Glossary
Magic wand
The only tool in this list that is really a brand name, and that in practice gets used as a generic one.
What is a magic wand?
Magic Wand is a brand name for a large wand vibrator that runs on mains power, with a flexible neck and a rubber head of just over six centimeters. The device came on the market in 1968 as a massager and has been used mostly as a sex toy ever since. The shape itself is called a wand vibrator.
| Type | the generic name for this shape is a wand vibrator; Magic Wand is one brand of it |
| Brand or category | a brand. Magic Wand is a trademark, not a general label for every wand vibrator, even though people use the word that way |
| Origin | registered and sold by Hitachi in the United States in 1968 as a massager |
| Power | mains power through a 1.8 meter cord, two speeds, no batteries |
| Dimensions | about 30 centimeters long and 540 grams, with a rubber head of 6.4 centimeters |
| What it suits | clitoral stimulation, edging and forced orgasm |
How a magic wand works
Mains power instead of a battery, and that is the whole difference. The encyclopedic description lays out the build: a 1.8 meter cord, two speeds on a slider, and a rubber head of 6.4 centimeters that sits on the device through a bendable neck. Because there is no battery running down, the strength stays constant for as long as it is plugged in.
The name is older than the use. Hitachi registered Magic Wand with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on 25 April 1968, as a massager for sore muscles. In 2013 Hitachi stopped making it, because it would rather not have its company name attached to a sex toy; the distributor Vibratex arranged for the device to survive without Hitachi in the name, first as Original Magic Wand and later as Magic Wand Original.
Why people use a magic wand
For the power, and for the fact that the power does not fade. Anyone who leaves someone tied up or blindfolded and wants to keep at it for a while does not have to adjust anything with this device, which is what makes it a favorite for edging and orgasm control.
Against that stand some plain objections: the thing is large, audible, and tied to a wall socket. The classic American version also runs on 120 volts and does not do well on the mains in much of the world, so when you buy one, check the voltage the model was made for.
As for the worry about sensitivity, there is a figure. Herbenick and colleagues found among 2,056 American women that 71.5 percent had never had genital complaints linked to vibrator use. So a good quarter did, which is reason enough to keep a cloth or your hand between the head and the skin the moment it becomes too much.
Where this fits on this site
You decide on the toys, not me. If you want to know how something like this fits into an evening, without having to run the show yourself, the page on the BDSM date sets out how we agree beforehand what does and does not come along.
Sources
- Prevalence and characteristics of vibrator use by women in the United States: results from a nationally representative study. Herbenick, Reece, Sanders, Dodge, Ghassemi & Fortenberry, The Journal of Sexual Medicine 6(7), 1857–1866, 2009 (DOI 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2009.01318.x). Nationally representative sample of 2,056 women aged 18 to 60; the abstract is free to read through PubMed. Gives the figure that 71.5 percent of women had never had genital complaints linked to vibrator use.
- Hitachi Magic Wand. Wikipedia. Gives the registration of the brand name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on 25 April 1968, the dimensions of 30 centimeters and 540 grams, the rubber head of 6.4 centimeters on a bendable neck, the 1.8 meter cord, the two speeds, the 120 volt mains requirement and the note that the device does not work well on every foreign socket, and the sequence in 2013, when Hitachi stopped production over the association with a sex toy and the distributor Vibratex kept the device alive without the Hitachi name.
Related terms
A magic wand is the best-known tool for forced orgasm, and the brand has grown so tied to the shape that the name often stands in for the whole type.
- Forced orgasm. The form this device shows up in most, with the research on overstimulation alongside it.
- Edging. Staying just under the edge, where a constant strength comes in handy.
- Clit torture. The more intense side of clitoral stimulation, which uses the same device.
- Dildo. The toy that does not vibrate at all, and the clearest contrast.
- Orgasm control. What this device gets picked for most, precisely because the power does not fade. Vibrator has its own page, and so does orgasm denial.
- Vibrator. The category word this device is a brand of, with the figures and the debunked hysteria myth.
Frequently asked questions
What people still ask about a magic wand.
What is a magic wand?
A magic wand is a large wand vibrator that runs on mains power, with a bendable neck and a rubber head of 6.4 centimeters. The device is about 30 centimeters long, weighs 540 grams, and has two speeds. It was sold in 1968 as a massager.
Is Magic Wand a brand or a type of vibrator?
Magic Wand is a brand. Hitachi registered the name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on 25 April 1968, and since 2013 the device has been sold without the Hitachi name. That people call every wand vibrator a magic wand does not make it a generic name.
What should you watch for with a magic wand?
The voltage and the intensity. The classic American version of the magic wand is made for 120 volts and does not work on every foreign socket, so buy the version made for your grid. Beyond that, 71.5 percent of the women in Herbenick and colleagues’ study reported never having had genital complaints from vibrator use; anyone who does get them keeps a cloth or a hand between the head and the skin.
Who can you turn to with questions about a magic wand?
Victor of Gigolo Victor, a gigolo with twenty-five years of experience in BDSM and a background as a psychotherapist. What comes along during a session and what doesn’t is up to you; he’ll gladly help you think through how to agree on that beforehand. You can ask without obligation through the contact form or start with chatting for free.
Want to know more
Still have questions about a magic wand?
I'm Victor. Which toys come along and which don't is up to you; I'll help you think through how to set that out in advance. Ask away, there's no obligation attached.