on whatever it's pressing against. 

In use the sound is generally quite a pleasant experience. The narrow tip passes easily into the urethral opening and down through the spongy head until it meets the firmer shaft. Beyond this point I did find the need to progress fairly slowly with the sound however, due to the aforementioned incomplete roundness of the tip. The angular parts of the tip caused some slight discomfort as they scraped along the interior of the urethra, and this did mar the experience somewhat. Back up at the tip of the penis and the steadily widening shaft of the sound was passing quite easily inside, and eventually the whole thing disappeared down there. Personally I didn't feel that there was much of a stretch happening, despite this being thickest metal sound I have, and nor would I consider my urethral opening to be anything other than average in size, but obviously individual experiences will vary. One thing I really liked about the sound though is that once it's fully inserted it actually stays in place. The thick part of the shaft helps to anchor it within the head while the thinner neck and ball-tip protrude, preventing it from automatically emerging again as soon as you let go, which is my experience with all other sounds.

To draw a comparison with the Oxballs sounds which I mentioned earlier, I actually prefer this one. The Oxballs have the advantage of the soft, flexible, rounded tips, but despite this one being so rigid it's the shiny metal surface which helps the toy to glide in more easily. The stepped one of the Oxballs sounds is 12mm at its widest point, but I never managed to insert it that far, because instead of acting as a useful stretching tool it would merely get stuck at the urethral opening and tug at it.

On the whole I do like the Straight to the Point penis plug stretcher, but the thing that makes me hesitant to recommend it outright is the issue with the tip. It's a really niggly little flaw that detracts from the product, and you have to bear it in mind. You can still potentially get a lot of use and enjoyment out of the product, you just have to be prepared to insert it slowly and contend with a little discomfort.

Thanks to UberKinky for sending the product to me, and you can buy it from them right now.

E-Stim Micro ElectroSound

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A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by the folks at E-Stim who asked if I'd be interested in reviewing any of their products, and being that I've enjoyed Electrosex toys before I was quick to say yes. I requested this impressive metal beast of a butt plug that they call the Torpedo, and when they sent it over they were kind enough to include some other goodies too, in the form of their "Intro2Electro for Him" kit, and a Micro Urethral Sound.

As eager as I am to get straight into the Torpedo it made more sense to start here with the other bits and pieces first, so I'm afraid you'll have to wait until next week for that. Right now you can click below to catch round two of me inserting electrically-charged steel into my penis.

I'm no stranger when it comes to sounding, and indeed electro-sounding too. I reviewed a similar product for another company at the end of last year, and one of the things I took away from the experience was that the length of the sound wasn't necessarily beneficial when it came to adding electricity into the mix. My favourite way to use it was in a very shallow manner, so that the sound went no deeper than the head of my penis and the full force of the electricity was concentrated right at that point, and for this reason E-Stim thought I might like to try their shorter Micro Sound.

The Micro Sound measures 3" in total length, with 2 1/8" of it that can be inserted into the body, and an insulated plastic section at the end that's held during use. In terms of thickness it's only 6mm wide, which makes it my smallest sound, but the dimensions of it mean that it's an ideal starter sound for anyone looking to explore this type of play. 

It terms of the design and construction it's a pretty standard sound despite its diminutive size. It's made from one solid piece of stainless steel of uniform thickness, with a perfectly rounded tip and a highly polished surface. The build quality of it is excellent, which as I always say is important when it comes to sounds due to the delicate nature of where they're being inserted, and this one is completely free from any sort of defects or anomalies.

As is the case with toys of this type the Micro Sound is what's known as "unipolar." This means that only one wire from the power unit connects to it, and the other wire must be attached to something else that's coming into contact with your body in order to complete the circuit, and this conveniently brings me back to the Intro2Electro for Him kit that I mentioned at the start.

In order to use any sort of Electrosex toy you will of course need some requisite equipment to begin with, but if you don't have any then E-Stim's Intro2Electro kits are a great place to start. The "for Him" variant of the kit includes the EBox Series 1 power unit, two conductive rubber loops, 4 adhesive pads, the necessary cables to connect everything together, and it's all packed into one handy plastic storage case. The kit matches up perfectly with the Micro Sound because a conductive loop worn around the base of the penis is the ideal component to pair up with the Sound to complete the circuit (though I do find that one of the adhesive pads works just as well).

When it comes to using the Sound I always recommend inserting it before you turn on the power unit, just so as to avoid any sensation of getting a mild electric shock as the electricity jumps from the metal to the skin as the two surfaces draw near. It's a very comfortable toy to insert, probably largely down to its narrow size which passes more readily into the urethra, but you still want to be certain not to rush it, and to use plenty of sterile lubricant. One of the immediate things I discovered about the Micro Sound is that it stays put when it's inserted, unlike longer and thicker sounds which have a tendency to start working their way out again as soon as you let go of them. It even stayed in place quite happily when I had no more than half of it inserted, and this was quite a pleasing discovery for me as I like having a hand free to do other things with.

Once I had the Sound positioned to my liking I turned on the power unit and got that familiar tingling sensation I'm so fond of all through the head of my penis. What's interesting about the EBox Series 1 unit is that it features more of an analogue design compared to the previous power unit that I'm familiar with. Everything is controlled by knobs and dials rather than buttons, and this actually makes it quite fun to play around with. There are three basic modes to choose from "Pulse" "Continuous" and "Manual". The best place to start is probably with "Continuous" and with this selected you can then manipulate the strength of the electrical supply using the "Output Level" knob. Slowly cranking up this dial takes it from a mild tingling sensation in the penis to something that feels almost like a vibration. It's very easy to use the knob to increase the output gradually to give yourself a chance to get used to it and enjoy the more intense sensations as you work up to them. It's also easy to slip and go a little higher than you wanted to and then have to quickly turn it back down again. The next mode to try is "Pulse" and with this selected you'll feel a steady series of pulses of electricity at whatever power level you're currently set to. Using the "Pulse Rate" dial you can adjust the frequency of the pulses, depending on if you want something slow and soothing or something really quite rapid. This is probably my favourite mode as it seems to deliver more sensation when there's a break in the supply, rather than a constant flow. You can play around with the dial and have a few rapid pulses followed by a few slower ones. There's also another dial labelled "Pulse Feel" which goes from Soft to Hard, and you can also play around with this whilst in Pulse mode. It allows you to adjust how forceful each Pulse feels within your given power setting, whether you want the pulse to feel like a sharp jolt each time, or something more gentle. The final mode "Manual" works in conjunction with a button labelled "Fire", and the power supply only flows when this button is depressed, allowing you to customise your own rhythm of pulses. It all gives you a nice flexible array of options to choose from during your play session.

Having that wonderful throbbing tingling electrical sensation coming from right inside your penis is such a unique kind of pleasure - one you can't get from any other sex toy - and for me the Micro Sound is a good step towards the sort of product I'm looking for as it's far more practical than a longer device. The only slight drawbacks for me were that in order to position it just how I wanted it I still only used around half of the insertable length, making it a little longer than what would be ideal, and also after reviewing another sound last week which had a 10mm diameter at the point which sat just inside the head, 6mm felt a little lacking. My perfect ElectroSound would have to be a short, thick, stubby kind of penis plug, but until someone makes something like that the Micro Sound is the next best thing for shallow urethral play and I would recommend it without hesitation. 

My thanks to E-Stim for sending me the Micro Sound. It's available directly from them, and look out for my review of the Torpedo next!


E-Stim Torpedo

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It's time for my second E-Stim review, right on the back of their ETO Award win this month, and today I'm looking at the Torpedo metal butt plug. I was quite excited when E-Stim agreed to send this one over to me as I've been keen to try out a metal attachment for a while, ever since I made my first foray into the world of electro-play last year with a lovely silicone toy from another brand. Metal is actually a sex toy material I'm rather fond of in general - you need only read my review of the nJoy Pure Plug 2.0 to be convinced of that - so to my mind coupling it with my appreciation for electro-play can only be a recipe for good things.

Head below to catch the full review.

The Torpedo is one of 12 different solid-metal premium electrodes that E-Stim offers, all in a variety of different shapes and sizes to appeal to every taste. It comes available in a choice of 'small' or 'large' and as you might have guessed I opted for the bigger model.

The Torpedo is not a beginner's toy by any stretch of the imagination. It measures 6 1/4" in circumference with 4" of insertable length, so you're going to need a significant degree of experience with anal play before evening thinking of tackling it.

Much like its name the design of the Torpedo has the feel of a piece of military ordnance, looking rather like a scaled down version of the "Little Man" bomb from the 1940s, rather than anything intended to be shot out of a submarine. It's constructed from 4 key parts - the main bulb, the neck, the base, and a central connecting bolt - with all but the neck being made from solid aluminium, giving it a hefty weight of 555g. The standard finish for the plug is brushed metal which gives it a rather appealing industrial feel to it I find. It's not overly fancy and looks how I imagine an electrode should, though a polished version is also available on request if you're interested in something a little more pretty.

Functionally the Torpedo is designed as a bi-polar electrode, with the two points of charge coming from the bulb of the plug and the base, while the black plastic neck acts as an insulator between them to ensure the current flows through the body. This allows the Torpedo to be used alone, unlike with the MicroSound which required another accessory to be in place to complete the circuit.

When it comes to using the Torpedo it's advisable to opt for a warm-up toy first, in part due to the sheer girth of it, but also because the rounded tip is quite blunt and has very little taper to it. This isn't a strict requirement though as it is possible to insert the plug by itself if you have the patience and experience for it, because this is the sort of thing I take the time to test out. Once you're ready to accommodate the thickness of the plug it slips inside very comfortably, with the brushed metal surface feeling almost soft against skin. Inside the body the Torpedo feels wonderfully filling as it pushes up against the prostate, and you get a subtle cool feeling too as the conductive metal begins to suck the heat from the surrounding tissue. This is one of the things I love to play around with when it comes to metal toys, changing the temperature of them before insertion just to add a little extra sensation. The other thing that you'll notice straight away is the weight bearing down on your sphincter. The plug feels completely secure and there's no risk of it slipping out, but there's a pleasant awareness off all this mass there, enough to warrant a few muscle contractions almost as though you're doing a muscle-toning workout with your anus. What's nice is that just as a starting point of being a buttplug it's a really great toy, and it feels lovely to just walk around wearing it and feeling its presence. Even the base nestles happily between the buttocks despite looking rather large.

The fun really starts once you connect the Torpedo to the EBox Series 1 power unit. On the lowest setting you immediately get this slight tickling sensation all around the plug inside you, which gave me cause to squirm a little and give out a girlish giggle. As you increase it it changes to that more vibration-like sensation, but it also gives off that fascinating feeling of energy flowing through you and the surrounding area lighting up. More power brought with it a spontaneous erection and the sense that the electricity was flowing through the prostate and further afield. Although its almost impossible to properly put into words these sensations, it was noticeably a different sensation from what I had with the silicone toy I'd used in the past. That delivered a much more intense prostate sensation specifically, but with the Torpedo it was like all my erogenous zones were being super charged as I turned the dial all the way up to the max. This fact was evident when I finally gave in to the urge to masturbate and was rewarded by an especially strong orgasm, boosted by the flow of power. There are a lot of different modes you can try out with the Torpedo, which I covered last week when I was discussing the EBox in my MicroSound review, but I found that I was most compelled to stick with the continuous one. Something that did interest me about the Torpedo, is that despite its design, almost all the sensation seems to be felt inside the body, with very little around the base, and the sphincter doesn't spasm in response to the electricity either, though manually contracting it and pulling the plug into a slightly different position can alter the exact sensation.

One thing that's worth pointing out about the Torpedo is when it comes to cleaning it, it can actually be disassembled. It's as simple as unscrewing it and separating it into its four parts, and this is really handy because lube can get into the gap between the metal and plastic, and when it comes to anal toys it's nice to know that every cranny its getting washed properly.

I have to say I'm a huge fan of the Torpedo, and one of these metal toys was definitely worth waiting for. I love the thing just as a plug; it's well made, a great shape, a great size, a great weight, but when you hook it up to E-Stim's powerpack that's when it gets really special. It delivers good strong electrical current and the sensations are incredible. It's fun just to play with by itself, or to couple with the use of a Fleshjack or other sex toy where you want to supercharge the experience. I honestly couldn't fault this toy and would recommend that anyone give it a try, or at least try one from the range in a suitable size for them.

Thanks to Mick from E-Stim for sending this to me to review, and you can buy the Torpedo straight from their website.


Tornado Glass Dildo

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A few weeks ago Bondara asked me if I'd be interested in reviewing any products from their website, and when I spotted this twisty glass dildo I knew that it was the one for me. I've seen dildos similar to this from various brands for a while now and they've always piqued my curiosity, so I'm quite pleased to finally get my hands on one.

The Tornado is a simple yet elegantly attractive dildo, crafted from a single piece of solid clear glass, with just the slightest hint of colour adorning the edges in the form of a red stripe. In part this was what drew me to the piece, as I love a sex toy that has a beautiful sculptural quality about it, as well as being functional.

Unlike the majority of toys in my collection the Tornado is of the long and thin variety, measuring in at 7" from base to tip, and with a 4" circumference at the widest point. It features this helter-skelter spiral design, like an Archimedes screw, and it's the fins of this which give it quite a prominent texture, negating the need for it to be of any great thickness.

The construction of the Tornado is top notch and I really can't fault it. It's smooth, uniform, free from chips, scratches, air bubbles, and no moulding lines either. 

When it comes to using the dildo for the first time it's actually quite a fascinating experience, because if you hold it very loosely and lower yourself down onto it then the dildo will slowly spin around and screw itself into your body. After years of testing hundreds of different insertables there are still some unique sensations that will come along and surprise you, and it really does feel quite different to something just sliding straight in. I think that one of the benefits of how it enters the body this way is that it makes the toy seem far less extreme. Even with its modest girth the very nature of the design is going to be enough to put off most beginners when considering using this anally, but the gentle screwing motion both eliminates the need for stretching the sphincter, and takes away what would appear to be a very bumpy texture. It's quite enjoyable to thrust with the dildo this way, casually allowing it to twist its way in and out of the body. It's very much a sphincter-based toy, this is where you're going to feel all the sensation, rather than anything more internal or around the prostate, and I think that a lot of times the anus itself can be overlooked as an erogenous zone, so it's nice to have a toy that really exploits that for a change. The 6 1/2" insertable inches of the toy allow you to take really long strokes before having to reverse course, which is especially great if you're going slowly with it, though you might not manage to take the entirety of the rigid glass shaft before hitting a dead end. Despite everything I've just mentioned about the screw-action of the Tornado, there is in fact another way to enjoy it, but this is slightly more advanced. The other option is simply to hold the dildo still to prevent it from spinning, and then to thrust, but this requires the ability to completely relax your anal muscles for it to work. Doing this you really do feel the full intensity of the texture against your sphincter, and this bumpy ride up and down can be very enjoyable as well, though quite different. I rather enjoy the contrast between starting with a slow gentle twisting motion in and out, and then switching over to a more intense bumpy ride at an increased speed. It's definitely nice to find that option of dual functionality there.

Because it's a glass dildo you can of course do all the usual fun things with temperature play. I'm personally a fan of the cold option myself, especially in the Summer heatwave we're experiencing right now, so it's fun to pop it into the fridge and enjoy a chill as it twists into the body.

One other thing I should mention is that the Tornado does come with its own velvet storage pouch, which I always find to be a nice touch with glass toys.

I have to thank Bondara for sending this one over to me, and I'd be very happy to recommend it. If you're looking for something that puts a bit of a different twist on your regular dildo play, then the Tornado is worth checking out.

The Tornado is available directly from Bondara.

Tantus Pack 'n' Play No.2

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Back in March Tantus's customer service pirate, the lovely Captain Sparkle Bunny, kindly sent me a bag of goodies to review for them, and I've been steadily plodding my way through it whenever I get a spare moment. Today I'm going to be looking at the Pack 'n' Play No.2 dildo, and you may remember that I reviewed the Pack 'n' Play No.1 a while back and was a big fan of it.

Check out the review after the jump!

The Pack 'n' Play line of dildos from Tantus is an ingenious cross between their popular O2 line and the Supersoft. If you're already familiar with Tantus products you may recognise the shape of the No.2 as being taken from the same mould as the Mark.

As the name suggests the Pack 'n' Play is a dual purpose dildo, designed to serve both as a dildo for penetrative use, and also as a packer if desired. As with any product that performs two functions there's the question of getting the balance right between the needs of each, and in this case it would seem that the "play" side is more strongly favoured.

Like all Tantus products the Pack 'n' Play No.2 is made of silicone, but what makes it different is that it's much softer than the silicone you'd usually expect to find. If you're someone who loves the fact that silicone is odourless, non-porous, and completely body-safe, but still find yourself drawn to other materials because it's firmer than you'd like, then this dildo is going to be perfect for you. The material is wonderfully plush and feels just as soft as the outer later on the O2 dildos, only there's more of it. You can bend it with ease, compress it, and if you squeeze it hard enough it'll even grow a little longer. I'm a huge fan of it and I keep hoping that Tantus will continue to make more dildos in this vein, as it's easily one of my favourite types of silicone.

The surface of the silicone incorporates two finishes: the shaft is matte and feels velvety to the touch, while the head is completely smooth and shiny. Unlike the silicone in the O2 dildos there's not even a hint of tackiness to it, which is very welcome. The construction of the dildo is superb, and you won't find any hint of a mould line or defect anywhere along it.

The design of the Pack 'n' Play No.2 is modelled after the Mark, one of Tantus's realistic dildos. In total it's 6 1/2" long, and 5 3/4" of that are actually insertable. The widest portion of the dildo is around the lower half of the shaft, which measures 5" in circumference. The head itself is fairly small and acorn-shaped, and its shiny surface is quite lacking in detail. On all sides of the dildo the head blends almost seamlessly into the shaft below, with no significant coronal ridge protruding. The shaft is a pretty uniform thickness along its entire length, narrowing slightly to 4 3/4" just below the head, and the whole thing features a very subtle upward curve. The surface of the shaft is more detailed than the head, but still only to a minimal degree, featuring at most a couple of raised areas designed to look like veins. It's not a great deal of detail, but it does add some points of interest and makes the dildo seem a little more lifelike.

The base of the dildo is designed to make it completely harness friendly, and it achieves this by incorporating some of the dual-density technology from the O2 dildos. The bottom half of the base is made from a much firmer silicone, and this firm material then extends around a 1/4 of the way up into the core of the shaft. The result of this is that is strengthens the base of the dildo, allowing it to be held securely in any compatible O-ring harness. If you are using the dildo in a harness then you may find that there's a slight degree droop in the shaft when it's being held by the base, but it's barely noticeable. When you're not using the dildo the 2 3/4" wide base is also great for standing the dildo upright and offers a lot of stability.

Like its brother the No.1, the Pack 'n' Play No.2 is possibly one of the most comfortable dildos I've ever used, and I remain quite keen for everyone to try one for themselves. Everything about the shape and the material makes it ideal for anal play, and it also comes in a more modest size that should suit a wider range of people. The small rounded head with its shiny surface helps the dildo to slide very easily into the body, without the need for warm up, and the soft material feels so gentle against the sphincter, both during insertion and afterwards if you decide to stop and give the dildo a little squeeze. The matte surface of the shaft has a little bit of drag to it, which personally I like, and it also help to hold onto lube very well. Once the dildo is inside the body it does feel unimaginably comfortable, especially as it sucks up heat and warms to body temperature. I'm a huge fan of regular silicone, but the extra flex in the Pack 'n' Play makes it significantly better, and it really does bend around into any position it needs to be in. You can thrust with it by hand using the base as a handle, or use the stability of the base to allow you to squat over it and ride it, but either way you needn't worry about being too vigorous as the soft head cushions any impact with your insides. Because it's a shorter dildo it's possible to insert the whole thing right down to the base, with no worry of it suddenly poking you uncomfortably inside like you might find with other toys. In terms of thrusting it reminds me of one of my other favourite smaller dildos, the Kevin Warhol, because it has that same ability to use its size and flexibility to rub back and forth across the prostate very satisfyingly.

If using the dildo for packing you may encounter a couple issues. The first is that when you attempt to fold it downwards, or sideways, depending on how you envision wearing it, you'll find that the point at which it begins to bend is right at the midpoint of the shaft, causing quite a conspicuous bulge. The second is that the material has a lot of spring in it, so you'll need a strong pair of underwear to hold it down in the position you want, otherwise it'll just stretch out the fabric and risk leaving it misshapen.

As the dildo is silicone you want to remember to avoid using silicone lubes with it. When it comes to cleaning it you can wash it with anti-bacterial soap and hot water, use a toy cleaner/wipe of your choice, or alternatively sterilise it by either boiling for a couple of minutes in a pan of water, or wiping it over with a 10% bleach solution.

Overall I'm thoroughly pleased with the Pack 'n' Play No.2 and think that it's a fantastic product. If I was rating it as a packer then I'd probably be forced to knock off a point, but as I'm just using it as a dildo it gets full marks from me.

You can buy the Tantus Pack 'n' Play No.2 directly from Tantus, and this month get 20% off with the code 'FEELME'

ElectraStim Intruder butt plug

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Updated 14/08/15

Last month I had the opportunity to review my first ever solid metal electrosex butt plug, courtesy of my new friends at E-Stim, and now this month my old friends over at ElectraStim have provided me with one of their metal plugs so I can do a little comparison. As it happens both plugs are rather conveniently almost identical in size, which should make for nice straight forward assessment of their other attributes, and in all other respects the two designs couldn't be more different.

As always, catch the rest below.

Compared to its competitors the Intruder is easily the more glamorous product. Made from a highly polished piece of solid aluminium, and sculpted with graceful sweeping curves it's clearly a piece of design. There's nothing utilitarian about it; it wants to be looked at, and it looks expensive. It's a complete contrast to the rough industrial look of the Torpedo, and if you like your toys to be pretty then you have your winner.

The Intruder is one of a range of three similarly-shaped plugs by ElectraStim, and it happens to be the smallest, but don't let that fool you - it's no beginner's toy. It measures in at 6 1/4" in circumference, with a insertable length of 4 1/2", making it just slightly longer than the Torpedo.

The construction of the plug isn't immediately apparent just from looking at the product photo, but it's made from three individual pieces. Running vertically down the middle is a central strip of clear acrylic which sits sandwiched between two outer metal halves, all held together presumably by a strong adhesive. It's a very interesting design because the acrylic section isolates the conductive metal from left to right, rather than from top to bottom as the plastic neck did in the Torpedo. It also adds to the uniqueness of the Intruder's look, giving that classic appearance of metal fused with glass. Because it's such a shiny finish to the metal you have to be careful if you wish to keep it pristine, as aluminium is a softer metal and prone to scratching. In total the combined materials give the plug a weight of 385g, which is less than the Torpedo but still quite significant.

Functionally the Intruder is designed as a bi-polar electrode, with the two points of charge coming from the two opposite sides of the plug, and with the acrylic divider acting as an insulator to ensure the current flows through the body. This means that just like the Torpedo or the Sirius the Intruder can be used by itself, without the need for ElectraLoops or electro-conductive pads to complete the circuit.

When it comes to using the Intruder it's advisable to opt for a warm-up toy first, just due to the sheer size of it, but if you're a renegade like me then it is possible to insert the plug by itself if you have the patience and experience for it. It's actually easier to do this with the Intruder than with the Torpedo, because it's far less blunt and has a nice tapered tip to ease it into you. As soon as you're ready to handle the full girth of the plug it slips inside pretty comfortably, aided by the high sheen of the surface working in tandem with a good waterbased lube. Inside the body the Intruder feels expectedly filling for a plug of its size, pushing closely up against the prostate, and all the while pulling back down against the sphincter with its weight. It holds quite securely in place, with the slim base nestled comfortably between the buttocks, and while you're constantly aware of the mass of the thing being there, there's no chance of it unexpectedly slipping out. As with any metal toy you'll find that at room temperature it feels cool to the touch, and once inside it gives a soothing chill initially as it begins to draw heat from the body to warm itself. This is an attribute that I always enjoy playing around with, and varying the temperature of metal plugs prior to insertion. Like with the Torpedo the Intruder makes for a really nice toy just by itself, and it's fun to walk around wearing even before you think about hooking it up to the powerpack.

The Intruder is designed to be used in combination with a purpose-made electrosex power unit, but due to the size and surface area of this particular plug you have to be careful to pick an appropriate unit. As it happens that rules out my trusty Flick Duo as it just doesn't have the power for the job, so in an unusual turn I'm going to be reviewing this ElectraStim plug with the aid of the E-Stim powerpack from a few weeks ago. Unfortunately that means missing out on all the fun pre-programmed patterns in the Flick Duo, but it should give a more direct comparison of the Intruder against the Torpedo. One thing to note though is that different companies use different connectors for their products. The Intruder takes 2mm connectors which are incompatible with the 4mm cable that came with the Torpedo, but thankfully the E-Stim Micro sound came with a 2mm cable which fits nicely. If you don't want to mix equipment from different brands then ElectraStim recommend their SensaVox unit for use with this plug, but that'll set you back £300 as it's a serious piece of kit.

Once everything is connected and fired up it's surprising how different the Intruder actually feels to the Torpedo. I was expecting there to be a little variance, but not to this degree, and it all comes down to moving the position of the plastic insulator. At first the sensation you get from the Intruder as you increase the dial is not a lot. I have a habit of starting on the "constant" setting, which delivers the faintest hint of a tingle until suddenly you go too high and there's a sharp jolt of pain. I found I had more luck playing around with the pulse setting, as that intermittent flash of power made it much easier to identify what was being felt, but still it surprised me just how much fine tuning I had to do before I started to feel something I liked. Unlike the straightforwardness of the Torpedo it proved to be a delicate balancing act of adjusting the intensity and pulse frequency until I hit a pleasurable point. With that sweet spot identified the sensation was that of a soft throbbing around the prostate, and it felt fairly nice but I really wasn't blown away. No matter how much I tinkered that was the best I could get, and it wasn't for lack of power, it was just that too much power seemed to translate into discomfort. Somehow it seemed to miss that excited energetic tingly feeling that the Torpedo brought me, and that I also got from the Sirius. Whereas the Torpedo had me feeling aroused as soon as I began to turn up the dial, the Intruder left me altogether limp even after tweaking it to the perfect setting.

One thing I learnt from playing around with the plug is that the orientation it has inside the body has an impact on its performance. Having the two metal halves facing forwards and backwards, rather than left and right tends to elicit more of a result from the plug. In this configuration the flow of electricity helps to contract the muscles, causing the plug to move around a bit and be pulled deeper into the body. This is an interesting experience, and the plug did push against the prostate somewhat as it moves, but honestly I still didn't find the sensations to be anything special.

It's not often that something really takes me by surprise when I'm reviewing a toy, but I really wasn't expecting the Intruder to behave like this. I was expecting it to feel largely similar to the Torpedo, and perhaps even slightly better because of the layout, but instead it just fell flat for me. This is the interesting thing about doing a comparison review, because perhaps I would have felt differently about it if I hadn't used the Torpedo before, but even then I think my experiences with the wonderful Sirius prostate massager would have had an impact on my assessment.

So where does this all leave us with the Intruder? Well it's a lovely looking toy, it's a well made toy, and it's a very pleasurable toy to wear by itself, but as an electrosex toy I find it to be a bit of a flop. It's more form than it is function, and put next to the Torpedo there's one toy that looks amazing, and one that feels amazing. At the end of the day I know the one that I'd pick. It's taken me a while to get to this point after an initial hiccup using the wrong powerpack and two edits later, but sadly I'm still not at a point where I'd be recommending this plug.
 
I have to thank Hella and Andy from ElectraStim for generously sending the Intruder to me to review, even if I couldn't give it the glowing endorsement I would have liked. It is a top-notch British company and I'd recommend checking out their Silicone Noir range any day. 

If you're still interested in the Intruder then it's available from Lovehoney.



Lelo Loki Prostate Massager

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September is upon us and as we bid a sad farewell to the Summer let's kick off the month with an exciting new product review!

A week ago Lelo made a big splash when they announced the launch of some all new toys for men, in the form of three specially-designed prostate massagers, and I had the very good fortune to be contacted prior to the launch and offered the chance to review them.

First up is the Loki, which I like to think of as the successor to the Billy. The Billy was my first serious sex toy that I got my hands on back in the infancy of my reviewing days, and it was all thanks to a £100 prize that I won in SexToys.co.uk's Review of the Month competition. Before then I never would have considered spending £80 on a sex toy but the Billy quickly became a firm favourite, blowing me away with its intense vibrations, and proving it was worth every penny. With the passage of time, though, there did come a point when I started to crave a little more; a little more power, a little more girth, and now it would seem Lelo have heeded that call.

Catch the review below!

For a lot of years now Lelo have focused primarily on the female and couples market, with only one powered toy in their range of luxury Swedish-designed products that was aimed wholly and exclusively at men. The release of the Loki marks their long-awaited and very welcome return to this arena, and with two other products in tow they've clearly returned in full force.

The Loki is, in many ways, similar to the Billy in that it's a handheld prostate massager, rather than one designed to be worn, but don't worry if you're a fan of the latter as Lelo have covered all the bases with their other two products. At first glance what stands out about the Loki is its size, because it's significantly bigger than the Billy. At total you're looking at 8" inches from end to end, versus only 6 3/4" with the Billy, but interestingly all of this extra length is taken up by handle on the toy, leaving the exact same 4" of insertable shaft. This is quite an important feature because, as I'm always telling people, the prostate is actually quite shallow and easy to reach, and 4" is more than enough to get there, but the larger handle is far more practical to operate during use. The other place where the Loki is notably larger is in its girth, which comes in at 4 5/8" around the widest point, again compared to only 3 1/2" on the Billy.

Those of you with keen eyes and a comprehensive amount of Lelo product knowledge may have noticed that the Loki looks an awful lot like the Lelo Mona, and indeed this was the first thing that struck me. After hearing many of my female reviewer friends rave about the Mona 2 I was quite excited by this fact, and that I'd finally be able to try an anal-safe version of it, so I casually put the question to my contact from Lelo expecting to get a simple confirmation, but instead the response was rather more evasive. The official line is that "[Lelo] products have some recognizable similar features, but each of them is a distinctive different product, designed for it's own purposes" which is fair enough, but to my mind it's still just a modified Mona, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. 

The construction of the Loki is again similar to that of the Billy, and indeed to many of Lelo's other vibrators. Internally it's made from a firm white ABS plastic which is visible around the handle, while the insertable portion is covered by a thin layer of soft velvety silicone. There are two colour options available for the silicone, Federal Blue or Obsidian Black. I happen to have the black one as you'll see from the side by side photos I took of the Loki with the Billy, but I included an example of the blue at the top as I think it looks a bit nicer. The amount of silicone on the Loki does feel marginally thicker than on the Billy, and you can feel a little give when you squeeze it, so it does provide a touch of cushioning. One area where there is substantially more silicone is in the guard piece between the handle and shaft, which is much larger than on the Billy and provides a good solid limitation on how far the Loki can be inserted. 

When it does come to inserting the Loki it's a nice smooth affair. The size clearly makes it less beginner-friendly than the Billy, but the gentle taper helps to ease that bulbous shaft into the body, and the smooth plush silicone feels lovely against the skin. Inside the body the Loki feels pleasantly filling; it's not the biggest toy in the world but you can really feel its presence, especially with the way that it angles itself into the prostate and applies a gentle pressure. Whereas the Billy often felt that it didn't fill you enough the Loki is ideal and feels perfectly satisfying, because frankly for this purpose you wouldn't want something that went too far in the opposite direction and really stretched you out either. 

With the toy in position it stays quite happily in place meaning there's no need to keep holding onto it if you don't wish. The handle protrudes from the body enough that it's easy to grab onto to operate, and with a little flexibility you can see the buttons too. Most of the time you're going to be operating the buttons blind, and thankfully some changes to the control pad since the Billy make it easier to decipher what you're going to be pushing. There are 4 buttons in total laid out like the points of a compass. West and East are + & - which control the vibration intensity, while North and South cycle up and down through the six different patterns.

The vibrations are impressively strong, even on the lower settings, and you can really feel them penetrating into the prostate. It's definitely a welcome step up from the Billy. In terms on what the vibrations themselves are like on a buzzy to rumbly scale, they're more midway between the two, leaning more towards the rumbly side. Personally I would have preferred a little more of a deeper rumbly vibration than what you get, but it's still a really pleasing sensation that it delivers, especially when coupled with the intensity of the power settings. 

The six patterns that you get to pick from are as follows: constant vibration, steady pulses, rapid pulses, repeated increase in intensity from low to high, gentle increase from low to high and back down again, and lastly random mode which produces pulses with no set interval. It's not often I say this but I actually like all the patterns and none of them are a dud for me. They're a little bit different to the patterns on the Billy, and at first I was worried that I was going to miss a couple of my favourites, but there are options which are similar enough that they get the job done just as well, and better too when you add in the increased vibration strength.

One thing that's always nice about the handheld prostate massagers is that you can manipulate them during use. Most of the time you'll probably just lie there letting it do its thing, but if you grab the handle you can do short thrusts with it to add extra stimulation to the prostate, or you can angle it more into the prostate to add a firmer pressure. You can also have a partner grab the handle and use it on you, and all of these really add to the experience. 

There's enough flexibility with the various patterns and settings that you can configure it to something that feels soothing enough to enjoy while you watch TV, play a videogame, or even write a review (ahem), but when you get everything set just right and turned all the way up it can feel incredibly pleasurable and add an intense edge to a masturbation session that you didn't even know you were missing.

Like the Billy the Loki is rechargeable, has a lockable keypad for use when travelling, and comes with a cloth storage pouch. It is a tad more noisy than the Billy, but with a closed door it's doubtful anyone would hear it. It comes with a USB charging cable rather than a wall plug, and one welcome upgrade is that the Loki is 100% waterproof, giving you the option of safely using it in the bath or shower.
So as we reach the point of the review where I feel that it's time to wrap up, I only have one thing to say; buy one. Lelo have really impressed me here with this one, it's as though someone looked at my list of everything I'd tweak with Billy and then went away and made it happen. It thoroughly deserves my recommendation: it's delightfully filling, it's easy to operate, and its strong vibrations will remind you why it's great to own a prostate. If you're a Billy owner already then it's well worth the upgrade.

Thanks to Lelo for sending me one to review and it's available to buy directly from them right now, and from the following places around the world:


North America: Lovehoney USA, Shevibe

Lelo Hugo and Bruno Prostate Massagers

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The other week I looked at the first of Lelo's three new vibrating prostate massagers for men, the Loki, and today I'm going to be looking at the other two, the Hugo and the Bruno.

The Hugo and the Bruno are essentially the same product, except that the Hugo comes with the addition of a wireless remote, which is why I've chosen to cover both in one review. Everything I say about the Hugo can be applied to the Bruno, up until the section where I cover the functions of the remote itself, so hopefully this will be a more helpful way of looking at it.

The Hugo is a twin-motor, handsfree, wearable vibrating prostate massager and perineum stimulator, and by damn I've been looking for a good one of these for a long time. Over the years I've tried products from Rocks Off, Nexus, Jopen, and even Fun Factory, and they've all failed to cut the mustard in some way. Back at the end of last year, however, there did come a light at the end of the tunnel, and that was in the form of the L'Amourose Rosa - a unisex toy which performed excellently in this regard - and for this reason it's the only product which I see fit to compare the Hugo to in this review. 

The Hugo is a fairly compact toy on the whole, especially when compared to the Rosa. In terms of length and girth the dimensions of the Rosa are akin to that of the Loki, whereas the Hugo has a maximum girth of just 4" around the widest point, and an insertable length of 3 1/2". The narrowest part of the Hugo is the 2 1/4" circumference neck which sits just below the bulb, and this joins onto a 1 5/8" wide base which balances safety with comfort. Extending forwards from the base is a 2 3/4" long secondary arm which is designed to rest against the user's perineum.

The shape of the Hugo is rather traditional for this type of toy, but that's because there aren't a lot of configurations you can go for when aiming for this type of stimulation. There are two "arms" on the device, one larger and one smaller, which together almost remind me of an opened lobster's claw, ready to grab something. The larger arm is shaped like a smaller version of the Loki, with a gentle curve, nice bulbous portion towards the end, and a completely smooth surface throughout. This design is similarly mirrored on the smaller arm. 

The construction of the Hugo features the inclusion of two separate motors, each one being housed in the end of one of the arms. The core of the Hugo is made from a very firm ABS plastic, which in turn is covered entirely in a thin layer of soft velvety silicone, and this comes available in a choice of Obsidian Black, Ocean Blue, or a vibrant fuchsia colour. To my touch the thickness of silicone on the Hugo feels slightly less than that on the Loki, and the Rosa too, but there's enough to provide a degree of cushioning still. The underside of the toy features the charging port, located at the heel next to a shiny faux-metal plate bearing the name "Lelo" embossed, and at the other end the recessed power button. The body of the toy is largely solid throughout, which makes a difference from the Rosa where the neck between the insertable bulb and the base is very flexible. Instead on the Hugo there's a bit of flexibility built into the secondary arm, allowing for some adjustments depending on the user's body. 

Inserting the toy is nice and easy to do with a touch of lube and no warm up required. It's much more beginner-friendly than the larger Loki, and indeed the Rosa too. You don't get that sense of fullness like you would from a larger toy, but you certainly get immediate feedback from that pincer-like arm configuration squeezing you inside and out. The shape of the internal arm puts a pleasant amount of pressure right bang on the prostate, exactly where it should be, providing instant stimulation. Likewise the secondary arm applies external pressure to the perineum, and because it's that bit longer than the arm on most similarly-designed toys it actually hits the right spot, the spot that you'd instinctively go to touch if manually massaging your own perineum. The actual size of the toy becomes almost irrelevant, because you don't think of how full it makes you feel, let alone have a chance to notice that it may be lacking in any way. That firm constant pressure on the prostate entirely dominates your sensory perception, and a lot of what's enjoyable about larger toys anyway is that more fullness = more pressure on the prostate. It's essentially a win-win when it comes it delivering a lot of sensation without needing to put in a lot of effort. 

Once the Hugo is in it stays in very happily thanks to the shape of the design and the narrow neck. This means you can do pretty much anything you can think of while wearing it, whether it be sex with a partner, some solo fun, or even giving your kitchen three coats of paint like me. It's really not going to go anywhere, and thanks to the fairly unobtrusive base which slots comfortably between the buttocks you can even comfortably sit down whilst wearing it - provided it's on a padded surface.

The vibrating function of the Hugo is operated by one single button located just beneath the bulb of the perineum arm, where it's very easy to access and operate. Pressing the button twice will activate the Hugo and it starts up in constant vibration mode at full power. Both motors in the Hugo operate in unison, and this applies to all the patterns that are included, so whatever vibrations you're feeling internally you'll also be feeling externally. This is quite different to on the Rosa, which alternated between firing each motor, so the patterns were staggered, and personally I prefer the Lelo approach. Just like with the Loki the Hugo has 6 vibration patterns in total: constant vibration, steady pulses, rapid pulses, repeated increase in intensity from low to high, gentle increase from low to high and back down again, and lastly random mode which produces pulses with no set interval. Each time you press the button on the base it switches the unit to the next pattern, and once you reach the final pattern it loops back to the start again. To turn the unit off once you're done the button must be held down for a couple of seconds. One minor drawback to the single-button design is that you can't adjust the strength of vibrations from the unit itself. With the Hugo the separate remote must be used to decrease the vibration strength, and with the Bruno the power cannot be adjusted at all. I only classify this as a minor issue because as someone who loves strong vibrations I'm quite content to use it on full power all the time, and even with the remote I only played around with reducing the power for the sake of the review and haven't felt the need to do it since. It all depends on the individual really; if you're someone who perhaps isn't quite so confident with this type of toy, and fears being overwhelmed by the vibrations, then the Hugo is probably more fitting for you than the Bruno due to the added control it offers. 

The vibrations of the Hugo are wonderfully strong and also quite rumbly. Despite its smaller size the vibrations of the Hugo felt more intense to me than those of the Loki, but I have a suspicion that this was due more to the combination of the shape of the toy pressing into the prostate, along with the power of the twin-motors, rather than something specific to the motors alone. Compared to the Rosa I'd say the Hugo is a little more powerful overall, but the Rosa has the slightly deeper and more rumbly feel to it, which is an interesting trade. The toy performs absolutely beautifully, and I could tell from the first instant that I turned it on that it was going to be a winner as my body greeted it with instant arousal. The way the motors harmonise and deliver simultaneous pulses into both the prostate and the perineum, coupled with the firm pressure applied to each region, just feels exquisite. As I said with the Loki I enjoy all of the different patterns that are available and none of them is a dud; you can even match the pattern to your activity, or the type of sex you're having. A long slow pattern for drawn out sensual sex, or a faster pattern for really energetic sex. When it comes down to the end result though, orgasms with the Hugo are fantastic. They're stronger, more intense, and sometimes even surprising. True body-shaking orgasms that'll have you eager to get ready to try it again. 

One nice feature that the Hugo specifically has is the SenseMotion remote. It's a wireless remote powered by four AAA batteries, which lets you (or indeed a partner) control every function of the Hugo without actually having to touch it. Very handy if you're wearing it under clothes. When you turn on the remote at first it'll begin vibrating softly in tune with the Hugo, and from here you can begin to cycle through the patterns of the toy or change the power level. At first I was puzzled by the vibrations of the remote, because they're not strong enough to provide any sexual pleasure by themselves, and in fact you can thankfully turn them off to save power, but I realised that the real use of the vibrations is if a partner is operating the remote, as they provide convenient feedback in hand about what the wearer is feeling. The other functions of the remote are that it has two motion-sensitive settings, so instead of simply relying on a pre-set pattern you can create your own by waving the remote about. This is quite novel, if a bit gimmicky, but I feel sure it would be more entertaining if using it with a partner rather than by yourself, as they can surprise you with an unexpected jolt of vibrations at any time. One point I will make regarding the remote is that the patterns coming from the Hugo should feel the exactly the same when changed by the remote, as they do when changed by the button on the body. I draw attention to this because at first mine felt quite different and it turned out to be a fault in that unit, and when it comes to a new product it can be confusing trying to judge what's supposed to happen or not. On the whole I do like having the remote for its convenience, but I could also happily live without it, which is worth bearing in mind given the price difference between the Hugo and Bruno.

Like the Loki the Hugo is rechargeable, comes with a USB charging cable rather than a wall plug, is 100% waterproof, giving you the option of safely using it in the bath or shower, and comes with a cloth storage pouch. It's a fairly quiet toy when used indoors, but it's not really discreet enough to be worn out in public.
So after another lengthy review it's pretty easy to see how I'm going to be wrapping this up. I really do adore the Hugo. I'm going to go ahead and say that as far as I'm concerned it's the perfect wearable vibrating prostate massager, seamlessly combining form and function. Top marks to Lelo for creating this; it's going to be my go-to toy from now on. The only slight drawback, because there always has to be one, is that like with the Loki I'd still like it to be a little more rumbly. Comparing it to the Rosa is what really brought that home, and made me realise that I'm not crazy for saying that. The Hugo is the superior toy in so many ways, and the one I'd recommend, but the slightly more rumbly vibrations from the Rosa permeate that bit deeper into the prostate, like ground penetrating radar, and it's a difference that's enough to be felt. When you consider all the other fantastic features of the Hugo which make it a winner, like the shape, the power, the patterns, it matters less overall, but I can't help but imagine the result if it had that extra oomph from a deeper vibration. 

Whether it's the Hugo, or you shun the remote and go for the Bruno, I really do recommend getting one of these. It's an incredible experience which is worth trying first hand. If you've never tried prostate massage before it'll entirely change how you've ever thought about the idea of sex toys for men.

Many thanks to the folks at Nice 'n' Naughty who sent this to me to review for them, and you can buy the Hugo from them right now if you're in the UK or Europe.

Check out the Lelo website if you live further afield.

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