Better late than never, I say, because these things are glorious.

The seats, which range in price from about $250 to more than $1,700, are attachments for your toilet with at least two basic functions, and, depending on the model, a wide array of more luxurious extras.

Image The Kohler Veil toilet a with C3 toilet seat. Credit... Kohler

The basic features are warming your bottom, and then cleaning it with warmed water. The more luxurious appointments try to recreate something like an opulent spa. Some seats will dry your bottom with warmed air, sort of like being pushed through a carwash. Some use a fan and a catalytic converter to suck out the gases in the bowl, apparently removing any odors. Some sense when you’re approaching the toilet and spray a fine mist in the bowl, prelubricating it to aid with flushing. Many of the seats, as you might expect, offer a remote control to operate the spraying and other functions

But a lot of these extras are unnecessary, because even the basic electronic bidet seat feels luxurious — and once you start using one, you’ll never want a toilet without it.

I first fell for the heated bidet seat two years ago at a hotel in the Colorado mountains. It was a Washlet made by Toto, the Japanese plumbing company that introduced its own in the 1980s. After using it once — the pillowy warm seat, the personal shower, the sensation of feeling completely refreshed — I didn’t want to leave the bathroom.

I wondered how anyone could live without one, and I immediately plunked down $350 for a Washlet of my own. Since then, I’ve also purchased a $250 bidet seat made by Brondell for my other bathroom. Both have been well worth the price. They were a breeze to install (if you have modern plumbing and a nearby electrical outlet, the only tool you’ll need is a wrench), and, next to my smartphone, they’ve become my favorite can’t-do-without technology.