Nora Bluetooth Vibrator by Lovense – Review
This post was last updated on September 3, 2024, to accommodate missing sections & features that were a part of the original Lovense app. These features may or may not still be available. An update on all these features can be found here: The Nora Bluetooth Vibrator – 3 Years Later
Since 2010, Lovense has been trying to change the world of sex toys with technology. After many years of research, the Nora Bluetooth Vibrator was born. This vibe claims that it can connect with another toy (Max 2), be controlled at long distances, and have its patterns changed dynamically through an app. But, with all these features; does it do any of them well?
Pricing & Product Details
The Nora is a $199 toy when it’s not on sale. Thankfully, it’s usually on sale. I got mine back in February as part of a dual-pack deal with a Max 2 for $190, so I’m not completely sure what I paid for the Nora alone. However, it is currently on sale again for $99-$119 (the sale tends to change between 99-119 depending on the time of year) at Lovense.com for just the Nora.
The box for Nora is straight to the point. Both sides include photos of the vibe with facts about the product next to it. Inside the box, there is a user manual, a magnetic charging wire, and Nora.
What’s It Made of?
The Nora Bluetooth Vibrator’s Main body is made out of silicone, giving it a firm yet soft and flexible texture. The handle, which seems to be the only visible plastic on the toy, is ABS plastic. Overall, I’d say this toy is body-safe; silicone is one of the safer materials to use when it comes to insertables, especially if you want them soft. And, ABS plastic is considered to be the safest plastic to use if you need to. Both materials are considered sanitizable to a certain degree.
Measurements
The diagrams on the website for The Nora seem to show pretty true-to-size measurements. When measuring for myself at home I found that they matched. The Nora has an insertable length of around 4.72 inches and a girth of about 4.88 inches at the thickest and 3.94 inches at its smallest (which is weirdly not mentioned).
Battery Life & Charging
I can’t deny that I am impressed with the Nora Bluetooth Vibrator’s battery life. Before doing the test, I was charging it every night and shutting it off to preserve the battery, and now I realize that was a fool’s errand.
I let it run continuously on multiple different settings, and it lasted 3 hours; my phone will probably die before this thing does.
All that aside, it does take two hours to charge, and the plug doesn’t stay in all that well either. I found myself constantly going back to my Nora to adjust it and make sure it was charging, one little tap and the plug falls loose.
Controls & Features
Nora has a few different ways it can be controlled. The first way is natively with the buttons on the toy. In this way the Nora functions like any other vibe. The other way is through the app either by you or another person.
Native
To control the Nora natively, hold the lightning bolt button for 3 seconds (top one); if successful it will vibrate once and a green light will blink on.
If you click the lightning bolt again it will shuffle through 7 different vibration intensities.
The button with the circle on it (bottom one) controls the rotation speed. If you click it once, it starts the rotation. Click it again and it shuffles through 3 different speeds. Holding the button down changes the direction of the rotation.
To shut the toy off, simply hold the lightning bolt for 3 seconds again.
The App (Lovense Remote)
The Lovense app is broken down into 3 sections: close range, long distance, and patterns. Each of these sections has its own unique features that allow the Nora to be played with in different ways.
Close Range
The close-range section of the app is where you will find the main remote along with a few other features such as; setting up alarms, syncing it to music, creating custom patterns or just letting it listen to the sounds from your microphone.
Alarm
The alarm feature allows you to set a time for your lovense toy to go off. I personally found this feature to be more like a timer with an exact time you can set.
To use this feature Nora must be on and the app has to be open in the background. If the Nora is off, it will not work and if the app is closed in the background, it will not work. This is what leads me to say it’s more of a timer than a fun way to wake yourself up because apps accidentally close in the background all the time.
Despite those small complaints, I love the feature and think it could be fun to work into kink play.
Music
The music feature is another fun idea that doesn’t quite work yet. It doesn’t do the best job at matching a song and seems to pick a random rhythm. Even on the slowest songs, it moves and vibrates a ton. I look forward to seeing this feature advance in the future, but it’s just not quite there yet.
My Patterns
The My Patterns section allows you to custom-make patterns for your toy and save them for later. The control panel for creating patterns allows you to swipe your finger up and down to control the intensity of your experience.
For toys with two features, such as the Nora, you can pick and choose to use the rotation and vibration together or separately.
Sound
The sound feature of the app uses your phone’s microphone to control the Nora. You can set the sensitivity of the mic so it can pick up on just the sound of your partner’s voice, or the entire room. This is another feature where I love the idea, but it doesn’t work as expected.
I found that the mic was either too sensitive or not sensitive enough which often caused the vibration to pulsate even in a fairly quiet room, or just not turn on at all.
Remote
The remote is the main feature of the app and it works like a charm. It allows for individual control of the vibrations and rotation. It also offers two ways to control it, either by the traditional panel where you slide two bubbles around an open space to control the intensity, or by two sliders you move up.
Long Distance Sex
The long-distance section of the app allows you to voice chat, text and video call a person to have them control your toy or sync your toys together.
The sync feature is especially unique to these toys as it allows your partner to “feel” what you are doing with their toy.*
For example, my partner and I tried it out with Max 2 & Nora. When I shook my vibe, their toy would vibrate and contract in sync with mine. It works surprisingly well and the idea behind it is incredibly fun. However, it uses both the rotating head and the vibrations with no option to customize the experience (what if I wanted vibrations with no rotation?).
Another feature of this app is the fact that it allows you to video call each other. I found it to be convenient to be able to do this in the same place that controls it.
Unfortunately, the app isn’t perfect, and I did find a strange issue with it where I can’t turn my partner’s volume down all the way. This seems like an oversight because there are many reasons to mute an erotic call.
I also found the default volume for the calls to be way too loud. My headphones could be laying on the bed and I could still hear the audio. I do wish the app would have more discreet options.
*Note: If you have multiple Lovense Toys, they can connect with other toys no matter the type, and you can connect as many as you want.
Patterns
The pattern section allows you to upload your custom patterns for public use, as well as, try out other people’s.
Vibrations
I find the vibrations to be pretty strong; even on its lowest setting, it has me quaking. With that being said, I don’t have the most impressive record when it comes to vibrating toys, so if you’re up there with the elites, you might beg to differ. As a medium vibe lover, it’s more than enough.
I did find a peculiar problem where I can’t use the vibes lowest setting unless I turn the vibrations up a bit and bring them back down; otherwise, it squeals. Is this like a vibrator Konami code? I don’t know. Jokes aside, it’s not a big deal to me.
Oh, and I think it’s worth noting that Nora’s vibrations do not extend to the shaft of the toy, but rather most of the strength resides in the clitoral arm.
Rotating Head
The rotating head is a sheep in wolf’s clothing. The function intimidated me during the first impression; I worried that it might annihilate my pussy, but boy was I wrong.
Nora’s rotating head is more like a gentle massage, going almost unnoticed at times because its movement is so fluid. It’s quite comfortable to use, and once it’s pressed up against the right spot, the stimulation is way more than I can bear!
Waterproofness
The Nora Bluetooth vibrator has a waterproof rating of IPX6. This means that the toy can withstand pressure from a jet of water from all angles. It’s important to note that this does not mean it can be fully submerged.
Connectivity
The local Bluetooth connection is excellent, and I didn’t get any noticeable input lag when changing the settings. The Nora Bluetooth Vibrator responds quickly to commands and feels great to use.
The long-distance connectivity is also jaw-dropping. My partner and I have connected Max 2 and Nora together from two different houses, on two different wifis with little to no issues.
Discreetness
Eh. I can’t say that Nora is my quietest toy. On its lowest settings, I can get away with it; however, if I crank that baby up a bit or use the rotating head, I get concerned about thin walls. I usually drown it out with some background music, though this may not be the ideal solution for all.
Cleaning
The smooth texture and no groove design make the Nora a breeze to clean. I just use a toy cleaner and a rag to scrub it then I run it quickly under the sink to get rid of any excess cleaner. The IPX6 waterproof rating allows me to do this without the worry of destroying the toy.
Final Thoughts
The Nora Bluetooth Vibrator has easily become my most used sex toy. I’m in love with it. There are so many ways to use it and the fact that the long-distance play actually works is amazing. The issues I had were minor and the app integration is almost flawless. Either way, this toy left me with an experience that was like no other.
Where to Buy: Nora Bluetooth Vibrator
Want a Stable Connection on Windows? Try the Lovense Bluetooth Adaptor!
