"Why would anyone pay that much money or more for a luxury vibe? After all, I've gotten some great toys for around 10 or 20 bucks. Sure, the expensive ones are pretty, but they can't be worth that much more." That's what I used to think whenever I looked at the luxury vibrators. But then I was given a Lelo Ino and was converted to luxury.

Packaging

The Ina comes packaged beautifully and tastefully. The outer sleeve is white with a photo of the product and no naked bodies to be seen. The inner box is a black presentation box made of heavy card, and meant to be reused. Inside, the product is displayed in a plastic and cardboard presentation sleeve. Behind that is the charger, a lined satin storage bag, the instruction manual, and details of Lelo's one year and ten year warranties.

Warranties

If you spend a lot of money on a luxury vibrator, you want to feel sure that you aren't going to regret it. The Lelo range actually has two warranties!

First, Lelo has a one year warranty that will replace your product at any time during that year if there is any fault in it.

Secondly, Lelo has a ten year warranty that says if the product fails during that time, you can return it and get 50% off a replacement Lelo product. This product is expected to last for ten years - that's just amazing! Now, remember those great cheapie vibes I was talking about above? How many of those have I gone through in the past ten years? Dozens, I imagine. Now you can start to see why I think this vibe is worth the price!

To register your Lelo product and become eligible for the warranty, you simply go to their website, click on 'log in' then 'new customer'. They ask for your name and email address, and then you select a password. Then there's an option to register your product. You select the product from a drop down list, then enter the serial number, which is on the back of the one year warranty booklet. After this, any time you go back to the Lelo website and log in, you can see your product. Or if you're lucky enough to own several, your list of Lelo products. Next to each product is the link to click to claim on the warranty. I can't actually review the warranty process without having a faulty product, but it looks quite simple. Best of all, you don't have to give them a lot of personal information. You don't even have to give them your address unless you need to make a claim.

Design

The coloured end of the Ina is silicone, with a velvet-touch finish. The white end is shiny plastic. The silicone end is completely smooth with no seams or edges. The white end does have a noticeable seam where the front and back meet. It's not on the insertable bit, and it's such a minor thing that I'd never comment on it if it weren't for the high design standards of the rest of the product. The four buttons are a soft touch - probably silicone again. The charger bit at the bottom is also covered by a little silicone plug, making this splashproof, but not submersible.

My favourite thing about the design is the sophistication - no animal shapes or penis heads or smiley faces. I do not want my toys looking back at me! The Lelo Ina is beautiful and sexy without being cutesy.

Shape

I need to give special attention to this. This shape is just not going to fit everyone. The clitoral stimulator and the main shaft don't have much gap between them. There is some flexibility there at the base of the clitoral stem, but not enough to really make it work if you're the wrong shape. Given the cost, I wouldn't recommend this as a first vibe. Try out some cheap and cheerful rabbit style vibes and learn a bit about how you're put together, and you should get an idea whether this style is likely to suit you.

For me, I have never had much luck with rabbit style vibes, and this one is no exception. I was only able to insert it by pulling the clitoral stem back as far as it would go, and then when I released it, it didn't reach my clit at all and sort of pinched.

Misc

As with most toys, particularly those with silicone, water based lubricant only is recommended. For cleanup, this toy is splashproof, but not submersible. Make sure the charger port thingie is covered, before carefully using soap and water. I prefer to use toy wipes or toy spray cleaner. Because there is a seam between the silicone and the hard plastic part of the toy, I find a nail brush or toothbrush useful if I think any residue has accumulated there.

Performance

Since the shape doesn't work for me as an internal vibe, I used it externally to much satisfaction. The pulse pattern is controlled separately from the intensity, which multiplies the options available. And the strongest setting is very strong!

I didn't realize how much difference it would make being rechargeable. It means never having to think about batteries. It goes for four hours on a charge, so I can take my time and have a nice long session. It also means the vibrations are much stronger. I can actually use this for relieving sore muscles, which is something a battery powered vibe just can't manage.

Despite being strong, the vibrations are very quiet. I don't know how that's managed. I guess it's just the superior build quality that you get from a high end toy.

The only real quibble I have quality wise is the controls. If you have a setting you really like, it's easy to hit one of the buttons and move it to something different. Though there is a setting to lock it and prevent it being turned on by accident, I don't believe there's a setting for 'lock this setting in place and vibrate here until I tell you to stop.'

Why would anyone spend this much money on a vibrator?

I always wondered that before, but no longer. This product is far superior to the 'cheap and cheerful' variety of vibrators. When you look at how long this vibe is guaranteed to last, you can easily see that you'll spend more than the cost in replacement vibes and replacement batteries for them in that time period. The luxury quality and designer build provides such a great experience. You might spend that for a romantic night at a hotel or dinner for two at a high-end restaurant. Is it really so profligate to spend this much on something that will bring you pleasure again and again for years?

Despite this toy not being quite right for me, it converted me to luxury, and I have since bought several more Lelo toys, as well as luxury toys from other brands.

This shape simply doesn't work for me, as I said in the original review. Though I used it for some time as an external vibe, I now have other luxury vibes that do that job better, and Ina no longer gets any use. I intend to pass it on to a friend, in hopes that it works for her better than it has me.