We got a plan!

[EvilDragon]

Geez, another newspost already?
Has something changed?

Yes, definitely

Thanks to a reply in the last newspost, we found a company which can do the bare CPU board within 5 days. Seems they got one special machine which can do that, as that speed is not common.
It costs about 1500 EUR more, but we save 5 weeks which can be used for further testing - AND demonstrating the Pyra at the GamesCom!

Nikolaus already finished the CPU PCB layout, over 1000 traces have been laid.
I received the final case design yesterday, with the last small changes we had, so that should be finished now as well.

So... it was time to create the final plan.

And here it is:

1. Early prototypes.

6 PCBs will be created before GamesCom. These will be used for testing and debugging purposes. Two of them will be shown at the GamesCom, completely assembled in printed cases (except for the keymat, which won't be ready at that time).
After the GamesCom, when we also get the keymat, some of them will go to low-level devs to help with the hardware integration.
Maybe I'll even sell one or two - but they will be a lot more expensive than the final unit.
We will also test whether Pandoras audio circuit (which is still optionally included in these PCBs) will be needed or not.
We'll also recheck the lead time of the Wifi Module - or change to a slightly bigger one (which can be done without Pandoras audio circuit) which is available within one month.

With those working prototypes, it's also time to start the preordering.



2. Pre-Production run

When the last issues of the case and PCBs have been fixed and they are confirmed to be working, the moulds for the case will be made and PCBs will be ordered for a pre-production run.

The pre-production run will be produced under mass-production conditions - meaning: The same companies producing the final product will produce the hardware.
This is to test, setup and tweak the machine and make sure everything is ready for the mass-production (remember the Pandora? That was the video I made shortly before christmas, the one where I looked like a dead Zombie in the end).

About 20 units will be produced here. Some will go to more devs to ensure we got a good software library to start, the rest can be bought as pre-production units.


3. Mass-Production


When the Pre-Production run has succeeded, parts will be ordered for the mass production, based on the amount of preorders we got.
Those parts will probably take 2 - 3 months to arrive, and then it's time to mass produce, build... and ship it to you guys!


Some more information about pre-ordering:

As mentioned, a prepayment needs to be made. Not the full price and we'll try to keep it as low as possible.

Quite a few customers have asked how they can use their iControlPad2 voucher they got from Link and their Pandora voucher if they didn't get the Pandora yet:
I will discuss that with Link and we'll find a proper solution.
No worries, you WILL get the information before preordering starts!

Thanks for supporting us - and have a nice weekend

 

[Super Roach]

This is awesome news! I bet you're so happy to find that special machine

 

[Silent-Hunter]

Oh awesome! So that should make it easier to pay for.

 

[LogicalUnit]

Great to hear

 

[Jumpman]

Hell Yeah, CAN'T WAIT

ED, you and the team are top shelf. I know we're still a ways off from mass production, as anything can happen during pre-production to cause delays, but everything is looking good so far, and everything is being done right. Hopefully all of the vendors involved take pride in their work, and deliver products as promised.

All the best to everyone involved.

Chris

 

[fusion_power]

Thanks to a reply in the last newspost, we found a company which can do the bare CPU board within 5 days. Seems they got one special machine which can do that, as that speed is not common.

It costs about 1500 EUR more, but we save 5 weeks which can be used for further testing - AND demonstrating the Pyra at the GamesCom!

Wow, prototyping PCBs seems to be expencive. But time is money, right? ^^

6 PCBs will be created before GamesCom. These will be used for testing and debugging purposes. Two of them will be shown at the GamesCom, completely assembled in printed cases (except for the keymat, which won't be ready at that time).

You could try to 3D print some dummy keymat just to have some completely assembled Pyras to show.

When the Pre-Production run has succeeded, parts will be ordered for the mass production, based on the amount of preorders we got.

Those parts will probably take 2 - 3 months to arrive, and then it's time to mass produce, build... and ship it to you guys!

I guess the tooling for the injection molds will take the longest part there, right? I hope it goes well.

 

[EvilDragon]

Thanks to a reply in the last newspost, we found a company which can do the bare CPU board within 5 days. Seems they got one special machine which can do that, as that speed is not common.

It costs about 1500 EUR more, but we save 5 weeks which can be used for further testing - AND demonstrating the Pyra at the GamesCom!

Wow, prototyping PCBs seems to be expencive. But time is money, right? ^^

Well, depends on the boards. But with 10 layer PCBs, yep, it's expensive

6 PCBs will be created before GamesCom. These will be used for testing and debugging purposes. Two of them will be shown at the GamesCom, completely assembled in printed cases (except for the keymat, which won't be ready at that time).

You could try to 3D print some dummy keymat just to have some completely assembled Pyras to show.

I've thought about that, and you can even print rubber - but they wouldn't have the plastic keycaps on top so they'd feel different.

We'll try to assemble something using our sample keymats and the Pandora one. The buttons and Dpad haven't changed in size, so those should work well.

When the Pre-Production run has succeeded, parts will be ordered for the mass production, based on the amount of preorders we got.

Those parts will probably take 2 - 3 months to arrive, and then it's time to mass produce, build... and ship it to you guys!

I guess the tooling for the injection molds will take the longest part there, right? I hope it goes well.

The tooling for the injection molds takes about 2 months, but that should mostly be done when the pre-production run is finished, so no problem with the mass production.

With a mass production run, the longest you need to wait is always the parts.

 

[Farox]

Great

So uhmm preorder in September....ship in December...right?

 

[Mr_Loon]

Thanks for the updates ED, great to see steady progress is being made.

Apologies if I've missed some earlier news but this bit confuses me :

We will also test whether Pandoras audio circuit (which is still optionally included in these PCBs) will be needed or not.

What's the thinking here? Is there a worry that the new audio circuit will not work or is the plan just to test which gives the best audio? If it's the latter how will the decision be made?

 

[fantomid]

Only x 1000

 

[Cralex]

So we won't have to pay for the whole thing when we preorder? I'm looking forward to more details about that as it'll be a huge help.

 

[Foxgod]

NICE, thanks a lot for the news and all the hard work!

 

[FaeMinx]

This is fantastic news!


But ED, I'm a little concerned that with my alucase credit you gave me, and the voucher from Link, that there will be very little cash I send you if you only ask for a percentage of the final price.


Can those of us who opt to, give you the full amount straight away?

 

[Silent-Hunter]

I vote for a humble bundle-esque slider so we can select between a minimum and maximum amount to deposit for our preorders.

 

[PokeParadox]

Yes. Good plan! Keep up the momentum!

 

[EvilDragon]

So we won't have to pay for the whole thing when we preorder? I'm looking forward to more details about that as it'll be a huge help.

No, I will only charge as much as needed upfront.


We need to pay 60% for the production upfront, so this is what we need to charge.


So probably 200 EUR, we'll see

 

[FaeMinx]

^ is that an answer to my question as well?

 

[EvilDragon]

^ is that an answer to my question as well?

Ahh, sorry, missed that.


You will be able to pay more, however, those vouchers will be used for the final payment, not the pre-payment.

 

[Alperoot]

Wow, 200 EUR for pre-order.

Thanks ED  ^_^

 

[Grench]

6 PCBs will be created before GamesCom. These will be used for testing and debugging purposes. Two of them will be shown at the GamesCom, completely assembled in printed cases (except for the keymat, which won't be ready at that time).

You could try to 3D print some dummy keymat just to have some completely assembled Pyras to show.

I've thought about that, and you can even print rubber - but they wouldn't have the plastic keycaps on top so they'd feel different.


We'll try to assemble something using our sample keymats and the Pandora one. The buttons and Dpad haven't changed in size, so those should work well.

There would be a huge difference between:

1.  A prototype that has something going on on-screen, a bunch of holes in the bottom case and an external keyboard connected.

Vs.

2.  A prototype that has blank keys that actually do something on-screen when pressed.

Of course the keyboard driver wouldn't exist yet - so what that input does on-screen probably won't be available yet.

Fantastic progress though - and thank you for including those of us who have credits at Link's store in the pre-order process.  It is appreciated.

Now, set up something where I can actually pre-order one with my Link credit factored in and an option to pay 100% of the difference between full price + shipping and what I've got with Link up front.  I think many of us would rather do that than pay a portion up front then have to make a 2nd payment later to make the shipment happen.  You and Link have both proven yourselves honorable businessmen.  I'd rather pay in full (minus credit @ Link) and then just wait for it to arrive.