I wanted to love the Unity from the moment I laid eyes on it. Its sleek double-ended design with simple control pad is complimented by a fleur-de-lis, itself symbolic of unity. The bold, black and red design along with clever packaging tin that doubles as a storage case gives the Unity the air of a high end sex toy which won’t actually spend too much time in that case. I hoped that the push button controls would enable me to precisely and quickly adapt the function to my current whim. Unfortunately though, I was ultimately disappointed with the Unity and it didn’t come close to the meeting high hopes I had for it.

The control panel is an idea I love, as dials and knobs can get hard to operate in the slippery environment that sex so often is. The two buttons are only slightly raised though, which makes operating by touch difficult. Adding to that difficulty is the location of the buttons, which will actually enter the body during penetration with the larger of the two ends. Each of the two buttons controls one end of the Unity, as each end has its own motor. The larger end pulsates at two rates and also builds to a crescendo, stops, and the starts the cycle over again. The probe end simply vibrates at three speeds. The idea sounds divine: create different combinations of speed and pattern for variety in your play. The reality though was not so thrilling. The problem is that each motor is relatively close to the center of the toy, and it is nearly impossible to feel vibration from the non-penetrating end anywhere but in the hand you’re holding it with. Turning on the other end does very little affect what you’re already feeling. Of course, the other problem that comes with the location of the motors is that the vibration is diffused through the toy and is not at all strong in either tip. And another note about the “combination” idea: with three functions at each tip, my arithmetic comes up with 15 possible combinations, not 16 as advertised… unless you count “off” as a function.

It’s a shame that the vibrations aren’t stronger in the tip because the design of this toy really is quite nice. The thinner probe end has a precise tip that would make a fabulous clit tickler if the power were there. I also found the design of the probe tip to be just perfect for g-spot stimulation when used anally, but again the vibration just wasn’t there. Another problem with using this toy anally is that unless you are really looking for deep penetration, this toy is just not practical because it’s so long. The weight of the other end will pull the Unity out unless you hold it in, which gets awkward before too long.

With those complaints out on the table, there are a few good things to be said about the Unity. First, it definitely lives up to its waterproof description as the battery case holds two well designed, watertight gaskets. The satiny finish of the phthalate free plastic feels nice in the hand and can be used with virtually any type of lube, which I really appreciate. I do not think though that the design flaws outweigh the benefits and am disappointed not to recommend this toy as a star player.