Little Bird: This is Not a Pipe

We've come a long way since the days of colored dildos and ridiculously big anal beads safely hidden in bedside table drawers. Today sex toys are a multi-billion dollar industry. 

And who is driving this sexy -- and lucrative -- business? The French, of course.

At the most recent Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, French start-up B-Sensory’s latest product, called Little Bird, won a prize for innovation. There were some 190 French start-ups at the CES, the second biggest delegation after the United States.

And no, the Little Bird is not a pipe. It probably wouldn’t be a good idea to put it in your mouth. B-Sensory’s futuristic gadget is a sex toy described by its designer as a "love egg". And it's revolutionizing the way women play with “connected" sex toys. Sold exclusively online for the moment, Little Bird sales have gone through the roof in France with pre-orders for Valentines Day. The pipe-shaped sex toy comes in rasberry pink, lagoon blue and mojito green.

The Little Bird is unique because it offers users a variety of functions never seen before on a sex toy -- notably reading. Or as the product's slogan says, "the first sex toy connected to your erotic readings". Not only can it connect via Bluetooth to any cell phone, it also suggests erotic literature to read while using the toy. The sex toy app, which can be downloaded via AppleStore or GooglePlay, adds reading to solo sexual pleasure by providing a variety of erotic texts while using the toy. Appealing to both mental and physical sensations, discretion will be advised while reading Fifty Shades of Grey for example.

Not only does Little Bird change the way people think about using sex toys, it also shifts the concept of old-fashioned reading by adding sexual pleasure to the reading experience. When a passage discusses a certain movement, the toy imitates the gesture for the reader to feel much more than he would by flipping pages. One review of the Little Bird advised that the Little Bird is "not recommended for Stephen King novels".

What do girls at AUP think about this? Well, less than 5 percent of those polled said they would buy this new French sex toy. It seems students, who tend to have a frivolous attitude, don't need a toy to satisfy their sexual needs. “Why would I get a sex toy when I just can get laid,” said one female student. Another said: “I heard about connected panties controlled by your partner. Now that’s cool, but I wouldn’t get that toy”.

So while some students may be comfortable using a sex toy, it seems Little Bird wouldn’t be a big hit with college students. This product, it would appear, is targeted at a older audience who like to combine reading with sexual pleasure.