Surely The Case Moulds Should Be Done By Now ?

[TheRain]

^^ Thanks for your explanations MWeston- i'm sure a lot of people just want to know what is happening and how because they are so eager to have a Pandora I think it has become obvious the more accessible you guys seem to us the more we want to know what's happening behind the scenes- but you can't possibly keep us apprised of every detail.

 

[gibberish]

In the end, why does it even matter what we do? As long as you get a quality working product, the rest truly is just our business, not yours (no disrespect intended).

it matters somewhat because when we paid for this thing, a big selling point and something that was pushed quite a bit was the fact that this is going to be a high quality product manufactured in the USA. the fact that this has now changed to being manufactured in china like the rest of the crappy handhelds you see on the internet, without so much as an announcement from the man himself is bound to stir some people up. i dont really care too much, you lot obviously know what you're doing but you have to admit its a pretty big change of plan. whatever though, if it turns out to be crap then i'll tut at the chinese like i do everytime i buy a piece of subpar electronics and sell it on ebay. im sure it'll be fine though.

 

[fiori_musicali]

In the end, why does it even matter what we do? As long as you get a quality working product, the rest truly is just our business, not yours (no disrespect intended).

With all due respect, the matter is not so simple. I'd rather hope to promote the opposite attitude towards consuming: knowing where your stuff comes from.

I also remember having seen "made in USA" kind of claims on the old official site, and that is the impression that I also got: that it IS made in the U.S.. If you use such rhetoric to impose an image of quality build to the [potential] customers, then accordingly it is worth pointing out that this has since become untrue.

On this specific issue, I personally don't care that much. The developers' guarantee of quality and anecdotal evidence is enough.

 

[Asmo]

+1 what gibberish said.

 

[gruso]

In the end, why does it even matter what we do? As long as you get a quality working product, the rest truly is just our business, not yours (no disrespect intended).

it matters somewhat because when we paid for this thing, a big selling point and something that was pushed quite a bit was the fact that this is going to be a high quality product manufactured in the USA. the fact that this has now changed to being manufactured in china like the rest of the crappy handhelds you see on the internet, without so much as an announcement from the man himself is bound to stir some people up. i dont really care too much, you lot obviously know what you're doing but you have to admit its a pretty big change of plan. whatever though, if it turns out to be crap then i'll tut at the chinese like i do everytime i buy a piece of subpar electronics and sell it on ebay. im sure it'll be fine though.

My recollection, and I could be wrong, is that the "made in USA" announcement came some time after preorders. In other words, it was a change of plan, not a selling point.

Again, I could be wrong, please provide sources if I am. After following updates for a couple of years, everything blends into a big timeless blur.

 

[adolobe]

Really, It's not a big deal. Doesn't matter to me where it's made.

Here's how I imagine it all went down.
MWeston to Craigix: Craig, these boards I got from California are great.
Craig to forum: Hello forum! We're getting boards from the US (California specifically, but he didn't say that)
MWeston to self: Dang, these guys want a lot to make the production boards. I wonder if we can find someone cheaper.
Texas to MWeston: How about these guys in China? They're reasonable price, and the best quality we've seen out of China!
MWeston to forum: Hello forum! We're getting boards from China!
Forum to Craigix: HE'S A WITCH! BURN HIM!

HAHA I cant stop laughing at your recollection of events...I have to say that laugh was worth reading 11 pages of this discussion

 

[gruso]

It's pretty spot on.

 

[EvilDragon]

In the end, why does it even matter what we do? As long as you get a quality working product, the rest truly is just our business, not yours (no disrespect intended).

it matters somewhat because when we paid for this thing, a big selling point and something that was pushed quite a bit was the fact that this is going to be a high quality product manufactured in the USA. the fact that this has now changed to being manufactured in china like the rest of the crappy handhelds you see on the internet, without so much as an announcement from the man himself is bound to stir some people up. i dont really care too much, you lot obviously know what you're doing but you have to admit its a pretty big change of plan. whatever though, if it turns out to be crap then i'll tut at the chinese like i do everytime i buy a piece of subpar electronics and sell it on ebay. im sure it'll be fine though.

You DO know that a lot of stuff which actually has "Made in Germany" or "Made in USA" is mostly produced in China?
The "Made in..." usually tells you where the ASSEMBLER sits - and our assembler is still in USA.

So you might have quite a lot of that China crap at home thinking it's made in US or Germany.

 

[meandu229]

couldnt care where its made,, its obvious time went into sourcing the best components and the best price. Aslong as it doesnt break till i break it which historically wont be long im happy no build quality can compensate for leaving outside in garden on a frosty night, or droppping out the car and running over it

 

[Dead1nside]

Thank you to all the developers for clarifying something that has been misconstrued and had undue emphasis placed upon it.

It really doesn't matter if the boards are manufactured in China (I still don't know, I thought I knew but now I'm even more confused by this thread: I simply don't care). I can also understand to a degree, people's reactions, as their money is invested in this project. However you communicating the finer details of the project is just a kind gift from your good-selves and would not be anywhere near the flow of information that a larger company would give us. Indeed, it can be both a gift of a community project like this, and also a curse; things change, and because almost everything is reported, confusion occurs.

I'm so happy that things seem like they're picking up speed, the PCBs, the cases and then all on their way to Texas to be assembled, then shipped out to you guys, to be shipped onto us. Inbetween all this great news and the emulator news, it feels like it's Christmas in a good way.

Thank-you.

 

[Loonie]

I hope the silicon and copper used in the IC fabrication originated from the USA! Wouldn't want any of that inferior sand or copper ore, would we.

 

[El Jefe]

Just wondering, is a "Made in USA" stamp really a selling point(or at least a bonus) for people in europe? which I understand is a lot of you guys...

 

[Olexxy]

Why do some of you guys have to fret over everything? Back when Craig made his comments about "made in the US" it was accurate. We were getting quotes from US companies. Then the assembler tried this China company and loved the results more than any other manufacturer so we said we would like a quote from them. It came back about 40% cheaper than the US and the board is already crazy expensive, so we took it so we don't have to lose even more money trying to build this first batch. It's as simple as that.

In the end, why does it even matter what we do? As long as you get a quality working product, the rest truly is just our business, not yours (no disrespect intended).

Thanks for clearing that up, especially you (the engineer of the team ^^) consider you have not compromised on the quality side. I personally don't care much where quality comes from, and your comment is welcome here. I think some discussions were firing up because you announced as an obvious fact that pcbs were from china whereas we all remembered the previous official statements which were opposite and never corrected till now.

 

[gruso]

Just wondering, is a "Made in USA" stamp really a selling point(or at least a bonus) for people in europe? which I understand is a lot of you guys...

I can't speak for Europe, but it doesn't mean much where I am. Maybe as a novelty. You expect something made in the USA to be rock solid, in a mechanical sense. Like, cutlery made from high-grade space-age three-inch-thick titanium alloy.

But then I think of that Simpsons episode when something fails, like a security gate or something, and the sticker on the side says Made in USA. It's a bit of an insight into something of their own that they take the piss out of.

Electronics though? Every big name console, handheld, PMP and iThing is made in China. Along with all the crap, yes. But I'd hate to see Australian exports like Heath Ledger and AC/DC judged on the fact that Vegemite tastes like shit.

 

[fogobogo]

I love it when a plan comes together

thank you for the A-Team!
P.S. i miss them...

 

[Sphinxter]

The location affects the odds of it's manufacture including recycled medical waste and horseshit stuffing.

 

[trendy]

In the end, why does it even matter what we do? As long as you get a quality working product, the rest truly is just our business, not yours (no disrespect intended).

Personally I found childish the way 'community feedback' was handled. It left a impression on users like they have too much to say (those that don't contribute value). The rest was too good to pass, comparing the level of commitment with the alternatives. If I would compare product+support it already beats almost everything else in its range and isn't even out yet.

but you have to admit its a pretty big change of plan

With all due respect, the matter is not so simple. I'd rather hope to promote the opposite attitude towards consuming: knowing where your stuff comes from.

So you won't buy products from China if they aren't repackaged to say 'something' in USA? Don't even get me started on local 'experts' that can't even make China semi-crap quality. Do you heard of certifications. That's how real business works. Only those and mostly niche companies like Lavry Engineering,Seitz make quality products. The rest could never be more than usable (for the masses usually).

With what kind of respect you want there are very few people that make quality, most try to make something 'quality of acceptable cost' and some succeed (this is where this project is). Because they are trying hard enough on little details (fanatical in a good way) they have changes to be between first categories.

a big selling point and something that was pushed quite a bit was the fact that this is going to be a high quality product manufactured in the USA.

Where is this place you're talking about? Because I read most of the posts here and even little flame wars were 'pushed' more. Go to sleep or wake up! I'm sorry you are left with such impressions, you have much to learn.

I hope the silicon and copper used in the IC fabrication originated from the USA! Wouldn't want any of that inferior sand or copper ore, would we.

And delivered by a US company or it might have been foreignized. The electrons might become infected with unknown epidemic and they could move only up to 70% of their normal speed.

Just wondering, is a "Made in USA" stamp really a selling point(or at least a bonus) for people in europe? which I understand is a lot of you guys...

Mostly no. It's actually a bad thing because sometimes means lack of quality per money (and sometimes crap - see software internalization). Companies are a big selling points (clothes, parfume etc). I don't know people that 'made in US' matters for them. Considering it means another 19% added price if it's not a lot better than local it isn't a choice. Most US stuff (that touched US ground in its lifespan) it's brought by US companies to avoid taxes in the US (which now appears it won't be happening like in the past). Also there are a lot of european companies that change their names in the US to have local prices.
If someone would say made in the US as a big selling point people will think he is crazy.

 

[TheRain]

The location affects the odds of it's manufacture including recycled medical waste and horseshit stuffing.

Right, cause like- if it were made in the U.S.A. it would be made of highly subsidized corn.

...

 

[deise]

I don't mind that it's made it china, like people were saying most good things are, some sh*t things but I think the OP team will make sure the quality is top stuff

 

[MDave]

Wow hasn't this been blown out of proportion? I would like to make sure on certain things though, just to help clear misconceptions / misunderstandings:

The processors, and other chips and screens etc are made in China too? Or is it just the bare PCB and cases / keypad rubber mat? I was getting the impression the chips, screens etc where made in the USA (not in the Texas factory that assembles the Pandora) and then sent to the Texas factory that will populate the PCB boards and assemble the Pandora. Not that it matters to me, but just to help clear confused people that MUST know what parts of their Pandora is made where

EDIT: I hope people realise their iPods and iPhones and whatever else are made in China, and these devices are considered by some to be at the pinnacle of engineering quality. Shouldn't have anything to worry about!