Anybody else underwhelmed by 7346 Seaside House?

MrBerre

I just saw the pics for 7346 Seaside House -- http://www.brickset.com/detail/?Set=7346-1 -- by FBTB and it's rather a letdown: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/sets/72157629296577429/ . Considering the quality of the buildings in the Friends sets, this seems like a lazy rehash of existing ideas. Isn't this basically http://www.brickset.com/detail/?Set=4996-1 in blue?

luckyruss

My initial reaction was exactly the same as yours, in that I felt a bit disappointed by it. The "powder blue" does give it an odd (startling!) looking finish. Having thought about it a bit more I'm in two minds.

You could argue it fits well within the "creator" theme - they are generally simpler builds but with a good range of pieces you are able to make into alternative designs - maybe a reason it isn't white or tan! It does have a few nice touches (the shower and towel rail, etc, although the palm tree is a little clunky).

There could be an overlap with Friends, you could perhap imagine a few of the girls spending their summer vacation in a house like this...

LostInTranslation

I quite like it... but then again, I like Friends :)

MrBerre

Don't get me wrong: I like what I've seen of friends -- which is why 7346 Seaside House is such a letdown to me.

streeker

Set 7346 is $15-$20 more than 4996, and a 100 pieces less, to boot. Usually Creator is good value, but 415 pieces for $50, price creep steep is here to stay.

All said, the design is nice, a rustic beach cabin by the seaside. I can smell the salty air already.

cloaked7

Isn't this somewhat similar to the 'yellow' creator house? I didn't care too much for it either. It was the least appealing of all the houses. This one is near bottom for me as well. I like most of the houses, and even the cabin. But not the yellow one and this blue one. I will probably still get it, because I have all the houses. But, will catch it on sale.

sidersdd

I like it (other than the price). I like the Max like fig that comes with it too. My kids will be fighting over that one.

doriansdad

Having grown up on the beachside this really catches the essence of coastal living for me. Looking out at the waves to see if its worth going out for a paddle first thing in the morning....very nicely done!

bmwlego

I agree the price is steep for a Creator house. The yellow house was $30 for over 500 pieces. I like this set much more now that I know it isn't actually blue but the med blue. Don't think the red roof works. Maybe build a roof in black when I get it?

sidersdd

^ I agree, something more muted for the roof - white, tan, or light bley perhaps.

BrickDancer

^^^Definitely agree about the beachside feel, the waves were a nice touch.

I like this set a lot compared to the others except Appletree and Townhouse. The blue is striking and gives a California feel to it. But I do agree the roof should be a different color than bright red, like two other Creators before it.

rocao

At $50 for 000 pieces, the price per piece ratio of... *error: divide by zero*....

In all seriousness, I think it's well-executed considering its small footprint. It would certainly look nicer and, for those without suspension of disbelief, would look more plausible as a house if it were bigger. However, I think 32 studs wide would have been *too* big, and I'm assuming they wanted to maintain a 32 stud depth.

dougts

it's a cute little build, the (over)price point is disappointing - Creator line has generally been very good at supplying price/piece value, and being one of the last vestiages of actually acquiring 1x brick in any kind of length or quantity. 5770 last year had over 500 pieces for 39.99 USD, including a light brick. This set already has 100 less pieces, and "feels" about the same size - seems like that price point would have been the correct one.

Cam_n_Stu

I too like the colour choice, it reminds me of this house made famous in a BBC TV Children's Programme: http://www.bitmorecomplicated.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/DSCF0863.jpg that is set on the seaside.

However the price does seem very steep for such a small footprint. I wonder if the selling price will drop by $10 shortly after release like a few other sets have recently?

LukeSkywalker

Here's a photo.

starfire2

The CMF surfers would look cool in that house!

Blue1dot

Thanks for the link to the picture. I won't buy it, doesn't appeal to me aesthetically. Same reason I didn't get summer house or city house either, although I am glad to see some color varieties. They just don't compare to 4956 Creator House, or 4954 Model Townhouse. The blue seaside house reminds me of a clam shack, and comes at too high a price, but kids might like it, especially with the low piece number.

sidersdd

Is the water "blue" or "dark azure"?

llanowarsoldier

Oh look, still no baseplates being used for any sets besides Modulars. Looks like Harbor was last to use them for normal sets.

Matthew

^^ looks like dark azure - definitely not blue anyway.

The_Brick_Builder

It looks a little too crowded.

tk79

I like it, captures the beach villa feel pretty well. Roof could be considered a clay roof I suppose. Could be changed a bit to look more like this I suppose if you want the "real" look:

Si_UKNZ

Red and blue euurggh.
Another small house without a proper roof. Are roof bricks too expensive or something?

BrickDancer

@tk nice, I like that pic very much. Will try to MOC something similar using the new Seaside house.

What color would match best for the roof? The sand beige from PQ Pyramid or other?

Si_UKNZ

dark tan, dark brown, dark grey maybe

Cam_n_Stu

Actually until you wrote "Red and blue euurggh" I hadn't really thought about it like that but I suspect this will be even more jaring in real life than in the pictures. I am suprised a designer put those colours against each other in the first place - it is usually a bit of a No-No!

On reflection I think the red roof is supposed to be a red metal roof which you often find in tropical island locations.

mathew

Fugly and expensive. Looks like a 8 year old's MOC. Why can't Lego design a second floor terrace where the door can open all the way without hitting the railing? Too bad as I've recently re-discovered Lego and really like the older Creator series homes.

MrBerre

No offense people, but:

- "Isn't this somewhat similar to the 'yellow' creator house?" Hence the link to http://www.brickset.com/detail/?Set=4996-1 in my post

- "Here's a photo." I already linked to FBTB's Flickr set which has at least a dozen pics: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/sets/72157629296577429/

iElkie

It looks so tiny! I quite like the design but I don't think the 50 USD price tag is justified.

canuhandle23

ILL WAIT 18 MONTHS..AND GET IT FOR HALF OFF AT WALMART

Blue1dot

Another thing... what's with all these homes for single men (Seaside House, Log Cabin, Lighthouse, Hillside House) that Lego has been making lately? Would it cost too much to throw in a female mini fig too? And maybe a cat or dog once in awhile, especially at the shore, you need a dog to run along the beach with.

Yellowcastle

I wonder what the reason is behind the disappearing baseplates...

As for this set, I like it but not at $50.

aplbomr79

The color of the house is nice - I think it may be a first for the Creator homes. However, I am disappointed as well. The Red Roof is terrible... some other color (@BrickDancer) Sand Beige would have been great.

Not a ton of pieces, and the build seems (at glance) overly-simplistic in nature. It does go well with the recent Lighthouse and the Nautical Theme of 2011.

StuBoy

I agree with most that the red roof doesn't work. Tan or Dark Blue maybe? After looking more closely at the images I like the design more now than when I first saw it. I think it will fit a lot nicer into a City scene being a smaller size than the other monstrous Creator houses. It would look great along the beach from the Marina :)

As for the lack of baseplates - I got the feeling that by using standard plates they provided a few more pieces and scope for alternate builds.

@Bluedot Exactly! These sets would be perfect for a family (except Lighthouse, maybe), why not provide the figs?

Coolsplash

Looks cool with the colour scheme but its about time LEGO throws in some mini figs with the houses. But 50$ is a bit high.

bmwlego

My LUGmate told me that LEGO has a different company create baseplates. This is why they are so expensive and perhaps behind the reason for the switch to plates?

Legogeek

I remember watching a travel (?) program on TV one time that included a segment with these tiny summer cottages that were located along a river or beach - don't recall exactly where, maybe Denmark, Sweden, Finland, etc.... but they were small little 'houses' for a weekend visit, and many were bright colors - this Seaside House reminds me of those summer cottages.

Overall I like the set, but I agree with others that the price seems steep compared to what we've already seen. Maybe we're missing something and this house will have some sound or light feature we aren't yet aware of? Or maybe we've got the price all wrong & it'll sell for less! :o)

doriansdad

Well it shouldn't be too hard to get for 30% off in a sale before too long so price shouldn't really be an issue in the USA. A definite no but at RRP tho.

Odindusk

I don't have much input on this set, but I did want to say thanks for this thread existing at all. I was struggling to find the play in one of my active "Words with Friends" games with a rack of AEEIDS + [blank].

Then I saw it - SEASIDE. Boom. 76 points. Thanks again, Brickset.

BrickDancer

@odin I like your humor! "Tell us how you really feel"

MrBerre

I did want to say thanks for this thread existing at all. I was struggling to find the play in one of my active "Words with Friends" games with a rack of AEEIDS + [blank].

Then I saw it - SEASIDE. Boom. 76 points. Thanks again, Brickset.

You're welcome. LOL!

Matthew

ILL WAIT 18 MONTHS..AND GET IT FOR HALF OFF AT WALMART

Please refrain from posting all in capitals, as in internet speak you are shouting. Thanks!

Matthew
Mod

recon

It looks great but as others already have mentioned the price is a turnoff. These are basic brick sets. No prints. No specialty pieces(although this one has a crab and surfboard) or figs to tax on but yet with the houses they are starting a pattern of pricing them as if they do have what they typically use as a reason to inflate prices. I haven't had the desire to hunt down the Hillside House on sale and probably never will. Makes me appreciate the Lighthouse even more now!

madforLEGO

The set looks nice, I think the price can be said as disappointing, but then again Amazon will probably put them on sale for 35 dollars, so not too bad.

legirl

I quite like it! Agree that it is too expensive though

mathew

Are there any photos of the other builds? For something like the log cabin set I actually prefer the alternative builds.

MrBerre

Are there any photos of the other builds? For something like the log cabin set I actually prefer the alternative builds.

You can see the other builds on the box: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/6867655711/in/set-72157629296577429/ , especially if you pick the largest version of the photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fbtbnet/6867655711/sizes/o/in/set-72157629296577429/ They look rather pedestrian, though.

dougts

^ the one on the left is kind of baffling. It's basically just a smaller version of the main build really - not anything different at all, which is kind of disappointing.

I kind of like the one on the right - the little cabin with a separate surf shack and a little footbridge between them.

mathew

The one on the right looks alright I guess, but overall nothing special.

dougts

oh yeah, nothign special at all. i just like the concept.

skherbeck

I think this is a great set for anyone that built a City Harbor layout; for me, between my Town and Train layouts, I had no room to build a Harbor, which saved me a lot of money last year! Comparing this house and the Hillside House to previous Creator Homes, I think they are becoming much more simplistic and not as desirable.