On Recalls

[X-man]

We are aware of what the recall did to PR on the Segway front. MSNBCC just reported 420,000 BoFlex were recalled due do 70 injuries.
Wonder how the media will handle this one?

The Lone Glider! :)

[pt]

no one will care or mention it.

cheers,
pt

[verbl800]

Actually PT, it's gotten some pretty good press, including story links on the front pages of both cnn.com and abcnews.com.

But, I would indeed expect it to get less attention that did the Seg recall.

The reason the Seg recall got so much attention was the media attention afforded to the Seg prior to the recall - that is, the Seg itself was a new story when it was released, and therefore, subsequent happenings such as a recall were popular human-interest pieces. It seems logical to me that a recall of the "magic revolutionary device that was supposed to change our lives" is more news-worthy than the recall of an exercice machine. But, the BowFlex recall is getting plenty of news coverage as well because of how popular their machine is (400,000+ in circulation)

[pt]

hmm, all i've see was a line of text on cnn and msnbc (i was watching these as i jogged on my treadmill). that said--each week their are recalls, about 100,000 fords last week. 50,000 toyota before that, no one notices or cares.

i wonder if there is going to be a story how bowflex "failed", everyone i know who has one never uses it and is still fat, the machines hurt people and they need to recall them.

cheers,
pt

[muckle]

To be fair, the BowFlex story might be bigger news if it was a whole new category of fitness equipment of which it was being said (fairly or unfairly) that it would change the world. And that had been shrouded in secrecy for a year or two before its release. And there were websites out there devoted to solving the mystery of Bowflex. Etc. Apples and oranges.

[pt]

the bowflex ads do say it'll change my world, i guess getting smacked in the back of the head by a rod would do that :-]

cheers,
pt

[nocanfly]

If you check google news, you can easily discover that the blowflex story is currently bigger than segway in general.

References to Blowflex: 166
http://news.google.com/news?num=100&hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&edition=us&q=BowFlex&btnG=Search+News

References to Segway: 92
http://news.google.com/news?num=100&hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&edition=us&q=segway&btnG=Search+News

More than a line of text of news.

Anything that happens for the first time with the Segway is potentially newsworthy so you'd expect the press to jump on a major recall story. The media is certainly a double-edged sword.

[GlideMaster]

Oh well, I've got a Bowflex XTL that I've had for a little more than three years and never had a problem. I use it frequently. Guess I had better check the nuts and bolts. About a week ago I tightened all of the fittings on my WaterRower which I've had for years and it has never leaked and the cherry wood is like new; no recalls. They just don't build things now days like they use to. I really don't consider 12.0 a recall.

<center>http://www.segwaychat.com/forum/avatars/glidemaster.gif</center>

[muckle]

Hmmm... if the rod smacks you in the head hard enough and decapitates you, they could then state correctly that you could lose 10 lbs in one day!

[Cruzan Glider]

I own a Bowflex and a Segway. 2 recalls in a single year. What's next?

Mike

[8] Bringing the future of transportation to central Ohio