I was too far behind on my feedreader to notice, and MDD was too modest: his ABC Kids Expo reports for Babble's Droolicious gearblog are rockin'. Here's a quick take on some highlights:
The Zigo Leader converts from a front-load, kid-carrying bike to a standalone stroller or jogger, and a standalone bike. It has a nylon covered pod for 1-2 kids that looks like the Cougar Chariot. They call themselves "the first mom- or dad-powered family transportation vehicle," which naturally prompts MDD to wonder, "Why hasn't anyone done this before?" To which Zigo should answer, "Well technically, Bakfiets has done it in Holland, and TrioBike has done it in Denmark; we're special because we're doing it here."
A Strollometer AND a cellphone drawer?? MDD got a photo of the dashboard on the Maclaren GT LX! $900!
There are details and photos of Netto Collection's new Frenched up Louis crib and changing table. C'est fou! Completement fou! We are amused, and so will return to this subject later.
Sometimes a publicist demonstrates her greatness by knowing what not to tell me about. And even though we've been emailing this past week, the cone of silence Bugaboo's publicist put me in regarding their new fabric-centric colabo with the Monkey People, aka the dreaded and over-exposed Paul Frank, means she's a freakin' genius.
Holy crap, microwaveable stuffed animals?? Why didn't anyone think of this before?
I'm having trouble freaking out about any of this. Maybe I can muster some heebie-jeebies for the Pretty Cozies, since they'll encourage toddlers to stand with their noses pressed up against the microwave.
Hard to tell for sure from the photo but that Mac dashboard looks a little cobbled together. At least the analog displays seem to be somewhat integrated but that digital piece looks a little to aftermarket for a feature on a $900 stroller. If speed and distance traveled are important to you you can get a pretty full featured bicycle computer and mount it less obtrusively than this thing. (Don't know how many bike computers can be set for such small wheels though.)
No excuses when the stroller cop asks "do you know how fast you were going?"
though it IS a listicle, I should point out that this is not the Friday Freakout post.
I knew that. But you said "dreaded" and "freakin'" and I panicked.
Thanks for the shout out.
With regards to Zigo, I probably should have said "Why haven't I seen this before in real life?" To be fair, the Zigo rep did mention similar products in Holland, but he said that they were all much more expensive.
And the dashboard was pretty cool I thought, but I see what DAvid is saying about how the digital piece looks a little aftermarket. I'm pretty sure Maclaren doesn't own the whole "strollometer" thing and it's a partnership. Oh, and the cell phone holder at the bottom of the picture folds up over the clock and thermometer.
I saw microwave plush animals a couple years ago. Warm Buddy is another brand.
http://www.warmbuddy.com/
It's amazing how many inventors come forward thinking they've reinvented the wheel. Usually it's a groundbreaking new plush binky holder, or a bottle gripper for parents who are too weak or just unwilling to hold a bottle to the kid's mouth.
It's true, and the Dutch Bakfiets don't convert to strollers. And the Zigo's $1350 pricepoint is less than half of the TrioBike, which has a hardshell pod, not nylon. I hope it catches on.
I dunno... that Zigo is a pretty tough sell, considering that you could purchase the mentioned Chariot Cougar 2 - along with the jogging, strolling, and biking attachments (jogging wheel and the 2nd kid harness are added accessories for the Zigo) - and still have at least $500 left for a very decent non-ergonomically-challenged bicycle. That Zigo bike looks like it belongs in a clown college. I wish the "technical specifications" would actually give some real information about what they used to put the thing together, how much does it weigh, how many gears does the internal hub provide, etc.
Plus, I can't help but notice in the video that she doesn't turn much with the "Pod" attached. I have to wonder about the handling.
-g