I love love LOVE a good strap-on vibe. There's a lot of fun to be had when you can use your hands for other things and still get stimulation below the belt. I had some high hopes when I ordered the Interactives Mini Dolphin. Were they fulfilled? Well, yes and no.

The Mini Dolphin is a bullet covered in a TPR silicone sleeve shaped like a delicious bar of chocolate. No, that's a lie, it's dolphin-shaped (I just really want chocolate right now). The dolphin is smooth, with no bumps or ridges to speak of except for two little dots where the eyes would go. The bullet is attached by a 2' cord to the controller pack, which is made of smooth plastic. Black elastic straps are used to secure it to one's body, one around the waist and one for each thigh. Running on three AA batteries, the Mini Dolphin offers ten different vibration functions, each of which can be set to one of four different intensities.

The vibrations are incredible. The wide range of functions and speeds means that there's something for everyone, and the beak of the little dolphin is where the most intense vibrations are felt. It can be hard to position the dolphin just right, though, and it tends to slip out of place. To help amend this, I find that sliding the two thigh straps between your buttocks (so that the whole ensemble sits like a thong) helps to keep the dolphin in place a bit better. Once you get the little guy positioned just right, you can just lay back and let it do its thing, and you'll be on a fast track to a rather intense orgasm.

The controller is something of a disappointment. The plastic feels a bit flimsy, and because it's smooth it's easy to drop when wet - and since this toy is waterproof, most users are liable to get it wet at some point. This wouldn't be too much trouble if not for one other strange habit the controller has: occasionally, it will shut off if dropped from a height of even a few inches. I might think it was a safety feature, but it doesn't happen every time (besides, why not just make a stronger controller?). There's no on/off button, instead this role is performed by the function selection buttons, which seems a bit strange - usually if no power button is included, its role is instead filled by the intensity controls. The battery pack also worries me a bit. Located at the bottom of the controller, it slides into place over a special flap meant to keep the batteries dry, but looking at it, it just wouldn't surprise me if water did manage to find its way inside at some point. On a related note, the dolphin-shaped sleeve is apparently not completely sealed off, as I have had water get inside, but thankfully the bullet itself also seems to be waterproof.

My actual reason for purchasing the Interactives Mini Dolphin was to see if it was an upgrade from another similar California Exotics toy: the Micro Dolphin Strap-On Vibrator (which EF sadly doesn't sell). Aside from the increased number of functions and greater control over them, I'd actually say it was a step down. The Micro only has seven functions (or more accurately, four or five functions and a few have varied intensities), and the elastic is a bit weaker, but its bullet is sealed properly and the controller is built much more solidly, and even has a velvety texture so it's harder to drop. On a more subjective level, I prefer the Micro's powder blue color scheme over the Mini's hot pink and black one.

Still, the Mini is definitely a fun toy with some great vibrations, just with a few worrisome issues from an engineering standpoint. Aside from that strange turn-off-when-dropped-from-a-small-height issue, it has yet to malfunction, so it may be more durable than it seems. Between the two, though, the Micro is still my favorite, and I'd probably buy five more if EF ever carries them.

Well, no water has gotten inside the battery pack in all these months, so it seems my fears were unfounded. It doesn't shut off when dropped anymore, either. I'm really not sure what happened with that, but I'm not complaining. Especially since I've found this toy to be one of the best at giving me multiple orgasms and who's going to complain about those?