kara williamson 2010-03-08T20:32:11-05:00
I would really love to own this product for real.. i m so saddened to see it can't move up any faster!! :-(

Nikki Horvath 2009-12-13T21:24:55-05:00
Have you thought about adding a fruit slicing piece to this grouping that currently does not exist to assist in sales? For example, there are gadgets to slices strawberries, but nothing for blueberries. They are very tiny to hold. You would have to hold each one individually and cut with a pearing knife. Is there a way to make a tong like device, like a pea pod mold, that would hold 6 to 8 blueberries and a knife could be run down the middle, cutting the blueberries in half. Or a little larger size for Cherry Tomatoes. I'm just trying to think outside the box and see if there is life for this. Good luck

Barbara Deneris 2009-10-08T22:44:09-04:00
I've just joined this group and this idea is ridiculous if there is a fairly comparable alternative, as has been mentioned i.e. knife and cutting board. I think the #s speak for themselves: only 10 sold in presale. Sorry, but this melonmaster is a lemon.

Stalias 2009-08-23T21:33:15-04:00
Since this isn't in production yet, may I make a suggestion? I've been looking at the product mock-up and I can't help thinking the knife might be more effective if the blade comes out the other (curved) side of the device. That way the handle is part of the stabilizing force.

Popeye 2009-08-11T19:58:55-04:00
I am concerned that with all this negativity regarding the melon master (from many of the influencers), how the heck it got selected to move forward in the first place. How bout coming up with something that legitimizes the voting and influencing to see how products are chosen...and everything else that we vote on. Shouldn't that be community knowledge?

Popeye 2009-08-11T19:50:30-04:00
I am sure there are some melon addicts out there, but i am lucky to purchase 1 or 2 at best per year. I'm not even looking for melon help. I'm thinking we have to go after things required more often, like the scratch n scroll for nerds that can't remember where they put a pen or pencil....but at least you use the thing everyday.

r schober 2009-08-06T14:28:53-04:00
Is the Quirky logo really going to be on the melon knife? And where is this product going to be manufactured if it ever reaches the pre-sales goal of 300 units?

Jessica Parsons 2009-08-04T15:28:00-04:00
Wow, this is a product I really can't get behind. And I have a lot of kitchen gadgets.

Egen Celia 2009-08-04T01:39:01-04:00
I don't think they really needed too much capital--it will never be manufactured if no one ends up interested. :(

Jeanne-Elise M. Heydecker 2009-08-03T22:40:53-04:00
I can't believe these guys actually kept going through with the development of this product. They must have a lot of venture capital to burn through. They'll probably have everyone at the company purchase one just to show that SOMEONE likes this crappy idea. Scratch that - the original idea had promise. What they did to it was horrendous.

eric tsoi 2009-07-24T23:13:37-04:00
have you thought about an integrated toothpick holder so you can pick up pieces of melon without using a fork or your bare hands? I also cant see what is wrong with using a cheese wire or something similar. The wire does not have to be sharp as you are only trying to remove the rind from the flesh. Last time i ate a water melon (yesterday) the flesh was pretty soft and almost foamy - on account of the bubbles. I think the product could just be a simple board with a bowl to hold the melon (like the first few designs) with a retractable wire to cut and remove the rind from the melons. The skin of the melon could be tough to cut initially, however there could be an integrated ridge on the board to start a small incision into the melon skin and from then on you could start using the wire.

alan berriochoa 2009-07-22T17:12:15-04:00
Oh, and I forgot to add that rinding a melon can be a lot simpler than we're making it out to be. After you cut the melon into slices, lay the slices flat on the cutting board. this way, you can cut straight down around the rind with something as dull as a butter knife without so much as the least wobble. I think a lot of the logic behind this device was devised under the pretense that everyone rinds a melon with the curved rind end of the melon down, when you can make its much much less dangerous, and a ton easier, just by laying the slice down on one of its flat flesh sides.

alan berriochoa 2009-07-22T17:02:32-04:00 | 1 Replies
I think we need only look at the Ouch Pouch to see how this will go. The Ouch Pouch started off as a light hearted take on a broken arm, and ended up as another "designer" sling. I use the term loosely, as the designs are so gaudy and flamboyant that they couldnt possibly match with anything you might wear. I get that the market for the melon master is a bit larger, but its another example of the product straying from its defining attribute. The Ouch Pouch was voted on for its humor, which it lost rather quickly, and the Melon Master was voted on for its simplicity. I ask you this. If the Melon Master, as it is, was proposed in the initial product evaluation, would anyone have voted for it? I find it humorous that the tagline is "Serve It Faster", when I could take a years dull knife and have a whole melon ready to serve in the time it would take to set the Melon Master up.

Jeanne-Elise M. Heydecker 2009-07-21T21:38:03-04:00
This is by far, the most stupid product I've seen. If I need to pull out a knife to do anything to a melon before using this product, then I don't need this product. What started out as a small, simple and elegant idea has become three different, large products with only one use. I think your in-house group should listen to contributors - we keep saying this product does not match original idea! Good luck with this.

Christi Helsel 2009-07-21T14:33:24-04:00
Oh, and one other angle at this -- you mentioned the following consumer issues: 1. liquid mess 2. safety concerns with large knifes 3. the melon wobbling & fumbling with getting a good grip 4. time taken to get the meat of the rind. 5. storage issues for utensils / tools 6. intimidating blades The original proposal was all about 1 product solving #4 & #5, but the new proposal is about 2-3 products solving #2, #3, and #6, with some solutions hitting #1. Maybe there are two concepts here, or maybe there is another part of the system that can be developed to handle #4 & #5, per the original idea?

Christi Helsel 2009-07-21T14:29:44-04:00 | 1 Replies
Ditto Nicolas's comments. I won't be a broken record, and I don't doubt that the Quirky team has researched a consumer need here that you are designing against, but I still think this is a different consumer need and a different product than what we initially voted in.

Ezra Karger 2009-07-19T20:20:28-04:00
Thanks for the info Ben.

Nicolas Vossen 2009-07-19T04:11:40-04:00 | 1 Replies
thanks for the feedback ben. I think there is no doubt in the community that you have talented stuff behind the scenes that try to get the best out of every idea that is selected by the community. but i am also sure that once in a while even Oxo developed a product, that might have been solving a need, but it did not become clear to the consumer. Or put another way... the advantages were offset by major disadvantages. You said something about the harmony between the community and the designer. well in this case i can see where your reaction comes from and what you are trying to do with the way you decided to take. we trust you and your team... but we also know what we would or would not buy for our kitchen. and that is the feedback we give you guys that you hopefully consider behind the scenes. problems with this product for me: 1) its three pieces that serve only ONE purpose so far... to cut a melon. this ratio is a bit off especially if i consider how often i eat melon per year. 2) this product will take up quite some space in my kitchen that is already stuffed with tooo much stuff. when i clean up my kitchen this appliance would be among the first i would consider troughing away since it takes up lots of space and only serves a minor purpose. 3) what is the price going to be for this product? are you sure people will pay $15 or more for this appliance? i know i would not. especially since i will not be able to take it along with me on a picnic or so. and that is the occasion where i personally eat most of the melon i eat. well of course that is my personal point of view here. i would appriciate, if from the community that agree to the your design proposition to speak up so that we can have a lively discussion going. I would like to see their reasons for supporting your design.

Stalias 2009-07-18T20:58:24-04:00
Thanks for responding, Ben. We await the unveiling of your final design combo, which will undoubtedly be cutting edge figuratively as well as literally. For what it's worth, however, liquid mess isn't a big deal at my house (especially now that I have those cool new Skoy paper sponges), I use a razor-sharp steel blade all the time (it doesn't intimidate me too much), and I store my knives near my lovely, large cutting board. I do, indeed, like the idea of doing something to "stop the wobble" -- which happens with apples and winter squash, as well -- and look forward to seeing that problem solved! But easy storage is a deal-breaker.