A video. Again. Mostly about cases.

[EvilDragon]

As promised in one of the older news threads, I've made a video about the cases I've received from azouls, adding some more information about the current status of the device as well

Once it's uploaded, you'll find it here:

One thing: I forgot to mention in the video that I'm currently sourcing different companies for the self-adhesive logo as well. One of the last things that I need to solve

BTW: This time, I made a one-shot video without any editing (similar to a live stream).
Such videos are way easier and faster to produce than the other videos I did - if you're interested, I could do more like these. Let me know

 

[janvlug]

if you're interested, I could do more like these. Let me know

Yes, sure, I really like this kind of videos!

 

[matzesu]

Nice,
I wouldn’t mind to have some Discoloring,
As long it’s mechanical ok,
I use to carry my Pandora in my Pocket, also at work and if the Pyra can be treat the same, I’m fine even if the case doesn’t look like a Nintendo Handheld or something..

But on the other hand: the blue would fit perfectly near my Blue Switch Lite

Dit you said at the end of the Video something like Game Park Holding instead of Global Components?? ^^

Seems like whe are in the last
two months

 

[Eight Bit]

Thanks for your video @EvilDragon I'd say just paint the case and be done with it.
People pay a reasonable amount of money for one and it should at least look presentable...

Also, why are you actively ignoring the off-white option? There's quite some people interested in it and it might even hide some of the dis-colorization.
Is it a personal taste thing?

 

[Cralex]

Ouch, I don’t envy you for having to deal with all these things. For me personally, I’d happily take a Pyra with a structurally sound case even if it has some discoloration, but it isn’t hard to imagine a reviewer dinging it for that, or possibly a customer feeling shortchanged by the discoloration. Maybe paint them if it doesn’t add too, too much cost? At least the paint would hold out for awhile, and it wouldn’t look as bad as other devices when it starts to wear out.

I’d say give us here on the boards the option to take an unpainted case, but I’m guessing there wouldn’t be much of a point cost-wise to have some with and some without, with the quantity you’re working with.

 

[christo930]

Is it something new to injection molding? Older game systems made from molded plastic don't seem to have these problems.
Personally, I wouldn't care about them too much. After all, it is a low production product for hobbyists. Function over form any day of the week.

 

[ghostpatch]

Thank you and the people involved for your awesome work! Nice video! I'm very happy with the project, good job! : )

The case looks very good to me. I don't care if its painted or not. Its robust thats enough to make me happy!
In my opinion the imperfections in the colour add to their character. It's like being different form every other mass manufactured soon to deprecated and thrown away product (on top of being totally retro! ).
For example I own an iPhone 6. Now after just few years I can basically "throw it away" because Apple doesn't want to fix critical security issues anymore! And they don't allow others to fix them either! Now I have to look for something else because it will put everything in my network at risk. It's not really a decision whether to keep it or not... -.-

@ED If you still have spare clear cases or if you think about producing a batch of clear cases I'd be the first to buy two of them. I really like the light bleed. It's sooo pretty : )

 

[levi]

Nice. I regularly watch the EEVBlog videos these days which also are quickly shot like that, and I can say for sure than you waffle far less than Dave does!

Yeah, I also heard you say Game Park Holdings and was a little WTF. If it was misspoken then that explains it.

Personally I don't think I mind that level of discolouration. It's most obvious on the lid, and I think it's less obvious in the grey lid you showed. Maybe you could paint that part, but I see absolutely no need to paint the keyboard top, and certainly no need to paint the bottom where it'll likely come off most rapidly. But as long as you're happy, based on what I can see I'll easily be happy with whatever you decide. But yeah, I'd be happy with the level of discolouration you show in that video.

If you could screw all the parts together and take a picture of it, that'd be cool. If you have a metal label you could drop in the hole I reckon that might distract from the discolouration such that it is as well.

Edit: Yeah, I'm pretty sure he meant Global Components (GC) when he said Game Park Holdings there.

 

[Grench]

First up - I do not see any need to paint these. If anyone asks us about the markings when they see our Pyras, we simply need to respond that those markings are natural in unpainted plastic. By not covering them up with structurally unnecessary paint we're helping the environment just a little tiny bit. Anyone who is -that- concerned about it could always buy a can of spray paint from their local hardware store mixed to the correct Pantone and paint it. (Disassembly required)

I'm not sure why I don't care for the blue cases. I like blue cars. Just something about a blue computing device makes it seem somehow 'wrong'.

The "red" cases in the video are brown - which is definitely not the effect we were wanting for a 'dark red'. But then, I think ED is fully aware of that.

The black ones look great! If you were going to pick one of the colors to, "paint to perfection", this would probably be it. If someone is that concerned about the plastic flow markings, they could simply get the painted black. Maybe for a $10 per case up-charge for painted vs not? The paint and handling for painted cases isn't going to be free after all.

The grey - we didn't get a very long view of those in the video. Was that the same grey with sparkles blend as we had in the earlier non-vented batch that I called "Granite Grey"? I really like the granite grey - far more than I thought I would. Are the granite grey cases missing any structural changes other than the vent holes?

Looking forward to the next few weeks on this!

 

[ClockworkCoder]

Thanks so much for the update @EvilDragon! These style updates are fantastic, but only if time permits

I personally don't mind the discoloration - as you mentioned, it's almost evocative of older systems, so it has a certain charm, so I may prefer it to the painted version. Although I understand that professionally painted versions may be more commercially viable.

I'm a little surprised at myself, but I quite liked the rust coloured case... not quite the dark red I imagined, but it's a nice shade. But black is certainly a winner

Anyway, I'm glad you're feeling better. Good to see you looking happy, and for a moment I noticed a glint in your eye when you mentioned when games will start to come out for it and "having some fun"

I can't wait! (but I will )

 

[Silent-Hunter]

Any discoloration is fine! It makes the product more unique.

 

[ible]

just started watching, but this is my favorite part so far.

 

[ClockworkCoder]

just started watching, but this is my favorite part so far.
View attachment 33259

This image needs a caption!

Although I'm too scared to suggest anything

 

[elvissteinjr]

I'll probably be the odd one out here, but: Paint that stuff.

Even the cheap paint job on my Pandora is still holding out fine. Has scratches here and there, but it's black underneath, so it doesn't look weird.
I also prefer how the Pandora case feels with the paint compared to the Pyra. The Pyra has sturdy plastics, but it doesn't feel as nice as holding unpainted retro controllers in my opinion.
Just... don't repeat the Pandora shoulder button issue. The paint mustn't affect any movable parts by making the case a little bit thicker. I don't think you forgot about it, but something that has to be kept in mind.

 

[Xcl4m4t10n]

This is black. This is a REAL black.
[doublepost=1569619700,1569619492][/doublepost]

 

[ible]

good life advice from ED! @ClockworkCoder

Spoiler

i like the one-shot nature, especially if it's less of a burden for ED. i'm fine with discoloration, but if you paint it others will think it's more professionally done.

 

[Djoga'Ro]

This is black. This is a REAL black.

To me it looks more like "Don't you try anything funny, Boy!"

 

[Sebzy]

@EvilDragon great update and i'm 100% fine with the discoloration.

Did they send any clear cases?

 

[levi]

Did they send any clear cases?

Clear cases won't work with the backlit keyboard and the backlit top logo. They were only for prototyping and testing the moulds in the early days, and was never planned for the final product.

 

[Blue Shadow]

Is it something new to injection molding? Older game systems made from molded plastic don't seem to have these problems.

It is not new at all, and the older system had those issues as well. I just looked at an old Quickjoy Joystick for C64, Atari and the like, and it has discolorisations as well. They are not as visible on the textured parts, but they are certainly there. The case of the C64 had those "issues" as well, as is especially visible on the newer dark cases that were made from old molds. So yeah, I would say this is pretty much an inherent aspect for injection mold plastics - You can try to make it less visible, but can hardly avoid it completely.