To be honest I always figured the use of the term "legos" was a joke, like a lolcat thing. And that anyone using it in cold blood without intending to be funny has second-hand brains. But I live a sheltered life when it comes to these things.
Just to prove this point, on this rather splendid monorail LEGO set, before the TOWN theme was created (and CITY for that matter) SYSTEM was known as LEGOLAND.
I enjoy lego bricks and used them quite often when I was younger. I got really interested in them again a couple of years back when I saw this Lego Spiderman 2 video. I wish I could have found the Lego movie maker set before it was gone.
Originally Posted by Carnivorous id I enjoy lego bricks and used them quite often when I was younger. I got really interested in them again a couple of years back when I saw this Lego Spiderman 2 video. I wish I could have found the Lego movie maker set before it was gone.
Ebay or Bricklink are your best friend . Maybe expensive but at least you can get the set's you missed out on.
I admit didn't realize LEGO was plural. Good to know.
Now what's your opinion on this, gentleman? I just picked it up at the 100 Yen Store.
Is it a great value because for a little over a dollar you can get 33 pieces?
Or should we call in an air strike on the Chinese manufacturer of these fake LEGO?
Although I do no agree with fake LEGO, their patent on the brick locking system has ran out. That is why Megabloks etc can exist without getting sued. That said, the minifigure in that set looks be pretty much an exact clone of a LEGO minifigure which would be iffy on copyright grounds rather than patent grounds (his legs maybe different, but I can not tell from the photo).
On the other hand competition is always a good thing, perhaps it will make TLG pull their finger out.
How well does the Chinese "LEGO" click together? Is there much grip or does it fall apart easy?
On a side note I have found the Chinese to be very hospitable - I have not long got back from visiting China .
On a side note, i couldn't help but notice that there are alot of non-LEGO "Lego"-like sets out these days, all of which say somehting on the box like "fits with all other leading brands", and their bricks look EXACTLY like LEGO. I take it this is down to LEGO's patent running out?
Originally Posted by ..::hagar::.. Although I do no agree with fake LEGO, their patent on the brick locking system has ran out. That is why Megabloks etc can exist without getting sued. That said, the minifigure in that set looks be pretty much an exact clone of a LEGO minifigure which would be iffy on copyright grounds rather than patent grounds (his legs maybe different, but I can not tell from the photo).
On the other hand competition is always a good thing, perhaps it will make TLG pull their finger out.
How well does the Chinese "LEGO" click together? Is there much grip or does it fall apart easy?
On a side note I have found the Chinese to be very hospitable - I have not long got back from visiting China .
I always wondered why companies would let their patents run out in the first place. In this case, one that more or less forms the backbone of their product.
As for the 'Chinese' police officer, he is of the same height as a LEGO mini figure, but most of his body parts are not interchangeable. His legs and upper body are both different and con only connect to each other. His arms are slightly longer then normal, with hands that are slightly different as well. So you can't replace his hands with LEGO hands. You can, however, swap our whole arms with no problem. You can also swap out heads.
As for the bricks... well it's a toss up. Most of them work just fine. They are all made out of the same material as real LEGO; ABS. So they have the same feel and durability. However some of the smaller 1x1 pieces have a loose fit, and will fall off easy if there isn't something layered on top of it. All the other pieces had perfect grip. Also, a stub on one of the plates was deformed, which kept me from placing a brink on top of it.
But other then that, and the lack of the LEGO impression on the pieces, they could be mistaken for the real thing. Well to the untrained eye at least.
Oh, of course, I have nothing against the Chinese people. I had a Chinese ex girlfriend and one of my best buddies in the service was as well. Where did you go? I have been to Hong Kong many times, but I have never been to the mainland before.
I went to Hangzhou and Shanghai - my ladyfriend is Chinese (recently back together after an argument), I met her many years ago when we was both undergraduate students. I presented my research at a conference in Hangzhou, and the rest was just a bit of a holiday / research lab tours, and I gave a talk at a Chinese university too. Should of stayed longer really, an 11 hour flight is not very fun (and that is only to Amsterdam).
@ Marko: The stud/tube patent ran out some time ago. LEGO tried to use copyright to protect themselves (on how bricks look as a logo) but that fell through.
I will video my latest creations (in conjunction with a good friend). Mostly technic though I am afraid