I’m back again with a review, this time for another of my new favorite type of sex toy—air pulse vibrators! If you’re unfamiliar with these sorts of toys, they use air pulsation combined with mild suction to stimulate the clitoris without even touching it. While they’re often advertised as “oral sex simulators,” I personally find the sensation to be completely different. Most importantly for me, oral sex almost never gets me off, while these types of toys absolutely do. A lot. Seriously. Air pulse vibrators are, however, also often pretty pricey, which is why I was thrilled to try out the toy I’m covering for you today—the Romp Shine by WOW Tech. This is the same company responsible for such industry-leading products as the We-Vibe Melt and the Womanizer Liberty; seeing as that those toys are some of my favorites, I was excited to see how the Shine compared, especially with a price tag a fraction of the others.
My first impression of the toy was that it was not bad. I was surprised by the length of it; it turns out that it’s longer then the Melt! The body feels very lightweight, even flimsy, but the silicone head is nice. It has only two button controls, no more, no less. Easy-peasy. Also, the box came with a set of adorable stickers! Really, every sex toy should come with stickers.
The Romp Shine
Something that is important to consider when getting an air pulse toy is the size of the opening. I’ve seen a wide variety of sizes of opening when it comes to these types of toys, and I think that the Shine is on the larger end of that spectrum. The opening is just under 3/4″ in length and 1/2″ wide, so that size, combined with the slightly stiffer silicone, can make it difficult to create a tight seal around the clitoris. A good seal is what you need to achieve the best sensations, so I could see this being difficult for folks who have smaller clits. I however haven’t personally had an issue with the head size, so I couldn’t speak to that!
The power on the Shine actually impressed me. It has ten power modes, though they probably could have gotten away with fewer, because some of the levels are so close as to not really be distinguishable. What I most appreciated is that the pulsation really felt “thumpy,” even moreso than some of the levels on the Melt! While this toy doesn’t have truly break-your-clit levels of strength, it has more than enough power to get me off consistently. I never find myself wishing that it had another one or two power levels, so for me that’s a solid toy.
Romp Shine, We-Vibe Melt and Womanizer Liberty Vibrators
I have several real gripes with this toy that really impact its usability, though. First, the silicone head is constantly falling off. It falls off while I am using it, while I am storing it, anytime it’s so much as looked at askance. Most of the time when I use, it isn’t really an issue, because it’s tight against my body, but once I go to move it a little, the head will often pop off. This is something I (and I assume most people) do not want to have deal with in the middle of a jerk-off session (unless reassembling sex toys happens to be a big turn-on for you).
My second gripe is a big one, and that’s the charging connection. This toy comes with a magnetic charging adapter, which is all cool and dandy, except the magnets are exceedingly weak. The cord, on the other hand, is quite stiff, to the point that mine still has all of the kinks in it from being tied up (I’m sure some readers can relate). This combination of weak magnets and stiff cord makes it nigh impossible to get them to line up and stay lined up. The first time I tried to charge this toy, I honestly thought it was broken because I just couldn’t get it to light up. Eventually I did though, through very careful and meticulous precision, but it’s prone to getting detached if slightly bumped.
The Romp Shine next to the still very kinked charging cord (after months of use)
Pros:
- Strong, thuddy sensation
- Waterproof
- Affordable
- Rechargeable
Cons:
- Head falls off instantly
- Getting it to charge is a huge pain in the ass
- 45-minute run time
Overall, I think the Shine is not a bad toy, and I even use it pretty often. I really like it’s power, and honestly it’s unfortunate that two seemingly basic design issues make it not as good as it could be. I would recommend it to someone who wanted to try an air pulse toy but was constrained by a tight budget. If you’re looking only for bang for your buck, this is a good option, but to be honest, I would be more likely to recommend you save up for one of the higher priced toys like the Liberty or Melt. They’re just so, so much better, and if you like this kind of toy, you are only going to want to upgrade.
Thank you to Betty’s Toybox for sending me this toy in exchange for an honest review!
