Video reviews vs text reviews

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

Lately I have been thinking about the increase of the video review side of Transformers (and other toys) and have been noticing that it is getting a bit harder to find decent reviews of stuff that isn't on youtube.

So, I was wondering what the general consensus is amongst fellow tf fans. Do you prefer a video review over a text based review (with images)?

For the sake of interest, let's use this for all toy reviews and not just Transformers.

Personally I like good photos that I can spend some time over to look at, but I do see the merit in videos that show articulation etc. Plus, with text reviews, I can skip the intro if need be and don't get annoyed by the reviewers voice if they are annoying

Often video reviewers will show some nice detail, but not for very long and sometimes shaky, which is one issue one doesn't get with a good photo.

Just some food for thought, so what's other's thoughts on this subject?

[Decepticon]

I don't read reviews or watch them. I don't let some stranger make decisions for me.

[5FDP]

I prefer video reviews but that's only because I can never decipher Hasbro's printed instructions

If I want to know someone's opinion of a toy, I usually skip towards the end of the review - whether that be printed or video, as I'm already considering the purchase but I just need that extra convincing.

[Megatron]

I use both depending on the situation/toy

Both have their merits.

[GoktimusPrime]

I generally prefer written reviews - I almost NEVER watch video reviews, and here's why:

+ Still pictures are clearer/easier to see than video
+ Some video reviewers have poor public speaking skills (e.g. poor enunciation, lack of voice projection, poor intonation etc.); who wants to listen to someone mumbling??
+ But my #1 gripe about most video reviewers over text reviewers is that most video reviewers DON'T REVIEW TOYS!

re-view /rɪˈvyu/
noun
a critical article or report; critique; evaluation

That's right... critical. You can't be critical when you don't criticise the toy! Most video reviews I see remind me of that Simpsons episode when Homer becomes a food critic, and gives EVERY restaurant flawlessly positive reviews ("What the hell is three thumbs up?!"), and as a result he had _no_ credibility as a reviewer. And that's precisely how I find most video reviewers. If you're going to say every toy is "awesome!" all the time - especially without much (if any) justification, then THAT'S NOT A REVIEW!

There are some reviewers who are quite positive, like Ben Yee... but he's always careful in explicitly justifying why he's positive about a toy and gives it a good rating. Look at his review of Injector, IMO one of the worst toys ever made. He gives it a B+ or something. But he explains why -- in his opinion the execution of the toy isn't so good, but he can admire the effort that went into crafting it. I disagree, I still think it's a craphouse toy -- but I can see where Ben's coming from because he's justified his opinion. Opinions are never right or wrong, but you do need to provide some form of justification in order to validate them. And most text reviewers do this well.

Most video reviews are like...
"This is X Transformer, it looks like this, it transforms like this, it has these features, I like this toy and I'm so happy/excited to have it -- therefore it's AWESOME!" No wait, just because you like the toy - on its own - is not a reason for its awesomeness. Often we do like toys that we know are crap! I knew someone whose favourite toy is G1 Blot, simply because it was his first Transformer, so there's that sentimental emotional attachment to it. And that's fine, but nobody's gonna use that reason as an objective means of saying, "And therefore it's an awesome toy!"

Some video "reviews" are more like boast videos. Especially the ones that "review" toys that aren't even out anywhere yet, and are likely to be stolen from a factory. They sound more like "Look at me, I'm awesome cos I have this toy and you don't! This toy is awesome and it makes me awesome for having it!" Yes, everyone likes to boast about having a cool toy - that's what acquisition threads and collection pic threads are for. Or make a video showing off your collection or a toy... but don't call it a "review." (-_-) Call it a "showcase" video, because that's really what most of them are.

And even when you watch people try to review toys, I find they don't do a good job. One thing that gets me is how they just review them as display pieces. Hello? These are toys -- action figures! Evaluating their play value is essential! I used to post text reviews on a consumer product web site, and I used to get a lot of positive feedback not from collectors, but from parents trying to decide which toy to buy for their children. Because at the end of the day, that's still the majority demographic of people who buy Transformers: kids. I can't stand reviewers that say something like, while this toy sucks to play with, it still displays well and therefore gives it a positive review. That's like giving a car a positive review because it has a beautiful body, but craphouse performance, or a positive review for a dish that's beautifully presented but tastes like crap. Yes, presentation and beauty is important, but so is playability. People need to review toys like say a food critic (like say on Masterchef). At first you examine the physical look of the toy, but the main crux of the review should be on the design, engineering and most importantly, the playability - because that is the core function of a toy.

There are _some_ good video reviewers out there, but most that I come across aren't. On the whole I find text reviewers are better at reviewing toys than the average video "reviewer" who tends to showcase/boast about their toys. The only thing I use video reviews for now is when I get stuck on a transformation. I must say that's the one good thing videos can do that still pictures or text can't (and as 5FDP said, especially when Hasbro gives us really poorly made instructions!)

[KalEl]

I think my opinion is void as i do video reviews lol

[Deonasis]

Both are great..

Video reviews = great for transformation, gimmicks and sounds. Comparisons not so good as pausing may be needed. Harder to interact with reviewer due to editing required.

Text with images reviews = great for showcasing details, better pictures, better interaction with reviewer because it is easier to update so questions and image requests are more likely to be answered.

[GoktimusPrime]

I think my opinion is void as i do video reviews lol

I think you're entitled to have and express your opinion same as everyone else. I've done both text and video reviews before (though most have been text).

Both formats have their pros and cons, what matters more to me is HOW the toy is reviewed. Whether or not the so-called reviewer is actually presenting a proper objective and critical review of the toy, or if they're just extensively showing off their latest acquisition. There's nothing wrong with showing off a new acquisition - we all do it - but just don't call it a review if that's essentially all they're doing! I've seen good objective and critical reviews in text and video... it's just that in my observation/experience I tend to find that most of the totally subjective and uncritical reviews^showcases tend to occur in video "reviews."

If someone's not going to critically analyse, evaluate and critique a toy - I don't care if it's in text or video - then by definition it cannot be called a "review." Most of the times whenever I've clicked on a so-called video toy "review," I'm left thinking, "That's not a review." Consequently I've just been turned off video reviews and I don't watch them. When I do watch them for transformation help, I mute them.

The other thing is, it's faster to digest text reviews too. It's faster to read text than wait for someone to talk about a toy - especially if they're not good at public speaking. Also... *ahem*... it's easier to do it at work cos you're not going to distract your co-workers.

[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).

[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.