Reviewed 2008-07-01 l Last update on 2020-09-26
Absolutely Male has a good reputation and deservedly so. It is a great porn theatre to be a member of with regular updates and loads of varied content. From younger guys to hairy bears there is something for everyone here and it all comes at you in a well designed and easy to use members area. There are image galleries too, plus feed sits and an add to favorites function so you can personalize things.
Well, I'm back to work after the break for the holidays and what better way to start than with Absolutely Male. This has got to be one of my all time favorite sites for gay male porn movies. For a start they have over 780 hours of it and the site is easy to use, which makes browsing a pleasure. But more about that later. First I want to run you through the content.
Starting with the Videos, which is your home page: Once you log in you are right in at the deep end with the first page of 15 titles to select from. If you are after a particular genre you can use the category lists to the left and there are other search options too. Over on the right are the most popular DVDs and I started my examination of all things technical there. With each title you get the front cover image which you can change to a back cover image, there is a short description and the legal information is also displayed. Scroll down for thumbnails from each scene that you can click to enlarge and see the screen cap version of and your viewing options are found below. These are as follows:
You can stream or download Windows Media Player versions of the scenes in four qualities: 240 x 180 @ 56k for dial up; 320 x 240 @ 300k for DSL; and 560 x 420 @ 700k for Broadband users. There is usually also an HD version which comes up at 720 x 480 @ 2MBps.
As for the range of content, well where do you want to start? There are 13 genres listed and the amount of titles per genre is also shown. There seems to be an emphasis on "Hunks" with 202, hairy chests come in at 152 and Gay Hardcore is third with 78. Some of these movies may be shared around various genres. As you hover your mouse over any particular cover shot you will have a floating message telling you about the movie, which saves time jumping backwards and forwards from main menu to individual pages and, when you stream or download a movie, you will get a list of other similar titles you may also like to see. That is a very brief run down of the movie selection, now on to the other content.
There is a photo section at Absolutely Male which starts by showing you the featured sets and the most recently added. The stats say that there are over 60,000 images and these are arranged into 13 categories. These pages work in a similar way to the video pages, that is: click a thumbnail to see the next page. In this case it will be the first gallery thumbnail page and there are 20 pics per page. Click an individual one and you have 790 x 1200 sized images with navigation links to the next and previous.
I wanted to check out if these sets were exclusive, or came from the videos and so on but, after a good hunt around I still can't say for sure. I didn't see any models that I recognised and I didn't see any reference to video titles, but it's not a big issue. There are indeed masses of images and loads of varied guys to enjoy. Checking back to the videos area and I noticed the list of contributors which included some very well known studios so I assume the photos too are supplied by a third party.
And talking of third party there are also external feed sites to view; I counted 48 and each one had a description. What was good about this is that Absolutely Male lets you know if one of their supplier's feeds is off line so you don't waste time checking it out. (There were a couple down when I viewed but this could be for any number of reasons.) These feed sites open in new windows and there were some excellent ones on the list - well worth checking out as these better feed sites act almost like bonus sites and offer more than just clips from videos. There is also a link to Web Cams on the main menu which will take you to Streamen, for which you will need to sign up.
A quick note here about joining the site. You can sign up for free but your card details are needed to check your age. If you don't then opt to pay the monthly fee you won't be able to get back in after seven days. Check the terms page (paragraph 6.2) if you are not sure.
There is enough content on Absolutely Male to justify the sign up fee, no doubt about that but the best things about the site for me are the extra features. I don't mean extra content but the way the site worked. I mentioned the hover-boxes, they are a nice touch and don't get annoying as they vanish as you move away from the image over which you are hovering. These also carry instructions so that helps make the site easier to use. The category lists make it easy to identify content that is in your favored genre and there is also a search box for more detailed searching.
The main content is featured in a central area of each page with the navigation and category lists etc. being displayed to the right and left. On the right you will find the main menu items (as well as across the top) and these include links to help and support. Here you will find a page that helps you get your media player software sorted out if you don't already have the necessary free downloads. The two outside columns also list the featured items. I am not sure how often the featured DVDs change but if you can't decide what to watch you could do worse than try the site's suggestions. You can also see the favorite and most popular titles as rated by other members.
You have a save to favorites function too and any photo sets or videos you select go into this collection and will appear in a new window when you click the Favourites tab. This way you can build up your own stock of your best moments and return to them whenever you want. The support page carries a long list of FAQ which will be a help if you have any problems with the site or your media player. And one last thing I almost overlooked because it's hidden away down at the bottom of the page: there is a model index. There were 110 porn stars listed in alphabetical order and clicking a name brought you all that star's titles on one page. Another neat feature, if a little hard to find at first.
Absolutely Male has a great collection of varied hard-core DVD titles and image galleries and presents them in a professional and easy to use way. The site is nicely designed and pages are quick to load which, considering that they are image heavy, is impressive. You won't be at a loss as to what to view and I doubt that you will ever run out of viewing content, as long as you are happy with a bit of good quality everything then this is a site you will want to stay with.
