Petals - traditional vibrator discontinued by Cal Exotics - review by schtiel

Petals has the potential to be an all-around use vibe in a small size. It can be used vaginally, but it shines when used on the clitoris. The vibration intensity on the clit is fantastic. It would be safe to use as an anal toy as well, because the extended petals act as a base. Petals can also be used to stimulate nipples with the nubby tip.

You can do some minor thrusting with Petals, but not a lot—because the shaft is not very long, you can only manage more shallow movement. It really functions best as a toy left in place.

Petals is very quiet and would not be heard outside a closed door. On the low vibration setting you can barely hear it under the covers, so it would be perfect in a dorm/shared-living environment. You can also use this toy in the shower, because the TPR sheath covers where you would open it to insert batteries.

It's great for solo, but I don't feel it would work well with a partner, because the petal base is pretty wide and could be awkward. It's also suitable for travel due to size and low noise amounts.

Petals is made from TPR and mine had a slight smell, but nothing off putting unless you put your nose right up to it. The toy itself is totally smooth for all-over texture, minus the nubs on the tip. The material does have a little drag on skin. Due to the TPR material, Petals is very soft and pliable—the actual petals on the bottom rim are very flexible.

The material transfers vibration really well, so there's no loss of sensation from it.

TPR is porous however, so it will retain smells to an extent—this is something to consider if you plan on using it anally. Due to the material's porosity, I would also advise against freely interchanging this toy anally and vaginally. Purchase it for one or the other, or use it with a condom if you want to use the same toy for both orifices.

The design of Petals is cute and a little bizarre. I feel like it tries to be classy, but kind of misses the point thanks to the "penis sprouting out of a flower" look it sports.

The battery compartment is at the very bottom of the toy, along with the power button; the cap is kind of a pain to take off because it's hidden by the flexible "sheath" of the flower, so you have to pull it down in order to pull the cap off/put it back on. I find that a frustrating feature, but it helps keep Petals waterproof, so it's a trade off of one convenience for another.

There's a rim of soft, flexible petals that surround the bottom of the toy. Inserted vaginally, they rest on the labia and are supposed to transfer vibration to the surrounding area—they're just a little too floppy to do that, unfortunately. Sometimes I could feel a soft remnant of vibration on the petals, but I honestly felt the vibration much stronger in my hand, so sadly that aspect was not very good. The base is wide enough to be safe if you choose to use this as a small anal vibe - and the petals aren't so flexible that they'll bend over backwards and slide in.

Above the petal base is a short shaft and head (a bit under 4 inches), and it's pretty small in girth at around 3.5" (the toy listing says 4", but I measured mine and it is definitely smaller even at the widest insertable part).

The head of the shaft is covered in medium-sized nubbies and is where the majority of vibration can be felt. The nubs are nice on the tip, because when they're placed on the clitoris, the feeling is very intense.

The size of Petals over all makes it incredibly convenient for travel. It's small and you don't have to worry about it breaking. The petals will sandwich up a bit for easier packing in a suitcase or carry-on. The toy is very quiet too, so no worries about noisiness in hotel rooms.

This toy performed so-so as an insertable toy for me, because I didn't feel like the length was enough combined with the vibration and texture. However, as a toy for clit stimulation, it excelled.

The vibration control is a single button at the very bottom of the toy and it has two levels of vibration only. Clicking it a third time will turn the toy off. This is kind of a pain, because you can't switch vibration levels back and forth without turning the whole thing off for a few seconds in between. However, the button isn't easily bumped, so there's no risk of it accidentally shutting off unless you purposely do it. So, the controls are 50/50 in terms of pros and cons, in my opinion. You don't really need any directions to use the toy, it's rather straight forward as long as you can orient the batteries properly first.

The toy has a very low noise level and even on the loudest setting, it is barely audible from under the covers. It definitely would not be heard easily, so it allows for discreet usage. The toy is also fairly waterproof, so you can take it into the shower with you. I haven't tried it completely submerged in a tub for a length of time, but the seal is very tight and hidden so I imagine there would be no problem.

Battery wise, the performance is alright. It's nothing to brag about, but it could be worse. It doesn't drain batteries incredibly fast, but there is a noticeable drop in vibration power with each usage, from my experience. You won't have to change the batteries a whole lot if you keep running it until it dies, but you might go through a few if you change them when the vibration gets too weak for you.

It's not too hard to take care of this toy. Petals is pretty small and easy to clean, and it's waterproof so you don't have to be overly cautious running it under the faucet. You'll want to take extra care to wash carefully around the "petals" at the bottom, because they have a lot of tight creases lube or other fluids could stick and dry to.

You can not sterilize this toy with traditional methods, so you're going to want a toy cleaner or to use a mild soap and water. This toy is porous, so even if you clean it, try not to use it between orifices, because it'll never be 100% sterilized!

Storing this toy can be a little odd. It's a strange shape because of the petals on the bottom, so it doesn't lay totally flat. You can keep it in the box it came in (if you're able to stand the packaging), or stick it in a wide & short pouch. The petals around the bottom are flexible, so they're able to be squished a bit, if you need to squeeze it in somewhere.

The material is compatible with water and silicone-based lubes.

The packaging on this is...well, it's pretty dorky. It's your typical novelty, sex-toy packaging, with a (rather headless) girl in cute lingerie posing...and a large purple alien like dong-flower floating mysteriously in front of her. It came in a box, not a solid blister pack. I believe there was an easy-to-open clam-shell package holding it inside, with some directions and maybe a leaflet. But honestly, I can't remember much of that because I just wanted to throw out the box as soon as I saw it, haha.

It's not exactly the kind of box you want to keep around to store your toy, unless you don't mind looking at the silly packaging.

But since it comes in a box, you can be earth-friendly and recycle it (which seems pretty appropriate given the flowery shape of this toy).

I bought Petals because I wanted a small vibe that would be good for clitoral stimulation, travel and wouldn't break the bank. Luckily, this toy fits all three of those needs and is pretty silent. I was honestly pretty surprised at how much power this had, but was a little disappointed at how quickly the intensity can drain due to battery usage.

If you're looking for a cheap stimulator with good performance, this is definitely a good choice. If you're traveling with it, it might be a good choice to pack an extra set of batteries.

This was far better than I had expected! For the price and kind of silly appearance, I hadn't expected much. But once I clicked the on button, I could clearly feel a strong vibration for such a small toy in my hand. Bumping it up to the second vibration setting was an even stronger humming vibration.

Vaginally, it's okay. The nubs add some feeling, but would be better if they were all along the shaft. I felt the vibration internally, but even on its strongest setting, the feeling was not enough. So I switched and used one of my larger vibes instead, because I knew they would be strong enough for me.

So then, I decided to try it for the reason I intended—clitorally. FAR better! The strong pulses I was surprised about were definitely incredibly stimulating. Placing one of the small nubs direct on my clitoris was enough to get me off very quickly. I hadn't expected to use this much, as I kind of purchased it to be more of a "throw around" toy, but since I've had it, I always go to it for some quick clit stim.

I was a little disappointed that the more times I used it, the less and less intense it got :( Not fun changing batteries during play time! But when it's fully charged, it's great.