Video reviews vs text reviews

[Tober]

Text reviews for general info. Basically to see if a toy is worth buying.

Video reviews if I get stuck with a transformation (which doesn't happen much with HasTak TFs as they are usually intuitive - which is just plain good design), or if I think I'm going to break something.

[Sky Shadow]

I almost absolutely hate video reviews, particularly if they're done by Pixel Dan. Vangelus's reviews are just about the only ones that I don't consider a waste of bandwidth. Text and images are better - instantaneous, and I can read them with whatever voice in my head won't annoy me.

[Cat]

Text.

Most video reviews I've seen are awful.

One person in particular takes the cake: he does regular reviews and spams them everywhere, yet they're terrible. He moves his hands around a lot, so there's no focus on the toy, he often struggles with transforming it (seriously, take five minutes before recording and run through it a few times), his English is terrible, his pronunciation (like most vido reviewers) is poor, he mumbles, it's crappy audio anyway so it makes it even harder to decipher, and his hands are disgustingly filthy.

Your hands are featured prominently in the reviews- there's no excuse to have dirty hands. Take a few minutes and wash yourself, clean under your nails, clip them.

Yuck.

[M-bot]

Video vs. Text is moot. I like good reviews, regardless of their format.

A few things that bug me about some reviews in general (even though I'm as guilty as any in some of the text reviews I've done right here on OTCA) are:

1. Rambling. Cut the waffle to a minimum thanks. We don't need a half-hour dissection on what is on the box. We've got eyes. Reviewers don't need to show and tell at great length.

2. Reviewers don't really need to use phrases like "in my opinion" all that often. It's kinda obvious. Having said that, I've been known to drop an IMHO a few times, mostly when the point I'm making may be contentious, just to acknowledge the potential views of others. I guess there's a difference between stating the obvious and trying to be polite.

3. Please, please, oh please don't use the phrase "I'm not going to lie to you,... etc". There's a video reviewer that I've seen who says this ad nauseam. I can't speak for others, but I was kinda counting on you not lying in your review.

4. Run through your review (in the case of text) or rehearse/judiciously edit your review (in the case of video) before you post.

My own style (insofar as I have one) has 4 facets:
1. Pick out the main points.
2. Point out things that are not obvious.
3. Discuss the points that people are likely to be most interested in.
4. Be concise.
5. Try and be interesting!

[Sinnertwin]

I like the look of a toy, i buy it. If I don't, somebody else will. Worked well so far.

[GoktimusPrime]

Yeah, I'm like that with most toys -- but I check reviews on toys that I'm unsure of, like Beast Hunter Voyager Optimus Prime. But I've been collecting TFs long enough that I can pretty much tell by the look of most toys if I wanna get it or not. If it impresses me enough, I'll get it straight away, if not, I'll wait until someone else gets it first and I get their feedback or have a fiddle of someone else's figure first (nothin' like try before you buy).

[Gouki]

Text hands down. I can't be bothered with videos that 90% ego and poorly filmed, I'd rather just read what was being said. Same for interviews and the like too. I can just do it at my pace whenever I want.

The only reason video is such a thing is because it can be regardless of whether it needs to be.

[CBratron]

Vid reviews. For me, they're usually the next step in gauging my interest after blurry preview pics. Yes, vid reviews usually mean a lot more of the reviewers personality is under scrutiny but I usually don't pay attention to any 'final scores' because I already know my taste in Transformers is vastly different from the more vocal portions of the community. I watch them to see the toy in motion

I feel something is lost when trying to convey the motion of transformation in still pics (or worse still, words only).

[CBratron]

Vangelus's reviews are just about the only ones that I don't consider a waste of bandwidth.

Vangelus doesn't do reviews. He does comedy.
That's probably why you can stomach it.

[GoktimusPrime]

Vid reviews. For me, they're usually the next step in gauging my interest after blurry preview pics. Yes, vid reviews usually mean a lot more of the reviewers personality is under scrutiny but I usually don't pay attention to any 'final scores' because I already know my taste in Transformers is vastly different from the more vocal portions of the community. I watch them to see the toy in motion

I feel something is lost when trying to convey the motion of transformation in still pics (or worse still, words only).

So in other words, you're not watching them as reviews, but merely as 'demonstration videos.' And sure, for that purpose I can see the merits of a video. If a picture speaks a thousand words, then a video must speak much more.

But for people who are genuinely interested in accessing a proper review of a toy, I find text reviews to be generally better than video -- and as I said before on this thread, it's not to do with the format, it's just that I find most text reviewers aren't interested in "showboating" the toy as much as a lot of so-called video reviewers. Perhaps because a text review takes so much more time and effort to prepare, that it lends itself to more earnest reviewers, whereas making a video review takes relatively less effort, so it's somewhat easier to just switch on the camera and go, "oooh! Look how cool this toy is!"

I don't necessarily object to people making showboat videos per se. I just wish they wouldn't call them "reviews," because it's just misleading. Call it a "Toy Showcase" video or something. The word 'review' implies that you're going to critically analyse and evaluate the merits of the toy.