Sturdy Glassware, Disintegrating Feature, ThinkGeek Disappoints With The Battle Of Hoth Pint Glasses [2017 Review This Again]!

The Good: Good initial artwork, Good glassware
The Bad: Expensive for pint glasses, "Function" does not work properly, Not dishwasher safe, Incredibly poor durability - decals wear off completely!
The Basics: The Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glasses from ThinkGeek quickly degenerate into pretty standard pint glasses, making for a disappointing investment.


[There is a big meme in the art community going around now called "Draw This Again." In the meme, artists illustrate how they have grown in their chosen medium by putting side-by-side pictures of art they created in the past and now. My wife had the great idea that I should do something similar with my reviewing. So, for 2017, I will be posting occasional "Review This Again" reviews, where I revisit subjects I had previously reviewed and review them again, through a lens of increased age, more experience, and - for some - greater familiarity with the subject. This review is one such review, where I am re-experiencing ThinkGeek's image-changing Star Wars pint glasses. These glasses were originally reviewed here!]

My wife is pretty incredible in terms of finding gifts for me, despite me being a tough person to shop for. Despite that, she often finds fun things to give me and it always stinks when she makes the effort and the gift turns out to be a lemon. Such, however, is the case with the Star Wars Battle Of Hoth pint glasses. My wife picked me up a pair of the ThinkGeek Star Wars Battle Of Hoth pint glasses, but within a month of hand-washing the glassware, the decals on them had completely worn off, making them virtually indistinguishable from other, plain clear-glass pint glasses.

The Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glass Set Of 2 are two identical pint glasses that feature artwork from The Empire Strikes Back (reviewed here!). The pint glasses are predominantly blue and white and feature the AT-AT's coming across the ice plains of Hoth with a snowspeeder headed toward them.

The Star Wars Pint Glass Set Of 2 features artwork that is identical to the promotional photos of the AT-ATs on Hoth that have appeared in books and things like toy boxes for years - since The Empire Strikes Back was released. The AT-ATs are silkscreened on heavy, clear glass. Each set of two is identical. As the name implies, each pint glass holds a little over two cups worth of liquid. A whole 16 fl. oz. fits into the glass. Wider at the top, the 5 3/4” tall clear glass drinking glasses are both identical, including the image silkscreened onto them.

The Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glass Set Of 2 was constructed with a color-changing gimmick. The snowspeeder is supposed to be invisible until a cold liquid is placed into the glass. Unfortunately, the snowspeeder is entirely visible, regardless of there being any liquid in the glass and while it is initially faint, it does get darker like it is supposed to. When a cold liquid is placed in the pint glass, the snowspeeder gets more distinct and darker, but it never truly fades to be anywhere near close to surprising for its appearance when a liquid is added. This was less of a detraction for me because the snowspeeder being visible the whole time looks authentic and cool - and is appropriate for the setting without any form of "cloaking."

Unfortunately, the Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glass Set Of 2 is entirely lacking on the durability front. It took less than a week of using and cleaning the pint glasses before each of them showed noticeable wear. While the snowspeeder on the glasses held up fine, the rest of the silkscreening showed some chips and scratches. The glasses are not dishwasher safe and having hand washed the pint glasses with softer cloths to try to avoid damage, it was especially frustrating that the glasses already show wear to the silkscreening. It took less than a month of use before the entire decal sleeve slid right off both of the glasses, making them just plain, dull pint glasses. This is entirely disappointing for any Star Wars fan who likes the concept and spends the money on them.

ThinkGeek appeared to rush the Star Wars Battle Of Hoth pint glasses to market before the technology was perfected, making for a gift that will ultimately disappoint their target audience.

For other kitchen supplies, be sure to visit my reviews of:
Buffy The Vampire Slayer Pint Glass Set Of 4
Star Trek Decloaking Klingon Bird Of Prey Mug
Norpro Deluxe Stainless Steel Baster Set

.5/10

For other kitchen product reviews, please be sure to visit my Kitchen Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Worthless After A Couple Weeks: The Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glasses Flop (2017 Review This Again!)

The Good: The glassware itself is durable and good.
The Bad: No durability outside the underlying glass, Expensive for pint glasses, "Function" does not work properly, Not dishwasher safe
The Basics: The Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glasses take about three weeks of washing before they are just plain glass pint glasses.


[There is a big meme in the art community going around now called "Draw This Again." In the meme, artists illustrate how they have grown in their chosen medium by putting side-by-side pictures of art they created in the past and now. My wife had the great idea that I should do something similar with my reviewing. So, for 2017, I will be posting occasional "Review This Again" reviews, where I revisit subjects I had previously reviewed and review them again, through a lens of increased age, more experience, and - for some - greater familiarity with the subject. This review is one such review, where I am re-experiencing ThinkGeek's image-changing Star Wars pint glasses. These glasses were originally reviewed here!]

Sometimes, in my enthusiasm to review something, I jump the gun on the product. That is pretty much what happened with the Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set. My wife bought me the Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set Of 2 and I was initially very happy with them despite the fact that the appearing Millennium Falcon feature did not actually work. But what ultimately made me re-review these pint glasses was simple: within three weeks of daily use and hand-washing (never in the dishwasher!) the sleeve-like image silk screened onto the clear glass pint glass was destroyed, having peeled off and leaving only a pretty much worthless pint glass.

The Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set Of 2 are two identical pint glasses that feature artwork based on The Empire Strikes Back (reviewed here!). The pint glasses are predominantly blue and white and feature the Millennium Falcon flying toward the Cloud City station hovering in the clouds of Bespin.

The Star Wars Pint Glass Set Of 2 features artwork that looks like the original optical painting of Cloud City silkscreened on heavy, clear glass. Each set of two is identical and features the same glass in duplicate. As the name implies, each pint glass holds a little over two cups worth of liquid. A whole 16 fl. oz. fits into the glass. Wider at the top, the 5 3/4” tall clear glass drinking glasses are both identical, including the artwork silkscreened onto them.

Unfortunately, the Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set Of 2 was constructed with a color-changing gimmick. The Millennium Falcon is supposed to be invisible until a cold liquid is placed into the glass. Sadly, the Millennium Falcon is entirely visible, regardless of there being any liquid in the glass and it is about as faint as the Cloud City station; which is deliberately hazy to give it a sense of perspective, being further back. When a cold liquid is placed in the pint glass, the Millennium Falcon gets more distinct and darker, but it never truly fades to be anywhere near close to surprising for its appearance when a liquid is added.

The Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set Of 2 is not at all durable. It took less than a week of using and cleaning the pint glasses before each of them showed noticeable wear, less than three weeks before the entirety of the silk screened images were gone, leaving only a clear glass pint glass behind. The Star Wars logo on the bottom remained perfectly intact, but the main image around the pint glass entirely disintegrated . . . and that was from hand-washing, as directed! The glasses are not dishwasher safe and having hand washed the pint glasses with softer cloths to try to avoid damage, it was especially frustrating that the glasses ended up without any of their imagery on them. By contrast, I've had a set of Buffy The Vampire Slayer pint glasses for over five years that have been washed by hand (and once a year in the dish washer) and not one of them has a scratch or chip in the artwork!

Fans of Star Wars are likely to fall in love with the concept of the Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set, but be utterly disappointed by the results of how even cleaning destroys the unique aspect of the glasses.

For other kitchen supplies, be sure to visit my reviews of:
Star Trek Decloaking Klingon Bird Of Prey Mug
CocoStraw Stainless Steel Straw Set
Buffy The Vampire Slayer Pint Glass Set Of 4

.5/10

For other kitchen product reviews, please be sure to visit my Kitchen Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2017 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Another Near-Miss From ThinkGeek: The Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glass Set!

The Good: Nice artwork, Collectible value
The Bad: Expensive for pint glasses, "Function" does not work properly, Not dishwasher safe, Poor durability
The Basics: The Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glasses from ThinkGeek are cute, but not durable enough to live up to all they promise.


Despite there being a ton of coffee mugs around my house, my wife still managed to find something new and cool for me to drink out of. For the holidays, she decided to further lessen our cabinet space by picking up some pint glasses for me. As I get into drinking more cold drinks (especially milkshakes!), she thought I should be drinking out of something other than coffee mugs. So, she picked me up two different sets of Star Wars pint glasses from ThinkGeek. While the Star Wars Cloud City pint glass set (reviewed here!) did not quite thrill me as much as I hoped based on its promised function, the Star Wars Battle Of Hoth pint glasses were pretty awesome, regardless of the lack of functionality to their special function. Like the other pint glasses, though, the Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glass Set Of 2 utilize a gimmick that does not work like it is supposed to.

The Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glass Set Of 2 are two identical pint glasses that feature artwork from The Empire Strikes Back (reviewed here!). The pint glasses are predominantly blue and white and feature the AT-AT's coming across the ice plains of Hoth with a snowspeeder headed toward them.

The Star Wars Pint Glass Set Of 2 features artwork that is identical to the promotional photos of the AT-ATs on Hoth that have appeared in books and things like toy boxes for years - since The Empire Strikes Back was released. The AT-ATs are silkscreened on heavy, clear glass. Each set of two is identical and features the same glass in duplicate. As the name implies, each pint glass holds a little over two cups worth of liquid. A whole 16 fl. oz. fits into the glass. Wider at the top, the 5 3/4” tall clear glass drinking glasses are both identical, including the image silkscreened onto them.

The Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glass Set Of 2 was constructed with a color-changing gimmick. The snowspeeder is supposed to be invisible until a cold liquid is placed into the glass. Unfortunately, the snowspeeder is entirely visible, regardless of there being any liquid in the glass and while it is initially faint, it does get darker like it is supposed to. When a cold liquid is placed in the pint glass, the snowspeeder gets more distinct and darker, but it never truly fades to be anywhere near close to surprising for its appearance when a liquid is added. This was less of a detraction for me because the snowspeeder being visible the whole time looks authentic and cool - and is appropriate for the setting without any form of "cloaking."

The Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glass Set Of 2 is not at all durable. It took less than a week of using and cleaning the pint glasses before each of them showed noticeable wear. While the snowspeeder on the glasses held up fine, the rest of the silkscreening showed some chips and scratches. The glasses are not dishwasher safe and having hand washed the pint glasses with softer cloths to try to avoid damage, it was especially frustrating that the glasses already show wear to the silkscreening.

Fans of Star Wars will probably excuse the lack of a true color-changing element to the Star Wars Battle Of Hoth Pint Glass Set because the snowspeeder looks good enough even slightly faded against the Hoth snowscape and the AT-ATs are just awesome. The glasses would have been perfect without the gimmick, but with the gimmick being a mild failure, these just become somewhat average pint glasses from ThinkGeek.

For other kitchen supplies, be sure to visit my reviews of:
Buffy The Vampire Slayer Pint Glass Set Of 4
Star Trek Decloaking Klingon Bird Of Prey Mug
Norpro Deluxe Stainless Steel Baster Set

5/10

For other kitchen product reviews, please be sure to visit my Kitchen Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Awesome (Unless You Want It For What It Promises!): ThinkGeek's Cloud City Pint Glass Set!

The Good: Nice artwork, Collectible value
The Bad: Expensive for pint glasses, "Function" does not work properly, Not dishwasher safe, Poor durability
The Basics: ThinkGeek rushed its Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glasses to market before the holidays last year . . . and it shows!


My wife is always looking for gifts for me because, as a collector who has a head start of over a decade of collecting, it can be hard to find gifts for me that I either don't already have or have not already dismissed. Last year, right before the holidays, it seemed like she struck paydirt in the gift department when she found a whole bunch of things from ThinkGeek for me. The first thing she was excited to give me was a set of two Star Wars Cloud City pint glasses. Unfortunately, the Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set Of 2 is based on a gimmick and the gimmick does not work like it is supposed to.

The Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set Of 2 are two identical pint glasses that feature artwork based on The Empire Strikes Back (reviewed here!). The pint glasses are predominantly blue and white and feature the Millennium Falcon flying toward the Cloud City station hovering in the clouds of Bespin.

The Star Wars Pint Glass Set Of 2 features artwork that looks like the original optical painting of Cloud City silkscreened on heavy, clear glass. Each set of two is identical and features the same glass in duplicate. As the name implies, each pint glass holds a little over two cups worth of liquid. A whole 16 fl. oz. fits into the glass. Wider at the top, the 5 3/4” tall clear glass drinking glasses are both identical, including the artwork silkscreened onto them.

Unfortunately, the Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set Of 2 was constructed with a color-changing gimmick. The Millennium Falcon is supposed to be invisible until a cold liquid is placed into the glass. Sadly, the Millennium Falcon is entirely visible, regardless of there being any liquid in the glass and it is about as faint as the Cloud City station; which is deliberately hazy to give it a sense of perspective, being further back. When a cold liquid is placed in the pint glass, the Millennium Falcon gets more distinct and darker, but it never truly fades to be anywhere near close to surprising for its appearance when a liquid is added.

The Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set Of 2 is not at all durable. It took less than a week of using and cleaning the pint glasses before each of them showed noticeable wear. While the Millennium Falcon on the glasses held up fine, the rest of the silkscreening showed some chips and scratches. The glasses are not dishwasher safe and having hand washed the pint glasses with softer cloths to try to avoid damage, it was especially frustrating that the glasses already show wear to the silkscreening.

Fans of Star Wars are likely to fall in love with the concept of the Star Wars Cloud City Pint Glass Set, but be dismayed by the execution of it.

For other kitchen supplies, be sure to visit my reviews of:
Star Trek Decloaking Klingon Bird Of Prey Mug
CocoStraw Stainless Steel Straw Set
Buffy The Vampire Slayer Pint Glass Set Of 4

3.5/10

For other kitchen product reviews, please be sure to visit my Kitchen Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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