I do not watch a lot of porn. Nor do I watch it for long periods of time when I do enjoy it. For this reason, video on demand services seem really appealing. I like the idea of being able to pay by the minute. I decided to give Sextoy.com’s service a shot.
When I first logged in, I immediately recognized the software as the same program that powers another VOD site I’ve used. This means I was already familiar with the site, but it does make it a bit less.. unique than other sites. It’s similar to my last affiliate program review; I can’t knock a service because they use popular software but it doesn’t help with branding.
I’m going to be honest here and say there are almost too many options. So I’ll highlight a few of the good points for you.
- Account Center
- When you’re logged in, your account info including remaining minutes and link to your favorites and saved items is displayed on the top left.
- Search Options
- You can search by title or actor
- Recent Additions
- The right sidebar shows the most recent additions.
- Video Preferences
- You can specify your preference for gay or straight films
- Language Settings
- There are multiple language settings
There are a lot of films already displayed on the front page which gives people who are not so familiar with porn–like me–an idea of what they might like. If I want to see the most popular stars or films (even by category), I can do so. There are pages that divide the title by category, studio, star, and more. There’s even a glossary to explain what terms mean and to direct you to the type of films you’d like best.
And when you click any specific film, you’re given a lot of useful information, including stars, run time, and description. Many (maybe all) listings have a scene directory with screencaps so you can browse in individual scenes if you’d like. There is a tab with extensive cast information and viewers can choose the quality of their streaming video (Low, Medium, High, Ultra and Mega); although only certain titles are available in all qualities.
But I have a few gripes, too, and most of them are not so easy to list.
My biggest complaint is that there is simply too damned much going on. I don’t know how much this software can be customized, but there are so many options that it can really be intimidating. It is to me even though I have used it before. The front page has dozens of links and images, and it’s almost to the point of being offensive. I wish there were a streamlined version with fewer suggestions. This would be much more helpful to me.
The focus is on films, which tend to be the type that can be summed up as this “Adjective Body-Part Pt #.” You know, all those series that just seem a little tacky. And those are great for some people but it takes a little more time and patience to find more quality films, IMO. I did find some which might be a little more up the porn snob’s alley. Tristan Taormino films, as well as some by Candida Royalle. The more time I spent looking, the easier it was to find some movies that at least looked interesting to save for later.
The video player itself leaves something to be desired. It’s functional but not intuitive. Video plays in a pop-up, and there is a flash player who looks something like WMP. Of course, since it’s streaming, it takes some time to load. You can skip ahead, but it’ll need time to buffer as well. If you prefer you can actually watch the film in WMP, which might be a better idea. I find the player to be a bit frustrating in Firefox. It’s not fully supported, so I can’t click the link to view all the scenes. Firefox also shows extra options for rating and sizing, which other browsers do. Of course, this is not the fault of FF but of the coders.
But it’s mostly functional. I can pop out the video to full screen; although, even on “Ultra,” very few films are high-quality enough for me to do so without annoyance. The content could use a little TLC. I guess I supposed that I would get not only a clearer picture if I chose a higher quality setting but a larger one, too. Not so. This seems like a no-brainer so me, but, like I said, I’m not a porn aficionado. The options which are not available in Firefox allow the user to zoom, but in my browser of choice, I only have regular and full-screen options.
I think that SexToyTV is definitely useful for those who like to watch porn on their computers and don’t mind sacrificing a little quality or having to take time to get to know the site. I typically prefer porn which requires a little less effort. Sometimes the desire to watch porn actually leaves me before I find something suitable. If you plan to try it out, I’d make most of your purchases in bulk. As can be expected, you get a better discount that way ($.09/minute as compared to $.20/minute). It’s maybe not my perfect porn solution, though.
