Are pink game gadgets sexist, silly, or neither?
If you’re a girl, does that mean you like pink things?
And if you like pink things, does that make you a girl?
Game Guy has wondered about this lately since a pink video game modification for an Xbox 360 controller, revealed last week, stirred some mild discussion online. The mod, described as a gamer’s gift to his girlfriend, received praise for its craftsmanship and aesthetic improvement over Microsoft’s commercially produced pink controller.
But then Game Guy noticed the mod maker, in describing the development process, implied his effort was a certain winner because his significant other is a “girly” 26-year-old. Other bloggers who keyed in on the mod said that effort and craftsmanship aside, they were sure the target of the modder’s affection was “going to be a very happy lady” the moment she saw what he had done.
We at Game Guy HQ are loath to deny Americans their constitutionally protected right to own pink things; after all, pink’s just a color like red, white, blue and cosmic latte. Haven’t we gotten past the thinking though that pink is necessarily a “girl” color, or that anything in pink hues will attract women like Axe body spray?
Today, it’s possible to own pink gaming devices, pink mobile phones, even pink barbecues, all made mainly to turn a girl’s or woman’s head. But Game Guy wants to ask his readers if these gadgets really do that — or would consumers prefer the kind of marketing that’s aimed at females to be a little more focused on function instead of color?
My girlfriend and I went out cell phone shopping last week, they had 6 phones for her to choose from. She chose the purple phone. Why, because it was purple. It was the least technological of all the phones but it didn’t matter because it was purple.
I looked at the ground in disgust while she did this.
I am a woman, and color plays a part if you have a favorite color, or want to coordinate it with something like a favorite purse and it is your cell phone. Also, a lot of woman want to be different or seen as an individual from the rest of the group and choose a far out unusual color.
If she choose a specific color like purple and did not care that say all the gadgets where on the cell phone, than she was choosing her favorite color.
Personally, I have my favorite colors. For me, it depends on what it is as to whether I choose a favorite color or not.
Honestly, I’m tired of the pinkwashing.
I mostly object to marketers and manufacturers using pink or other “girly” colors as a way to get into the female brain and pocketbook. They’re assuming a lot. I am a girl. I love to wear pink and used to have pink sheets, for pete’s sake. But I don’t want the color anywhere near my video games. I don’t want my PS “girlified.” I don’t want a laptop that has a pink background and butterflies on the lid. Just because I have a vagina does not mean that I am six years old.
Having an array of colors for products can be a wise move for manufacturers. When one can choose from black, silver, blue, green, red and yes pink, that’s awesome. But when a manufacturer doesn’t do the rainbow and specifically develops one lame pink/star/heart/swirly/butterfly version of a product JUST to get to their female audience, it leads me to believe that they really haven’t studied their target. It’s insulting. That, in turn, makes me less likely to purchase said product.
Feel free to apply this rant to sports team jerseys, as well.