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Osmo

playosmo.com

41–50 of 111 posts

Re: Osmo

#41
post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This product definitely relies on the video to convey it's magic. If you don't watch the video, you won't get it.

I don't watch videos unless I'm first convinced by the text that they're worth watching. I doubt I'm alone in this. Why is it so hard to put one or two sentences that just tell me what you're talking about?

It's a safe bet that this product is not for you. Constructive comments are one thing, but anger over the fact that the value prop of a kid's game doesn't resonate with you is...awkward.

Re: Osmo

#42
Looks SO awesome! that's the kind of article i like to see on HN!.Looks great,cant wait my kids to try that.

Re: Osmo

#43

I love this so much. But, when I step back and look at what you're getting for $58, I'm wondering why I can't build one myself. It looks like I'll need an iPad stand, a small mirror, and a fisheye lens. Then, I'll just use the same apps as the other Osmo users.

Really? How much are a mirror that you have to fashion yourself, a fisheye lens, and an iPad stand going to cost you? And after you've found all that you still don't have the games. $58 shipped to you seems pretty reasonable to me.

Re: Osmo

#44
How do these games benefit from including a tablet? From what I can learn from the video the tablet assists you with counting points and lets you know when you've arrived at the right answer. Sure, it makes things more convenient. But what is wrong (from an educational point of view) with letting children add their points/checking their solutions themselves?

Re: Osmo

#45
post #44

How do these games benefit from including a tablet? From what I can learn from the video the tablet assists you with counting points and lets you know when you've arrived at the right answer. Sure, it makes things more convenient. But what is wrong (from an educational point of view) with letting children add their points/checking their solutions themselves?

It benefits the companies which sell tables and such games.

If the game benefits from it, I have my doubts.

Re: Osmo

#46

I don't understand all the hate in this thread. This is a clever and creative use of technology that combines a favorite toy (iPad) with the one thing it lacks: physical interaction with real world objects. From what I understand (I'm a new dad so I'm still reading and learning), this sort of thing is very important for a developing mind.

The educational world is besieged by companies convinced that their technology is not only the solution to our educational woes, but a fat business opportunity waiting to be exploited. Teachers in classrooms have been burned so many times by technology that fails to deliver and uneven implementation across the district, that they instinctively cover their wallets every time a new company shows up promising to "revolutionize" education.

Remember "Baby Einstein"? The company (owned by Disney) makes promises about how using their products will help develop young minds and was contradicted by researchers at the University of Washington. Lawsuits between Disney and UW followed, but Disney did ultimately offer refunds to parents that bought the DVD's. This is a classic example of a for-profit company making dubious claims about the educational value of their product.

And Educators get these proposals all - the - time. I've been in the educational/web space for 20 years, and frankly, nothing turns me off faster then saying your new start-up is going to solve education problems. Maybe it will, but you'd better be different then the long line of failed products before you...

Re: Osmo

#47
Not a bad idea in the last, but I strongly suspect my kids would be more interested in creatively disassembling the iPad than playing with Osmo.

Re: Osmo

#49
Needing to give kids an iPad raises all sorts of issues: Cost, breakage, internet exposure...

I would be very likely to buy a self-contained colored digital etch-a-sketch that logs everything ever drawn on it, which I can later put on my computer.

I know that would be very big brother of me, but it's for cute's sake!

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