Electronics Institute Gives Pleo Thumbs Down

And now for a negative news story.

The readers of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers have given the Pleo Dinosaur a thumbs down.

60% of their readers said the Pleo will be a loser this year whilst only 26% said it'll be a winner.

But I'm sure the editorial comment by Willie D. Jones swayed the reader's opinion:

As an electronic gadget, it is certainly cool. But it seems to fall in a market chasm, being too expensive a toy for small children, but not hyperkinetic enough for the average music-video- and home-video-game-addled teenager. Will parents be reluctant to buy it for fear that it will be shunted aside after the novelty has worn off, as many live pets are? Either way, Ugobe has missed a golden opportunity, because last-minute tweaks pushed Pleo’s release date well past the holiday gift-giving season when buzz alone might have swept it along with the current of year-end shopping frenzy.

But what do you think? The toy market is totally driven by marketing and pester power. If Ugobe get's their marketing strategy right (I'm sure SHIFT Communications, will play a big part) then I'm sure it'll make a big splash!