Truly, advertising has a way of getting into our system. At least a year ago, I witnessed a product demo at Ace Hdwe., SM City. Steam Iron Brush fascinated me good. For someone who spends considerable time ironing clothes-it takes 30 minutes for me to iron a polo (shirt) and another 20 minutes to iron my pair of slacks-seeing someone do an item in less than a minute really made a lasting impression. So I said to myself “I’ll buy one of those. ” Besides it has other functions which caught my fancy, it also disinfects clothes with its steam. Great product, or so I thought.
Last week, my foot got entangled at my flat iron‘s cord hanging by the shelf as I passed by it. The poor flat iron dropped on the floor with a loud thud; some of its spare parts ran on all directions on the floor. After the initial shock, I muttered to myself this is the time to buy that “magic” iron. Having some cash to spare, I rode my motorbike the next morning and went straight to Ace Hdwe, SM City.
The moment I encountered a sales clerk, I requested for a product demo of a steam iron brush. I was immediately ushered to the corner of the product. So it carries a brand name “Edmark Steaming Iron Brush.” The young man told me the demo person is not in the store but because I need the item very badly and because I have witnessed its magic many months ago, I just made sure there is a written instruction inside the box, then I bought it. Maybe I could figure out using it by myself.
As I got home I began to painstakingly read the instructions. The steps were not well-written so I googled for instructions and You Tube offered 3 videos; two of which were made just for fun (read: no educational value whatsoever), and one is recorded in Arabic (see video below) but I did not understand a single word.
Useless. So I went back to the brochure. And after reading it a few times I understood it somehow. So I tried to use it. But I couldn’t duplicate the slick feats of the sales person the last time I saw it. Well, I thought I could use some demo, so I heaved a sigh-that’s for the wasted moments-and went back to the store for a demo. Ok, the demo guy has arrived; so he showed me the wonderfully awesome tricks of the Edmark Steaming Iron Brush. Whoa! Thank you very much! I thanked the guy for impressing me much and convincing me, and went home smiling. He even told me to remember to keep the receipt. Even the sales crew seem to be happy; some of them look like they were having a great morning. I noticed even the guard on the entrance seem to be so cheerful. As if they were all happy for me. This is a nice day, I said to myself.
Home. Because I had to iron some clothes I’ll be using the next day, I immediately plugged the wonderfully awesome product that’s called “Edmark Steaming Iron Brush.
” Wow. Or should I say “whew!” All water in the reservoir has steamed out and 45 minutes later my poor shirt did not change much. It looked like a crumpled shirt, what else. I could have been doing something wrong. Maybe I am missing some steps. Had I been using a flat iron, this shirt could be hanging wrinkle-free and ready to use. Well, maybe it is better I bring this polo to the store so I can see how the man would handle it. Really bright idea, I learned later. My instincts told me to bring everything, the item, the free giveaway, my polo shirt, and the receipt.
So back to the store I went.
The magician, err the sales man was out on a break, so I looked on some nice flat irons and winked at each of them as I waited for David Blane. What do you know, many of the models got their steam versions too. Enthusiasm. The trickster, este, the sales man is taking too long so a sales lady tried to help me iron my sloppy polo. The guard even remarked, wow, new polo! The lady said it belongs to me. Another sales clerk remarked, nice shirt! Jag. Well what do you know, the lady cannot do it either! Hm. That’s an eye-opener. She can’t do it, and that explains why I can’t either.
Bling! “Sir!” David Blane suddenly spoke beside me. So he’s back. “Hi, can you teach me how to iron this shirt? Somehow I cannot do it as good as you did on the articles on your rack.” He gave the shirt a thorough size up-front and back, as if to plan how to authoritatively undertake the challenge before him. By this time, some other store personnel have gathered around us. We breathtakingly awaited to applaud. Or to watch David Blane’s downfall. And he in fact, manifested some struggle with it. The “magician” muttered that my polo has a difficult fabric, cotton. So? Did I hear him right? Cotton? It cannot handle cotton? Don’t we all wear and prefer cotton? Most of my clothes are cotton, btw. Pardon the redundancy. That’s how irritating the situation was.
I thought it can handle any fabric- lace, barong, corduroy, maong, et. al. After all there were all kinds of clothes in fabrics of all kinds hanging on his magic rack. How could the humblest cotton be singled out. A portion of the shirt got wrinkle-free alright, but the front band where the buttons are, the stitch line on the upper back, and the collars cannot be pressed neatly. These parts remained “manhid” (crumpled). Wow, David Blane lost his suave sales pitch and tried in vain. He was even assisted by a sales lady.
I’ve had it, so I declared I have decided to exchange the item for a flat iron (from the ones I winked at earlier). And what do you know, I will get to save at least 200 bucks for a very good steam iron. The magician cum sales man objected to my plan. He declared that the shirt was ironed and ready for use; to which I “violently” reacted. He said we had a good product demo earlier and that I’ve seen it perform (with flying colors). Besides this, he also said unwinnable arguments like I change my mind too quickly, and that the shirt I brought is a crumpled-style shirt and that it looked alright and ready to wear after his failed attempt to make it wrinkle-free. I asked aloud, would you wear that to work? (In that crumpled state, I meant). No one from the store personnel gathered around us dared butt in the argument. Well, after I challenged him to see the same shirt in nearby Jag department, and see how good it looks on its un-crumpled glory, I said matter-of-factly that I will not take the magic iron home, end of argument.
In jest, I said, maybe there is magic in that clothes rack. Defeated (and surely annoyed), he said he would call his superior, so he stood by the phone to do that. I took about 10 minutes before he finally held the phone to call his boss. He went back to me and allowed me to take a flat iron in exchange for the wonderfully amazing Edmark Steaming Iron Brush; but he’s got to win somehow and he said I need to take other items to offset the price. In short, no balance reimbursement. I said, “No I’m not taking any other item, just refund me my balance,” a sales lady butted in and informed me I cannot be reimbursed.
I said matter-of-factly that it’s illegal not to. (I know my consumer rights, nice try.) Realizing they are in on a no-win situation, my promo merchandizer gave up and curtly told me to get my flat iron.
And choose my good looking Dowell Steam Iron I did while David Blane sadly returned the ESIB on its lonely shelf.
As I waited for the product to be handed to me, the store manager approached the cashier’s desk to sign my receipt. But before doing so, he cordially asked maybe I wanted to buy some other items to which I answered No. Got my item, thanked the cashier and left immediately. Whew, what a long day to buy a steam iron.
Still nothing can replace the good old flat iron. Meanwhile, the Edmark Steaming Iron Brush as I have found out is all wet.
latmario said:
Photo credit and thanks to elaine77@sulit.com.ph
kris said:
hi latmario! thanks a lot for sharing your personal experience regarding esib. good for you that you know your right as a customer 🙂 i was about to buy 1 until i’ve stumbled upon your blog.
more power & GOD bless! 🙂
latmario said:
You’re the most welcome, Kris. Glad to be of help to you. Thanks for dropping by.
kris said:
You’re also welcome! 🙂 your website is worth dropping by.
Have a great day & GOD bless! 🙂
Jon said:
Hello! I was about to buy ESIB and I was just surfing around to know how much it is (so that I could bring enough money to purchase it), then I came across your article and it’s making me think twice. How much yung Dowell Steam Iron? What specifically makes it different from ESIB? What can you say about your new steam iron? 🙂 Sorry for asking so many questions. 🙂
latmario said:
Hi, Jon! Well, I got the Dowell Steam Iron for PHP800. And it has been doing excellently since Day One. ‘ESIB’ is a lot more complicated to operate than the conventional flat iron as Dowell, but the latter is very reliable. I also have the option to use or not to use the steam function. There. Thank you Jon for dropping by. Your questions are welcome 😉
Jon said:
Thanks! 🙂
Tintin Espiritu (@tinespiritu) said:
Hi Sir! I bought the same iron steam brush 3 days ago and it was just now that I decided to try it. I tried to follow the instructions written on the manual but as you said, it wasn’t really that helpful. So what I did was to first remove the part with the red stuff (I think that one’s the lint remover) and disconnected the section where the water should be filled, filled that with water and reattached it to the steam brush’s head and then dried off the tiny droplets of water. I then plugged the brush (220V). The instructions said wait for at least a minute for the red button to be turned off, but it was only a few seconds when the red light was no longer active. Then I pressed the sort of lever and steam came out of the holes. But I noticed the steam wasn’t hot at all and the brush’s head was unusually hot and it smelled funky/ burnt. Do you think this is a factory defect or did I do something wrong? Please advise since I do not want to complain at the store, only to find out it was a mistake on my end. I appreciate your reply, Sir!
http://tinypic.com/r/vy6qf8/6
http://tinypic.com/r/rct2cm/6
latmario said:
Oh my! Tintin, you look like another disgruntled customer; sorry about that. I would like to help out, I checked the images but know what(?), I cannot really give you an authoritative advise but this: you have every right to ask for help from the people who sold you that product. All of your concerns should be courteously addressed by those people because you paid for it; after-sales service included.
Sorry but as much as I wanted to help you out, after 11 months, the details of this steam iron brush had started to blur in my memory. If you are unsatisfied, you have the right to return it. And smelling burnt wires is enough reason to have it replaced. Best regards.
Tintin Espiritu (@tinespiritu) said:
Thanks for the quick reply, Sir! I’ll go to the store, hopefully, everything turns out well. Again, thank you!
edong espiritu said:
we bought one a few years ago, we have not used it. i tried using it now, but it does not work. that is why i searched the internet for some answers, or instructions. then i saw your blog. this sucks!
latmario said:
It does. I know the feeling, Edong. Sorry about that.
Aura said:
wanna know hoe to refill the water? thanks.
latmario said:
I’m very sorry Aura, I just had a few hours to hold the item for I returned it the same day I bought it. And after a year I can’t recall its parts anymore.
Adam said:
literally was going to go out and buy it in few hours or so and thought maybe I should check out first then I stumbled on this page. Thank god and thank you.
latmario said:
You’re welcome , Adam. 🙂
iRish28 said:
woah I should have research for this before I bought the item yesterday ***sigh**** =( thoughit kinda work for me but not as neat as the flat iron
latmario said:
oops, sorry ’bout that. but maybe you can still return it. do it asap though.
bing said:
i also have the same experience as you, i need it badly and was drawn with the magic that is happening in the demo booth. the first time i used it, i want to make myself believe that it actually works but just this morning, it didnt really do anything for my uniform. 😦 so i guess i should stop fooling myself. i hope SM will not put a fight when i want to exchange it a good iron.
alongsky0225 said:
Hello Sir, I don’t want to contradict you, But the Edmark Steam Iron I’ve been using has been very good to me. It has been years I’ve been using this product, I have used this product to all of my clothes including my daughter’s uniforms and acceptably came out good and pressed very nicely. However I do agree with you the Sales personnel should have not argued with you thereby resulting negative customer satisfaction. I am humble Single dad with two beautiful daughters, upkeep of our clothes is really tasking with a simple flat iron but the Edmark Steam Iron really saved a lot of time for me.
latmario said:
Well, good for you, Sir (alongsky0225) if the ESIB lived up to the expectations of a wonderful product. Sadly, I was not as fortunate (so to speak) as you are. I was totally disappointed. I’m saying “Hi!” to your two adorable daughters over there. Thanks for dropping by. 🙂
Yang F said:
where can you buy dowell ?
Ella said:
Hi Sir, I was about to purchase one online as well, thank goodness I came across your article here. Sometimes what the demo people do are trickery and do not stay true when we do it ourselves. I have been thinking about it for sometime after I have seen several demos at the mall. Looks promising, but well, with what you have experienced, I think I’d rather get a conventional flat iron that works. Else I will end up with a useless, pricey item that I can’t really use – another junk on my closet.
Thank you for the good review!
latmario said:
You’re welcome, Ella! Thanks for dropping by. 🙂
latmario said:
Yang, here in the Philippines, it’s readily available in every mall. Thanks a lot for passing by. 🙂
Kirstie said:
Hello Latmario, this is a very detailed story of your experience with the Edmark Steam Brush. No wonder I had a hard time steaming my clothes which were cotton. I actually only used it once since I couldn’t make it crumple free. But I had it for more than a year now, and it’s just in my closet ever since. Wow, next time I see that sort of demo they have in the store, I know by then it’s just some deceiving act to blind the customers of its “wonders”. Thank you again for writing this blog. Hopefully maybe the bigger steamer works better than this portable ESIB.
yen said:
Hello Sir, Thank you for sharing your article. Buti nalang hindi pa ako nakabili ng product na yon…
silverhopes said:
Thank you so much for sharing your experience. My dad has been a victim of false hope as you have, and here we are struggling to make this work. You, are our savior, saving us from further days of struggle and strife to make this “Edmark steam brush” work.
silverhopes said:
Thank you so much for sharing your experience. My dad has been a victim of false hope as you have, and here we are struggling to make this work. You, are our savior, saving us from further days of struggle and strife to make this “Edmark steam brush” thing work.😂😂😂
Rammie said:
Hi!!! We just bought the same item and the water is leaking I accidentally burned myself while trying to make it work!!!and the light indicator thingy is broken too!! I’m so frustrated right now because we bought it for 1000 pesos!!
Allie said:
Bought this a few days ago…Thought it’ll do the job for me…but nahhh this is a total waste of money…Can’t even iron out my boy’s school uniform…Went back to traditional flat iron…Ggggrrrr this product is good as trash!! And I will go back to the store and do exactly what you did…thanks for this blog 🙂
latmario said:
You should. You’re welcome.
Ashley Madison said:
I really love this invention, It helped me a lot! Steam Irons are portable and easy to use compared to the normal ones. I bought my Steam Iron at goods.ph because I don’t have time on ironing my husband’s polos. I’m not great at ironing clothes, including clothes in a big size. Thank you so much for this wonderful post, it is very informative. It will definitely help other moms out there.
Ford said:
Thanks a lot po for this sir! All i thought ok siya. I am thinking to buy one. Pero pangit pala. Thank you! 😀
Dennis Matthew Monzon said:
Greetings Sir! Thank you very much for sharing and showing us the correct way to assert customer rights and spending the time and effort to be bring this matter in their face. Playing devils advocate, this is one of the many things demonstrated to us live (and on TV) that is very convincing and simply hard to resist. There is something innovative that mesmerizes us to go ahead and pay for the overpriced and not very useful item. Something we discard once the novelty wears off. This is similar to Multilevel Marketing that comes and goes every now and then leaving plenty of souls in pain and misery. Specific to the steam brush, there are other brands for sale and you will see several demo’s on YouTube as shown above. Since we have access now to tons of information, it would certainly help if we ask e.g. type “feedback edmark steam brush” and you will come across an article from a kind soul just like this one from Mr Latmario. Now, if the urge is just too much to resist and there is no convincing review available, you may contain the risk by getting a pre-owned item. Goodluck and Godbless!!!
Gussy said:
Just bought one today as a surprise for my nanny para di sya magkaroon ng hard time sa pag-iron ng clothes which turned out oppositely. As I was trying it myself para idemo sa kanya. Pag assemble ko pa lang ng product hirap na ko. Maingat kasi ako sa mga bagay lalo na if di ko pa ito gamay kaya binibaby ko pa ng bongga. I thought may laman pang water ung steaming iron nang na-plug ko kasi tinest muna un before ko bayaran e. Wala pang 1 minute tinanggal ko na agad sa saksakan kasi napansin ko na wlang lumalabas na steam, so what’s weird lng kasi kahit di na sya nkasaksak e painit ng painit lng sya.. No joke! Parang plantsa ung init which was scary dahil baka sumabog na lang ito bigla. I placed some water then tried it without plugging it ha. And naloka ako, kumulo ung tubig at naihagis ko sa init ung SIB sa takot and gulat. Honestly, by reading this insight and with my personal experience.. Sobrang nakakadisappoint talaga 😦 Nakakaawa ung ng-demo sakin na salesman kasi I know naman na gusto lng nya kumita ng money thru his work. Mabait sya at helpful. Pero sana wg sila maging deceiving sa customers. 😦 Nakakasira ng tiwala. 😦 Sad. Di ko alam if I’ll return it. Might as well tell him about the problem and fix it this glitch asap. I’ll be back to post an update regarding its outcome. Thanks!
Randy said:
Planning to buy one today then I saw this. Buti nalang may Google. Thanks for sharing!
Mae De Sesto II said:
I had one like this. Works pretty well. I don’t use the other appendage as I find it unnecessary.
Works on suits, dress shirts, my dresses, even my sister in law’s wedding gown. My husband also uses it. It did mess up at first but he got it the second try. So hindi sya pangit, nasa paggamit lang sir.
Benz said:
HI thank you for your blog, i bought this yesterday and started to use for my uniforms, ang masasabi ko lang maganda siyang gamitin kong ikaw ay nagmamadali para sa isang pares na kasuotan, pero di siya advisable sa pang maramihan kc mabilis lng maubos ung tubig nya.. lagi ka lang nagre-refill. da best parin yung flat iron.