Trak’s Sperm Testing System: A New Spin on Male Fertility

February 23, 2017

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At-home sperm counting centrifuge claims more accurate readings.

It’s a fundamental rule of technology: the first iteration does what it is supposed to do, the second usually does it better.

In the case of home testing kits for male fertility, the YO Home Sperm Test was the first to receive FDA approval. But now the developers of the Trak male fertility testing system, which also just received a go-ahead from the FDA, are claiming their new technology can give a more accurate sperm count reading.

Unlike the YO Home Test system, that needs a smartphone attachment to read a sample, Trak doesn’t need anything but its nifty little home centrifuge and a sperm sample. However, the Trak smartphone app is recommended to interpret the reading.

How Trak works

After receiving the Trak system, either direct from the company or through a fertility doctor, the user provides a sperm sample in one of the provided cups. After a quick swirl, the cup is left to rest for 30 minutes. One more swirl and it’s time to introduce a drop or two into the center of the Trak “prop:”a battery-powered centrifuge.

After spinning the sample in the centrifuge, the user gets a reading of “low,” “moderate,” or “optimal.” YO’s technology, on the other hand, limits its assessment to just “good” or “bad.”

A competitive app

Trak’s companion app, in addition to giving information on how to interpret the results, also provides customized advice for men on how to increase their fertility. As Trak puts it, the system follows the idea of “Test,” “Learn,” and then “Improve.”

Tips are based on user responses to profile and lifestyle questions about recreational drug use, age, exercise, diet, and so forth. The app also links to the site “Don’t Cook Your Balls” which offers fun and educational articles on male fertility, but isn’t directly affiliated with Trak.

In the end, the choice of which system to use is up to both personal preferences and the recommendation of professionals.

In the meantime, we are eager to see the next stage in home sperm testing technology: we have one that works, one that might work better, so who knows what’s coming next?

Image source: Trak

M. Christian

M.Christian (they/them) loves nothing better than exploring the intersections of sex and technology—and speculating on the future of both. A highly regarded erotica writer they have six novels,12 collections, 100+ short stories, and 25 anthologies as an editor to their name. Their non-fiction regularly appears in many sites, but they're most proud of being a regular contributor to Future of Sex.

Of their erotic fiction, Tristan Taormino said that “M.Christian is a literary stylist of the highest caliber: smart, funny, frightening, sexy—there's nothing [they] can't write about… and brilliantly.”

Reflecting their unique ability to sympathetically and convincingly write for a range of genders and sexual orientations, their stories have appeared in multiple editions of Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, The Mammoth Books of Erotica, and others. Their collection of gay erotic fiction, Dirty Words, was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award.

While a majority of their stories have been collected into books like Dirty Words, their fondness for combining sex and science fiction is clearly evident in collections that include Rude Mechanicals, Technorotica, Better Than The Real Thing, Skin Effect Effect, Bachelor Machine, and Hard Drive: The Best Sci-Fi Erotica of M.Christian.

As a novelist, M.Christian’s versatility is on full display with Running Dry, The Very Bloody Marys, Brushes, Painted Doll; and the somewhat controversial queer BDSM/horror/thrillers Finger's Breadth, and Me2.

M.Christian has worked on the industry’s production side as an Associate Publisher for Renaissance E Books and as a Publisher for Digital Parchment Services. The latter dedicated to celebrating the works of science-fiction legends such as William Rotsler, Jerome Bixby, Jody Scott, Arthur Byron Cover, Ernest Hogan, and James Van Hise.

Covering topics like BDSM safety, sexual education, senior sexuality concerns, queer and gender issues, plus reviewing a variety of sex tech products, M.Christian’s non-fiction has appeared on sites like Kinkly, Tickle.Life, Sexpert, Queer Majority, Sex for Every Body, and—of course—their ongoing work for Future of Sex.

If there’s anything M.Christian enjoys more than writing, it’s teaching. A featured presenter, sometimes with their friend Ralph Greco Jr, at national sex and BDSM events, they have lectured on kink play (with an emphasis on safety), polyamory, boosting sexual creativity, and erotica writing--for beginners or those wanting to go pro.

M.Christian is a cohost on two popular sex-education podcasts: Love’s Outer Limits with Dr. Amy Marsh and Licking Non-Vanilla with Ralph Greco, Jr.