How Do I Get Out Of This?

[WizardStan]

Had I known the wait was going to be this long, I would not have bought into Pandora and instead bought one of the "lesser devices" over this time period with the money. After all, a lesser device is better than no device at all.

You're not the only one, I'm sure. Some of us are just really stubborn.
Good luck, I hope you find what you're looking for!

 

[gruso]

You shouldn't have any trouble getting a refund, a number of people have reported it's a pretty quick & painless process.

 

[grahamr]

*shrug* your choice. Other people have got their money back without issue, the only grumbles I have heard have been about foreign exchange rates.

When mine arrives, the first thing I'm going to do is try it out, the second thing is almost certainly going to be buy another pandora for my gf.

I don't see *any* devices in the pipeline with the pandora's features, never mind a better one.

 

[MWeston]

I don't see *any* devices in the pipeline with the pandora's features, never mind a better one.

There aren't. It's too risky for any mainstream company and the Chinese clones are cheap and underpowered so that doesn't count either. People who think something better is right around the corner and will be just like this are completely kidding themselves and I'm sick of reading it.

The truth is that back in early 2009 I was saying we need to get this thing out by May because something else could be "just around the corner". That didn't happen then it was the constant struggle month after month to just get it done. Then it was if we could get it shipping before Christmas, we could be okay and beat any other device "just around the corner" but that didn't happen. Now here we are in May, 2010 about to finally finish and there is still nothing.

This kind of product is too niche with a niche audience and most companies won't bother. This was a project for the love of the device and interest of a generally supportive community (although rightfully stretched in their will to continue supporting) and Nvidia, Microsoft, or whoever isn't going to waste their time on such a thing. Also, as soon as you slap "gaming device" on your product, you have to sell it for a lot less than something called a "computer" and that hurts profits too. A device like this has nothing to subsidize the cost after selling the hardware itself.

 

[Timstertoo]

There's always another deal around the corner.

For me it's simple I have all my (portable)retro gaming covered with this device from N64(ish) downwards.

I can take it to friends, hook up some controllers, plug it in the TV and go.

I can show my kids what daddy used to play and see them shrug and get back to their DS with Dora the Explorer (yes I have girls *sigh* :rolleyes: )

I can nerd around with it, even program a bit on it, certainly program for it. Use it for many other geeky things then just games.

So even though something with much better specs comes out I think this specific gadget has so many of my wishes in one package I'll have a place for it for quite some time. But hey, I still have Psions lying around. Agreed they are gathering dust but I can't get myself to sell them or toss them. Also I use a Nokia E90 and not an iPhone and I'm getting the N900 next week. I'm just one of those button guys

I think anyone who "just" wants it to emulate games and doesn't think the touchscreen, keyboard, controls, battery lifetime, possibility to plug in more stuff are important to them should get their money back for sure as this there'll certainly be better things on the market soon. And probably for less. But I have yet to see the first device that encompasses it all, and then surpasses the Pandora.

 

[gruso]

I don't see *any* devices in the pipeline with the pandora's features, never mind a better one.

There aren't. It's too risky for any mainstream company and the Chinese clones are cheap and underpowered so that doesn't count either. People who think something better is right around the corner and will be just like this are completely kidding themselves and I'm sick of reading it.

^ And I'm sick of making that very point, which is why I don't bother any more. The people who cancel to get something else obviously have different ideas about what features they want, which is cool. The people hanging on to their orders want Pandora's features and know they can't get them anywhere else.

 

[KRH]

I don't see *any* devices in the pipeline with the pandora's features, never mind a better one.

There aren't. It's too risky for any mainstream company and the Chinese clones are cheap and underpowered so that doesn't count either. People who think something better is right around the corner and will be just like this are completely kidding themselves and I'm sick of reading it.

^ And I'm sick of making that very point, which is why I don't bother any more. The people who cancel to get something else obviously have different ideas about what features they want, which is cool. The people hanging on to their orders want Pandora's features and know they can't get them anywhere else.

I wholeheartedly agree. I spent almost two years looking for alternatives that could do what the Pandora does at this form-factor at this price or less. Nothing.
The Pandora is relay what all Netbooks wish they could have been. The power of a PC in something that fits in your pocket and can hold out for several hours using all the features. Although it costs a bit, Most games will be open-source or freeware, You don't need to shell out 20-50 dollars a game. Back on topic gz1 said that He was interested in a MID he can get now ,not necessarily a gaming device that he can get later. $330 is a lot of money to spend for a such a device.

 

[sryidc]

you really couldn't figure out how to get a refund? . . . . REALLY?

 

[MrMoneybags]

I don't see *any* devices in the pipeline with the pandora's features, never mind a better one.

There aren't. It's too risky for any mainstream company and the Chinese clones are cheap and underpowered so that doesn't count either. People who think something better is right around the corner and will be just like this are completely kidding themselves and I'm sick of reading it.

^ And I'm sick of making that very point, which is why I don't bother any more. The people who cancel to get something else obviously have different ideas about what features they want, which is cool. The people hanging on to their orders want Pandora's features and know they can't get them anywhere else.

I wholeheartedly agree. I spent almost two years looking for alternatives that could do what the Pandora does at this form-factor at this price or less. Nothing.
The Pandora is relay what all Netbooks wish they could have been. The power of a PC in something that fits in your pocket and can hold out for several hours using all the features. Although it costs a bit, Most games will be open-source or freeware, You don't need to shell out 20-50 dollars a game. Back on topic gz1 said that He was interested in a MID he can get now ,not necessarily a gaming device that he can get later. $330 is a lot of money to spend for a such a device.

I'd argue with the PSP2 and/or the 3DS. Though Sony is known for their closed-ness in their products, unless it's another PS3 situation, I think the PSP2 will be hacked and fairly quickly for that matter. Nintendo has had little proection to their DS lineup so I think the 3DS won't be as frustrating to hack as the PSP2. There's a lot more use for a portable homebrew playing machine than a home console homebrew playing machine which is why I feel it took this long for the PS3 to have some sort of major hacking project. The Pandora has an 600Mhz processor; when phones are coming out with 1Ghz processor (e.g. Snapdragon), I wouldn't be surprised if the PSP2 or 3DS comes out with a 1GHz+ processor of its own. Everything else from RAM to graphics should be comparable to the Pandora. If the Pandora came out a year ago, it would be a different situation but being time is going by with the Pandora's hardware staying the same, I think once the PSP2 and 3DS get announced in E3, which is the common theory, they both will blow the Pandora out of the water. I could be wrong but if the PSP2 and 3DS come out next year, or more preferably if the Pandora came out last year, I think the Pandora would be more attractive. Of course, time will only tell, aka next month at E3, whether the Pandora was a waste of time and hope but I do think the Pandora has been a failed project. This is just my honest opinion and I'm not trying to troll or offend someone's beliefs or opinions.

 

[Anthony]

I don't see *any* devices in the pipeline with the pandora's features, never mind a better one.

There aren't. It's too risky for any mainstream company and the Chinese clones are cheap and underpowered so that doesn't count either. People who think something better is right around the corner and will be just like this are completely kidding themselves and I'm sick of reading it.

^ And I'm sick of making that very point, which is why I don't bother any more. The people who cancel to get something else obviously have different ideas about what features they want, which is cool. The people hanging on to their orders want Pandora's features and know they can't get them anywhere else.

I wholeheartedly agree. I spent almost two years looking for alternatives that could do what the Pandora does at this form-factor at this price or less. Nothing.
The Pandora is relay what all Netbooks wish they could have been. The power of a PC in something that fits in your pocket and can hold out for several hours using all the features. Although it costs a bit, Most games will be open-source or freeware, You don't need to shell out 20-50 dollars a game. Back on topic gz1 said that He was interested in a MID he can get now ,not necessarily a gaming device that he can get later. $330 is a lot of money to spend for a such a device.

I'd argue with the PSP2 and/or the 3DS. Though Sony is known for their closed-ness in their products, unless it's another PS3 situation, I think the PSP2 will be hacked and fairly quickly for that matter. Nintendo has had little proection to their DS lineup so I think the 3DS won't be as frustrating to hack as the PSP2. There's a lot more use for a portable homebrew playing machine than a home console homebrew playing machine which is why I feel it took this long for the PS3 to have some sort of major hacking project. The Pandora has an 600Mhz processor; when phones are coming out with 1Ghz processor (e.g. Snapdragon), I wouldn't be surprised if the PSP2 or 3DS comes out with a 1GHz+ processor of its own. Everything else from RAM to graphics should be comparable to the Pandora. If the Pandora came out a year ago, it would be a different situation but being time is going by with the Pandora's hardware staying the same, I think once the PSP2 and 3DS get announced in E3, which is the common theory, they both will blow the Pandora out of the water. I could be wrong but if the PSP2 and 3DS come out next year, or more preferably if the Pandora came out last year, I think the Pandora would be more attractive. Of course, time will only tell, aka next month at E3, whether the Pandora was a waste of time and hope but I do think the Pandora has been a failed project. This is just my honest opinion and I'm not trying to troll or offend someone's beliefs or opinions.

If you do a little bit more looking into those "1GHz" Snapdragon's you'll discover that they have a really shitty graphics chip with them. The overall computing power of the OMAP and the Snapdragon are about the same. The OMAP is better at high-graphics applications which makes it the better choice for the Pandora.

 

[second exodous]

Which makes me wonder why I've got my money tied up in this thing in the first place, especially since I wasn't that interested in gaming. I was going to use it as a MID.

I'm going to use mine mainly as a mid. I think it would make a great mid. I understand why you're looking elsewhere though. Me, I'm hanging on until the end, if nothing else it will make a great story when I show off my Pandora.

 

[KRH]

I'd argue with the PSP2 and/or the 3DS. Though Sony is known for their closed-ness in their products, unless it's another PS3 situation, I think the PSP2 will be hacked and fairly quickly for that matter. Nintendo has had little proection to their DS lineup so I think the 3DS won't be as frustrating to hack as the PSP2. There's a lot more use for a portable homebrew playing machine than a home console homebrew playing machine which is why I feel it took this long for the PS3 to have some sort of major hacking project. The Pandora has an 600Mhz processor; when phones are coming out with 1Ghz processor (e.g. Snapdragon), I wouldn't be surprised if the PSP2 or 3DS comes out with a 1GHz+ processor of its own. Everything else from RAM to graphics should be comparable to the Pandora. If the Pandora came out a year ago, it would be a different situation but being time is going by with the Pandora's hardware staying the same, I think once the PSP2 and 3DS get announced in E3, which is the common theory, they both will blow the Pandora out of the water. I could be wrong but if the PSP2 and 3DS come out next year, or more preferably if the Pandora came out last year, I think the Pandora would be more attractive. Of course, time will only tell, aka next month at E3, whether the Pandora was a waste of time and hope but I do think the Pandora has been a failed project. This is just my honest opinion and I'm not trying to troll or offend someone's beliefs or opinions.

The Wii and DS was quite underpowered compared to their competitors and that still managed to be great game consoles (Sales wise or otherwise). Regardless of competition the Pandora has merit for those of us who want a platform that is Open. Sony and Nintendo do not offer open platforms. If you want to do something they don't like to your console, then enjoy waiting for and using workarounds (And perhaps not being able to play regular games.) Non-games are a joke on Sony and Nintendo Game consoles, I guarantee you that the Pandora will get a quality web browser and productivity programs. Even real image manipulation programs or Programing tools are likely to come up. Only time will tell how the 3ds and PSP successor console will fare in regards to modding and homebrew, as well as their technical capability,

 

[elwing]

The Wii and DS was quite underpowered compared to their competitors and that still managed to be great game consoles (Sales wise or otherwise).

power != success or greatness for mainstream consoles... now for a mainly emulation console it's not so true as more power = more system to emulate and better...

 

[Dunny]

I think anyone who "just" wants it to emulate games and doesn't think the touchscreen, keyboard, controls, battery lifetime, possibility to plug in more stuff are important to them should get their money back for sure as this there'll certainly be better things on the market soon. And probably for less. But I have yet to see the first device that encompasses it all, and then surpasses the Pandora.

I want to emulate R-Type Delta (PS1) and Mario64 (N64), and that's about all I want the Pandora for. I don't need a touchscreen and probably won't use it if I can get away with it - I don't like them. I've recently gone right off the 8bit machines, so it's doubtful that I'll be emulating them.

I haven't seen anything coming that will be able to do what I want with twin analog controls plus dpad/face buttons. So...

Pandora it is then.

D.

 

[Angelus88]

Though when I e-mailed them yesterday they told me if I order now I should get it this month anyway.

Yeah, they told me the same, just 4 months ago

 

[-Tj-]

If you do a little bit more looking into those "1GHz" Snapdragon's you'll discover that they have a really shitty graphics chip with them. The overall computing power of the OMAP and the Snapdragon are about the same. The OMAP is better at high-graphics applications which makes it the better choice for the Pandora.

I kind of agree with this sentiment solely based on the fact that my 1GHz phone's graphics capabilities haven't been that great. However, I bought the phone for it's raw power, so 1GHz with crap graphics is fine, but for gaming I've definitely looked elsewhere (Pandora and PSP homebrew).

I feel Pandora's power will be quite sufficient for most graphically-intense situations (relatively speaking). On the idea that the PSP2 and 3DS will be hacked: while that may be true, getting homebrew apps to run as smooth as the licensed stuff will depend on how quickly the hackers can figure out how to develop for them. As I recall, the PSP homebrew stuff didn't really pick up graphically till a while after the first "hello world" hacks, and I don't like the idea of having to constantly update my firmware just to keep playing my commercial games while my homebrews break in the process.

Having said that, I do plan on getting a PSP2, maybe even a 3DS, while Pandora continues to do what I bought it for in the first place.

 

[torpor]

Mine will be used for:

* Games - anything and everything possible
* Music Making
* Development
* Light browsing
* Light Email

I will get more for my family members if I like the physical hardware itself .. sure, ipads and all are great, but some folks still need to type on real keys ..

 

[Shaun]

I don't see what the appeal is with the iPad. How is it in any way portable? It's like carrying around a window...

 

[Rockthesmurf]

I hear red wine and sleeping pills offers and easy way out.

Steve

 

[CodeTwister]

Which makes me wonder why I've got my money tied up in this thing in the first place, especially since I wasn't that interested in gaming. I was going to use it as a MID.

So why no N900? I had a hard time to decide if I cancel my preorder to get one. My usage scenario is more the Linux-UMPC one and therefore battery life is a major issue. I've decided to stay with my Pandora, waiting for the next Nokia device (especially because of the MeeGo merge).

By the way, for some people there are better devices somewhere around the corner - "better" depends on the usage scenario. But I strongly doubt that those devices are released before (or shortly after) the Pandora, even if I take several delays into account. And from a nerdy point of view, there is really nothing that can beat a device so flexible and open as the Pandora.