Vibrator Technology: We’re Moving Faster Than You Think

How does your favourite sex toy work? And how are vibrators becoming more advanced?

Published Mar 10 2017 4 min read

How does your favourite sex toy work? And how are vibrators becoming more advanced?

We’ve all seen the articles on vintage vibrators — like this Vice piece which includes some rather terrifying-looking steam-powered models. But it’s easy to forget that even in the last ten or twenty years vibrator technology has come so far that even a vibrator bought in the early noughties would look very different to the ones on the market today.

If you bought your first vibrator ten or twenty years ago, it’s unlikely that it’s still kicking around your bedside drawer. It probably gave up the ghost long ago — the ancient motor wore out, you got sick of replacing the AA batteries, or if you’re particularly unlucky it might have been made of unsafe jelly material that’s subsequently melted or become encased in fluff.

But let’s say you still had it — how would it compare to some of the more complex vibrators of 2017? It would probably have about as much in common as a Sega Mega Drive has with the latest Xbox. While many of the component parts are the same, the advances in sexual technology coupled with the decreased cost of computing power means a 2017 vibrator looks almost nothing like the bullets and rabbits of yesteryear.

Let’s compare and contrast our Crescendo vibrator to see just how far vibrator technology has come on…

Battery 

Vibrator Technology: We’re Moving Faster Than You Think

Perhaps the most obvious leap forward in vibrator technology is in the battery. In 2017 most new vibrators come with rechargeable batteries — better for the environment and your wallet, not to mention way less of a hassle than having to scrabble around in your bedside drawer to find a pair of AAs.

But we don’t need to stop there — Crescendo has an induction coil inside the head of the toy (near the ‘fin’ stimulators) that means it can be charged wirelessly, like an Apple Watch. Less hassle with wires, of course, but importantly it also means that the toy can be completely submersed in water. With older vibrators, or even modern ones with open charging ports, this is definitely not recommended.

Motor

A motor is a key component in any vibrator — it’s what gives it power and makes those fabulous rumbling sensations. Original bullet vibrators usually contained one motor, powered simply by a standard battery, and weighted to make sure that the toy shook and buzzed with the requisite strength.

Vibrator Technology: We’re Moving Faster Than You Think

Thanks to improvements in motor technology, vibrators today can achieve much more power — making ‘rumbly’ sensations as opposed to the weaker ‘buzz’ that was standard on older models. It’s also now possible to put more than one motor in a sex toy — an old-school bullet would only have one, meaning you’re limited to the same vibration speed everywhere. Crescendo has 6 different motors that sit inside a flexible internal skeleton — so you can bend the toy into the shape that best fits your body. The motors can be individually programmed, thanks to the next (and probably most significant) development…

On-board computers

When you bought your first ever vibrator, the idea of including a computer with memory and software would have seemed like an impossible dream — imagine masturbating with the vibe equivalent of a bricklike mobile phone.

However it’s now possible to build vibrators with computers inside, which means we can do all kinds of incredible stuff. For instance, Crescendo’s in-built memory allows you to program each of the six motors individually, selecting exactly the power and pattern of stimulation you’d like at each point on the toy.

It also means that when we get customer feedback for extra features, it’s often possible to update the firmware remotely via software — like upgrading your phone’s operating system to get extra features, without having to buy a whole new phone. For example we recently added a play lock feature to Crescendo (so you don’t accidentally press the wrong button in the middle of a perfect play) entirely remotely — meaning existing owners could get the benefit of the new feature, rather than having to replace their existing version.

Vibrator Technology: We’re Moving Faster Than You Think

Control

An additional feature that we could only dream of ten years ago is the app-enabled vibrator. Thanks to the on-board computer, people are able to control the vibrator with an app as well as using physical buttons on the side of the toy.

Sex toy control is really important — this isn’t just a TV remote that you use impassively — it’s a pleasure product that should enhance your sex life! In the future, we expect more people will be used to controlling their sex toys as well as other things within their home via apps, gestures, voice control and more.

Vibrator tech — where do we go next?

As with phone and computer tech, vibrator technology has come a long way in just a decade or so, and you can expect to see some more intriguing developments in the next few years. A combination of better/cheaper technology and users who want something tailored to their own personal preferences has driven huge innovation in the vibrator market. Crescendo is just the first of many exciting new sex toys…


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