8869 PF Control Switch missing the direction switch!

[Jon61]

I recently bought several PF items from the online Lego shop, including 2 of the Control Switches (8869). The advertised item on shop.lego.com looks just like the one on the Specifications page of the main Lego website (https://www.lego.com/en-us/powerfunctions/articles/8869-control-b71751d95f0a422da2838a91c9093874) which has a small black direction switch as well as the main large orange switch, and the webpage specifically refers to the direction switch. However, both of the switches I was sent are missing the black direction switch! Other than that, they look identical to the design of switch on the two webpages.

I have emailed Lego to say I am not happy with this, but I also searched online, expecting to find that they had changed the design, but I found nothing about it. Does anyone know what is going on? Have I been sent very old stock (the date moulded on the bottom is 2007) perhaps from before the switch was added? Or have they recently changed the design to remove the switch, but sneakily not updated any of their own marketing pages to reflect this?

I can easily envisage a situation where I would need to use the direction switch to get the desired result, so I'm definitely not happy that my switches don't have them.

 

Edited June 28, 2021 by Jon61
replaced Photobucket-hosted photo by Flickr

[paul_delahaye]

yes, I'm sure I used one of the old ones inside my Horizon Express so it could have 2 motors in the engine, and this required one of the motors to have the pole reversed, without that option on the switch, it would not have worked.

Well I think that is the last time I used it 

[zux]

Unfortunately, the switch without the pole reverser is the latest edition. Old ones had pole reverser, new ones - don't. Not sure when, but this was already mentioned, LEGO is no longer produce old ones, so if you are not happy with replacement you can return the set back. I know this doesn't make sense, but all you can do now is to look for older version in sets or BL.

[Jon61]

Well much to my surprise, Lego emailed me back within 20 minutes (even though it was > 21:30 here; they must have support people in the US picking up global emails I think), and have said that they will send me two of the switches as shown on the website. That's sort of what I was hoping for (with luck I may end up with 2 of each type), but I will wait to see what really turns up first - whether they still have got some of the old types in stock somewhere. There is nothing on the new order that they have created to show that the next two should be any different to the last two ...

They didn't say anything about how it had happened either - whether they had changed the design, and if so why the website did not show the updated version. (I did wonder if my PC was showing an old cached version of the webpages but I've checked it on 3 devices and it seems they're definitely still showing a picture of the version with the direction switch, which is a bit naughty if they've changed the design.)

[Aventador2004]

I haven't heard anything about it. I have one with the switch, But not without .

[Saberwing40k]

There's actually been a thread about this already, but if they will send you new ones, I'd like an update with some pictures, whether you get old or new ones. Also, did you check the production date? The copyright date, which is what you read, is different than the production date, which should be more accurate.

[mocbuild101]

9 hours ago, Jon61 said:

Have I been sent very old stock (the date moulded on the bottom is 2007)

It could also mean 2017! which would mean ZUX is correct:

8 hours ago, zux said:

Unfortunately, the switch without the pole reverser is the latest edition.

 

[zux]

14 hours ago, Saberwing40k said:

Also, did you check the production date? The copyright date, which is what you read, is different than the production date, which should be more accurate.

I have recently bought two 8293 sets, which contain the switch in question. There was the new version, obviously. Switch has same "2007" copyright date on bottom, which hasn't changed since then. Production numbers on switches state 38N6 and 40N6, while the both boxes have 06S7. This states switches were produced late last year, but boxes early this year.

[JJ2]

There have been some other threads saying this too, I think they started changing them in to not have a switch in mid 2016.

[Jon61]

With a bit more searching on Eurobricks I finally found the thread from March 2016 about this issue (http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?/forums/topic/126624-new-powerfunction-switch-module/), and a separate short item attempting to bring it to the attention of the Ambassadors program (http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?/forums/topic/126902-removal-of-reverse-switch-from-polarity-reverser-8869/), apparently without result .

So apparently Lego changed the design in early 2016 and started issuing the new item without the direction switch, but as of April 2017 they still have not changed the picture on the Lego Shop (https://shop.lego.com/en-GB/LEGO-Power-Functions-Control-Switch-8869) or even worse, the Specifications page on the main Lego website which specifically describes the function of the direction switch (https://www.lego.com/en-us/powerfunctions/articles/8869-control-b71751d95f0a422da2838a91c9093874).

I must admit I'm pretty disgusted by this. (Being new [again] to Lego, is this typical of how TLG behaves?) I started to draft a reply to Customer Services about it, but have decided to wait until they have done something about my order before I take it any further. When I receive the 'replacements' I will update this thread with details and pictures.

In my original post above, I knew the date I was referring to was the copyright date - I (obviously mistakenly) thought that Lego might change the (C) date if they changed the design of the piece. Also, I was unsure whether the production date stamp on my two switches (21N6) referred to 2016 or 2006 (before I knew which way the change had been made I thought perhaps I'd accidentally been sent very old stock). I presume mine are in fact 2016 (I haven't been able to find out - does the letter 'N' in the production date stamp indicate anything?)

 

[mocbuild101]

5 minutes ago, Jon61 said:

(Being new [again] to Lego, is this typical of how TLG behaves?)

No, not really. I have seen things get updated quite quickly, although I have never bought PF parts from Lego shop.

[Jon61]

To recap, I bought two 8869 switches, unaware that the design had been changed last year to remove the direction switch. I complained to Lego, pointing out that what they sent me wasn't what was still being pictured on their website, and they immediately said that they would send me two "that have all the attributes pictured".

The two new switches arrived today, and (not to my complete surprise, I have to say) they are exactly the same as the ones I had already been sent - still missing the direction switch. So I emailed them again and got an immediate phone call, confirming as I expected that the design had been changed, they no longer had stocks of the old ones, I had been told in error that they could send me the old style ones, etc. 

So I pointed out that they were being a bit naughty not updating the two (at least) webpages that still showed the old design and even described in detail the function of the direction switch that is no longer there. She agreed that it should be changed.  I think I might have another look in a month or so ... At least I get to keep 4 of the new-style switches, having only paid for two.

Interestingly, the reason that she gave for the change was that Lego had found that users didn't really have a use for the direction switch. Unfortunately that seems to disagree with what @Mark Bellis said in the other thread, so that just sounds like bol.. oops I mean 'marketingspeak'

PS Although I said above I would update the thread with pictures, it's not really worth it, it would be the most pointless game of 'Spot the Difference' ever ...