Lelo IDA Wave Review: The Best Blended Pleasure Toy? [2024]

Welcome to our Lelo IDA Wave review! I’ll share all of my experiences with this hands-free dual stimulation toy, so you can decide if this pleasure upgrade is FOR YOU. Read on:

Lelo IDA was the first remote-controlled couple’s toy that incorporated both movement and vibration. 

And it was a hell of a lot of fun, but there was room for improvement. 

Looks like Lelo went back to the drawing board and came up with this: the new, upgraded IDA Wave. 

So that’s what we’re looking at today – Is the IDA Wave better than the IDA? How much better? And who is it for? 

Let’s dive right in.

The Good

It’s got power oozing out of it with two mighty motors. The look and feel are as premium as sex toys get, and that WaveMotion will be a game-changer for many women. It’s also better designed and will be comfortable for more women than its predecessor. 

The Not So Good

The IDA Wave isn’t gonna work with penetrative sex for many couples, especially if you’re tight or your partner is big. There’s no option for long-distance control, as it’s Bluetooth-range only. 

The Bottom Line

The Lelo IDA Wave delivers incredibly blended pleasure sensations and options for solo and couples play – and it works hands-free!

Lelo IDA Wave is FOR YOU if:

  • You like dual stimulation.
  • You like powerful remote control stimulation.
  • You’re looking for some hands-free vibing.
  • You’re a couple into power exchange and remote control things.

It might NOT BE FOR YOU if:

  • You’re on a budget.
  • You’re only after something to use for penetrative sex.
  • You want long-distance remote control.

Lelo IDA Wave First Impressions & Packaging

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – Lelo understands the importance of style. The IDA Wave comes in their typical elegant black box with a clear window that shows off the vibrator in all its glory. 

Inside there’s the IDA Wave itself, warranty card, USB charging cord, instructions, and a pretty storage bag. Oh, and a sachet of lube, which is always a nice touch since you can get going right away. 

The attention to presentation sets Lelo apart from other sex toy brands – you feel good just taking it out of the box like you’ve got something worthwhile and luxurious. That’s a good first impression. 

But what about the IDA Wave itself? Let’s see those specs.


Lelo IDA Wave Tech Specs – What’s Changed? 

 
IDA WAVE
IDA 
MATERIAL
Silicone, ABS plastic, and electrical bits. 
Silicone, ABS plastic, and electrical bits. 
SIZE
3.7 x 2.5 x 2.2 inches
6.5 x 1.4 x 1.3 inches 
COLORS
Available in black and coral
Available in black, pink, and purple
MECHANISM
Dual motor vibrators for clitoral and G-spot play
Dual motor vibrators for clitoral and G-spot play
WEIGHT
3.6 oz.
2.8 oz.
BATTERY
2 hours charge for 2 hours of playtime
2 hours charge for 2 hours of playtime
CONNECTIVITY
Bluetooth, smartphone app 
Remote control 

If you’re looking at raw specs, you won’t see much of a difference between the IDA Wave and the original IDA. The new model is slightly heavier than the original due to the bigger motors inside. 

The original is available in more colors than the new one, but not the bold and attractive coral color that I prefer to the usual pink or purple. 

And there’s no remote in the new IDA Wave because it’s all smartphone-controlled. 

I have mixed opinions about that, but we’ll get there in just a moment. 


How Does the IDA Wave Look & Feel?

Well… It looks like if the spaceship from Star Trek was a luxury cruise liner. A leisure vessel in space. Is it the Starship Enterprise? I think that’s the ship, I mean. There’s a joke there about boldly going where no man has gone before, but I digress. 

It looks fantastic, even in coral. I’m a fan of color in my sex toys, especially new ones you don’t normally see. But black is nice too if you prefer understated to jazzy. 

The silicone has a gorgeous texture, smooth and soft while feeling supple.

It just feels LUXURIOUS in your hand, like it was designed for royalty or the elite. It seems like the sort of sex toy Elizabeth Taylor would have in her drawer next to the massive diamond necklaces. 

So far, so good. Now, what happens when you turn it on? 


Lelo IDA Wave Key Functionality

Once you’ve connected it to your smartphone via Bluetooth (which is a cinch), you can open the app to find ten different vibration patterns, with the option to add or remove different ones from the app itself. 

The standard ones go from a continuous vibration setting to a fast-changing, crazy one. These have names from “boring” to “excited.”

I felt a bit called out by the “boring” setting – sometimes, I like a continuous vibration. What’s so boring about that?? But it’s all in good fun. 

You can increase the power and movement by shaking or turning the phone around in your hand. You can also change the intensity of each pattern with the touch of the screen buttons, BUT you can’t create your own vibration patterns à la the Lovense app.

Oh right, movement. The internal arm actually moves in a circular motion designed to mimic the movement of a finger. It’s adjustable; however, you can’t switch off the rotating part of the toy… if you’re “boring.” (OK, now I’m over it.)

Here’s what I mean.

Like most Lelo toys with dual motors, you CAN’T control the motors separately or switch either motor on/off — EVEN with the app.

Bummer for some people. But no biggie, as the IDA Wave is meant to stimulate you both internally and externally.


Lelo IDA vs. Lelo IDA Wave: What Changed?

What’s really new about the IDA Wave? 

Well, the smartphone app is a blessing and a bit of a curse in some ways.

On the one hand, I generally like remote controls dedicated to one toy. I think of them as more reliable, and they feel a bit more sexy to use for me than messing around with your phone. 

That said, I can’t deny the app has way MORE features.

You can change patterns and intensity levels however you want and program the IDA Wave to remember them after the first time on the app. That’s a big plus over the IDA, which couldn’t do that.

Plus, the remote in the IDA needed AAA batteries, which aren’t exactly environmentally friendly.

When you have as many sex toys as I have… well, you can imagine I have a drawer full of remotes, and I haven’t labeled them properly. So that’s actually pretty annoying. But I don’t think most people have that problem. 

The IDA Wave has 10 pleasure settings in total compared to the IDA’s 8.  But with the IDA Wave, you can change 6 of them to whatever patterns you want, which is a big step forward in getting the stimulation you crave. 

And the Wave waves!

That is, the movement of the G-spot arm makes a huge difference in proceedings. Vibrations are great and usually enough for me to get off. But sometimes, I want some actual motion in my ocean.

It also adds to the customizable options for even more ways to play. 

Finally, there’s the physical shape. I liked the IDA’s shape, but I know some women found it didn’t fit them right and wouldn’t stay in their hot spots the way they wanted. 

The IDA Wave has made huge progress on that front.

It has a wider clitoral pad for broader stimulation that can’t miss on the outside, and the inner arm has better contouring that makes better contact and keeps it inside hands-free more effectively. 


How to Use Lelo IDA Wave

  1. First, make sure you clean the IDA Wave right out of the box using soap and warm water. Then let it dry on a drying rack. 
  2. Charge the IDA Wave until the battery is full before using it. 
  3. Download the Lelo app and connect the toy to your phone via Bluetooth. Don’t worry, it’s so easy a monkey could do it. (Do not allow monkeys to use the Lelo IDA Wave.) 
  4. Apply some lube to the toy and yourself, and get warmed up however you want. 
  5. Once you’re ready, insert the arm of the IDA Wave in your vagina and get the large flat external part positioned on your clitoris. 
  6. Turn it on and get started. Use the connected app to adjust the settings and find some patterns you like out of many options. 
  7. You can also add up to 6 pleasure settings to the toy for offline use, so you don’t need to whip out your phone whenever you want to get off quickly! 

My Experience With Lelo IDA Wave

As soon as I took it out of the box, I had to test the power button. And to my pleasant surprise, I found it was already charged! 

Still, better safe than sorry. And by sorry, I mean the battery cuts out right as you’re about to finish, so I plugged it in and waited patiently like a responsible adult. 

After about an hour, it was done, and I was excited. 

Connecting it to my phone was a breeze, which is always nice considering I can hardly get the Bluetooth speaker in my house to work. 

I hastily lubed up the toy and myself and got to work. And I can say that on days like these, I love my job. 

Once it was properly inserted and positioned, the IDA Wave stayed in securely, and it didn’t feel like I needed to keep my hand on it. 

On a random pattern, the combination of powerful vibrations and movement kept me guessing what would happen next. The intensity was a lot to keep up with – I didn’t want to finish too fast. After all, this was a test, not personal time. 

So it’s definitely good for a quick orgasm if you need one and you don’t have a lot of time. 

Keeping my phone in my hand, I really saw the value of having a hands-free toy. That way, I didn’t have to keep both hands occupied with a device, leaving one free to touch myself in other areas. 

The phone motion controls were intuitive and actually fun to use.

For example, to increase the vibration, you can shake the phone, and to power up the rotation of the WaveMotion, you rotate your phone. It was pretty accurate too.

Many phone controls of a similar nature will react to any random movement, which can be annoying, but the IDA Wave was pretty good at knowing what a turning motion was and what was just me moving from pleasure. 

I played through a whole plethora of patterns until I found a few I liked to save for later before switching it off and cleaning it. 

So, what did I learn?

All in all, I had a great time with the IDA Wave. I think it would be even more fun letting a partner take control of the app and playing around with it remotely – then I could have both hands free! So that’s definitely high up on the to-do list. 

I don’t think it would work for sex for me. There just isn’t enough room for the rotating arm and a penis to fit comfortably, and I reckon the movement of the arm might be distracting for a lot of guys. It might work for some people, but there are better toys for that particular job (see below). 

One minor gripe I had about it – The single button on the side of the toy isn’t in the best place.

It’s a bit fiddly to find when you’re in the middle of the action, and I couldn’t help thinking that putting the button on the top chrome part of the toy would have been a better design choice. Still, I’ll mostly be using it with the app, so it’s not a major issue. 

I was mightily impressed with the power of the vibration and rotating arm. It’s not a big toy, but for its magnitude of vibration, it can compete with rabbits without the hassle of holding it! 


How to Clean the IDA Wave

Since it’s waterproof and made of silicone, you can simply wash it with soap and warm water. 

Just be careful with the charging port, which is exposed. Lelo says it’s fully waterproof, and I believe them. It’s just… Maybe I’m paranoid, but I haven’t had the guts to rinse the charging port out yet. I just use sex toy wipes. 

Oh yeah, and since it contains a motor and moving parts, don’t try it in the dishwasher.


Lelo IDA Wave Price, Where To Buy

You can get your Lelo IDA Wave here from Lelo’s website.

As always, getting your toys from the manufacturer is better as you get the warranty and you’re guaranteed the genuine article you paid for. 

It retails for $189, which isn’t cheap. It’s worth the money if you’re into dual stimulation and remote-control play with a partner, but if you’re not sure, you might want to experiment with something cheaper. 


What Do Other People Think About It?

I’ve got the Lelo IDA Wave and have been enjoying the toy! I really enjoy the subtle pressure from the rotating G-spot arm.

However, the app does not have a long-distance play feature like Lovense toys do. I don’t know if this is a feature they’ll add eventually. I think they just started making their toys app-enabled – this is the first Lelo toy I’ve bought that uses an app.

Pleasurebetter


Alternatives

IDA Wave is great, but it hits a few specific spots. That means it’s not perfectly designed for everyone’s needs. 

Here are a few similar alternatives that offer some things that might be more up your street. 

Lelo IDA Wave vs. Lelo TIANI™ Harmony

The IDA Wave has more power and that delightful WaveMotion pleasure, so it’s a much stronger choice for solo play and enjoying on its own. However, it’s too bulky for most couples to use during penetrative sex. 

The Lelo Tiani Harmony is lighter and more streamlined while still offering dual motors for clitoral and G-spot stimulation. Its thinner internal arm and lightness will make it more comfortable for couples to use during sex, so if that’s what you want, then the Tiani Harmony is probably the better option. 


Lelo IDA Wave vs. We-Vibe Chorus

We-Vibe Chorus is more of a couple’s toy that also works well for solo play. It comes with a remote – yay! – and the flat internal design makes it better for penetrative sex. The app is also better and has more options for long-distance play. 

But the IDA Wave moves thanks to WaveMotion and has overall better sensations to offer. And the app is no slouch as long as you’re in the same room as the toy. 


Lelo IDA Wave vs. Lovense Lush 3

Lovense Lush 3 isn’t really a competitor for IDA Wave, but it’s a great toy that might check the right boxes for some women. 

Lush 3 is G-spot only – the smaller arm is actually an antenna that stays outside the vagina – where it gives you very powerful vibrations that manage to be whisper-quiet. 

It has unrivaled connectivity features that make it the go-to for long-distance couples and camgirls alike, and it’s even suitable for discreet public play. 

That said, it can’t give you the same blended pleasure as the IDA Wave, and it doesn’t move. So if you’re all about sensation and don’t need to use it in San Diego while your partner controls it from Singapore, you’re probably better off with the IDA Wave. 


Final Thoughts

The Lelo IDA Wave is a fantastic toy and a worthy upgrade to the already-excellent IDA. The widened external part and better shape of the internal arm make it better for more women’s bodies, and that extra power goes a long way! 

So if you want to treat yourself to some mind-blowing hands-free blended orgasms, IDA Wave has you covered and then some. 

Aliyah Moore

Aliyah Moore

Aliyah Moore (she/her) is our resident sex expert at SexualAlpha. She’s a certified sex therapist with a Ph.D. in Gender & Sexuality Studies. Aliyah is a proud Black, bi-sexual femme passionate about empowering minority voices to embrace their sexuality and identity. She loves to write about everything sexual wellness and gives no-nonsense sex and relationship advice.

Got Questions? Ping me on Twitter.