Moulds
Last week we received a big box of both 120 and 35mm Holders from the factory in the Netherlands with a bunch of test-parts
They look beautiful, with a matte finish and a satisfying click when you assemble them. Finally, we have something that looks and feels like a final, real product!
We tried two materials to get a feeling for which ones would be best. We much prefer the heavier, denser plastic that we had initially thought we would use - it had a nicer finish and felt better in the hand. However, it turned out that the other material we tried was closer to tolerances and flatter - the factory had predicted this so it wasn't a great surprise.
There are some problems with the parts relating to flatness and feel, as well as a minor design issue that slipped past us in previous testing. We are committed to not just bring a product to market but make it a quality product that everyone will be happy with. Therefore, we are working with the manufacturer to improve the flatness and feeling of the product, and while we are making alternations to the mould, fix the minor design issue. We are confident we will be able to make the necessary changes to make it really good.
This might cause some delays but should not be significant - we have asked for changes earlier which just took a couple of days. We hope you agree with us that it is more important to make the final product as perfect as we can, even to fix the smallest problems, than to ship a week or two earlier.
Advancers
We have just received a final pre-production unit for the Advancers, so today we are giving the go-ahead for the production of the first batch of Advancers. They look fantastic (see pictures below)! We have been working with the (really great) manufacturer to make tiny changes that help bring the costs down and the quality up.
The first 500, that will fulfil the Kickstarter, will be giving priority shipping from the manufacturer to minimise the time until you get them in your hands.
We are still aiming for an April shipping date, but seeing as there have been some delays that date might be pushed into May. We are doing everything we can to make it as soon as possible but with including shipping times from the manufacturer it might not be possible to ship in April. Fingers crossed!
Webshop and backer survey
The release of the webshop has felt just around the corner for about two months but it has not yet materialised. We have most of, if not all the content there on the website ready to launch but we are waiting for negotiations with a 3rd party payment provider. Once that is ready we will be launching it. I am told it will be soon but unfortunately, I don't yet have a date to give you. Luckily, this does not mean that products will be delayed to the Kickstarter backers.
We will also be sending out a backer survey asking for your shipping details - this will come very soon, before the webshop. Thank you for your understanding and patience! Again, none of this will delay shipping significantly.
Until next time - feel free to ask email any questions to hello@valoi.co!