April 05, 2013

Spring Cleaning 2013

It's that time again: Time to clean out my closet. Every spring, I dust off the few DRTV tests I didn't review the previous year (see 2012 and 2011) in order to continue making this the most complete record of DRTV history possible. Here's what I dug up this year ...

  • 30 Second Styler. Pitch: "Curl and style your hair just by using your microwave." Comments: Hair curling/styling products have a poor track record on DRTV. Other examples include Air Curler (later that year) and Natural Waves (winter 2010). [ss]
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  • Clear 2 Go. Pitch: A water bottle that was also the "most powerful, portable filtering system in the world." Comments: This is at least the second time this idea was tested on DRTV, and water filters haven't had much luck either. [ss]
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  • Frootle. Marketer: Telebrands. Producer: Sullivan Productions. Pitch: "Satisfy your thirst with healthy, all-natural fruit-flavored water that you make at home." Comments: Neat concept, but with so many pre-made fruit waters in stores, I'm not surprised it failed. [ss]
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  • Insta Caulk. Marketer: National Express. Pitch: "The easiest and fastest way to seal your tubs, sinks, tiolets counters and more." Comments: Dueled with my/Lenfest's Wonder Trim. Nobody won. [ss]
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  • Mighty Light. Starring: Marc Gill. Marketer: Harvest. Producer: Bluewater. Pitch: "Hands-free, high-powered LED light any time, anywhere." Comments: This one actually made it to retail although it did not appear on my True Top Spenders for 2012. [ss]
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  • Red Fusion. Starring: Anthony Sullivan. Marketer: Thane USA. Producer: Sullivan Productions. Pitch: "Soothing warmth where and when you need it." Comments: Dueled with my/Lenfest's Snap 'N Soothe. Again, nobody won. [ss]
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  • Zipper Fixer. Starring: Granny Lu. Marketer: Allstar/Media Corp. Producer: Paddock Productions. Pitch: "The fast and easy way to repair broken zippers at home." Comments: Written by yours truly (watch the spot here), and the first time I used Granny Lu. Pump 'N Chop was the second. Ended up dueling with the item below. [ss]
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  • Zipper Doctor. Marketer: Ontel. Pitch: "Instantly repairs any broken zipper pull." Comments: Another contest nobody won. [ss]