MovieWedge: A $10 Beanbag for Your iPhone

Ed Sutherland ()

moviewedge

How far can marketers ride on the iPhone’s coattails? Quite a distance, if MovieWedge is any gauge. Marketed as the “best iPhone, iPod and portable media device holder/stand in the world!”, the $10 patent-pending product bears a striking resemblance to a 98-cent bean bag. But there has to be more to it, right? Well, yes – more marketing-speak.

The MovieWedge’s features include:

  • “Variable viewing angle” – in other words, it molds to your iPhone’s shape, like an, erm, bean bag.
  • “Compatible with virtually any case or enclosure.”
  • “Soft microsuede covering perfect for wiping screen.”

    • The company includes links to favorable press, including CrunchGear: “this is such a good idea.” What is more interesting is the reviews were written in March and mentioned MovieWedge would be available any day. Why the delay?

    Nearly six months later, the second-coming of MovieWedge is appearing.

    “It’s probably a little chunky for the minimalist traveler, but we like it anyway,” wrote Gadget Lab’s Charlie Sorrel. The Wired site noted MovieWedge offers a “plush lip” for devices plus that micro-fiber material that’s perfect to “quickly polish away greasy smears from grubby thumbs.”

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    But $10 to wipe your hands? “But, it’s a bean bag with branding,” noted Giz.

    [Via Company Page, Gadget Lab and Gizmodo]

    6 comments »

    About the author

    Ed Sutherland

    Ed Sutherland is a veteran technology journalist who first heard of Apple when they grew on trees, Yahoo was run out of a Stanford dorm and Google was an unknown upstart. Since then, Sutherland has covered the whole technology landscape, concentrating on tracking the trends and figuring out the finances of large (and small) technology companies.

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    • http://www.grinningidiot.com JAYnLA

      I keep hoping Apple will just embed a kickstand into the iPhone. It really does need one.

    • Patrick

      I suppose if I was trapped in an airport or something I might try and watch a video on my iPhone……. but I can’t imagine I need a viewing stand because watching movies on a phone is a regular past time.

    • Scott B.

      Beanbag BS…….

    • Nathan

      The only time I ever find myself watching movies and tv shows on my iPhone is at work – in which case I wouldn’t have any of these third party stands available to me.

    • samu

      Covered here in March. A $1 beanbag wouldn’t have that lip, making it either fiddly or completely useless as a stand — the phone would just slide off. The ones “helpfully” suggested last time were flat, rather than tetrahedral, so they’d be even worse.

    • http://podprops.com ken

      we created a soft stand using a foam cylindar. it is cut to a special shape that allows for operating devices in portrait or landscape. we call it the podprop and it comes in several colors. check it out at our site, ebay or etsy. thanks!