Adult products can now be bought online in Australia with the same ease and expectation as buying groceries, returning shoes or picking up takeaway; all without much fanfare and just a general assumption that the whole process will work as it should. What this normalisation has brought, however, is a pretty big surprise: retailers aren’t as forthcoming as you’d expect when it comes to the really important stuff. Stuff like material safety, what your consumer rights actually cover, and what “discreet shipping” really means in the real world are all areas where there’s still a huge gap between what retailers tell you and what you actually need to know.
The Material Problem Nobody Wants to Talk About
The truth is, there’s no law saying that retailers have to tell you what a product is made of in Australia. The TGA, our country’s regulatory body for all things medicinal, doesn’t actually classify online sex toys Australia as medicine, so they don’t get to check on what materials are used. That means that when a store says a product is “body-safe”, it doesn’t actually mean anything, and since there’s no law to enforce any kind of standard, you have no idea if they’re telling the truth or not. One product might actually be made from a genuine platinum-grade silicone (which is safe to use against the skin), while another product could be made from all sorts of dodgy chemicals like phthalates. This all comes down to the material’s porosity, basically how easily it absorbs moisture. If a material is porous, like a cheap plastic or rubber, it’s impossible to sterilise it properly because all the bacteria just keep on getting stuck inside the tiny little holes. But a non-porous material like silicone, stainless steel or glass is much easier to clean and is perfect for sex toys because it’s body-safe. You can only tell if something is a good quality silicone though if it has no chemical smell; if it smells like rubber, then it’s probably not the good stuff.
What “Discreet Shipping” Actually Means?
Most of the big online adult retailers in Australia send packages in plain boxes with no writing on the outside to tell you what’s inside (except for the trader’s name on the bank statement of course, but we’ll cover that in a bit). They do this to try and keep things discreet and private. If you want to know if a particular retailer actually does this, then the best thing to do is to check their website before you buy to see if they say they do it. Because even if they say you can’t tell what’s in the package when it arrives, a lot of the time it’s not the retailer who is doing any harm; it’s the parcel delivery people who can accidentally leave a note or something in the mailbox saying that a box is being delivered to the house.
The biggest threat to your privacy comes from all the little delivery emails and messages that say “Hey, a box is on the way”; those can be a problem even if the retailer is being careful. This is something you have to deal with yourself, not the retailer; it’s just a matter of household logistics.
Consumer Rights Apply No Matter What
The thing is, consumer law applies the same rules and rights that it does whenever you buy something, and that includes when you buy sex toys. If a product breaks or isn’t good quality after a week, you’re going to be able to get it replaced or a refund; that’s just part of the deal. What you can’t get is a refund for something just because you changed your mind about it after it was opened. Retailers can do that because they’re following the law; it’s standard practice across the whole industry.
Matching Technology with Its Practical Use
Product variety in Australia through online adult retail shops has greatly increased beyond the scope of what many consumers are familiar with. Devices like air pulses and suction that stimulate through pressure as opposed to vibration have seen great gains both in popularity and in product evolution. Remote-controllable devices through Bluetooth or Wi-Fi enable practical use by geographically separate couples; such devices also bring up an aspect that most consumers do not usually contemplate, and this is what kind of data the manufacturer’s application records and how it is stored.
Wand massagers produce the most powerful surface stimulation among all categories, but need either to be plugged into the power supply or have a powerful battery. Bullet vibrators are the most convenient to travel with, but function on the lowest end of the power range. Matching technology to its practical use brings better results than selecting products just because of their price or novelty.
Variation in Quality between Differing Prices
Prices of adult products vary greatly, from under $30 to more than $300, and so does the quality of products. Known brands with material information disclosed and priced around $30 are more reliable choices for an entry-level consumer than unknown brands of similar or cheaper prices. Manufacturers of reliable brands are more prone to be truthful about materials used, honour the warranty and use good quality motors and components. The same $60 product of known brand with material information specified will last longer in safety and durability than a $40 product of questionable origin. This is not brand loyalty; it is simply a consequence of responsible manufacturing.
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