Some Clarifications On Pre-Orders

[Zeno Arrow]

... and all of a sudden there's no release date at all.

A concrete release date has never been set AFAIK (not yet anyway), so no changes in that respect. However, the team has a rough idea of the timescales involved in getting the Pandora completed. See here:

http://www.openpandora.org/
QUOTE
So, here is a mini-roadmap:
* Case Design: January 15th
* Case Prototyping: approx. 1-2 weeks later
* Final production and delivery: approx. 2 - 4 weeks later

 

[Alpha2]

Hi Fellow Pandorians.

Is it me or do you have to almost watch the forums 24 / 7 to know what is going on or indeed what isn’t. I’ve kept quiet all this time and I’m sure I was one of the first to pre order the Pandora.

With all due respect The forums have been around alot longer than the pandora project, People come here on a daily basis anyway. This community is where the device got it's start so its only logical.

QUOTE
So, just to make this totally clear. You can pre order via bank transfer or fall off the edge of the ordering system until the second batch because you can’t or indeed won’t pay with a credit or debit card.


Several options were detailed and personally I'm just going to send tem a check.

QUOTE
Has the first order first sent out idea gone out the window too or is this still the case. I’m really balancing on the fence here and the last thing I knew I was going to receive an email about pre ordering (which to my knowledge I’ve not yet received). I know the guys and girls at OP have always been fantastic (especially Jaqui who is a gem (I hope I spelt your name right) and I’m sure this project is going to go ahead although it would be nice to not having to stumble across this information by randomly visiting the forum and trawling through pages of text.


The emails stopped about about 10% of the orders even trying to take them slowly, again the banks clinched up on Craig which caused him to post the Tranzfers thread.

QUOTE
I really hope you give everyone fair warning of when you’ll cut off the ability to order. Are we still going to get pre order emails (I thought it was UK last on this one).

Good luck and I still hope to hold my Pandora sometime in Q1 this year!


If you read through his posts you'll see that he's giving the preorder people ample opportunity to find a way to pay for their Pandora even giving preferential treatment to those who want in on the second batch if they cant get theit money in for the first batch, and I think everyone here would hope to see a pandora by mid march at the latest.

 

[WizardStan]

Did capitalism get taken out behind the woodshed and shot sometime in the middle of the night when I wasn't looking?

Especially weird when you consider Craigs shop IS taking credit card for other game systems... I just dont get it, the banks dont receive info telling them what someone bought from the shop so why can they accept cards for other items through GBAX.com but not the pandora?
The difference is that the Pandora brought in about 1.25 MILLION dollars over a few days. The other systems combined are probably bringing on the order of a 10-20 thousand a week at most. When cash flow changes from thousands to millions in a week, banks (and often the police, too) take notice, at which point in time it is in their best interest to be fully upfront about where the money is coming from. If the bank then decides that it's too much money to gamble on an unsure thing, they may (and did) choose to halt the transfers.
To put it into perspective, if you walked into a bank with a million dollar cheque, what do you think the odds of you getting even one penny of that money that day are? Before releasing the cash, they're going to make very certain the account it's coming from has enough to cover, and that there won't be a charge back on it.

 

[Alpha2]

More specifically you walk into a bank and when they ask you where the money came from, you tell them it's for a product that hasnt officially been created yet and that it's all preorder money.

They'll shut it down immediately because they dont want to have to handle the complaints and charge backs that may occure if this, in their eyes, "hypothetical" project goes tits up. this is basically why He's having trouble taking in the money. Through those menthods.

 

[Yrx]

The lack of credit card ordering kind of bothers me. As for other options, should I wait for an email before I decide?

 

[pstudio]

Are we getting a email with all this info? I'm surely not the only one a bit confused about all the info shattered over the forum.

It would be nice with an email telling you all the options you have to re-order and when the deadline is. IMO it can't be expected that people who needs to reorder, has to search to forum through to find out what to do. (even though we all most likely visit the forum all the time)

 

[calzone]

OpenPandora Ltd is a UK limited company listed as being at the same address as that of GBAX.com and the company 'GP32 Distribution Ltd' (your Companies House tax return is overdue from last July by the way guys

GBAX.com/GP32 Distribution is selling the GP Wiz (coming in February so the website says) and are accepting PRE-orders via credit card for the Wiz (as well as other products)

So given these two facts, why on earth can't Open Pandoras find a way to accept credit cards, especially given Craig is a director of both companies?

Is this really, "we can't", or "we won't" ??

 

[stustaff]

OpenPandora Ltd is a UK limited company listed as being at the same address as that of GBAX.com and the company 'GP32 Distribution Ltd' (your Companies House tax return is overdue from last July by the way guys

GBAX.com/GP32 Distribution is selling the GP Wiz (coming in February so the website says) and are accepting PRE-orders via credit card for the Wiz (as well as other products)

So given these two facts, why on earth can't Open Pandoras find a way to accept credit cards, especially given Craig is a director of both companies?

Is this really, "we can't", or "we won't" ??

Agree and this is what I asked earlier seems very strange almost like they dont want to put GBAX at any possible risk by accepting orders through their for something that may not appear...?

Otherwise i cant see any reason not to accept them as their bank would not know what had been preordered with the money.

 

[MDave]

I'm sure they didn't accept cc orders when we preordered and then the bank wanting to refund and causing this mess for fun. Craig has cleary written why they can't be accepted at this time.

 

[gruso]

Guys, no one is trying to deceive you. Do you honestly think they're choosing not to accept CC orders? Are you serious?

It's time to get past this speculation and pay via an alternate method. Or, don't.

 

[stustaff]

Guys, no one is trying to deceive you. Do you honestly think they're choosing not to accept CC orders? Are you serious?

It's time to get past this speculation and pay via an alternate method. Or, don't.

Deceiving is the wrong word, not giving the whole truth may be more accurate because they ARE choosing not to accept CC orders through GBAX!

FACT - GBAx are accepting CC orders right now
FACT when GBAx receive a card order and the money arrives in their bank account the ban can not know what individual item/s were purchased

The bank therefore can not stop GBAx taking card orders for Pandora unless something else is going on...
So GBAx must be choosing not to take card orders through their working CC system for Pandora, now they may have a valid reason for this!
One reason i suspect is they are concerned if GBAx starts taking in a lot of money via CC then they get stopped by a concerned bank too or the other more worrying reason could be that they have chosen to keep the risk on one company (OP) incase everything then goes tits up GBAx Craigs first business is protected from that risk and carries on trading.

I dont nknow what the reason is because we havent been told why and taht makes it look a little odd, especially if its the second reason because then it implies craig himself is not 100% confident of pandora so is 'hedging his bets'.

Remember we are being asked to 'invest' in this whole endeavour so having all of the info would be nice.

 

[calzone]

Craig has cleary written why they can't be accepted at this time.

Those who have 100% faith are happy with "we can't", those like me who have 51% faith, worry it's actually a "we won't".

Am I the only one who was actually a little underwhelmed by Craig's response after the Transferz thread? Most people seems absolutely delighted with the detailed explanations contained within the post(s) and the fantastic (?) news!

I guess I'm in the less faithful category, so to folk like me Craigix's last communication basically said 'tough, see you in 6 months'.

So....see you in June.

 

[peca]

I guess that bank treat every Craig's company as separate Company. Thus when nearly 4000 * 200 GPB land to OpenPandora company account, thay get mad and froze this just this account.

I don't know, why Craig has so much companies. It is little suspicious, but maybe due to tax optimization or so.

 

[calzone]

I don't know, why Craig has so much companies. It is little suspicious, but maybe due to tax optimization or so.



I'm not worried by the separate companies. I understand they need to separate the businesses and subsequent risks, plus I presume OpenPandora Ltd has a different set of directors.

But it could be explained why GBAX.com couldn't get them out of this CC hole even for a few hundred orders on the first batch. Heck their CC company must be used to big dollops of cash coming in for product launches etc (GP2x, F200, Wiz etc)

 

[a.tom]

But it could be explained why GBAX.com couldn't get them out of this CC hole even for a few hundred orders on the first batch. Heck their CC company must be used to big dollops of cash coming in for product launches etc (GP2x, F200, Wiz etc)

Is it really so hard to accept, that they have tried to do so and the bank simply said "NO"? Craig explained exactly that in the "Working Payment Options" thread.

Guys, no one is trying to deceive you. Do you honestly think they're choosing not to accept CC orders? Are you serious?

It's time to get past this speculation and pay via an alternate method. Or, don't.

+1
I think no one wants to read 29 pages of speculations again...

 

[stustaff]

But it could be explained why GBAX.com couldn't get them out of this CC hole even for a few hundred orders on the first batch. Heck their CC company must be used to big dollops of cash coming in for product launches etc (GP2x, F200, Wiz etc)

Is it really so hard to accept, that they have tried to do so and the bank simply said "NO"? Craig explained exactly that in the "Working Payment Options" thread.

Guys, no one is trying to deceive you. Do you honestly think they're choosing not to accept CC orders? Are you serious?

It's time to get past this speculation and pay via an alternate method. Or, don't.

+1
I think no one wants to read 29 pages of speculations again...

No they explained why a newly created company called OP couldnt take CC orders AT ALL!

GBAX is a company with a long history with its bank that is currently taking CC orders for products AND
pre orders for the WIZ another console which doesnt exist yet.

So if they can take pre0prders for the WIZ via CC why not for the pandora? THAT has not been mentioned as far as i am aware.

 

[Bosbeetle]

for the dyslectic persons around :blink:

 

[stustaff]

for the dyslectic persons around :blink:

Are you unable to read? GBAX ARE taking credit card orders!

 

[a.tom]

No they explained why a newly created company called OP couldnt take CC orders AT ALL!

GBAX is a company with a long history with its bank that is currently taking CC orders for products AND
pre orders for the WIZ another console which doesnt exist yet.

So if they can take pre0prders for the WIZ via CC why not for the pandora? THAT has not been mentioned as far as i am aware.

but as soon as they see we are selling something 'made by the community' they instantly back off and don't let us take orders or limit the orders to such a low amount as to make it pointless, this is due to the project not having a big name behind it I guess, although the reasons vary depending on who you speak to.
I guess this is true for OP AND GBAX. Do you actually think they did not take the gbax option into account?

 

[Bosbeetle]

for the dyslectic persons around :blink:

Are you unable to read? GBAX ARE taking credit card orders!



we're here in the pandora section and it was cleary stated that you cannot pay with creditcard for your pandora.