SALON

Thursday, Jul 5, 2012 1:00 AM UTC

World’s best vibrators

THey include the Silver Bullet Multi-Speed by Cal Exotics

By

Topics: Gadgets, Gender, Sex, technology, The Wirecutter,

World's best vibrators
This article originally appeared on The Wirecutter.

My favorite multi-speed vibrator for people just getting into sex toys is the Silver Bullet vibrator. It’s only $10.
The Wirecutter
(Maybe I’m wrong, but I’m going to assume that if you’re reading The Wirecutter for sex toy advice, you’re just getting started. But we have more sophisticated recommendations later in this article, too.)

Electric vibrators are more than 100 years old. Yet they’ve only become mainstream in the past 15 years (thanks in part to the Rabbit being featured in a 1998 Sex and the City episode). And it’s only in the past decade that vibrators finally have some style rather than looking like hair dryers or cake mixers. In addition to adult bookstores, vibrators are now sold online as well as through women’s in-home sex-toy parties, drug stores, and retail chains throughout the U.S. Even Walmart sells them, albeit only tamer models.

With the mainstreaming of vibrators has come choices related to color, size, style, brand (Trojan, Durex and Phillips have all entered the vibrator business) and price (there are numerous vibrators available in the $100 to $200 range). The choices can be mind-boggling, making people wonder if price is linked to quality. Put another way: Can better orgasms be bought?

It turns out there are noticeable differences between vibrators and — as a sex researcher at Indiana University, a sexual health educator at The Kinsey Institute, and a sex columnist/author — it’s my job to know about them.

Based on research, product tests, interviews, surveys, and hearing from countless women and men about their sex lives, here’s what I can tell you: Most people who ask me about vibrators need help choosing a good beginner’s model – either their first personal vibrator or one to use for the first time with a partner.

If all you want is a great vibrator that isn’t a huge investment, and you don’t care whether it’s pretty enough to leave out on a coffee table for your in-laws to see, then a multi-speed Silver Bullet vibrator is the obvious choice. Here’s why.

First, it’s inexpensive. It features a multi-speed dial which is generally easier to use than the up/down, left/right arrows common to other vibrators — especially in the dark, while blindfolded, or after a glass of wine. If you or your partner is new to using a vibrator, or new to using one together, a multi-speed dial makes it easy to adjust the intensity and explore different settings. You’re also unlikely to accidentally turn the whole thing off, as sometimes happens with buttons, or controls that are on the vibrator itself (awkward).

The Silver Bullet has been my top pick for years. I recommended it in 2009 in my first book, Because It Feels Good, and my most recent one, Sex Made Easy. I keep recommending it, not because there’s nothing else out there (I have literally reviewed hundreds of vibrators over the years), but because I think it’s that good. And its value – remember, a $10 orgasm feels just like a $140 orgasm – can’t be beat.  Nor are my students, readers and I the only silver bullet vibrator fans out there. A similar style – but with an adjustable slide rather than a multi-speed dial – has earned 4.5 stars out of 5 from nearly 100 reviewers on Babeland.com.

The Silver Bullet great choice for reasons other than its dial and low price. It delivers clitoral stimulation, and, as we found in a nationally representativestudy of women ages 18 to 59, more women who use vibrators use them for clitoral stimulation (83.8 percent) than vaginal stimulation (64 percent). And it’s not just straight women, either. Another study of women who have sex with women found that 92.6 percent had used a vibrator on their clitoris, while  73.4 percent had inserted a vibrator into their vaginas. Many women reach orgasm more easily from direct stimulation of their glans clitoris (the nubby part of the clitoris that sits above the vagina), which means that a vibrator designed for clitoral stimulation is a good bet.

More reasons to go silver: It’s versatile, being easily used during masturbation by women or men as long as it’s only used externally (never insert wired parts into vaginas or anuses). The silver bullet can also be slipped easily between two bodies, such as during intercourse, which is not the case for all vibrators. The Hitachi Magic Wand, for example, while popular (and intense), is not exactly known for being an agile or subtle part of sex play.

Also, Silver Bullet vibrators are small (Early to Bed’s is only 2.25 inches long) and not phallic shaped. Thus, men don’t tend to think of them as competition but as “helpers” (though, fortunately, we’ve also found in our research that most American women and men are vibrator-positive). It’s also easy to travel with (although remember to store the batteries separately to avoid accidentally turning the vibrator – and TSA folks – on). And you can dress silver bullets up by putting soft elastomer sleeves over the bullet or slip the bullet inside a massage mitt for more intense massages.

That said, there are exceptions.

If you’ve got the cash and you’re not a beginner — or have enough experience to know that you like clitoral stimulation and will likely like vibrations – go with the June 5, 2012

Debby Herbenick

Debby Herbenick, PhD, MPH is co-Director of The Center for Sexual Health Promotion at Indiana University's School of Public Health-Bloomington, a sexual health educator at The Kinsey Institute, and author of five books about sex and love. Her most recent is Sex Made Easy: Your Awkward Questions Answered for Better, Smarter, Amazing Sex (Running Press, 2012). More Debby Herbenick.

You Might Also Like

More Related Stories

Featured Slide Shows

7 motorist-friendly camping sites

close X
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 9

Sponsored Post

  • White River National Forest via Lower Crystal Lake, Colorado
    For those OK with the mainstream, White River Forest welcomes more than 10 million visitors a year, making it the most-visited recreation forest in the nation. But don’t hate it for being beautiful; it’s got substance, too. The forest boasts 8 wilderness areas, 2,500 miles of trail, 1,900 miles of winding service system roads, and 12 ski resorts (should your snow shredders fit the trunk space). If ice isn’t your thing: take the tire-friendly Flat Tops Trail Scenic Byway — 82 miles connecting the towns of Meeker and Yampa, half of which is unpaved for you road rebels.
    fs.usda.gov/whiteriveryou


    Image credit: Getty

  • Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest via Noontootla Creek, Georgia
    Boasting 10 wildernesses, 430 miles of trail and 1,367 miles of trout-filled stream, this Georgia forest is hailed as a camper’s paradise. Try driving the Ridge and Valley Scenic Byway, which saw Civil War battles fought. If the tall peaks make your engine tremble, opt for the relatively flat Oconee National Forest, which offers smaller hills and an easy trail to the ghost town of Scull Shoals. Scaredy-cats can opt for John’s Mountain Overlook, which leads to twin waterfalls for the sensitive sightseer in you.
    fs.usda.gov/conf


    Image credit: flickr/chattoconeenf

  • Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness Area via Green Road, Michigan
    The only national forest in Lower Michigan, the Huron-Mainstee spans nearly 1 million acres of public land. Outside the requisite lush habitat for fish and wildlife on display, the Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness Area is among the biggest hooks for visitors: offering beach camping with shores pounded by big, cerulean surf. Splash in some rum and you just might think you were in the Caribbean.
    fs.usda.gov/hmnf


    Image credit: umich.edu

  • Canaan Mountain via Backcountry Canaan Loop Road, West Virginia
    A favorite hailed by outdoorsman and author Johnny Molloy as some of the best high-country car camping sites anywhere in the country, you don’t have to go far to get away. Travel 20 miles west of Dolly Sods (among the busiest in the East) to find the Canaan Backcountry (for more quiet and peace). Those willing to leave the car for a bit and foot it would be remiss to neglect day-hiking the White Rim Rocks, Table Rock Overlook, or the rim at Blackwater River Gorge.
    fs.usda.gov/mnf


    Image credit: Getty

  • Mt. Rogers NRA via Hurricane Creek Road, North Carolina
    Most know it as the highest country they’ll see from North Carolina to New Hampshire. What they may not know? Car campers can get the same grand experience for less hassle. Drop the 50-pound backpacks and take the highway to the high country by stopping anywhere on the twisting (hence the name) Hurricane Road for access to a 15-mile loop that boasts the best of the grassy balds. It’s the road less travelled, and the high one, at that.
    fs.usda.gov/gwj


    Image credit: wikipedia.org

  • Long Key State Park via the Overseas Highway, Florida
    Hiking can get old; sometimes you’d rather paddle. For a weekend getaway of the coastal variety and quieter version of the Florida Keys that’s no less luxe, stick your head in the sand (and ocean, if snorkeling’s your thing) at any of Long Key’s 60 sites. Canoes and kayaks are aplenty, as are the hot showers and electric power source amenities. Think of it as the getaway from the typical getaway.
    floridastateparks.org/longkey/default.cfm


    Image credit: floridastateparks.org

  • Grand Canyon National Park via Crazy Jug Point, Arizona
    You didn’t think we’d neglect one of the world’s most famous national parks, did you? Nor would we dare lead you astray with one of the busiest parts of the park. With the Colorado River still within view of this cliff-edge site, Crazy Jug is a carside camper’s refuge from the troops of tourists. Find easy access to the Bill Hall Trail less than a mile from camp, and descend to get a peek at the volcanic Mt. Trumbull. (Fear not: It’s about as active as your typical lazy Sunday in front of the tube, if not more peaceful.)
    fs.usda.gov/kaibab


    Image credit: flickr/Irish Typepad

  • As the go-to (weekend) getaway car for fiscally conscious field trips with friends, the 2013 MINI Convertible is your campground racer of choice, allowing you and up to three of your co-pilots to take in all the beauty of nature high and low. And with a fuel efficiency that won’t leave you in the latter, you won’t have to worry about being left stranded (or awkwardly asking to go halfsies on gas expenses).


    Image credit: miniusa.com

  • Recent Slide Shows

  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 9

Related Videos

Comments

 8 Comments

Comment Preview

Your name will appear as username ( settings | log out )

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href=""> <b> <em> <strong> <i> <blockquote>

follow salon

Most Read

Popular on Reddit

links from salon.com

From Around the Web

Presented by Scribol
listener_new_rect The Listener: "The Joker": Laughing at life's deepest sorrows