Although the Hitachi Magic Wand is still a classic work horse when it comes to vibrators, its age is showing these days and good to finally see a modern take on full size vibrators with the Lelo Smart Wand.
No matter how creative the smaller vibrators get, they just aren't ever going to be able to deliver the vibration power of large vibrators which really makes the difference between eventually being able to be satisfied and a professional level orgasm inducing machine. Since originally made with massage intent, the Magic Wand was always good when it came to raw RPM, however for stimulation one could say to a fault as I have yet to come across any women who prefer the high setting over the low setting when it comes to using it as a clitoral vibrator. With the power also comes the inconvenient power cable, and with only 2 speed settings one has to get accessories to be able to have finer power control of a Magic Wand. Another reason why the Magic Wand hasn't changed much at all in 40+ years is that Hitachi is embarrassed that their massage device somehow ended up as a super popular masturbation device.
Jumping more to the present, Lelo has been making high-end sextoys with modern features since the early 2000s and great to see their attempt to take the classic wand concept and make it as classy and full featured as possible. For the biggest change the Smart Wand is cordless while still having the solid power. For long term durability it is hard to beat a corded vibe, but usability wise cords are a total pain in the ass. It is so much nicer to be able to take a cordless vibe anywhere and not have wires sticking out not only looking messy, but physically getting in the way. To me the cordless is worth it for the convenience even if having to recharge and knowing the battery will eventually not hold much of a charge.
Shape and exterior wise the Smart Wand finally made an effort to be ergonomic and easy to clean with the vast majority of the wand being silicone. Having the whole business end encased in silicone likely helps keep the noise down as well. The silver plastic zone perhaps is trying a little too hard to class things up where having the handle just be silicone too would be easier to clean, but I can forgive them since the handle isn't a high threat zone for sexual fluid messes. Visually I will hand it to Lelo that the silver is classy and on that subject I appreciate they offer reasonable colors of black, white, and purple. I'm a bit biased thinking all toys should have a black option as I don't like the silly loud girly colors and white doesn't exactly go with all of our BDSM stuff.
Back to ergonomics the slight curve and width changes do make the Smart Wand more comfortable to hold. It is already shorter than the Magic Wand, but would be nice if they could find a way to take off another inch or so on the Smart Wand. Weight wise it doesn't feel like much important is going on at the bottom end of the unit. Although the charger is plugged into the bottom, the Smart Wand is considered a waterproof design providing additional possibilities to have cordless fun around and under water. Even though the Smart Wand head shape is a bit different from the Magic Wand, it is close enough to allow usage of all the wacky attachments that are made for the Magic Wand such as insertable extensions and penis sleeves.
The Smart Wand of course does not skimp on functionality either, sporting 3 buttons one can fairly easily cycle through all the possibilities for control. The plus and minus buttons are straight forward adjusting power up and down, while the middle button cycles vibration mode and if held for a few seconds it puts the wand in SenseTouch mode. The SenseTouch is interesting where it basically makes it so the wand starts at low power and then raises the power when it comes in contact with flesh. The result can be an alternate and fluid way of controlling power without having to mess with buttons the whole time. Since how quickly the plus and minus buttons are pressed and power direction seems to change functionality, I estimate around 9 power settings which is plenty of power control for anyone. If tapping rapidly in either power direction the power will jump, so for example if I press the plus button around 5 times rapidly it can reach max power. The plus and minus buttons can also be held down for a more smooth power change and holding down the minus button is definitely the easiest way to turn the unit off. Not to forget the mode button, there are 8 massage patterns offering a little variety to just full on mode. Examples would be different variations of pulses and power curves, and then a randomizer at the end. It is nice to have the options, but typically most people are just going to use the full on mode and all the other modes could just be considered tease modes. That said, the tease modes can be a lot of fun using on someone else.
As a specific note on power, not all RPMs are equal and final feel should be the big factor. The Smart Wand gives off what many would call deep or rumbly vibrations using lower RPMs. When the opposite, having shallow and very quick vibrations, this tends to cause numbing sensations which is pretty counter productive to stimulating. There will always be people who want a little more, but I think most will find the max power setting on the Smart Wand quite sufficient.
When it comes to holding, Kate seems to like to hold the Smart Wand curving to her body, buttons facing her as well. While using on her standing it is more intuitive for me to hold it buttons down and then while using on her laying down or similar, I go back to curve and buttons towards her. With these observations I think the buttons being on the opposite side would be easier to access, with of course priority for self use. Perhaps the designers wanted the buttons more out of the way to prevent accidental pressing, but this in combination with overall subtle buttons is a bit overkill. Having buttons extrude out more and have different shapes would be easier to press and feel for placement. The current ones have different inner icons, but are still very difficult to feel the difference during use and the debossed lines around the buttons just make things a little harder to clean. To figure out which button I'm touching without looking I typically have to swipe around to feel for button position, feeling several buttons to confirm if at top middle or bottom. Button feel aside it would be fair to say Kate likes the buttons pretty much where they are.
Durability wise the Smart Wand has been holding up well for us. I doubt the battery works the same as brand new, but it still delivers working power while our last favorite cordless wand, the Acuvibe, has a totally dead battery and now must be plugged in to work at all. I haven't confirmed how long a full battery charge lasts, but we've never run out of power mid having fun. Somehow the SenseTouch feature does not work on our Smart Wand anymore, but no big deal as we didn't use the feature much anyway. The Smart Wand comes with a solid 1 year warranty, but alas we are up to 2+ years of use. Looking at other online notes it appears Lelo will at least offer new item discounts if an item breaks past the warranty. Lelo also makes a Smart Wand in the medium size, however since pretty much the whole internet said it was sadly underpowered and not worth it, thus we have not bothered to try it as the large size is not overly bulky to begin with. For small petty stuff I wish the charger matched the color of the wand, having a white charger with a black wand is pretty lame.
Keeping with the classy and luxurious theme, the Smart Wand does come in well done packaging, I have since thrown out the box, but the included neoprene pouch has come in handy for holding the wand and other fun sex toys. The end result box presentation is nice and inviting as opposed to say low end sex toys where you feel dirty just opening the box.
Small complaints aside, I think safe to say the Smart Wand Large is one of the best full size cordless wand currently available. Being the best does include the usual increased cost, but totally worth it to go big and not waste your money on a bunch of under performing smaller vibrators. It can be used alone, during sex, for teasing, clothes on or off, or even underwater, definitely a "one and done" class item.
