Mail From Ed (with Estimated Shipping Dates)

[CCmachined]

QUOTE
It's likely it will be January / February, though December IS still
possible (I wouldn't bet on it, though).


we didn't know that already?
thanks for the post anyway ED, more info is always good!

 

[TaG]

It is no problem for me to wait (OK a little problem ) BUT if it WOULD have been outin November it WOULD have been hte FIRST OMAP3 handheld (AFAIK) If it comes out in Feb. or April 2009 it might not be the only one and then no one would (xept us) will care about the P

...Its the Dev team's loss, not ours

By Feb-Apr who knows what else will be around to reduce the potential market. By that time the RAM will probably be looking 'limited' again...

It affects us because the more sold the more potential devs and the more likely a successor in a few years.

If/when media sites etc get hold of the news there will be cries of vapourware.

It could also damage the chance of being an Ubuntu partner - Canonical aren't going to want to be associated to a device that might n0t see the light of day. I'm not suggesting it won't just saying that they might think that. After all, Canonical could partner with BeagleBoard, which is at least in the wild. Although that might benefit Pandora, it would get less publicity.

 

[gaterooze]

By Feb-Apr who knows what else will be around to reduce the potential market. By that time the RAM will probably be looking 'limited' again...

The second batch wasn't meant to be until then anyway, so this doesn't really change anything for the wider market.

 

[Chip]

Guys, I really don't know where all the gloom is coming from. Originally we were going to start shipping at the end of November, with the rest of the orders shipping in December. Right now, if everything continues as it has been, we're looking at shipping out the first bunch in late December, with the rest following in January. It's literally a one month delay. Having some shipments pushed into February is still a possibility, but it's not a probability.

As for "competition", the only other OMAP3-based devices available are the Archos 5 and 7 series PMPs. They've already been out for a few months, and are hardly compitition for the Pandora. Any large scale commercial products that intended to ship any time in the next three months would have done so by now to make the Christmas season. You won't even hear about any new MIDs / palmtops until CES in January, and it will be a while before any of them ship.

 

[zaffercharles]

QUOTE
Guys, I really don't know where all the gloom is coming from. Originally we were going to start shipping at the end of November, with the rest of the orders shipping in December. Right now, if everything continues as it has been, we're looking at shipping out the first bunch in late December, with the rest following in January. It's literally a one month delay. Having some shipments pushed into February is still a possibility, but it's not a probability.



You know, I don't say that much on here.

I've followed this from the very beginning, and seen many forecasts slip both for info and release dates.

I thought it was a bit farther along than it actually was when I mentioned it to my other half that I was going to get one preordered, and she said she'd get me one as a present

P was supposed to be a Birthday present. Then slipped to a Christmas present- and now it potentially could be showing up late february. That's if nothing more gets in the way (which never was expected all the other times) so.. I am not only disappointed about this, the umpteenth time that it's left to the last minute to say "ah things aren't going to happen that we said would happen" but she's also saying "why is it they've had the money and nothing to show for it, for weeks - is it a rip off? get the money back and get something else"...

Course I want a Pandora, but this is unfortunately a big long mess and I am at a loss to find anything positive about the situation to put her way in defence about it. (She isn't going to give a crap if it's their first time and maybe she shouldn't either)

Since I'm not even paying you might say, well no loss there for me regardless right?
But the thing is she's asking for the money back- and I'm actually reluctant to spend 210 I didn't think I'd need to on it just before Christmas- which I don't really have right now- for nothing physical for maybe another 3 months. Don't tell me maybe I'll get one earlier because what odds are really on that?

It's a pity for everyone, all these setbacks. Especially me as I might have to reluctantly back out after all this waiting!

I wanted info sure, but maybe it's better in the long run to not bother because rarely does anything happen when projected to anyway. Bottom line is I wish I knew I could be waiting 4-5 months more when I preordered- let's hope they get the reliability of the boards up soon I mean, maybe that will set it back to march/april... sorry to be sarcastic/negative but, there it is. The whole thing is wearing on me now.

I still feel sorry for the team, some people are bound to back out for one reason or another and they've been unlucky to an extent. But as said, one time some of us were thinking maybe we'd get this a year ago.. and there's been many times I've felt like I'm a donkey chasing a carrot on a string here.
no matter how great it sounds when the hell will we actually get one? the latest? maybe early next year.

Anyway if I have to back out, when is the second batch now projected- how long do you HAVE to wait before commencing production?

P is a really cool gadget with actual uses. But everyone's only gonna wait so long. I wonder how long it would take for the majority to say "hey enough's enough" and call it a day on this. It seems like that is still at least half a year off or more. Anyone?

 

[Wonslung]

[/quote]


I wanted info sure, but maybe it's better in the long run to not bother because rarely does anything happen when projected to anyway. Bottom line is I wish I knew I could be waiting 4-5 months more when I preordered- let's hope they get the reliability of the boards up soon I mean, maybe that will set it back to march/april... sorry to be sarcastic/negative but, there it is. The whole thing is wearing on me now.

[/quote]

you preordered when everyone else did...i don't think you'll be waiting 4-5 months considering 4-5 months would be march or april until they START shipping.

they originally said they'd start shipping in november, now they are saying they will likely start December or January. 1-2 months is a lot less than 4-5

 

[TaG]

I'm in a similar position. Back in April I let my wife use 'my' savings for something she needed. Rather than pay me back we decided she could pay for the Pandora on her card.

She has been concerned due to the length of time up to pre-orders, then the length of time waiting, then the length of time it took for the refunds to come through. Now the money is sat on her credit card.

The best the main developers can say is Dec/Jan/Feb. I don't know where I am in the queue or how many 'may' go out in Dec, so I've got to tell her Jan possibly Feb. Great she says - they've had your money 4 or 5 months before you have anything to show and you don't even know what it looks like yet.

Why so gloomy? Because there are delays after delays and we find out too late sometimes - it's should be starting to ship next week, we had hints at Dec and now it may be Feb. I've been telling people to be patient but it is getting a little difficult. How can anyone say there won't be some other unforeseen problem that means it becomes Mar shipping and arriving in Apr - that will then only be one more month as we've been told possibly Feb.

Maybe I'll be happy again tomorrow but right now I'm not.

 

[mazza558]

I'm in a similar position. Back in April I let my wife use 'my' savings for something she needed. Rather than pay me back we decided she could pay for the Pandora on her card.

She has been concerned due to the length of time up to pre-orders, then the length of time waiting, then the length of time it took for the refunds to come through. Now the money is sat on her credit card.

The best the main developers can say is Dec/Jan/Feb. I don't know where I am in the queue or how many 'may' go out in Dec, so I've got to tell her Jan possibly Feb. Great she says - they've had your money 4 or 5 months before you have anything to show and you don't even know what it looks like yet.

Why so gloomy? Because there are delays after delays and we find out too late sometimes - it's should be starting to ship next week, we had hints at Dec and now it may be Feb. I've been telling people to be patient but it is getting a little difficult. How can anyone say there won't be some other unforeseen problem that means it becomes Mar shipping and arriving in Apr - that will then only be one more month as we've been told possibly Feb.

Maybe I'll be happy again tomorrow but right now I'm not.

Same feelings here. However, as soon as I see more of Gmenu looking more mature (as well as a video of Wifi working w/ web browser), I'll feel a little more confident.

When I see the first finished cases (and indeed the first finished Pandora) I'll be fully supportive.

Luckily, it seems that by the time the credit card re-order page is finished (in 10 days time), there might be a lot more progress, enough to convince me again.

 

[MiniSinisterMinister]

Chip has just stated that January is the most likely month that the Pandoras will be shipped. That's fine with me. I just hope that we will see a finished unit on video soon because this will dispel the doubts on what the status of development really is. And I need sth. substantial when I make a blog update at the end of November.

I don't think that it is really so important that the Pandora is the first gadget on the market with this or that. This handheld is meant to stay on the marktet for years. Why should two more months of delay matter? It will get coverage in the media anyway. And I don't think that anyone would buy it and keep it just because it is the first gadget that has this or that. Most bigger companies update their models every 6-12 months. The Pandora is bound to loose the edge soon (at least the technical aspect).The whole concept of the handheld has to be convincing if it is to hold its ground in the long run. If you look at the market it is rarely the first product or the most sophisticated one that is the most successful in the end.

 

[Kyo]

That may be so, but the convincing argument for these "aged" inferior devices is the community/software built for and around them, and as long as you don't have that, all you got is specs.

 

[Svartalf]

It is no problem for me to wait (OK a little problem ) BUT if it WOULD have been outin November it WOULD have been hte FIRST OMAP3 handheld (AFAIK) If it comes out in Feb. or April 2009 it might not be the only one and then no one would (xept us) will care about the P

Actually...that's not likely to be the case. Closest thing is going to be the new Nokia web-pad device, the N9XX series unit, that would be a handheld fielding the same SoC, etc. Not a single thing else on the radar scope, really. Guys, this is not unheard of and rushing something less than what we've ended up with would have doomed us to irrelevance (As you put it, we'd have something, but in the end only the crowd here would care. Everyone's looking at us right now because of the choices and the delays- seriously.).

 

[gaterooze]

Guys, guys -- didn't you notice what happened between when the preorders were announced and now? "Global economic crisis" ring any bells? EVERYTHING, every industry, has faced hiccups and delays during this time. Credit is a minefield, manufacturers are laying people off, currencies going wild.

Considering the environment, a 4-6 week delay is not too shabby. The Wiz has been delayed even longer, for perspective.

Keep in mind, the community devs will be there. 20 new dev units just went out this week, so it will be great to see what they will cook up over the holidays, and how robust they make the OS. Heck, we just had a video of an AGA demo the other day - too cool

 

[conso]

The longer it takes, the better the software will be on delivery leading to a better first impression.

 

[gaterooze]

re: competing devices -- really, nothing has both dedicated gaming controls and solid open productivity software in one pocket-sized package. That ain't gonna change for a while.

 

[TaG]

Guys, guys -- didn't you notice what happened between when the preorders were announced and now? "Global economic crisis" ring any bells? EVERYTHING, every industry, has faced hiccups and delays during this time. Credit is a minefield, manufacturers are laying people off, currencies going wild.

Considering the environment, a 4-6 week delay is not too shabby. The Wiz has been delayed even longer, for perspective.

Keep in mind, the community devs will be there. 20 new dev units just went out this week, so it will be great to see what they will cook up over the holidays, and how robust they make the OS. Heck, we just had a video of an AGA demo the other day - too cool

How could we fail to spot the Merchant Bankers screwing with the world's economies? That's supposedly part of the reason behind the re-orders etc. It's also the reason a large number of people could loose their jobs. The car industry here is imploding. That's why people have to be careful with money. Which in turn could make a number of people not re-order. It's a serious issue. My gloom is not bought on from just my view, but those around me. Don't forget that everyone has their own line beyond which they will not go. I love the device; I like the 'get it right' attitude. My wife cannot get her head round why they 'need the money for 4 or 5 months' - and she's paying.

re: competing devices -- really, nothing has both dedicated gaming controls and solid open productivity software in one pocket-sized package. That ain't gonna change for a while.
But there are other attractive tech products out there that some might decide to go for. Horses for courses. My wife has seen the ads showing here for iPod Touch and iPhone. All those games, all those apps. And you can go buy it. Now. There are many factors that affect people's decisions.

 

[Ryuu]

Why so gloomy? Because there are delays after delays and we find out too late sometimes - it's should be starting to ship next week, we had hints at Dec and now it may be Feb. I've been telling people to be patient but it is getting a little difficult. How can anyone say there won't be some other unforeseen problem that means it becomes Mar shipping and arriving in Apr - that will then only be one more month as we've been told possibly Feb.

Maybe I'll be happy again tomorrow but right now I'm not.

+1 i for some reason thought this would be shipped october 30 when i ordered september. On that day everyone was fighting to get their order in that the pages werent working so i followed to the advice people were giving in posts which said to wait 2-3 hours then order so i dont think i managed to get in the 600 range with the lucky bunch who would be the ones getting the pandoras for christmas to dance with under the christmas tree, while the unlucky "smart majority" who were too mature to be part of the scuffle to pre-order will be the ones who get their pandas in feb ¬¬ and for christmas they get a log with moss and mushrooms as accessories. Enjoy..

Chip has just stated that January is the most likely month that the Pandoras will be shipped. That's fine with me. I just hope that we will see a finished unit on video soon because this will dispel the doubts on what the status of development really is. And I need sth. substantial when I make a blog update at the end of November.

I don't think that it is really so important that the Pandora is the first gadget on the market with this or that. This handheld is meant to stay on the marktet for years. Why should two more months of delay matter? It will get coverage in the media anyway. And I don't think that anyone would buy it and keep it just because it is the first gadget that has this or that. Most bigger companies update their models every 6-12 months. The Pandora is bound to loose the edge soon (at least the technical aspect).The whole concept of the handheld has to be convincing if it is to hold its ground in the long run. If you look at the market it is rarely the first product or the most sophisticated one that is the most successful in the end.

Because imo the more cutting-edge the higher the chance high resource comercial developers would write for the panda at its specifications. If the psp whith its low specs can have such amazing games then imagine what those developers could do with the panda.. if they found it was worth their time... dont get me wrong i have been a linux user for a long time and i tend to have the linux open source mentality, but some open source games just dont compare to the commercial offerings. You might disagree but as i said this is mho :/
i plan to develop to the pandora thus am learning python ( i was recommended python over c++) so i can write the game ive always dreamed of having but again it wont compare to the commercial high resource offerings

 

[mali]

Seriously, we have to convince at least some 'Joe Averages'. The core crowd is not enough.

 

[Svartalf]

Keep in mind, the community devs will be there. 20 new dev units just went out this week, so it will be great to see what they will cook up over the holidays, and how robust they make the OS. Heck, we just had a video of an AGA demo the other day - too cool

It is my desire to see to it that the OS is a hell of a lot more robust than the showing of Ubuntu 8.10 has made on my laptop and at least one of the desktops I've got. HEH... Wifi's fubared (Killswitch doesn't get detected properly after driver load, the iwl3945 driver causes random kernel panics on my laptop when ON and being used, network-manager can't figure out that the Zydas I plugged in to tapdance around those problems while fixes were being worked on isn't killed like the Intel 3945 was. With NVidia and Compiz on, it screws up some damage re-rendering of things (They're claiming it's because Compiz is acting on it before it happens, which causes problems- but it didn't do it in 8.04...) and a host of other odd issues on random machines.

It's enough to drive a non-hardcore Linux user back to an older version or Windows.

 

[b._.o._.b]

I'm also not particularly happy with the delays as well, but really expected a delay since the first announcements. It seems to be common practice with launches of electronic devices and especially the more 'open' ones.
Freerunner (OpenMoko) also released a phone more than a year later (and is still buggy as hell)
OpenGraphics project graphics card is still not released yet.

Nevertheless, I am still a big fan of the Pandora project and hope to see it in January!

2009... please...

 

[Svartalf]

Because imo the more cutting-edge the higher the chance high resource comercial developers would write for the panda at its specifications.

Couple that with the Indie commercial crowd...there's tons of titles out there and some of the studios with the cooler stuff is at least looking at us right now.

Besides, I want to show up at GDC '09 next year and wipe a bunch of smug looks off of faces that I'd gotten in '03 out there.