There’s A Bionicle In My Bathroom! Colgate Lego Bionicle Tahu Nuva
Written: Oct 07 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Extremely nice design, soft bristles for gentle but effective cleaning.
Cons: At $5.99 a pop – collecting them all gets expensive. Head is not replaceable.
The Bottom Line: Got a little Lego lover in your midst? Indulge them with the Bionicle Tahu Nuva electric toothbrush!
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| Freak369's Full Review: Colgate Electric Childrens Toothbrush Bionicle Tah... |
Chances are if you were in Southern California a few days ago you heard the shrieks of four extremely excited boys. It had nothing to do with seeing a preview of the new NASA Space Explorer program or even the new Lego catalog … no, this excitement took place at Rite Aid. Taking a shot in the dark, my oldest strolled into the dental care aisle to see if they had received the much anticipated Bionicle electric toothbrushes. When I heard the fateful phrase “Mum, you gotta see this” I knew that it meant one of two things – either he found something really gross stuck to the floor or the Bionicle brushes were in. Thankfully it was the latter of the two, I don’t think I could handle seeing another squashed beetle. Tossing four of them in the basket and moving along, I could see the brood itching to get home and rip open the packages and try these out. At $5.99 a pop I was hoping they were worth it!
The boys had heard about the Bionicle brushes from a friend who met up with us at the ComiCon, after that it was a complete scavenger hunt – no matter where we went, the brood would set out to find the brushes. No store was safe, no aisle was left unturned and anyone wearing a store smock or nametag was questioned as to when they would arrive. Not many people even knew that there were new Bionicle brushes on the market when meant they had to explain what they looked like and why the were “so cool”. Personally, I was torn – as a long time lover of Lego products I really wanted to track these down but never really got into the whole Bionicle series. The boys have several of the larger sets that we picked up on clearance as well as all of the mini’s that were offered at Mc Donald’s but overall they really never got hooked on them. If you need an example of the perfect marketing tool, check out the Lego website and click on the Bionicle section. It’s only a matter of time before they list these at the site ….
Colgate Electric Bionicle Toothbrush – Tahu Nuva
Looking more like a toy than a toothbrush, this new Colgate product is sure to be at the top of the wish list this holiday season. Until they found this toothbrush the boys were huge fans of the Crest Spinbrush Classic and Crest Spinbrush Kids, products that they used several times a day and always yielded great results. The one thing that I was most hesitant about with the Colgate Bionicle was the fact that the brush head isn’t replaceable. This means when the head gets worn down or the bristles get bent, you have the replace the entire thing. The two AA batteries that come with the toothbrush can be replaced but chances are they will wear out the brush head before they kill off the batteries. So far they are holding up nicely and are working just as good as the Crest toothbrushes but only time will tell whether or not they are worth the price.
When you first break open the package you’ll find an insert card that opens to give you the basic instructions of the toothbrush. These are printed in English, French and Spanish and cover battery changes, attaching the head cover and Bionicle mask and other basics. The toothbrush comes with a bristle cover and a Bionicle mask, since this is the Tahu Nuva version, both are red but the bristle cover is see through and the mask isn’t. You can attach any Bionicle mask to the bristle cover and when the toothbrush is dead, the mask can be used on other Bionicle figures. The bristle cover snaps on to the neck and is a little hard to snap back on the first few times but once you figure it out, it’s a piece of cake.
Unlike the Crest Spinbursh assortment, this one has two buttons – one to power it up and the other to shut it off. The toothbrush isn’t that loud but when all four of them are brushing their teeth at once – it can get a bit nerve racking. Right under the on and off buttons is the silver Tahu Nuva logo and lettering, since these are pretty new the logo is still in good shape but I don’t anticipate them lasting a long time and even if they did, the unit is disposable since the heads can’t be replaced. The head is made up of three sections, the large round area that vibrates in a semi-circle, the inner portion of the circle that is stationary and the bottom section that is also stationary. So far these perform the same as the Spinbrush Classic toothbrushes but the brood have all said that the bristles are a lot softer.
Things To Know
On the back of the toothbrush there’s a nice molded grip section that’s the perfect size for kids hands. The body of the toothbrush is a little wide and smaller kids might have a little trouble holding on to it so made sure you watch them the first few times to see if they have any trouble holding it or turning it on and off. The battery compartment is locked so if you need to replace the batteries you will need one of those tiny little screwdrivers to get it open. Last, but certainly not least, the bottom of the toothbrush base is nice and wide – something that I really, really like. This means they don’t fall over easily, a common pitfall of the Spinbrush Classic and Pro.
The Bottom Line
If you have a child that’s into Bionicle – this is a great treat to pick up for them. If they need reminded to brush their teeth, picking this up might prompt them to do it more often and without a lot of fighting. For $5.99 you are getting a solid electric toothbrush that comes with two AA sized batteries - but - this should be considered a completely disposable unit since the heads are not replaceable. I guess they are trying to milk the Bionicle name for all its worth before some new fad comes along. Even though I have a rather lackadaisical attitude toward the entire Bionicle line of Lego sets, the boys really had their hearts set on getting these. Collect all three of the Colgate Bionicle electric toothbrushes: Tahu Nuva [red], Gali Nuva [blue] and Onua Nuva [black]. For more information about Colgate products [including other Lego products] visit their official site at www.colgate.com
As always, thanks for the visit!
~^V^~ Freak ~^V^~
© 2003 Freak369
Related reviews …
Crest Spinbrush Pro
Crest Spinbrush Classic
Crest Spinbrush Kids
Crest Kids Toothpaste
Recommended:
Yes
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