Nu Sensuelle – French for “Naked Sensual” – is a pleasure products brand from Australia/Florida-based sex toy company Novel Creations. The line includes a number of vibrators and butt plugs offered at an affordable price point (generally under $60 USD.) Peepshow Toys – who graciously sent me the Nu Sensuelle Baelii for review – carries several of their toys.
I picked the Baelii for review because it’s unusually small for an insertable vibrator: just 3.75 inches long and less than an inch wide at its bulkiest. Penetration is painful for me, so when it comes to insertable toys, I stick to things that are short and slim. And the Baelii has a prominently curved tip for g-spot targeting – a novel addition to a vibrator this size!
I was hoping the Baelii would be something I could recommend to folks with similar size restrictions who wanted to find and/or focus on their g-spot. But it’s taken months to get my thoughts together on the Baelii, and unfortunately it’s not because it blew my mind.Honestly, it just confuses me.
the baelii vibrator baesics
The Nu Sensuelle Baelii Vibrator is rechargeable, waterproof, and comes in two colors: magenta (as pictured) and navy blue. It has a single button on its base to control a truly ridiculous number of settings: 7 steady speeds, and 13 patterns. Whether you like patterns or not – and anecdotally it sure seems like most of us don’t – you’ll have to click through every single one of them if you decide you want to go back a setting.
The Baelii’s surface is a silky, buttery silicone that doesn’t seem to collect dust as quickly as other silicone toys I have. Silicone is nonporous and body-safe, and can be used with water-based lubes as well as be stored with other silicone toys. (It cannot, however, be used with silicone-based lubes.) To clean it, all you have to do is use a gentle face-safe soap and water, and because the Baelii is waterproof you don’t have to worry about submerging it.
The Nu Sensuelle Baelii calls itself a “flexi-toy.” This means that – like the Ultra Bullet from FemmeFunn – the Baelii can be partially bent. Because most of the shaft is rigid to protect the motor, this flexibility is limited to three places: the tip, the middle of the toy, and just above its chunky base.unboxing the nu sensuelle baelii
I’m just gonna put this out there now: the best thing about the Baelii is its sturdy cardboard packaging. The design is simple and text-based, with the toy itself positioned as the focal point. (Which is good, because the text is actually pretty repetitious.) A magnetic panel on the back opens as a wrap-around, and inside the Baelii is held securely in a plastic tray with a storage bag and single page instruction manual behind it.If you prefer simplistic, waste-saving packaging, this is not the toy for you. Because of how durable the box is, I’m going to be repurposing it for crafting – but there’s no denying most folks are just going to toss it out.
Considering the Baelii’s affordable price point, I’m pretty impressed at the inclusion of a storage bag. Though half of my closet is devoted to sex toy organization, I’ll be the first to admit that the average person only has a few toys and needs somewhere discreet to stash them between uses. And there’s plenty of room in this drawstring bag for another vibe or two!
strong vibrations are not necessarily good ones
The Nu Sensuelle Baelii’s vibrations are, in a word, frustrating.
It’s not because they’re weak – they aren’t. (Though they don’t match the muscle of the Exposed Nocturnal bullet or the Sola Cue g-spot vibe, which are less and more expensive respectively.) But my clit needs more than strength, it needs rumble, and the Baelii mostly delivers buzz.
(For those unfamiliar with the rumble vs buzz dichotomy, Epiphora wrote an excellent piece on it.)
The closest vibration comparisons I can make are the Charged Positive by Screaming O (whose vibrations are deep but buzzy) and the Exposed Nocturnal from Blush Novelties (minus the underlying rumble.) But I mostly like those toys. I do not mostly like the Baelii! I mostly hate it.
The vibrations flutter past the surface, but they feel like wispy, itchy ripples that are too rapid to parse. In my hours of testing the Baelii over the last several months, I’ve had a few orgasms with it – but they’re weak pops because by the time I come, my labia itches and my clit is numb. But I’m hesitant to blame this completely on the Baelii’s buzziness, because I enjoy other buzzy toys.I think the issue is not – or at least not entirely – the vibrations, but how they’re distributed by the toy’s shape.
versatility is only good when functional
Presumably, the Nu Seneuelle Baelii’s motor is housed in the bulky top half of its shaft. It’s actually hard to verify that by touch alone, because the vibrations roil off the toy in such a weird way. They’re about as strong at the base as they are in the shaft and tip. This is technically a good thing in terms of its use, because it makes the Baelii’s external application more versatile (since you can use the tip for pinpoint stimulation or the side of the shaft for broad), and because the entire toy will vibrate internally for those who prefer that over selective/localized stimulation.
It also means your fingers will vibrate from holding the Baelii; this is an expected hazard in most smaller toys, but it sucks for those of us with finger and wrist issues. The Baelii didn’t just numb my clit – it usually locked up my hand too.Unfortunately, the versatility of the Baelii’s universal vibrating is dampened – literally – by any kind of pressure. I prefer firmly pressing vibrators on or around my clit, and doing so cuts the vibration strength down so much that in the softer tip of the toy, it might as well be off. Internally, the clamping strength of my vaginal muscles – which I can’t control – strangles it too. If you’re of a gentler touch and a more relaxed vag, this might not be a problem… but for me, it was incredibly frustrating.
The ease with which the vibrations become muddled is pronounced in its settings, too. There’s limited discernible difference between one steady speed to the next. I can hear and feel the motor working harder with every click, but the actual difference on skin is negligible unless you’re only barely touching the Baelii. This is especially disappointing, because a range of steady speeds means the Baelii could appeal to people all over the strength preference spectrum, as well as allow for a slow build-up. How great it could have been!
So why does the Nu Sensuelle Baelii work like this? I’m not a designer or engineer, so I couldn’t tell you. But I feel like it probably has something to do with how the motor is encased inside the toy, like there’s a too thick/rigid barrier and it’s dampening the transfer of power. So all that gets out are the buzziest frequencies, which are subsequently smothered by pressure/touch in use. But again, I don’t actually know. I just know how it feels.g-spotting with the nu sensuelle baelii
Despite the vibrations, I was hopeful the Baelii would still work for me as a penetration toy. I didn’t account for the prominence of its g-spotting tip, which – while bendable – is surprisingly dense and feels pointy in use. (Eugh!) It’s awkward to get in, and sort of just feels like getting repeatedly jabbed by a clumsy lover’s stubbornly crooked finger. Vaginal sex is painful for me, but it feels like the Baelii is going out of its way to make it worse.
Due to its shape and flexible lower shaft, it’s also very difficult to maneuver the Nu Sensuelle Baelii when using it solo. It’s hard to hold the slight knob of a base, and the bendable neck forced me to tilt the toy in ways that only made the proddy tip poke more.
To make sure my troubles weren’t isolated, I asked my partner Buster to try the Baelii a few times too. Buster is a good sport about toy testing, but the Baelii was uniquely irritating to them too – both times, they found it uncomfortably pokey and said the vibrations were “crap.” I didn’t ask them to tough it out for more specific feedback; this is, after all, my job.If you like very pinpoint pressure on your g-spot and want a toy no girthier than a finger and a half in width, you might find use for the Baelii. Especially if you enjoy firm toys and muted buzzy vibrations (or don’t intend to make use of the Baelii’s vibrations at all.) But there are better, cheaper toys available that can serve you in the same way – like the $36 USD, flexible, 0.9 inch Pillow Talk Racy. I haven’t tried Racy yet myself, but the Pillow Talk line has been mostly well-received by bloggers, and it’s even slimmer than the Baelii. (Pillow Talk’s vibrations are often described as rumbly, though; sorry fans of buzzy vibes!)
saying bye bye to the baelii
I agonized over this review for two reasons: writing negative reviews while still trying to be thorough is emotionally exhausting, and I really really hate this toy.
But it was important to me to do this right, because Novel Creations has several really great toys, including the Point Bullet and the upcoming 60SXOhh. (Disclaimer: I haven’t used either of these toys myself, but they’re well-reviewed by fellow bloggers.) I don’t think they’re a company that doesn’t care. But I do think the Nu Sensuelle Baelii is the most frustrating toy I’ve ever tested. And I tested this thing.
If you’ve scrolled to the bottom of this review to find my thoughts summarized, here goes: the Nu Sensuelle Baelii has buzzy vibrations that get smothered on contact, a baffling body design that reminds me of enthusiastic but uncomfortable fingering, and so many settings it was too much of a chore to click through them all for individual assessment. The Baelii didn’t work for me in any capacity, and though I’m sure there are folks out there that could have a better experience, there are cheaper toys available to meet the same needs. Peepshow Toys has an entire section devoted to vibrators under $50 USD! You’re welcome to ask me for specific recommendations.
I’m just happy to be done with this review.
If I haven’t dissuaded you from giving the Nu Senseuelle Baelii a shot, you can find it on Peepshow Toys for $49 USD.Thank you, Peepshow Toys, for sending me the Nu Sensuelle Baelii by Novel Creations in exchange for an honest review. Affiliate links were used in this post.