Introducing the Iroha

The Tenga revolutionised the world of adult goods. Now there’s a female version

Posted: Mon Feb 04 2013

Spanking the monkey has never been the same since Koichi Matsumoto launched the Tenga on an unsuspecting world in 2005. A former car mechanic, Matsumoto applied his engineering nous to the realm of adult goods, seeking to create sex toys that men wouldn't be ashamed to use (and, he hoped, liberating mankind from a whole mountain of sexual taboos in the process). The resulting products – ranging from the hourglass-shaped Deep Throat Cup to the extravagantly sculpted Tenga 3D – have gone on to shift over 25 million units worldwide and seen Tenga Co. hailed as the Apple of masturbation aids, a claim that was backed up when the company won a coveted Red Dot design award last year.

So there was understandable excitement when Tenga Co. revealed on January 8 this year that they were developing a new masturbation aid for the ladies, christened the Iroha. (A lot of excitement, in fact: the official site crashed under the weight of all the web traffic.) The company releases details on the new devices today, and they look set to do for onanism what the Toto Washlet did for female ablutions.

As with the original Tenga, the three Iroha models (priced at ¥6,800 each) boast some intriguing design: mounted on black stands that conceal built-in chargers, they look more like wagashi sweets than anything remotely kinky. Perhaps the biggest difference from their male counterparts is that these babies are battery powered, though the motors are so quiet that you'd barely notice. Take your pick between the white, doll-shaped Yukidaruma, the more compact, pale green Hanamidori and the light pink Hinazakura, which comes with a pronged tip. The surface of each is soft to the touch and has an anti-dust coating, plus they're water-resistant to ensure easy cleaning. And with only a couple of switches, they're so simple that even your granny could use them.

The Iroha goes on sale on March 3 – the date of the Hina Matsuri girls' festival in Japan, and just over a week before White Day, though we're not sure how many men would be brave enough to give one of these to the lady in their lives. Watch out for an international release in April.

Read our interview with the makers of the Iroha

Official website: http://iroha-tenga.com