Originally Posted by ogaugeguy:
quote:
So, I guess only a neophyte such as myself would order something meant to be a Christmas gift if it's release date was scheduled so close to the holiday itself?
Probably true, but new people have no way of knowing that unless they specifically asked a lot of people that question up front. Initial instincts when not familiar with the trend would be to trust the dates predicted. As Mario states, this is quite commonplace, but there would be no way for someone new to the hobby to know that. (If I saw any new product declaring a shipment of next summer right now, I'd also be hesitant to order it for a Christmas 2013 intended gift - you just happened to pick one that was close to begin with)
quote:
Interesting that other items in that same catalog and presumably from the same Chinese factory have been released as schedule. Wonder how much the pre-order popularity of an item has to do with it being released when scheduled? Am guessing whether those less popular with fewer advance orders and possibly a smaller production run such as what I ordered are moved to the back of the line in order that more populat items receive priority. But hat's a matter of personal conjecture I'll never know the answer too.
None of us will ever have true insight into the factory inner workings, but it's quite probable that it is based on the level of return for a given activity. If the factory can deliver 1000 of something vs 100 of something (presuming they collect their money on delivery), they're likely to set up to do the 1000 run first, since the more intense effort is likely in the setup to produce a given item(vs. the repeated production of a single item once set up). This probably spreads across other items they may be manufacturing as well, since it's not a single factory with one manufacturer's name on the door.
Hopefully you can find a suitable replacement gift this year. I'd look at the bright side: you found out now. If it had been November and then slipped to December, would you have waited and then been under a real time crush when it didn't come in December?
-Dave