Review: Wii-U

Before the Wii-U came out it was firmly at the top of my household's holiday list. As Nintendo devotees we were early adopters of every platform they've released. When the Wii-U hit stores, it was quickly removed from the holiday list and replaced by iPads. The Wii-U, with Nintendo's bizarre DRM, seemed overpriced and underwhelming. Store displays did not allow you to play the game, relying on prerecorded commercials to sell you on the new concept. It was the exact opposite of their Wii launch and it was a disaster

I've listened to store clerks who have not played the Wii-U struggle to explain it to parents before directing them to other consoles. I've watched Nintendo issue press releases about the supposed supply shortage while my local retailers heavily promoted an excess of stock. Individual game titles went from $60 USD down to $19. The Wii-U made me think my time with Nintendo had come to an end. Nintendo is trying to make an improbable world happen. In this world you pay for a virtual version of a game which you can only play on one device. You cannot share it with a sibling or a friend. You cannot carry it to a friend's house. If you lose your device, or it dies, you lose all of your games. Nintendo makes no price concessions for this. You pay full price for a crippled version of a game. Apple charges small amounts for games you can put on any of your devices anytime. You can upgrade or change devices at will. Replace a device and Apple will load all your settings for you. Buy one copy and both kids can play. This is a battle Nintendo is going to lose and in my house they lost it long ago. We have no WiiWare. No 3DS paid downloads.

With the Wii-U falling off the holiday list it seemed that Nintendo was going to follow Little People and Playmobil out to the dustbin of growing up. The kids took their holiday cash and bought iThings. We didn't look back. Birthdays rolled around and the kids found themselves kicking around Gamestop with giftcards they weren't sure how to use. Skylanders? iCases? Like a Pixar film come to life, a fully functional Wii-U made it's play. Once it was in the kids hands their hearts beat a little faster. They remembered Mario and all the good times they'd had. The cumbersome iClone control pad stopped confusing and started to make sense. This is the marketing experience Nintendo should have opened with. Giftcards hit the counter with a clatter. Birthday money flew out of pockets. Frantic counting led to begging, then cajoling and finally pleading. iTunes and Target cards were sold on the spot to an agreeable parent. Promises destined to be broken were made. Allowance was forsworn. Spring Break belonged to Nintendo and times thought past.

Is the Wii-U more fun to play than it's weird kid averse marketing leads you to expect? Yes. Absolutely.  It's the Wii, with some added features. Unfortunately one of the added features is a cumbersome load time. I expected a dial up modem soundtrack to accompany each interminable wait. Want to start the system? That multi hour update and load thing isn't a myth. (Do NOT buy the base model, you will fill it with the first update.) Want to play a game? Wait for another system update. Now wait for the disc to load. Now wait for the .... and so on. Want to switch games? It's going to take a while. You might take this chance to fix a snack or catch up on your favorite magazines. While the Wii-U may be underpriced for it's components it is overpriced for it's out of the box experience. If you love Mario like our house does the investment may still be worth it. Super Mario Bros U is much more challenging than recent Mario games. NintendoLand beats WiiSports. Pikmin 3 is coming. If you are not a Nintendo devotee the frustration factor may drive you to another console. Perhaps that explains the lack of playable systems in the stores - a fear that encountering load times would discourage sales. It's a fair concern. If I hadn't wanted to get my Mario on I might well have said screw it and flipped the unit back to the store. The Wii-U has been a very enjoyable purchase but it certainly isn't a necessary one.

Review: Cravebox Teen Time

Oh, patriarchy. You never change. 

Before the holidays I briefly touched on Cravebox. Normally I wouldn't revisit the topic. After all, this is a book blog. If I turned it into a consumption blog you'd either endlessly read about my handbags or be grossed out by an examination of Victorian medical practices. (Both of which would be epic, now that I consider the matter.) We're back at Cravebox because I decided to give them one more try. Cravebox and I are breaking up. We are never, ever, ever getting back together. (You go talk to their friends.)

Last month Cravebox offered a Teen Time box with the description: "Being a teen girl can be kinda hard. Finding them cool stuff just got easier. We at Cravebox think girls deserve their own space… and their own stuff. That’s why our creative curators thought “outside the box” to find fun, girl-friendly discoveries to put into a box, just for them." 

I don't know why I expected anything other than what arrived. Maybe it was the words "outside the box" or perhaps "girl-friendly" instead of "gender normative mandates". I thought they might have chosen an upcoming young adult fiction title, coupled it with craft or club items. You know, some gender marketing, some "outside the box" acknowledgement that a growing teen girl needs to be shown that she is more than her sexuality. (I must have been drunk. I really have no defense.)

The Teen Time Cravebox arrived with an inspirational card I'm too depressed to quote from. More of the same about unique challenges and adventures. Being a teen sure is hard, but Cravebox is here to help. First up, a razor. Now that you're leaving your prepubescent years behind you'll want to erase as many traces of that as you can. While you're shaving, you can chew gum. Teens chew gum, because food makes you fat. (I actually have no issue with the gum.) Don't blow bubbles! This is chewing gum and your new hot pink Mary Kay gloss might smudge. 

Now that you're clean shaven and smacking those pink lips, it's time to address the rest of you! That's right - your hair. With the enclosed moisture mousse you can address all those nasty split ends you might have earned playing sports. Well groomed hair is a must for teen success. It's almost as important as clear skin, which is why Cravebox gives you a bottle of Vitamin E. You might have your skin under control but acne scars reveal a time when you didn't. Scars, burns and blemishes - Vitamin E has you covered. And that's it. Four products reinforcing the media message of your visual inadequacy and a pack of gum to chew your insecurities away. (Give mom a hug!)

Cravebox, they're just a bunch of crazy radicals. Radicals who totally know how to find cool things for teen girls struggling with questions of worth and identity. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to buy mine a gift from Think Geek. 

It's The Service - A Tokidoki Story

Favola Bello, Ramblers Bowling, Famiglia Stellina

After a Twitter conversation with Dianne Farr I was thinking about branding. The Big Six have relied heavily on consumer loyalty to the concept of the publishing industry to carry them through a time of unprecedented change. Along the way they have discarded numerous opportunities to maximize their future. Pricing is an art. People don't care about your production cost, they care about an ephemeral thing called value. If the consumer perceives the value to surpass the cost, they will purchase. Your item cost being fifty cents or fifty dollars is irrelevant to what the market will pay. When the consumer does not perceive the value to justify the cost, they become very vocal about your (previously irrelevant) cost. As a seller, defending your price is the absolute wrong place to be.

The primary component of value is personal to each consumer. Where the business has an opportunity to create an increased perception of worth is in service or quality. Recently I had a service opportunity with tokidoki that I think illustrates where consumer perception affects the bottom line. The bags in the Fall 2011 collection had some serious quality control issues (double printed fabrics, lack of seam closures). After 3 exchanges I kept 2 bags that were still imperfect because of my perception of service from the company. When the Winter 2011 collection was released I ordered two new bags and planned for a third. (Yes, I have a handbag issue. I've heard you talk about shoes.) The bags which arrived were not the same bags pictured on the website. While the company eventually corrected their mixed up product descriptions, they did not reach out to customers who had placed orders during the errors. I believe that they wanted to make it right, and I believe that they care about consumer satisfaction, but the result was my returning both bags. I ended up making a single purchase from a seller I could speak with on the phone. When I buy directly from tokidoki they make a much larger profit than when I buy from a third party seller. A few careless mistakes after a legitimate concern created a long lasting erosion of consumer trust, and ultimately a smaller market share.

Publishing is no different. Avon was a very trusted imprint at one time, and they are working hard to regain consumer trust. Experimenting with pre-sale pricing of ebooks while looking to create a new avenues of ARC distribution, Avon appears eager to regain ground ceded in the early days of ebook adoption. On the other hand, Harlequin was quick to understand the challenges of the new marketplace. They offered a direct storefront to consumers with a DRM free publishing arm. As a result my perception of value has changed. Prior to Agency pricing I felt that Avon was a quality imprint with a few clunkers and Harlequin was a clunker imprint with a few quality books. The service of direct purchase and competitive pricing completely flipped my perception of the two imprints. Where I would previously have greeted a poorly edited (or written) Avon title as a surprising exception, I now viewed it as typical. Charting my reviews over the last few years of both imprints my hits and misses haven't shifted. It is only my perception of those hits and misses that changed, which is a purely emotional consideration. (Obviously this plays out to other imprints as well, I use them as an example.)

One of the concepts I had pitched to Ms Farr as a missed opportunity was a world where a customer could walk into a store, purchase a Valentine's Day card and have it loaded with an ebook to give their intended recipient. Another was reclaiming used book sales by offering consumers the chance to "resell" their digital files to others with a portion of the discounted price returning to the publisher. The adoption of DRM was (to my mind) the single biggest factor in allowing Amazon to dominate the ebook market. When a consumer is pushed into a closed system, the one who runs the system best wins. If publishers had offered loading stations, scannable ebook gift cards, personal imprint store fronts, discounted subscriptions, any number of dynamic pricing possibilities, they could have capitalized on the now squandered consumer loyalty. Piracy is an unwinnable war. A certain number of people enjoy stealing, that is a fact of life. Most consumers want to pay a fair price for goods and want the maker of the goods to benefit. Packaging the desire to be honest with direct revenue paths would have allowed publishing to reposition themselves in the new marketplace. Setting up an adversarial relationship with the consumer left the way clear for Amazon to dominate. In the end, everyone loses.

Watching the Big Six interact with consumers and libraries I wonder who will rise to challenge Amazon after the Big Six fall. Maybe it will be Starbucks. Pick up your Grande Half Soy Mocha and reload your girlfriend's book card.

Tokidoki Is My Higher Power Now

Ok, that's not a book. (Technically, it's a book bag.) I'm backdating this a day so it won't (I hope) clutter your feed but my thoughts on the new Tokidoki Fall / Winter 2011 bags were too long for the message board I frequent. We'll be back to books and ways to read them right after this. I totally promise. You can trust me. While I have an absolutely absurd amount of Tokidoki items, how do often to I talk to you about them? (Define absurd? Um.. a skateboard deck, 4 hoodies, a couple dozen t-shirts, a couple dozen toys, 11 cosmetic pouches, 4 hairbrushes, 5 plush items, at least 35 handbags, 2 backpacks, 4 wallets... Hey! You're judging!! I don't feel safe discussing this with you. My bank account and I are leaving.) First up, this new Mini Crossbody bag. The size is roughly the same as the LSS Ciao. The two pockets on the front are versatile, most of my e-readers fit in the taller one. The main section has a zip compartment of it's own for stashing your wallet or stranger's hotel keys. (Or your hotel key and a stranger's wallet? Whatever works. Not my business.) On the opposite interior side there are two pouch pockets as well.

As you'll see, the lining is a lot like the current Sephora interiors. Interestingly, the company hasn't gone with the very popular nylon material used on the last two Passe Pouch sets. The bags are a polyester that gives off a slight shine. The material is soft, but I wonder about it's durability. There won't be any scrubbing of these bags with a Clorox Bleach Pen after you drop a slice of pizza on it. I can see these eventually showing wear in a way the other bags didn't. I could be completely wrong about that, it's the impression the material gives. I do like the feel. Colors really stand out on this print making it a bag that needs to be seen in person to fully appreciate. The cording on the sides has also changed. Instead of using the Pantera Print as older bags do, the new side cording is Pleather. I hate this choice. While it's visually neutral, I tend to damage pleather easily. Hopefully I won't snag or scratch it. The transition to plastic zippers I have mixed feelings about. They won't rust, they may even prove more durable, but I still prefer the Riri Rainbow. I do find the plastic zipper an improvement on the stiff metal silver zipper of the last few runs. Put the zipper down as a wash.

Tokidoki has decided to include a dust cover with each purse. Praise the biscuits and pass the butter. Made of a woven material familiar to anyone with inexpensive reusable shopping totes, the dust covers are sized to fit the bags perfectly. I wish I could order these in custom sizes for my past bags. Love This So Much. I think at MSRP $69 this bag is well priced for the quality changes they've made and a decent impulse buy for Tokidoki fans. I also ordered the Double Handle. (Love the naming of these bags. It's like, "This is my bag, Bob" instead of the naming in the past which was "Meet Alfonzo Romanatski! He's fancy!" I think I'm gonna call it Love, because Double Love Handle is often how I roll.) Love is about the same size as a Graziosa, just slightly larger than a Stellina, but with a much better capacity than either of the other two bags.

My new favorite bag size is the Double Handle. With one outer zipped pocket and three zippers across the top, this handbag is ridiculously easy to organize. The center section is the deepest and widest, offering what could be packing space for a gym trip or a sweater. One outer section has two pockets (like you would find in a Carino) and the other outer section has a zipper pocket. While the Double Handle looks small compared to a Graziosa, it easily fits my iPad in it's Zazzle case. I want a Double Handle in every print ever made. At MSRP $140 it's not quite the what the hell purchase of the Mini Crossbody, but it's great styling and perfect size makes it worth skipping a few months of Starbucks. (Wait - I don't drink coffee.) I could see using this bag as an everyday workhorse for a variety of situations. Absolute home run for me. Except I have to return it.

Click Here For A Fabric Close-Up

Sadly, my Double Handle has a crooked name plate. It would drive me crazy trying to straighten it, especially since it's riveted in place. Tokidoki responded to my email on this in about 4 minutes, promising to exchange it quickly and with the "exact same bag". I'd tell them I'm not that high maintenance but I am. I totally and completely am. (This is where you protest. You're not working with me at all today.) I really love the back of this handbag, the pattern placement was just about perfect. I'm just going to trust in Simone, Ivan and my new pal Kevin to bring Handbag Happiness to my life. Tokidoki is my higher power.

Let's close this out with a quick size comparison photo. It I didn't cover something you wanted to know about the bags, ask me here or in the forum of choice. I think Comics is a great print it would be a shame to miss. Favola went so quickly that I never got the Carino placement I wanted, but my unused Carino is paying for my Double Handle, so I can't be too bitter. (I know! It's like it's not even english!) On the adorability meter Comics is off the chart. It reminds me of Citta in it's long distance appearance while being an obvious use of the best of Sephora's Robbery print. I'm not crazy about the Royal Pride yet their use here is so clever I wouldn't want to do without them. Simone Legno's bags are at their best when he's playing around with his characters instead of randomly smacking them on a background. I like almost everything about this collection even as I wish it had a slightly higher price point so the zippers and trim were back to Riri and leather. On the other hand, at a higher price point it's probably a lower sell-through for the company. You give and the economy takes. More detail pictures (including interiors) are on my Flickr Account for those interested (and you know who you are).

The Mini Crossbody and Double Handle pictured for size comparison with a Citta Bocce and Eco Mondo Graziosa