> We are happy to announce that after an endless string of challenges and unlucky events, the Parallella board is finally moving into production!
Really, this is the sales pitch? Moral: don't let engineers write your marketing copy. Customers don't need to hear how close to disaster the transition to production was -- it reflects poorly on the end product.
I would have said, "We're now about to ship a product that meets our own high expectations, and we're ready to share it with you." You know, something encouraging.
This is "E2E": If you're not an specialist engineer, you will have no idea what to do with a Parallella - and if you are, you'll know you want one from the description and the specs, not vapid marketing copy.
Yes, that may be the intent, but not all buyers of such products are engineers themselves. Some of them are nontechnical and know what to look for, but have to make snap judgments based on the minimum of information.
> ... not vapid marketing copy.
The author of the linked article certainly succeeded in avoiding vapid marketing copy. :)
>not all buyers of such products are engineers themselves
I'm guessing this is especially true with this board because of Kickstarter exposure and coverage. I think that the ones bought by the non-engineers will end up dusty in desk drawers next to a thousand Raspberry Pis.
I disagree. As a backer I'm glad to know WHY I didn't receive my board months ago. Getting canned marketing messages would have just pissed me off.
It does seem like there have been some unfortunate events but I honestly believe the team is putting in their best effort to get this thing off the ground. They've had some hangups, and some preventable mistakes. It's the nature of innovation, and nothing they should be ashamed of or try to hide.
I agree with your disagreement :-). As a backer (and a customer), I prefer the clear picture of the events. They have been sending messages about their difficulties which I find informative and useful. Backing a project is riskier (and should be riskier) than just buying an already financed and ready product.
There have been more unfortunate kickstarter projects that could not deliver (like a measurement tool from senic). I don’t mind their honesty either and also think I learned something from their struggle. All the best to their future initiatives.
After you experience Kickstarter projects which fail to materialize (sometimes taking your money with them), you'll come to appreciate the honest and brutal reality behind putting things into production.
Really, this is the sales pitch? Moral: don't let engineers write your marketing copy. Customers don't need to hear how close to disaster the transition to production was -- it reflects poorly on the end product.
I would have said, "We're now about to ship a product that meets our own high expectations, and we're ready to share it with you." You know, something encouraging.