Star Trek TOS Communicator from The Wand Company

Just placed my pre-rder with Think Geek.

The Wand Co. does good quality work. Add to that they scanned an original prop and worked with several fans during development. Should be a great replica.
 

It's been mentioned that the prototype at Comic-con will not reflect the latest changes being made on the Trek Communicator from Wand. They are working hard to make this precise to the original, but without the caved in back and of course everything is evened out. Looks like it will be the closest to the original consumer replica yet. I'm sure over the next couple months we'll get a look at the final with all the small details ironed out.
 
Re: Star Trek bluetooth enabled phone/communicator coming next year!

Thing is, Park Sabers did this several years ago (yes a Star Wars saber maker made a Star Trek item). It tanked then. Will it tank now? Time will tell.

http://parksabers.com/startrekcommunicator.html

Of course there's more press this time around, it might not be a mod of a pre-existing toy and it's an officially licensed product so that may help quite a bit.
 
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Over at TPZ, Richard from The Wand Company said that the antenna will be steel, electroplated with brass.
 
Re: Star Trek bluetooth enabled phone/communicator coming next year!

Well, to be fair, how can they expect to sell any when nobody knows they have them for sale? I had never heard of Parks' communicator. :lol

Anyway, it's not an original product. It's a modded Diamond Select toy, which is cheap and plasticky and the wrong shape. Plus the thing has all sorts of caveats ("not true VOX, the caller will hear their own voice echoed, etc."). Bleah.

Also it doesn't say how much they were selling it for. The Wand comm is $150, same as their phaser remote. And you can expect sales to bring that down closer to $100.

Wand's quality will be spectacular, and it's something original that's never been offered at retail, which is a perfect prop replica that you can actually talk on. It'll sell like hotcakes. Even my non-prop-collecting friends want one of these things. :lol

k
 
Re: Star Trek bluetooth enabled phone/communicator coming next year!

Well, to be fair, how can they expect to sell any when nobody knows they have them for sale? I had never heard of Parks' communicator. :lol

Anyway, it's not an original product. It's a modded Diamond Select toy, which is cheap and plasticky and the wrong shape. Plus the thing has all sorts of caveats ("not true VOX, the caller will hear their own voice echoed, etc."). Bleah.

Also it doesn't say how much they were selling it for. The Wand comm is $150, same as their phaser remote. And you can expect sales to bring that down closer to $100.

Wand's quality will be spectacular, and it's something original that's never been offered at retail, which is a perfect prop replica that you can actually talk on. It'll sell like hotcakes. Even my non-prop-collecting friends want one of these things. :lol

k

Yep, and I also posted some "to be fair" stuff such as the fact that it was a mod of a pre-existing toy, more press this time around (like you stated, you had never heard of the Parks communicator), etc. I believe Parks was selling his for $300 back in the day. Nice to see this new one is half that price. Very cool.
 
Re: Star Trek bluetooth enabled phone/communicator coming next year!

Thing is, Park Sabers did this several years ago (yes a Star Wars saber maker made a Star Trek item). It tanked then. Will it tank now? Time will tell.

http://parksabers.com/startrekcommunicator.html

Of course there's more press this time around, it might not be a mod of a pre-existing toy and it's an officially licensed product so that may help quite a bit.

The AA/DST retro -fitted Trek Communicator you mentioned is no match for the new Wand Communicator. For starters the Wand will be the correct shape and they are taking great pains to match the Alpha studio prop (with some cleanup). The Wand sourced a moire motor that is whisper quiet so as not interrupt the call quality and it has wireless charging and wireless bluetooth speaker capabilities as well. I suspect the speaker quality will be much better too, like the Wand phaser. Finally, since this is officially licensed it will reach a much larger audience through web adverts and website spotlights on ThinkGeek, StarTrek.com and more.

This thing will sell like crazy.

Clearly you don't know of The Wand Co.s cult following of TOS collectors :lol

They earned our respect by bringing us great products with a lot of care and attention because they are prop lovers too.
 
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All the photos of the communicator so far have only been renders, the actual thing has a different finish, and the correct radio mesh. The radio mesh for the prototype is correct, because Chris and Richard took the time to cut out the mesh for the prototype. The jewels are the 2012 version, and it would require a large minimum amount to be ordered for each jewel variant in order for it to be the correct 8 faceted version. There will not be brass oval slotted screws in the back shell, but standard safety type screws that will be painted black to blend in with the shell. The P1 texture on the communicator is incorrect now and will be remedied later. The Mic rests under the radio grill, and the Speaker under the moire. Pictures and Video coming sometime on Sunday.
 
http://www.theverge.com/2015/7/11/8933329/star-trek-tos-bluetooth-communicator-hands-on-sdcc-2015


you'll notice in video link i posted above, the LED lights on the prototype from WAND are not super bright (as they are on most of the toy replicas) -- I hope WAND keeps the lower LED lights on the actual production as I always found the super bright LED lights on Art Asylum communicator and tricorder toys very annoying (almost blinding) -- no need to have them so bright...so if WAND is reading these comments, I hope they keep the brightness of lights on their communicator at a reasonable level.

can not WAIT for this to come out -- $150 for a replica that is spot on...amazing. we've been paying that much for KITS we had to put together ourselves with NO electronics in them. heck, the TOYS went for $50 or more, so for the price of 3 toys, you get a quality replica with a fit and finish that far exceeds anything the toy people put out, and at a fraction of the cost for what a comparable fan replica or licensed MR replica cost.
 
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Oooo! Thanks for the link!

Ahh, the 3-chirp SHORT sound effect. LOVE it. :D

They seem to have nailed the proportions and overall "look." I had said earlier the jewels look "awful," but I'm taking that back. They look OK but don't sparkle properly in the photos, it could just be the lighting. Also the slotcar hub bezels seems to be missing the "hump" that the jewels are supposed to sit on. Just my observation, I could be wrong.

Thank you Richard and Chris!!!!

20-funny-custom-credit-cards1589283672-feb-16-2014-1-600x400.jpg
 
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Some Teasers.
 

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