Apple may be notoriously prudish when it comes to green-lighting sex-themed iPhone apps, but they're not entirely abstinent. For your (and your partner's) convenience, Debby Herbenick, a sex educator and researcher, has selected seven apps guaranteed to spice up your love life—from a saucy take on "Truth or Dare" to an app that magically transforms your smartphone into, yes, a vibrator.
Where’s the G-Spot? How large is the average man’s penis? As a sex research scientist and educator, I’m constantly reminded how little most people know about sex, their bodies, and their partners’ bodies. And yet being smart about sex makes for better sex. Some of this app’s “facts” are exaggerated or inappropriately worded—for example, “deep throating is an act in which a man’s entire erect penis is forced deep into the mouth of his partner.” (Sounds more like sexual assault to me.) But mostly it’s packed with useful-enough information that should help curious users feel better prepared. Plus, unlike many iPhone sex apps, real terms (like “penis”) are used instead of silly euphemisms that make you feel like you’re back in middle school.
This basic app from MyPleasure.com turns your iPhone into a vibrator by tapping into the device’s vibrate function. A few pro tips: you’ll feel more vibration if you remove your phone cover before using it. It’s better used over clothes than on bare-naked genitals. Also, consider using this app more for flirtation or seduction than as an actual sex toy—if needed, after MyVibe flirtation, switch to a non-smartphone device, or your living breathing partner. And if your partner’s long-distance, consider turning MyVibe off and FaceTime on to expand each other’s horizons.
If you can get past the cheesy Eastern-inspired music—or mute it—this app is full of inspiring, explicit drawings of men and women engaged in various sex acts (well, explicit minus their genitals, probably because they’re playing to Apple). Some cool features: you can track the sex acts you’ve tried or want to try, and interactive elements allow you to share your progress on Twitter and Facebook. (Careful if you’re FB friends with co-workers or your mom.) The illustrator gets only a few things wrong; breasts, for example, defy gravity even in inverted sex positions (see “Pie in the Sky,” filed under “cunnilingus”), and the couples are male-female only.
This app comes equipped with text and video to educate women and men about sex toys, lubricant, and condoms. The videos sometimes take a while to load, but don’t worry—you get just as much info (mostly good) from the text. Although terms like “clitoris” and “G-Spot” are widely used, the fear of Apple seems evident in how the vagina becomes “the female genital” and the anus becomes “the rear end.” Also, the sex scientist/educator in me squirms at their misspelling of "Kegal exercises" (it’s "Kegel") and at the line “Adam and Eve encourages everyone to use lube during any intercourse” (bad advice, I think, and I consider myself lube-positive). But for basic info on products, it’s certain to help downloaders become smarter sex-toy shoppers and users.
Made by the condom (and more recently vibrator and lubricant) company Durex, this is a pretty great sex app. It’s based on the dice commonly sold at adult bookstores, which direct people to engage in various sex acts. While the tamer categories (“Romantic,” “Foreplay”) are a little lame, the sexier ones are filled with position ideas, complete with funny stick-figure diagrams and helpful instructions, albeit without genital names. The “Kinky” category is also fun: suggestions like “Oral in a Hotel,” “Vibrator at Work,” and “Role Play in the Shower” are enough to spice up many a coupling. And while the British influence is evident in the app’s sex-position descriptions (“whilst the man kneels down behind her”), American capitalism is at its most opportunistic with product suggestions available at every turn (Oral sex, you say? Try this flavored lube!). The interactive factor: email your activity to a partner to loop him or her in on the fun.
If you can assuage worries about pregnancy and infection during sex, you and your partner can relax, let go, and enjoy the pleasures of each other’s company. That said, to enjoy the pleasures of this app you must forgive the oddly muscular man and prominently be-nippled woman on its homepage. Aside from a few nitpicky details, it’s a great resource for information about condoms, birth-control pills, the patch, vaginal rings, withdrawal (pulling out), and even the female condom. Press the left arrow for female-oriented contraceptive info and the right arrow for male-oriented advice.
This is a good getting-to-know-you game, at least at a party with a group of friends, based on the classic sleepover activity. Start by entering the players’ names. On a given player’s turn, he or she chooses to tell the truth or take a dare. If it’s a dare, the app brings players into the mix in unpredictable ways (e.g., “Attempt to unbutton Bill’s pants using only your teeth while he does the same to you.”)—but if gets too uncomfortable, there’s always the option to click “No way! I’m a wimp!” and skip to the next item. You can also add your own dares to the mix, though you can’t control when or how often they appear, so choose wisely. A cool feature: you can save (and password-protect) games and continue them later.
