The 1-Meter Optimus Speaker Tower - questions

[griffin]

So after seeing that there was one in Australia (on ebay here), I have two questions...

1 - Does anyone here have one?
It was limited to 500 units, and the head itself was released on its own in greater numbers. (plus, there was also apparently a white redeco Ultra Magnus, which is probably even rarer).
It came out in 2009 I believe, and retailed for about US$350-400, plus shipping.
As noted in the topic title, it is over a meter tall, and I believe the entire body is just hollow plastic, as the head is the speaker unit (the "ears" fold out to reveal the speakers).

2 - Would you consider it a toy with an electronic gimmick, or electronic merchandise?
It's primary purpose is to be a speaker unit, however, Music Label Soundwave & the Rumble/Frenzy earphones, as well as Device Label Ravage, Cheetor & Tigatron (plus the Blaster USB hub and Grimlock & Trypticon Mouses) I think would be seen by most as a toy with an electronic gimmick... yes/no?
Since this is articulated, and comes with its rifle, does that make it enough of a playable device to be a toy, like an Actionmaster, or do you think it can't count because it is out of scale, or its primary purpose is not to be played with (people can choose to play with anything that isn't intended to be a toy), or some other reason? (even if that reason is something simple like, Fort Max must remain the biggest Transformers (branded) toy )

[Kazza]

Maybe run a poll on this? I personally wouldn't call it a toy (it would be rather hard sitting or standing around and playing with a 1m optimus prime), I would call it a collectible, with electronic functions.

[DarkHyren]

I would tend to agree with Kazza, I would class this the same as the TF statues, collectables.
I don't have one myself but it does look pretty cool, I wonder how good the output is on the speakers, might be good for playing music through at least.

[BigTransformerTrev]

I would class this the same as the TF statues, collectables.

Yup - totally agree. Would be sweet to have though!

Did anyone ever see that huge Optimus Prime statue you could buy a few years ago for like $6000? They even had one in the window in a collectors store out in Toorak. Wanted him badly but the lady that runs my life said that money was ear-marked for our wedding. Priorities eh - no figuring some people!

[Skullcruncher]

Yup - totally agree. Would be sweet to have though!

Did anyone ever see that huge Optimus Prime statue you could buy a few years ago for like $6000? They even had one in the window in a collectors store out in Toorak. Wanted him badly but the lady that runs my life said that money was ear-marked for our wedding. Priorities eh - no figuring some people!

Toorak! What shop was that?

Heh funny the woman that runs my life is telling me the same thing right now. Every bid on eBay I make I can hear her voice...

[Megatron]

Hmm.. can you get other characters?


As to the original question - I think that it's a collectable, but also a toy (I bet you would find them in the toy section at a department store, or in a toy store, if they had them for sale).

[DarkHyren]

Did anyone ever see that huge Optimus Prime statue you could buy a few years ago for like $6000?

I believe he's on ebay now - http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/270350266723
I would so get him. If I had the money. And the means to get him here. And the space to put him.

[BigTransformerTrev]

Toorak! What shop was that?

Gardenvale Collectables. I see they've dropped the price by $500 - unsurprising considering they've had him in the window 6 years now. I remember feeling like a super-smart smug sod as I had seen him on the internet before on an American site and it was $1500 to ship to Australia. So when asking the shop owner about it I was able to quote the international shipping costs of the thing It's not a bad shop for rare TF stuff, though like Minotaur you can usually find the stuff they stock cheaper online. Well worth a browse if you live in Melbourne though

I believe he's on ebay now - http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/270350266723

Yep - thats him. Beautiful aint he!

[Ode to a Grasshopper]

2 - Would you consider it a toy with an electronic gimmick, or electronic merchandise?

This, because...

It's primary purpose is to be a speaker unit, however, Music Label Soundwave & the Rumble/Frenzy earphones, as well as Device Label Ravage, Cheetor & Tigatron (plus the Blaster USB hub and Grimlock & Trypticon Mouses) I think would be seen by most as a toy with an electronic gimmick... yes/no?

...this.

The device label TFs seem to me to be TFs first, with the functional device aspect as their 'gimmick'. Bassimus Prime there 1: doesn't transform, 2: is too large to be 'played with', and 3: has it's primary function as speaker rather than plaything. It's a speaker shaped like Optimus Prime, rather than a toy with a speaker component like Music Label Convoy.


That said, I could go for something like that if they came in Blaster and Soundwave/Soundblaster styles. Maybe a surround sound setup with some of the mini-cassettes for smaller speakers.

[GoktimusPrime]

^Agree.
Music/Device Label TFs are fundamentally toys that happen to function as music devices (even if some of they are 'compromised' by the gimmick to varying degrees). The speaker unit is an electronic device that bears resemblance to a Transformer. How articulated is it? Can it be played w/ as an action figure?

The auction describes it as a "statue", and I consider statues to be more merchandising than action figure/toy - so along the same line as other statues, busts, PVC figurines etc.