Sex is getting smarter and smarter. But what does digitalisation mean for sex in partnership? Sex without a partner has never been more satisfying. This is especially the case for women. The emerging sextech sector is dedicated to increasing female lust. Companies, mostly founded by women for women, are looking for the key to hyperorgasm sometimes through products such as a microrobotic stimulator, a vibrator that keeps an orgasm diary with the help of a mobile phone, or tutorial apps on the tablet, which help to make joy watering highlights.

Anatomy meets technology, sensuality meets digitality. As a result, the new sex toys have little in common with their evolutionary ancestors – the flesh-colored dildo. Do you remember the “Rabbit”? The pink rubber phallus that ties Charlotte from “Sex in The City” to the bed? It’s been over 20 years since a vibrator made it into the mainstream. As fresh as the reference may seem, it also illustrates how much has changed in the market of female love servants since then. The new toys are well-designed gadgets that fit better into the it bag than the nightstand. “Sex toys for women are becoming less and less realistic,” says Toy blogger Venus O’Hara.

“The developments over the past ten years have been unbelievable, and things will continue like this,” she is convinced. The only sexual practice with which these little lust makers are currently unable to keep up is cunnilingus, “What you can’t replace is a tongue,” says Venus O’Hara. Accordingly, she sees the most potential in new, skin-like textures. On her Youtube channel, the First Lady of Toytesting and self-proclaimed orgasm ambassador tries out the latest products and tells her followers about the pleasurable impressions.

Even older women enjoy the clear advantage of a taboo-free zone, while the toy segment is still manageable for men. But here, too, you ride the sexpositive wave and tinker with chic alternatives. Get out of the mess corner, into the mainstream. This is also how one could describe the success principle of the online erotic retailer “Amorelie”, which markets its love toys as lifestyle products.

The current sex report by “Amorelie” shows that 66% of women have a love helper, 36% have four models ready to hand in the bedroom. 33% prefer – still quite analogously – to work with their hands before an orgasm.

From 0 to 100

The bestseller at “Amorelie” has the resounding name “Womanizer” and has been conquering the market since 2014. The clou about the tool: It helps almost contactlessly and within minutes to a clitoral orgasm. A German couple invented the “Womanizer”, meanwhile development teams in Berlin and Ottawa have the reins in their hands. “We see ourselves as a sex tech company and innovation leader. Since we don’t want to wait for inventions to happen by accident, we invest in innovation,” explains Johanna Rief, head of communications at Wow Tech, the manufacturer of the Womanizer and We-Vibe brands in Vorarlberg. In order to help women achieve highlights, the company uses the achievements of other industries: “Sex toys are using more and more technologies that also play a role in other industries. They are increasingly used in the sex toy industry – be it virtual reality, artificial intelligence or apps.”

In the near future, however, a new trend will be pursued: the pair of toys. “We have toys that can be controlled from a distance using an app. Anyone who has ever had a long-distance relationship can perhaps imagine how this can help to maintain intimacy despite being far away.”

Together instead of lonely

Without a doubt, the toy boom is boosting communication in bed. With approximately a third of all pairs Toys are a topic in the bed according to inquiry. Tendency rising, because the developers target now the market of smarter Tools for Couples. In addition to pair vibrators that push sexual intercourse with high-frequency impulses (“WeVibe Sync” or the penis ring “Lovely 2.0”), unisex toys are a big trend in the industry. “Toys for women are increasingly adopting the phallic form, the new generation of sex toys will focus less on sex,” explains Paolo Griffo of sex tech manufacturer SenseMax. The keyword is ‘gender fluid’: “Toys that can be used by anyone to enhance their personal sexual expression”. He sees the future of sex toys closely interwoven with the development of artificial intelligence: “Smart unisex toys made of flexible materials will respond to body signals and learn how to better stimulate our erogenous zones.”

While women enjoy a wider choice in the toysector, men still have a clear advantage in virtual reality sex. The 360-degree vr porn sector is booming thanks to virtual reality glasses, but there are still few providers for women. The design of erotic films for a female audience is many times more complex than porn production for men. “The real challenge is to offer content that corresponds to different preferences.”

Back to basic

The hyperorgasms that VR porn and toys give us are able to inspire sex in a spirit of partnership, but it becomes dangerous when love helpers dominate or condition one’s own lust. That topic came also up at a VR sex festival in Japan ( -> http://alcaudullo.com/japan-deflates-vr-sex-festival-many-people/). This is what sex therapist Dr. Heike Melzer warns of in her book “Scharfstellung. The New Sexual Revolution”: “If we consume these super stimuli regularly, we get used to this high level of stimulation over time and over time react less sensitively to weaker natural stimuli such as hand, mouth, penis and vagina of the partner. Sex without the toy is then often experienced as unsatisfactory and the once conditioned highlights can no longer be realized with a partner alone.”

It doesn’t always have to be the high-frequency vibrator, even old-fashioned erotic props can provide new impulses: “Sometimes a feather, a little warmed massage oil or a few beautifully prepared aphrodisiac ingredients are enough to generate a lot of fun together,” recommends Dr. Melzer. You can go to any college and will people hear talking about VR porn ( -> see http://ashvegas.com/).

Analog love

Sex toy expert Venus O’Hara sharpens her sense for the essential with her tools: “A sex toy can create a physiological sensory impression that is sometimes superior to a human touch, but it lacks the emotional component one has with a partner. But she doesn’t want to compare real sex with machine stimulation, as there are two completely different ways of releasing sexual powers: “Sometimes, when you don’t have the desire or the strength to exchange energy with a partner and you want a simple shortcut to orgasm, toys are extremely useful. It is the unexpected, the unprogrammable, the void that evokes the essential tension of true lust and eroticism.

“What makes an orgasm even more intense is the emotion, not the physical reaction.” No machine can replace warmth, the intimate kiss and the embrace after sex – no matter how much artificial intelligence it is equipped with.

Feminist pornography is a small but fine niche, characterised by diversity and fantasy. The technical possibilities open up a wide field for female consumers as to how they can translate their blooming head cinema into further dimensions. “In the near future we will have a completely immersive and interactive Virtual Reality or Augmented Reality (AR), perhaps more real than real sexual intercourse,” according to Griffo’s promising forecast.

First Lady of Toy-Vlogging

The Youtube channel of sex toy tester Venus O’Hara has over 50,000 subscribers. In her reviews, she takes her followers to bed and delivers authentic toy judgments.

Orgasm ambassador. For over 10 years, the British has been working with SexToys and pursues a mission: to help her audience achieve better orgasms with tips, tricks and good tools. Her conclusion: The toys are getting better and more affordable: “What used to be regarded as luxury is now standard”. She does not see the powerful toys as a threat to interpersonal sex, but rather as an enrichment: “What makes an orgasm even more intense is the emotion, not the physical reaction”.