PicoBong Tano - butt plug by PicoBong - review by LinToxic

The PicoBong Tano is a silicone butt plug vibe made of high quality materials, and an ergonomic, form fitting shape. It has a whopping 12 vibration patterns and a luxuriously velvety silicone exterior. The stem is made of shiny hard plastic with a finger hole near one end of the base.

This butt plug is quite stiff, but slides in quite nicely due to the smooth, pointed shape. Believe it or not, this is actually my very first butt plug, and other than poking a few fingers up my rump, I have never really tried anal play because I found it too unpleasant (and I can't get over the ick factor). I won the PicoBong Tano through a raffle on EdenCafe, and I received the "Cerise" color, which is just a fancy word for pink.

The Tano is quite nicely shaped, but I found a few major design flaws. The first one is quite obvious; the vibration pattern controls are on the shaft bit that goes inside the ass. This might not be such a big deal if you are happy with just one vibration. But if you want to change it up, you would have to slip out the vibe each and every time and get your hands all gooey with lube.

The other design flaw is what is making me put the Tano vibe on hold for the moment. There is a SHARP EDGE where the silicone and the plastic meets. I thought that I wouldn't feel the edge, but when I slid the plug in, it somewhat cut my anus, which is so totally not cool! I'm actually still hurting by the time I'm writing this, and I really hope it heals up quickly.

The PicoBong Tano is made of smooth, velvety silicone for the body, and shiny hard plastic for the stem and base. Both are obviously high quality materials, and are perfectly molded except for one bit; the edge where the silicone and the plastic base meet. But I will discuss my woes about this unfortunate design flaw below. As for now, I will just describe the material.

The toy is quite easy to clean and has no scent, smell, or taste when coming out of the box (please don't taste your plug after it has been used unless of course, you're like into that sort of thing). It didn't spend too much time in my ass, so I really cannot tell you if it clings to smells right now, but I assume that it doesn't. Since it is waterproof, you can soap it up as much as you want with no problem.

What really stands out is the smooth texture of this vibe. The silicone is matte and velvety, and one of the smoothest silicone toys I have ever touched. The base however is just hard plastic, and I kinda wish that the whole toy was made of this silicone material. It would have greatly raised its comfort level. The body of the toy has absolutely no give, and is quite hard and stiff despite its smooth silicone exterior.

Now, when I saw the PicoBong Tano Cerise, I would have to say that it was the most beautiful pink shade I that have ever seen on a sex toy. It is actually just a smidge darker and brighter in person that it is in pictures. It's a hot hot pink and I absolutely adore it!

The design is actually quite ergonomic. It is fairly narrow at 1 inch in diameter (though just a little bit much for an anal beginner like myself), but it tapers into a smooth point quite nicely, which really facilitated the insertion process for me.

The base is angled in a way so that the vibe points toward the anterior wall of my rectum, which I assume is where the p-spot is located in males. I'm a chick, so I could just say that it was comfortable enough in that position.

As for the base, I really would have liked the shape of the base if it wasn't for the horrendous edge between the base and the body. Seriously, it ruins EVERYTHING. But edge aside, once I inserted the vibe fully, the shape of the base was quite comfortable and form fitting, following the curve of my ass perfectly. I made sure to point the longer bit with the hole upwards to my back, while the shorter bit points towards my perineum. I actually like the fact that it is really flat against my body, and the finger hole is perfect for grasping the toy if you want to pull it out again. In terms of shape, I really like the design and Lelo did a great job with it.

The toy is also quite balanced, so you can stand it on its base with the body leaning towards one side. It is quite stable, and perfect if you want to take a rest without messing up your dresser with lube if you place the used plug on top of it.

Okay, so this is where the toy falls a little flat on its back. After prepping myself and using a boat load of lube to prepare my ass for my first anal insertion ever, I was worried that the weird edge would hurt my butt. And guess what, it did! It actually cut my anus while sliding in, and now I am in pain. Why? Why such a glaring design flaw Lelo? I could have forgiven the internal controls, but that sharp edge is just so awful. I really should have tried to sand it down first before insertion.

Once I got it in (pain in my ass not withstanding), I thought that it was actually not bad. It was comfortable enough, but I really had to take it out so that I can clean the wound. I don't want anything to get infected, especially in such a delicate area of my body. I might try again when I am brave enough, and after attempting to file down the edge.

As for the vibration patterns, they are moderately strong, which I think is great for an anal toy. However, if this were a clitoral vibe, I would be very disappointed. But you know, I cannot be assured that this is the full power of the Tano's vibrations. The manual did mention that "rechargeable batteries may lead to weaker vibrations", which is a bummer since I only ever use rechargable batteries. I need to test with new batteries some time just to make sure.

The controls are easy enough, and the buttons aren't obnoxiously difficult to press. The shaft features the PicoBong logo, and there is a minus and a plus on the "P" and the "B" respectively. You press the + for two seconds to turn it on, and then keep pressing until you reach the speed you want. Once you hit the fastest speed, you press the button for two seconds again to cycle into the vibration patterns. Holding down the button for two seconds will allow you to cycle through all twelve vibration patterns. Holding down the - will set it back to steady vibrations again and eventually turn the vibe off.

I will try to describe the 12 patterns for you below, because with 12 vibration patterns, it can get annoying trying to look for the pattern you want since you have to cycle through all of them one by one:

1. Steady vibration
2. Slow and steady pulse
3. Moderately faster and steady pulse
4. Fast and steady pulse
5. An even faster and steady pulse
6. Long, escalating pulse that starts off slow, getting faster, and then ending abruptly before the next.
7. Shorter escalating pulse that ends abruptly
8. Long, slow, gentle roller coaster or wave pattern -- starting slow, getting faster, and then slowly diminishing again
9. Shorter roller coaster wave
10. Escalating from slow to fast, with two short pulses at the end before starting again
11. Escalating from slow to fast, with three short pulses this time
12. Strange, random, unpredictable pattern.

I only managed to enjoy pattern number 8 for now because I'm still healing. :(

Finally, I would have to say that this plug is whisper quiet. It really is nearly silent, which is fantastic!

Okay, caring for the toy is very simple. It is definitely waterproof, so you simply need to soap it down and then rinse with water. You can pat it dry if you like. Since the plug is made of both silicone and plastic, you unfortunately cannot boil or disinfect the toy completely. You can also only use water based lube on it, and it is not recommended that you use anything else.

HOWEVER, there is another pet peeve that really annoyed me. The battery compartment itself is waterproof, that is for sure, but there is this annoying gap inside the cap between the battery compartment and exterior. Water actually ends up collecting in this space. In fact, when I tried to open the battery cap, a flood of water came out that really surprised me. The battery itself is dry, but I can imagine that if you try to open the cap while the toy is on its side, you can easily get water up the battery compartment.

My solution is to hang the Tano upside down until all of the water seeps out, and it's safe to open up the battery compartment.

Speaking of the battery compartment, the battery fits in snugly, without being too tight. There is this weird pin sticking out however, which I assume is what connects the cap to the main body. You should be careful not to break it, since it is quite thin.

As for storage, right now I just keep it inside its original box since I don't have a pouch for it.

The packaging is quite pretty. It comes in a cardboard box with a round window, so that you can see the toy clearly. The bright pink really stands out from the matte black cardboard inside the box. The packaging itself is the same color as the vibe, with strong typography, minimalistic shapes, and easy to understand icons along the front window listing down the features of the vibe. The whole box has spot laminated silhouettes of the PicoBong toys. It really is my kind of graphic design!

The vibe is held in place with bits of cardboard that are wedged in the space between the silicone and plastic. I actually really like PicoBong's corporate identity. It's clean, pretty, and consistent.

There is also the infamous little plastic die inside the box, which is glued into the backing cardboard. I had to really peel it off, but I managed to get it clean eventually. It has a pink silhouette of all six PicoBong toys on it. In the manual, it said "Wondering what the dice is all about? Head on to picobong.com to find out!"

And when I visited the site, it just said "We were hoping you could tell us." Oh gee, very funny.

But all in all, it's a very giftable box. It's pretty and simple, but not good for storage really. I wish it came with a pouch instead of the die.

All in all, I think I could have liked this butt plug if it wasn't for the horrendous seam that snagged and cut me. It is quite disappointing really, because I think it could have been really comfy if it wasn't for that MAJOR design flaw. I hope Lelo still decides to refine it. Pity this was my first anal toy ever.