AdultToysForLess.com Store Review

I was recently approached by the owners of Adult Toys For Less who asked me to have a look over their site and write up a review of my experience. I have never written a review about an online store before, so I was a little hesitant, but then I remembered that a) I am always looking for a new store to buy sex toys from, b) I enjoy reviewing things, and c) I am a web developer for a living, so I know how these things work. I gladly accepted the opportunity to write a new type of review for someone who was honestly interested in what I had to say. Follows are my thoughts on the site and my experience while using it.

Site Layout

The layout of this site is simple and minimalistic, which is nice but leaves me wanting more. The layout of the store is the thing about Adult Toys For Less that I have the biggest problem with. Being a web developer myself, I literally spend five days a week working on web sites; whether it’s back end scripting or front end design and layout. Because of this, I am probably a lot pickier about how I like my web stores to look when I go shopping. I demand that everything be easy to find and browse.

The first thing I noticed that bugged the bajesus out of me is that there is very little organization within their navigation. A site, no matter what type but particularly a site that sells goods should always have a clean easy to use navigation system. ATFL‘s main navigation is a list of links in the left sidebar. Although they do have their main navigation broken up into categories, which I adore by the way, in their there is not any order to it. In with all of the category links you will find links to monthly featured items. I want that sort of thing to be outside of category navigation. I want a little block in the side bar specifically for links to featured items.

I think that it is strange that all of the features I would like to see in their navigation can be found once you use the search functionalities of the site. Once you have searched for an item you are provided with a fantastic list of options to narrow down your results. I feel like these options should be a standard feature once you venture into any parent category. The lack of ability to narrow down the huge list of items into less overwhelming lists should be a no-brainer.

As much as I love that they break their navigation down into specific categories like “Dongs and Dildos,” I am a lot less happy with their sub category navigation. When you click into a “parent” category, once the page loads, the list of subcategories appears above the products listed, instead of in the sidebar navigation. This does not make me happy. If the list of subcategories is long, all of the products are pushed down the page and you have to scroll a bit until u actually see that you have products to look at. From a user’s standpoint this is just not OK.

I also have a complaint with their lack of page titles on all pages that do not display an individual product. I like to know where I am without having to look at my title bar. Titles are important, even if they are just restating what page you are on. Redundancy is sometimes a good thing.

Shopping Experience

Now don’t get me wrong. I know I have pretty much picked apart the layout of this site, but that doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t shop here. Outside of my distaste for the layout of this site, the shopping experience itself is very pleasant. The buying process works just as well as any other site. It is easy to add items to your cart and the checkout process is not complicated. ATFL provides the user with easy access to all the important information one might need like their return policy, shipping information, as well as a phone number for contact.

The experience is not, however without complaint. It really bums me out to see that there is NO information about any given product outside of the very basics: product name, stock status, price/sales price, and UPC. I have a pretty good handle on being able to pick out items that look like they are made out of quality material, but the lack of information on the individual product pages themselves worries me. When I ran into something that I have not seen before, and I am not sure just what material the item is made out of, I found myself visiting OTHER STORES which I knew would have the information I needed. If I have to go to another site, let alone another store, to get even the most basic info I feel I need to make an educated decision on a toy purchase, chances are that I will just buy the product somewhere else.

Product Selection

Adult Toys For Less boasts a 15,000+ product selection, which is nothing to scoff at. You will be able to find items under $20, mid-range items, as well as high end items such as items from the Vanity line by Jopen.

I was very happy to find that they really carry a fair amount of everything. They carry products from almost every major adult toy manufacturer that you can think of, except for Fleshlight. Do not despair though; they have plenty of other brands and types of masturbators to choose from.

During my tour of the site, I was pleased to find that Adult Toys For Less even carries some items that I have not seen before. This says something, considering I spend hours just browsing adult shops. The first set that I ran across and which I had never seen before are the 50 ways to play kinky sets. I know, I know, I am clearly a sucker for kits, packs and sets but I just can’t help myself.

While this store is still in its infancy (it launched November 12, 2012), there is no shortage of items that are new to the market up for sale on Adult Toys For Less. You can still find many new products in their catalog such as the Comet Pearl, Ceres, and the Nyx from the new Jopen Key line, all of which I would love to get my grubby little hands on.

In addition to all of their products, they also sell “wholesale” items (not at wholesale prices though). They offer, for instance, the Icicles Assorted Floor Display which includes 32 of the items in the Icicles line by Pipedream.

Pricing

So how do ATFL‘s prices stand up to some of their competition? Pretty well actually. ATFL, although not always, seems to have pretty low prices on their items which are usually plus or minus $10 of what you can get an item for on other web stores where I shop. Below you can see just how ATFL stacks up against some of my favorite online adult retailers.

	Budget: Dr. Joel Kaplan’s Prostate Massager by Cal Exotics Prices as of December 5, 2012
	Adult Toys For Less	Better Sex	Eden Fantasys	SheVibe	LoveHoney
	$17.03	$17.95	$19.19	$25.99	$29.99
	Mid Range: Icicles No. 24 by Pipedream Prices as of December 5, 2012
	Eden Fantasys	LoveHoney	SheVibe	Adult Toys For Less	Adam & Eve
	$37.49	$44.99	$49.99	$54.00	$69.95
	High End: Vanity Vr12 Trinity by Jopen Prices as of December 5, 2012
	Adult Toys For Less	SheVibe	Eden Fantasys	Good Vibrations	Adam & Eve
	$190.35	$219.99	$238.99	$242.00	$279.95

Overall, their prices look pretty good and no one is going to argue their price on the Vanity Vr12. I know I won’t! If I had a spare $190.35, I would be all over that like a fat kid on cake.

Shipping

Like many other stores of the adult nature, Adult Toys For Less offers discreet shipping, which is important to many, including myself. Although they do provide many options relating to the speed of your shipment, they appear to only ship via UPS or FedEx which can sometimes be pricier.

Final Verdict

While I do have several complaints about the way that the site is laid out and its navigation, I really cannot argue their pricing or selection. Although sometimes they do not have the best rate, the fact that they have AMAZING prices on a lot of high end items can make me happily ignore any qualms I have with look and navigation of their site. I am also excited to hear that there are more articles to help teach visitors about sex and adult toys on the horizon.

Visit the Adult Toys For Less site for more information, their shop to take advantage of their great prices or check them out on Facebook or Twitter.