Tesco's Tampons (Other Tampons)

Member Name: queen_rain

Product:	Other Tampons
Date:	01/02/05 (215 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: cheap, reliable, comfortable

Disadvantages: available only from Tescos, only two sizes available

I've stayed clear of low-cost tampons after experiences with another brand, where the tampons came sliding out in the most embarrassing situations.

For a long time, I stuck to the trusted Lillets and Tampax, unwilling to risk such awkwardness again.

At last, while I was doing online shopping at Tesco's, and was about to run out of tampons, I decided to give their product a try.

The price - £1.40 for a pack of 32 'super' sized ones made me suspicious. I thought I had misread, and wondered what the quality would be like.

By comparison, a 32 pack of 'super' LilLets costs £2.77. Elsewhere I've seen packs of 16 LilLets for almost the same price.

That's 4 pence per tampon for Tesco's and 7 - 14 pence for a LilLets.

I ordered a pack, prepared for disappointment, and resolved to try them out at home first, avoiding any public mishaps.

The ones I bought are 'Tesco non applicator Tampons, super'.

They are firm with a soft cotton surface and a rounded tip, ensuring comfort and ease of insertion - but these are features all tampons have nowadays.

No mishap happened. All the tampons stayed in until no longer wanted (when they sometimes just drop into the toilet bowl, which is convenient but perhaps not so good for the plumbing).

They absorb the blood very evenly. Unlike other tampons I've used in the past, which were full (red) on one side, empty (white) on the other, and were leaking into my underwear before they were full.

Tesco's tampons don't leak, not even when they're already full; they really hold right to the last moment. So that's a definite plus.

Another plus is that they come out whole, not in parts. That's not to be taken for granted with some tampons. I've used some which, when I pulled the thread, unravelled, bits of it coming out with the thread, bits of it barely attached. With those, I was always worried that something had remained inside.

But, as I said, none of these problems happened with the Tesco brand.

I have yet to try them out during vigorous sports and long walks - during which tampons are more likely to dislodge - so I'm afraid I cannot give a fair judgment on their performance in those situations yet.

The packaging is plain and discreet; a purple cardboard box with the image of a red tulip (symbolising a full tampon?) and plain white printing.

The information printed on the box is in clear plain English, giving common sense advice on how to use tampons in order to avoid toxic shock syndrome, and pointing out that tampons should be wrapped and binned, not flushed. (which is easier said then done when they just drop into the toilet by themselves - I don't particularly want to fish for them in the toilet bowl).

So, all in all, a very good product, at a very good price.

A drawback is the size: there are only two sizes available, 'regular' and 'super', and the 'super' sized ones are not particularly big. I would prefer a tampon with higher absorbency for the first couple of days of my period, when the flow is very strong.

It's kind of embarrassing discussing such personal matters in public, especially before a mixed audience; but I reckon that if this sort of thing makes you uncomfortable, you wouldn't have read it. Besides, I feel that my comments will be really helpful for other ladies who are looking for cheap, but reliable, tampons.

Summary: