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DALLAS - The commercial says: "an umbrella can keep you dry when it starts to pour, but it's a struggle to get it closed and into the door."
If that drippy, slippy mess is too much to manage, he makers of the BetterBrella say take a look at this.
The commercial says: "The ingenious new umbrella with reverse open close technology."
They've flipped the script and turned the umbrella's design upside down!
Kasie Jacobs knows a thing or two about design.
Kasie says: "We do pride ourselves on the experience of the showroom."
She's the showroom coordinator at Pirch. From faucets to ovens, ranges to rainheads, here, its all about interactivity.
Kasie says: "They can come in and use the steam shower. We can fill tubs for them."
Steve says: "People come in here and take baths?"
Kasie says: "Absolutely. They do it before showroom hours. In their bathing suits."
Then our ask should be easy to accommodate: we need to make it rain. But before we start...
Kasie says: "I brought my rainboots and my slicker, so I'm ready. A Girl Scout is always prepared. "It opens easy i like that."
But remember because of it's design, the BetterBrella should trap any water in an interior cone, saving you and your floors from getting wet!
Kasie says: "Just barely a drop and i think that was the shower's fault."
So, we try again and:
Kasie says: "No water! Coverage was great and i didn't get wet."
Perfect! In the ad, the makers of the BetterBrella boast it's easy to get in and our of doors. Back the store: no problem!
Kasie says: "I'm dry.. the outside of the umbrella is dry- it's all inside.>>
Seems the waterproof cone is working. Watch. Even when we intentionally fill it with water, it stays dry! But take a look at this: In the ad they expose what becomes the inside of the umbrella to the rain.
We found
Kasie says: "Yeah it definitley splashed me in the face."
When it opens...
Kasie says: "Now that it's exposed to the rain, the water had nowhere to go but on me."
Still.. not a total washout says our tester...
"It's called the BetterBrella. What do you think? Deal or Dud?
Kasie says: "I think it's a deal!"
But wait... as they say on TV... there's more. Moments later the BetterBrella was a bust.
Kasie says: "I felt really good about it until you shook out some water and this happened."
The fabric disconnected from the frame, tip by tip. While easy to reattach it seemed certainly no solution
Kasie says: "I might change my answer... (Laughter) ... as an umbrella it functioned.. but this is a deal breaker for me- this would make it a dud."
So close!
We reached out a few times to the parent company of the BetterBrella over the last week.. but got no return calls or emails. The product retails for about 30 bucks. Wondering about the wind test? We tried that too.
You can see the video right now: Facebook.com/savemesteve
I'm Steve Noviello that's my two cents.. spend it wisely