The Manta is called a “vibrating stroker”, and at first glance, it’s an odd duckling. It comes in a variety of colors, and has two flickering tongues on the end of it, ridged and fairly thick in size. The handle is round with a cutout to better hang onto, no matter how slippery things get. Based on appearances alone, I’d almost have skipped right over it, but thankfully I gave it a try, because it’s rapidly moved to my number one position in the basket.
Appearance (4/5):
As said previously, the manta looks just... weird. Somewhere between a dildo with a bite out of the end, and an oversized pair of grill tongs, it doesn’t necessarily look “appealing”, but I would say I still found it intriguing. Upon some examination, you quickly realize the fluttering tongues wrap around the penis, and the ridged, arced middle allows the toy to be held in any number of positions for maximum effectiveness. The definition of function over form. If you care about color matching, it comes in a variety of muted colors, though I personally went with the standard sea green. Upon handling the toy, you’re greeted with an immediate feeling of quality, something that can be woefully absent from most men’s toys. The Manta is suitable weighty and feels durable, the silicon is smooth and high quality, and the buttons have a solid, tactile feedback. It’s a far cry from the ‘traditional’ aids like Fleshlights which are enclosed in weak plastic and feel, well, cheap and flimsy.
Effectiveness (5/5):
The effectiveness of the Manta is where this toy truly shines in my opinion. Most of the male vibes on the market completely loop around the penis, and this lends itself to being a poor fit if you’re too small or too thick. Bands and other items are required to force the loop to tighten around the penis, which can be a pain, both literally and figuratively. The Manta’s shape and unique open-ended design let it be used in an extremely wide variety of ways and fit virtually any size no matter how big or small. Despite being a fair distance away from the motor, I was shocked by how strong the vibrations are and how well they traveled even on the lowest settings. Speaking of settings, of these, there are many. 6 normal speeds and a variety of unusual patterns, there’s something here that will work for everyone. For me, I found the lowest speed produced a very deep pleasant vibration, and some of the hill climbing patterns were amazing. It’s a toy of exploration, one that requires you to be an active participant in finding your happy spots, but the reward is well worth it, and provides a climax like no other.
Maintenance (5/5):
Maintenance and ease of cleaning is a problem that has plagued male sex toys since the beginning of time, as the end of the road can often be messy. There is a delicate balance between toe curling orgasms and hours spent shamefully cleaning your toy in a wave of post nut clarity. Toys like Fleshlights and other sleeves feel good, but are absolutely abysmal to clean properly, with all of their fancy internal chambers feeling great, but leaving ample room for unwanted things like mold, mildew, and bacteria, should you not be extra diligent. I’m extremely pleased to report that the Manta is an absolute breeze to clean. Since this is a vibe that is held pressed into the penis, there really isn’t any cavities or other areas making it difficult to clean, and the toy is 100% waterproof, meaning you can simply run it under the faucet a few times with some soap, dry it off, and be on your way. There’s no need to dig through every nook and cranny like you would a sleeve and then leave drying for hours praying no one discovers it sitting on your tub ledge until you can put it away. The harder a toy is to clean, the less likely I am to use it in the future, as no one likes to spend a ton of time after a session doing chores. The Manta is easy to use, and easy to clean, and therefore gets my highest marks.
Longevity (5/5):
Another reason why I love the Manta is that it can be used in so many different ways. Another big factor on toys is how often can you use it before you get bored of it, and the Manta has a design that lends itself to almost unlimited use cases. It works well as a shaft vibrator or a glans massager, a ball tingler or a stroker. It even works with couples, and you can use it to spice up the bedroom whether you’re straight or gay, or a little of both. There’s something here for everyone. I’d almost be tempted to say that you’ll probably kill the motor before you can truly say you’ve used the Manta in every way possible.
Travel (3/5):
The last category I’ll rate the Manta on is travel effectiveness. I travel a lot, and I know a lot of other people do too. Some people like to take toys with them, either to stave off workday blues, or just spice things up away from home. That being said, no one really wants airport security to pull a 12” hot pink dildo out of your suitcase in the security line and ask who owns it. Nor do you want hotel staff to be knocking on your door because someone has reported there’s a vacuum cleaner that won’t shut off. So, how good is the Manta for travel? Well, for starters, it gets an automatic +2 from me due to having a travel lock feature. Press two buttons down for a few seconds, and it will go into travel lock mode, freeing you from worrying that your vibrating bag may get removed by a bomb squad before takeoff due to activating in your suitcase. It’s small enough to easily fit in luggage, and lightweight enough to not be a nuisance. In terms of appearance, the Manta unfortunately isn’t going to win any awards for being discrete, if someone takes it out of your bag, it’s going to be clear it’s a sex toy. It’s still a little more dignified than TSA pulling out a quivering silicon vagina from your bag, but probably won’t save you the embarrassment of explaining it’s a *cough* ‘massager’. It gains another point though for being very quiet despite being very powerful. Even with it on the highest setting, I would be surprised if someone could hear it through a closed door, even without any music. So, rest assured that even the most paper-thin hotel walls shouldn’t be too bothered by your experimentation.
Overall (4.5/5):
The Manta gets top notch marks from me. I keep coming back to it, whether on my own or with a friend. It’s just so good at what it does, easy to use, and useable in so many different ways that it’s an absolute pleasure to use. I’d highly recommend it to all guys who are looking for a vibrator and haven’t settled on one.
(This individual review is a part of the Fun Factory Cobra Libre II vs the Manta review republished after minor changes with permission from Reddit user Andrew W.)