GayDemon's review of 18 and Up Studs

I wouldn't say that the models inside 18 and Up Studs are studs. Most are much closer to twinks or college boys than studs, a misuse of the word "studs" that I see fairly frequently at various sites. Most are pretty cute with an amateur look. The site promises us 2 full updates per week, which would be nice, and "full DVD resolution" movies, which is claimed on many sites but rarely true. I'm a sucker for cute twink amateurs, so I'm off to take a closer look at the member area of 18 and Up Studs!

The navbar is at the top of the pages inside 18 and Up Studs, followed by 4 sections in the member area, each listed only by text - Videos/Pictures, Upcoming Updates, Models and News. At the bottom of the page, there is a link to billing and a contact link for the site, as well. Except for site title and links at the top, the page is stark and plain with only small text links and an empty expanse of black.

Since I first reviewed 18 and Up Studs, they've been updating twice a week regularly, so they've grown quite a bit. There are now 56 videos of college-aged boys, each with a set of vidcaps. The video listings show a large preview thumb, name of the models, date added and a brief description of the action. The duration of each video plus the number of pics are also listed for each movie. The video menu is strangely laid out because there is a lot of blank space under each one, making it seem like the page may still be loading some graphics.

The videos WMVs and are offered in 3 speeds - 720x480 at 1.25 Mbps, 480x360 at 560k and 240x180 at 69k. While those numbers would ordinarily mean good quality videos, they are nowhere near true DVD quality. The videos here have a flat look and lack sharpness, probably due to amateur lighting during the shoots. Don't get me wrong - these are true amateur quality, and mostly are well worth watching, but on most sites with 1.25 Mbps movies, the image is sharper with better contrast. Also the sound quality is pretty good but a little on the quiet side.

These movies are streaming only - there are no clips and no download options offered, and the good news is that there is also no DRM use. As far as the camera work goes, there's some serious shaky hand moments and also some videos that are definitely on the daker side. If you leave your monitor turned slightly down, expect to have to turn up the brightness all the way to enjoy some of the vids.

One claim on the tour - that the member videos can be rewound and fast forwarded - is only true after the videos are fully loaded. These are not the kind of vids that can be rewound as soon as they start playing.

There is a model index that lists 44 guys, some with western names and others with east euro names, and since the original review, the site has added profiles for the models. The guys here are all boys between 18 and maybe 24. The action varies as there are some solo jackoff scenes and some hardcore. The guys have a casual feel to them and most seemed pretty comfortable in front of the video camera.

Let's talk updates. 18 and Up Studs has been keeping their promise to update twice a week, and as a result, they've added 42 videos in the last 5 months. What's more, the NEWS section lists the updates by date and all the updates are dated, which I find very helpful.

The main issue I had with 18 and Up Studs is the flatness of some of the videos. It looks like they are using a very cheap camcorder to shoot the vids, and if that's not true, better lighting is certainly in order. The boys are cute enough that I'd like to be able to see them better. The other issue is the plainness of the pages. I'm not one of those reviewers who feels tons of graphics improve a site, but the amount of empty black page here was a daunting. Perhaps the site owners can put a thumb under each text link on the main page and remove the blank areas on the episode listings - this would make their site much more inviting.

18 and Up Studs gets points for me for keeping their promises and making some needed improvements. If the bottom line for you is the guys, you're going to like the models at 18 and Up Studs. These horny boys are just the kind of guys that twink and college boy lovers want to see fucking, sucking and jacking off. On the other hand, the amateur quality of the videos may be a minus for some, as is the lack of downloadable videos. Is this site for you? The best way to find out is to check the samples at 18 and Up Studs as the tour gives a pretty accurate idea of what you'll find in the member area.

Things we liked:

• Exclusive content
• Amateur 18 - 25 year olds
• 2 full weekly updates

Things we didn't like:

• Videos not downloadable
• Video quality could be better
• So-so lighting in some of the videos

Click here to visit 18 and Up Studs