The Doctor's Nano Recorder

[a64]

Oh lordy it's actually true.



Record secret messages and play them back using this replica Nano-recorder and save yourself from the Silent! Features lights, sound effects and ten second voice record. Requires 2 x AAA Batteries (not included). 5+

RRP £14.99 Expected 28 June 2011.

(from thedoctorwhosite.co.uk)

[Chandra]

One of the wierdest pieces of Who merchandise I have ever seen!

[Seb]

Woah... That's shocking, I am extremely surprised that CO or BBC would be happy about releasing Doctor Who merchandise that in any way resembles a gun. In many parts of the country, because it looks so similar to a gun to anyone who doesn't know better, that would be illegal to carry around...

[Matt]

Woah... That's shocking, I am extremely surprised that CO or BBC would be happy about releasing Doctor Who merchandise that in any way resembles a gun. In many parts of the country, because it looks so similar to a gun to anyone who doesn't know better, that would be illegal to carry around...

Seb, you seriously think the police are gonna stop kids from carrying around plastic things that look more like space blasters than a Browning or a Walther? If anything, kids are going to think they're futuristic space guns, and they're cool!

And if someone thinks that's actually a real gun...they haven't seen many guns.

[Seb]

Actually Matt I am serious, because I have experience with this. I've been involved with dramatic productions when the transportation of prop guns has been a major, major headache because of the strict laws and regulations.

It's not a case of the police wanting to stop kids playing with toy guns, it's more about the implications if someone gets it wrong. Yes this doesn't look much like a gun, but enough like one that someone could be mistaken. If someone looked out the window and saw a kid creeping along with a gun in their hand and phoned the police the operation that would follow would be unimaginably huge.

The police have to take anything like that deadly seriously (look at what happens when people joke about bombs in airports), so the rules are just there to avoid major situations.

There are obviously toy guns on the market, and I don't have a problem with them at all, but I'm just very surprised that the Doctor Who name has been put to something that looks like a weapon. It just seems to go against some of the rules we've heard from the BBC before.

[Matt]

Yes, but the main difference has to be that theatrical props are designed to look like actual guns, whereas this is a plastic space blaster that makes sounds like (I quote) "Whooshhhhh...", a factor kids will be using all the time, as well as the voice recording function.
If I looked out of my window and saw 8-year old kids running about with a gun going "Whooshhhh" and them speaking into it, I wouldn't call the police because it's obvious that it's a toy. I'll accept there are some bits that look slightly realistic (the lock style bit) but having a whole round barrel with glowing stuff...you can tell they've designed it so that it doesn't actually look like a gun.

[Dalek101]

These look nothing like real guns and I really don't think someone would see them as real and ring up the police, you would have to be pretty stupid and paranoid to do so.

I think it looks ok but again another piece for kids really, so ill pass

[DalekSupreme08]

It's for kids, really, the only role play items I ever get are Sonics, so I won't get it.

[timelord6]

Looks great, will get this. (Notice how it doesn't effect my maturity to say so)

[Dalek Thay]

It is strange. If it doesn't feel light and plasticy it will certainly be one of the best pieces of merchandise in recent months.

[Sontar Ha]

Looks good, but I wouldn't use it, so a pass for me.

[a64]

Well it looks pretty cool. But completely unnecessary - I barely remember it from the episode. And recording messages wasn't what it did! But at least it does something other than shoot people, as opposed to practically every other gun (like the squareness gun which would have been cool).

[The Professor]

Hmmm. It looks interesting, but I'm not sure about whether I'd get it.
On the note of the 'realism' and similiar problems, they do have to take large steps with that kind of thing. Anything weaponlike is taken seriously - it has to be. A (slightly unrelated) story I read in a DW biography book, was that Matt Smith was arrested because he was caryying the sonic screwdriver prop in his pocket, and on the X-Ray it looked like a weopon. He was only relesed when he showed the guards DW merchandise with his face on.

On a brighter note, the recording idea is clever, presumably meaning if the Gallifreyan Hypercube is realeased then it will possibly have a recording part!

[dalek gor]

I can safely say my £14.99 is gonna be spent on something better, I dont like this very much as Seb said, it looks too much like a gun and could be mistaken for one from far away.

Gun laws in Scotland are brutal now because of all the airgun incidents and the potential risk of another terrorist attack in Glasgow...

[DWDVD]

Umm, okay I wasn't expecting this to come out... That's unexpected... and a little bit confusing to us, because I thought they weren't allowed to bring out guns...?