Fortunately for all individuals with a penis everywhere, that mentality is slowly changing, and there is a wealth of toys for men available, from Fleshlights to fuck toys, prostate massagers to blowjob machines. What a time to be alive! Still though, in the realm of sex toys, there are a category of toy that just isn’t talked about much... well, for men anyway. Vibrators!
A favorite of women everywhere, the first though that pops into your head is likely a colorful rattling dildo, or a magic wand that is powerful enough to double as an orbital sander. However, I’m happy to announce that they also make them for men! If you’ve ever thought, even once, in a cloud of horny hormones, that your phone on vibrate felt a little too good, or the rumble of a video game controller sparked a little more than a low health warning, you’re probably going to want to read this.
In my quest of sexual wellbeing, I’ve had the good fortune of using and abusing a fair number of men’s health products, and I’m confident that I’ve reviewed enough to be a veritable penis professor, a cock commander, a dean of all things dickery. *ahem* So I’m here to tell you, from my hearts of hearts, that we as men have been missing out on some serious fun.
So without further ado, let's talk about vibrators. Specifically, penis vibrators! I’ve selected two of my absolute favorites to review and recommend, and though they happen to be from the same company, I wholeheartedly promise I am in no way sponsored by anyone. These were purchased with my own hard earned dollarydoos, and the thoughts and opinions are purely my own.
Vibrators are a tricky thing to describe. In essence, they do simply that, vibrate. But to call it a vibration is simply not enough, it’s a surreal buzz that travels down your nerves and into your brain, and intensity and a motion that is deep and resonant. They are movers and shakers, crafted to reach exactly the areas they need to, in an effort to be the very best at what they do. If you’ve never used one, the first time you do I promise, you are simply not prepared. It’s novel, it’s intense, and it’s... wow.
The two that I have selected to talk about are both from Fun Factory, and they are the Fun Factory Manta and the Fun Factory Cobra Libre II.
The are two of the finest vibrators for men I’ve had the pleasure of using, and both fill different needs and wants, so lets talk about both separately. I’ve rated them in a few categories out of 5, those being Effectiveness, Appearance, Maintenance, Longevity, Travel.
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.
The Cobra Libre II is a penis vibrator, specifically for the head. It’s in a unique spot, as there are not many, if any other vibrators specifically for this purpose. It’s purpose built to be good at one thing, and one thing only, and I’m happy to say that it succeeds.
Appearance (5/5):
The Cobra Libre II looks fascinating. Somewhere between a Tron bike and an electric shaver, it looks alien. Not like one would imagine a sex toy, and especially not a vibrator. The cylinder at the end houses two VERY powerful motors, and arcs back into a roughly 3” deep pocket specifically designed to fit the head of the penis. I give it full marks appearance not because it looks fuckable, but precisely because it doesn’t. It’s a very innocuous looking toy, that if accidentally left out on a counter may not even warrant a passing glance. In terms of build, it feels heavy and durable, with the same nice tactile feedback of the Manta. Understandable, given they’re produced by the same company. It’s small and fits into the palm of your hand, which is great considering that for some male sex toys, you may as well be screwing your kitchen-aide mixer.
Effectiveness (4/5):
The Cobra is built for one specific function, and that is to basically rattle your molars until you get off. In doing so, it hits a couple snags in terms of effectiveness that thankfully don’t dampen the overall buzz. Firstly, the cup you fit into is a one size fits all variety. For me, I found it almost too tight, while others may not find it tight enough. It really needs a solid fit to properly transfer the vibrations to the right places, meaning that those on the smaller side may find this toy lacking. That being said, if you’re able to seat it correctly, man does it work. This toy is more of a passive ride, while the Manta was an active adventure. The Cobra lends itself to plugging into it, relaxing, and letting the ride take its course. It can be a bit unsettling if you’re used to more active stimulation at first, but you’ll quickly learn to love it. The motors in the Cobra are strong, and I mean STRONG. If you have fillings, it might just rattle them out. Even the lowest setting was almost uncomfortable at first, so if you’re extra sensitive, this might not be the toy for you. The motors themselves provide a very strong vibration that doesn’t always travel completely into the cup, so if this rests on your stomach, you may find it ticklish or even uncomfortable, just be aware. I found it best used holding it in front of me rather than laying back. All in all, I’ve found this toy to be my personal favorite for lazy sessions and it does a fantastic job providing hands free orgasms.
Maintenance (4/5):
The Cobra is just as easy to maintain and clean as the Manta, which is wonderful. To fully clean the toy, you just need to run the cup in the sink a few times with some soap, and you’re basically done. This makes this toy pretty ideal for late night sessions where you don’t want to spend hours cleaning up. It is also completely waterproof like the Manta. The two points that leads me to give this a 4 rather than a 5 are the size of the cup, and the preparation. Since this toy is silicon and the cup is fairly tight, you’ll definitely need to be using lube. This can sometimes be a little messy, so it gets a half point off in my book. The other item is that since the cup is fairly small, there can sometimes be an issue with, erm... spillage? There’s not a whole lot of depth or places for things to go, so you need to have some cleanup ready. Those two elements though aren’t enough to dampen what I feel is a great toy, and it’s still incredibly easy to maintain.
Longevity (3/5):
Longevity with the Cobra is a tricky one. It doesn’t have a lot of different ways to use it, so you’re either going to be really happy with what you get, or not impressed, and there’s not a lot of options otherwise. How long you continue to use it will likely depend on how much you liked your experience. For me, that puts this at flat ‘average’ in terms of longevity. I will personally continue to use this quite frequently, but other may find it falls flat or grow bored of the patterns and stimulation style. Time will tell how you learn to love it.
Travel (5/5):
The Cobra is my personal travel companion of choice. It looks so unsuspecting that honestly, TSA could take it out of my bag and wave it over their head, and I wouldn’t even blink. I doubt many people would even know what they were looking at in the first glance. It’s travel lockable and waterproof, and it’s small enough to be packed in just about any type of luggage. The motors on it are louder than the Manta, but still quiet enough to be unassuming, and I have no regrets taking this on trips with me, and for that it nets full marks.
Overall (4/5):
Overall I’m very pleased by how the Cobra performs. It’s a pleasant change from the other toys on the market, and feels somehow more refined than fucking a silicon vagina in a can. It replaces that lingering regret of “why did I spend money on this” with an excited feeling of “How long before I can use this again?”. It’s powerful, sleek, and good at what it’s made for. While it may not be the most guaranteed fireworks starter, if it works for you, you won’t be able to put it down.
There ya go guys, my two favorites, in detail. If you have to choose one, choose the Manta, but both are wonderful. Go forth, be safe, be happy, and have fun!
(This review is republished after minor changes with permission from Reddit user Andrew W.)