Q: What is a Tech Spec?

     A: Before the Robots in Disguise series came out, this was a really simple question to answer. A Tech Spec was a card you could cut from the back of a Transformers toy box, or in a few cases cut from the Instruction Book. Typically, it would contain the character/toy's name, allegiance, function, quote, bio, power ratings in ten different categories, and either a drawing of the character/toy or a photograph of the toy. When Robots in Disguise came along, things began to get more complicated. Robots in Disguise did not include the bio as part of the "card" you could cut out from the back. They were on the package, but you had to cut out a separate piece. Additionally, basic size toys had no Tech Specs at all. Then came Armada, which had no Tech Specs at all on any toy boxes, but Tech Specs for many toys were put online at Hasbro's web site. They were packaged with a sticker, but that only included the character name, allegiance, and picture. Energon toys contained trading cards, which did include the power ratings on the back but no bio, quote, or function. Online Tech Specs were available for some Energon toys. It seemed to change with each series, up until Transformers Classics came out. That's when things really changed. Most Tech Spec information is included on the back of the toy, but it is no longer contained in a conveniently cut out card, almost the entire back of the packaging has become a tech spec. What does all this mean? Well, it means that with Tech Specs being done so many different ways over the years, that one person's idea of what should constitute a Tech Spec is likely to be different from the next person. Additionally, there are other sources for character information such as the Marvel Universe Character Profiles that were included in the original Marvel Transformers comic books. Unfortunately, many toys that have been released, especially over the last ten years, have no official Tech Specs at all. So to sum it up all or some of the following, character/toy's name, allegiance, function, quote, bio, power ratings in ten different categories, and either a drawing of the character/toy or a photograph of the toy, can constitute a Tech Spec.

     Q: Are all your Tech Specs offical?

     A: Yes, all information contained comes from official sources.

     Q: Are there any Tech Specs you don't include?

     A: Yes. Master Collector, the company that currently puts on Botcon every year puts Tech Specs and Profiles in their Transformers Club magazine and on their web site in the members' only area. These are not included for a number of reasons. Tech Specs were originally created to go with toys. Most of their Tech Specs and Profiles are created either for toys that don't and may never exist, or for toys that already have Tech Specs from a more official source (Hasbro, Takara, Comic Books, etc.). I really can't think of these as official, as no toys went with them. They also claim the exclusive content on the web site is for members only, which begs the question, should information on a Tech Spec that is restricted to people who want to pay for it be an official part of the Transformers mythos? I don't think so. They also like to complain and threaten legal action, and I don't really want to deal with them. You may disagree with my views that these shouldn't be considered official, but that's your right.

     Q: What does the Tech Spec Type column mean?

     A: I have sorted "Tech Specs" into several categories as many characters/toys have multiple Tech Specs and Profiles.

	3-D Tech Specs	These were included with some Generation Two toys.
	Profiles	Character bios that appeared in print from various sources.
	Key Code Profiles	Online content available through Hasbro's web site with the key codes found on Cybertron Planet Keys.
	Web Profiles	Available online.
	Custom Profiles	These profiles have been put together from official information to look like official Profiles, but were never available in this format.
	Tech Specs	Cut from toy packaging of Instruction books. Some that do not have pictures have pictures added to the scans.
	Custom Tech Specs	These Tech Specs have been put together from official information to look like official Tech Specs, but were never available in this format.
	Unreleased Tech Specs and Unreleased 3-D Tech Specs	Tech Specs for toys that were never released or only exist as prototypes and test samples.
	Miscellaneous Tech Specs	Tech Specs that don't fall into any other category.
	Post Card Tech Specs	At Botcon in 20023H Enterprises sold a set of Post Cards with bios for Beast Wars characters.
	Trading Cards	Trading cards can be included with toys or available separately. In some cases the cards were printed directly on the box.