Babeland and Good Vibes previously sold this toy under the One brand, (not to be confused with PlusOne; The One appears to be a brand specifically for Babeland/GV). You can still get it as part of the One Threeway bundle, but separately, it’s sold as the GV Radiant Rose. That’s what I’ll call it in this review.

We’re not going to talk about why it took so long for me to write and post this review, but we can talk about why it took me so long to write about any rose toy. It’s not just that they’re super trendy, although the strong marketing campaigns of what were clearly white-label toys left me feeling so inundated that it was surely part of the reason. In a world chock-full of fake reviews on social media and product listings, it’s become harder than ever to tell whether a toy is a complete piece of crap that looks nice.. or is actually worth trying. I couldn’t navigate that world before the One brand showed up from a store that I trust, so I decided to give it a try.

But the main reason I wasn’t interested in rose toys prior to this is that suction toys have thus far failed to do anything for me. I don’t know how much my anatomy plays a role, but it definitely doesn’t mesh with my style of masturbation, which centers around pressure. I’d only tried a couple of brands, but was so underwhelmed that I wasn’t interested in trying any more. The Radiant Rose offers vibrations as well as suction, so I thought that might make a difference.

And it did.

But not the way I expected.

I tried the Radiant Rose with suction and vibration separately and then both together. Overall, I found it to be incredibly overwhelming when using vibrations, which center directly around your clit if it’s in the suction hole (although you don’t have to use it that way for vibes alone; it’s certainly intended that way). When you turn on the toy and look into the hole for the clitoris, you can see the thin membrane of silicone move with the vibration. It’s rather aggressive, in my opinion—uncomfortable and sometimes painful. I’m someone who tends to stimulate the whole vulva area with less direct clitoral stimulation, and I found myself unconsciously pulling my body away from the toy or clenching to avoid the aggressive vibration of the silicone itself and not the body of the toy. For those who require direct clitoral stimulation, this might be a godsend, however.

Because the silicone itself vibrates, I find it difficult to describe the nature of the vibrations. They’re neither super buzzy nor deep, and will likely be plenty strong enough for many people. But the experience is so different that you almost need to throw what you know about vibrators out the window.

On the other hand, the vibrations overwhelmed the suction when using them simultaneously. Suction tends to be a little more understated, and it just couldn’t compete with the vibrations. So even if you love both functions, I’m not sure that using them at the same time is an improvement over using one or the other. I also don’t think that the single button makes a lot of sense with multiple types of stimulation. Surely there should be at least two buttons!

And when it comes to the suction. I was again underwhelmed. I’m not sure if it’s a good fit for me, although I’m positive the recommendation to use lube is supposed to help it work with a variety of bodies. You might recall that suction toys initially came with multiple nozzles to find the best fit. Because there’s no nozzle, removable or otherwise, the Radiant Rose might not work for everyone. In an economy like this, people might not want to risk the sale price of $48.99, let alone the full price of $69.99. And that’s totally understandable.

Aside from the vibrations and suction, I didn’t find the toy to be particularly comfortable to use or hold. The short rose design was hard on my fingers. If you like the stimulation and can hold it with a featherlight touch, this might not be an issue for you. The vibrations also easily transferred to my hands, which is always annoying. And I didn’t find it easy to locate the button with my fingers during use. I had to remove

Placement can also be an issue. Because the entire face of the rose gets placed against the vulva, it’s possible that it might be too large to comfortably fit between some labia and below the mons pubis, especially if your clitoris sits higher. If that sounds like your anatomy, you might prefer a suction toy with only a smaller nozzle that touches your body.

I’m also surprised at the aesthetics of the rose toy. The box recommends using it with lube, as I would generally also recommend, but it ignores the sharp ridges created by the petals, which include some deep and difficult-to-clean crevices if you get any lube or bodily fluids in it (the suction part itself does not open directly into the toy like some of Satisfyer’s older styles; it’s completely covered in silicone). This is a laughably bad design choice that nearly all the rose toys use, likely because many of them are private label toys made from the same exact molds. There is one rose toy that somewhat tackles this issue with a removable nozzle for cleaning and rounded petal edges that are less likely to collect gunk, and it’s made by Lovehoney. I wish Good Vibes would head in that direction for hygiene purposes.

Despite the silicone sheath, the Radiant Rose is only splash-proof, not waterproof. That means you’ll have no trouble washing it (and you’ll likely need running water to wash out the ridges), and you can take it into the shower without worry. But do not submerge it.

One thing I do appreciate is that it’s magnetic. It’s magnetic, and it works with other magnetic chargers, which I discovered when I had to use a Fun Factory (RIP) charger because I wasn’t sure where the charger that came with it was. Magnetic chargers may be all cross-compatible as long as the contact points line up, which would be great. I hate how many proprietary cables I’ve collected. Anyway, has anyone made a charging mat for multiple magnetic toys yet? Or do these work with a car’s Qi charger? If not, someone should get on that. Give me royalties for the idea, though! Charging is super fast with a magnetic charger that plugs directly into an outlet like that, but the original charging cable, which I have since found, has a standard USB plug on the other end with no adapter/block, which explains why I tossed it aside initially. The product is designed to offer 45 minutes of use after 90 minutes of charging. That’s.. yikes. Quite the ratio. But it’s likely because it has two functions.

I also realized that this brand isn’t consistent with charging styles. The Wand uses a standard charger that you plug into a port on the end of the toy, and the Flicker vibe and rabbit have magnetic contact points that are closer together than the points on the rose, so you can’t use the same cables (but the cables those come with seem identical to those that come with some other white label vibrators).

In contrast, the rose sits vertically on a little charging disc, like the much smaller evolution of the Form 2. The idea is that you’d keep it prominently in its place on your nightstand–if you liked it, of course. Many nightstands and lamps, including my new one, have USB ports, so I could do that. The magnetic connection is surprisingly strong, but it wouldn’t be impossible for you or a pet to knock the rose off its base or for the whole thing to fall off a surface, even though there’s a small silicone or rubber dot on the underside, ostensibly to keep it in place.

I know that it seems like I’ve talked about how this toy charges more than how it works. But treating charging connections and cables as an afterthought rather than a cohesive part of the overall brand strategy isn’t good for the reputation (and is one of the complaints I had about Funzze toys). It says that cutting costs or getting product sold quickly is more important than being consistent and reliable and respecting the consumer. It’s a reflection of the overall market and of individual brands. It’s also something that I am sure few people are talking about, which is a shame. It matters.

And the lack of respect for buyers is why it’s so hard to make heads or tails of the sheer number of rose toys out there. It’s why I can’t really say whether this is a good or bad toy compared to others, because there are so many nearly identical toys – including the Inya rose that Babeland also carries. It’s impossible to tell if they’re actually the same on the inside. And in the broader scheme, there’s a bunch of seemingly attractive vibrators that are super weak and slipshod in design. Once upon a time, a toy’s appearance gave you some information about its value and performance, but it’s become too easy to make attractive toys that perform poorly.

The best I can say is, sure, if you’re interested in the rose and suction toys have typically worked for you (or you have reason to think they might), and you can get it on sale and won’t regret the price if it doesn’t work for you, then give it a go. I just don’t feel like I can strongly promote it.

I didn’t mean this to turn into a rant, but we’re in a vastly different Internet than when I first started this blog. A lot of people have come and gone, and a lot of information seems to have been forgotten.. even if the websites that contain it still exist. There are people falling for fake reviews on Amazon listings for $15 toys that might not be made of body-safe materials, and that’s… just the norm now.

While nothing I say will stop people from making — or buying — white label sex toys, and I realize that everyone who wants to remain relevant has to hop on the trends and compete with bottom-dollar Chinese manufacturers, I do wish a brand like Good Vibes/Babeland hadn’t sunk to that level. How do you navigate a market that’s 99% crap, and you can no longer trust the brand names or signals that once hinted at quality?

Things are definitely not coming up roses.

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Categories: Reviews, Vibrators