Lego to cut 1,400 staff as decade-long sales boom ends

I recently got the Jimu MeeBot Kit [1] for my kids which sells via apple.com and costs $130. Two weeks later the Lego Boost launched on Aug 1, priced at $160 [2].

The difference between the two kits is night and day. Lego is leap years ahead in build quality, the app experience, programability and flexibility. It can fire a dart, has vision+color sensor, has a touch sensor and a servo motor. It support 5 different models including a guitar, robot, cat and so forth.

The Jimu MeeBot by contrast comes with 6 servos but no sensors and the build quality is fairly poor compared to the lego. There is little else to build with it.

However, Lego has done a poor job marketing the Boost. No one really knew about the Lego Boost launch, there was no one at the stores on launch day to get one -- it was a complete non-event. The product page for the Boost is a cookie cutter page. This is their biggest category launch in a long time -- electronic, programmable kit for kids with a new app to go with it -- and they failed have a dedicated product page with all the cool stuff it can do.

With all the rage around STEM learning and iOS apps, it's a shame to see the work force suffer for lack of marketing and awareness.

I have been through a couple of stem toys including the OSMO which I really love. Lego could give all of these segments a pretty good run but they just aren't getting their message out there.

[1] https://jimurobots.com/product/meebot-kit/ [2] https://shop.lego.com/en-US/BOOST-Creative-Toolbox-17101