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Awesome Design for a Multifunctional Transforming Utility Cart. Yea or Nay?

By Rain Noe - May 6, 2016

in Product Design | Crowdfunding

For a society that lives in a digital, dematerialized age, we still have to carry heavy stuff around from time to time. There are a variety of wheeled, sometimes improvised contraptions we use to help us with this; I can't be the only person that's used a skateboard as a dolly, or tried overloading a handtruck with a bungee cord clusterf*ck.

What would be useful is a single object that could help us perform a variety of hauling tasks and that could adapt to cargo of different sizes. Maybe this is it. Check out the EROVR, a transformable mixed-use cart and very impressive piece of industrial design:

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I'm digging the multiple configurations of the design, not to mention that it can be attached to a bike.

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The little design touches like the waterproof compartments and the pop-off, swappable wheels indicate a lot of thought went into the UX. I could see myself using one of these constantly, particularly on busy days down at the studio.

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Now for the skepticism:

While the EROVR can be had for $195 on IndieGogo, the MSRP is expected to be twice that. I'd have no problem paying $400 for something so useful that I would keep and use for the rest of my life, as I would with a sturdy hand truck--but the EROVR only comes with a one-year warranty.

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Given that this is meant to haul heavy stuff, it ought be built to take a beating. All of those moving parts enable clever configurations, but the designers or shrewd consumers in all of us cannot help but see those as potential points of failure, particularly where metal is joined with plastic. For the manufacturer to only guarantee they'll hold together for 52 weeks is, in my opinion, far too short for a utility object.

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I have a diminutive female friend who often shops for herself in bulk. The walk from her parking lot to her apartment is a long, obstacle-strewn odyssey, and she uses one of those lousy granny carts that looks as if it will fall apart at any moment. I'm tempted to get an EROVR for her as a Christmas gift--they're projected to ship in December--but can't decide if I should roll the dice.

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Crowdfunders, however, have spoken. The EROVR has been nearly 400% funded, with $191,644 pledged at press time on a $50,000 goal.

In any case, what say you? Given what little we can see in the video, do you reckon this object will stand up over time? Do you feel a one-year warranty is just par for the course these days, and that we must live with the risk of disposability?

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Comments

Christopher Smith

8 years ago

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I admire how it's able to transform from, say a hand cart to a wagon etc - but from my point of view, it's a bit of a complex solution to a simple problem. When I (rarely) find myself needing a large cart (of my own), I usually grab a sheet of plywood and screw on some casters. When I'm done, the plywood gets used for some other project, and the casters get put away for the next time.

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Rich Eng

8 years ago

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Agree with Adam on this one. Such a complex product offered by a fresh company, you're bound to break something and be left with little recourse.

It seems to be well designed and the parts seem sturdy enough, but any cost-cutting measures like using sub-par screws that will shear and rust will make or break a product like this.

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Adam Kemény

8 years ago

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While I can see the appeal of a product that promises to do so much I can't help but be concerned that it's far too complicated to be fundamentally robust. The various devices that it attempts to replace are simple in their construction with strong welds and very few moving parts for good reason. Also, multi-purpose products are rarely anywhere near as good as those that do just one thing.

I hope I'm wrong but I'd bet that it's vastly expensive to produce so it will be a challenge to actually deliver to backers.

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Harvey Chapman

8 years ago

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It weighs 25 lbs *empty*.

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