Condoms are a necessary evil, but most of them ain’t that great. They’re prone to slipping and breakage, they decrease sensitivity
and they make everything you touch for the rest of the day smell like
the inside of a tire factory. That’s why inventors and safe sex
advocates have been working tirelessly to design an improved version of the condom for the mass market. The latest effort is a “just-the-tip” condom, or a condom that covers just the head of the penis for increased sensitivity.
Invented by Torrance, Calif., native Charlie Powell, the condom is
called the Galactic Cap, presumably deriving its name from the fact that
it looks like a helmet a high-ranking member of a futuristic utopian
society would be required to wear. It’s being marketed as a barrier
method that successfully traps semen while increasing user sensitivity.
(The device, however, probably does little to prevent the transmission of STIs like certain types of HPV, which are transmitted via skin-to-skin contact.)
Basically, the device has two parts: a U-shaped polyurethane adhesive
film base, and a little cap that sticks to the film. The base can be put
on the tip of the penis hours before sex, so users can shower or
urinate with it on. The cap then slides on top of the base, covering
only the tip of the penis so the ultra-sensitive coronal ridge and shaft
are exposed.
Although the Galactic Cap doesn’t yet have FDA approval, Powell thinks
it could be a game-changer for the contraceptive industry, and he’s
launching an IndieGogo campaign
June 1 to raise funds toward its development. He’s touting it as “the
greatest condom in 400 years”—not exactly high praise, considering that
400 years ago we were using sheep intestines to wrap our junk up, but we get the point nonetheless.
While Powell plans on marketing the Galactic Cap to a general audience,
he also acknowledges it could be a potential solution for the adult
film industry, which is currently battling a statewide mandate in
California requiring performers to wear condoms during shoots.
“If you use this you might overcome the problem of using a condom on camera,” he recently told LA Weekly.
“A lot of people might not like the look of the thing going in and out.
It's transparent, on the head, so it doesn't look so gross.”
Will adult film consumers find a penis wearing a space-age Devo helmet
less “gross” than a penis wearing a condom? It’s tough to say. But
Powell’s intentions are certainly admirable (he was inspired to create
the device after losing a friend to HIV/AIDS), and we’ve been waiting
quite a while for a contraceptive that promotes safer sex, while not
diminishing user pleasure. The Galactic Cap might be silly, but it may
also be a step in the right direction.
-via Daily Dot
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