Kickstarter

Wow, this does not get less busy with time :-)

Firmware updated

There is a new firmware update out. It fixes the charger light not turning green when the Kick is fully charged, improves the color linearity, and a number of other minor issues. If you want to update your Kick you need access to a PC. Not because we have any preference for PCs, but there is an OSX bug that causes the firmware update to fail on a Mac.

There is also a bugfix version of the App making its way through the approval process. 

Shop is open

The Kick is now for sale from the website. Since you are a backer and therefore awesome you get 15% discount on anything (OK, we only have a single product at the moment). Put in the coupon code backer AND on the checkout screen use the same email address you used when backing the Kick here on Kickstarter.

Survey

In the next couple of days we'll send out a survey. We would really appreciate it if you would spend a few minutes with it.

Problems? We are here to help

We have a proper help desk system up and running now to ensure that no support requests fall through the cracks. For a while support requests came in from all directions, facebook, twitter, various email addresses, it was a challenge to keep up. We should be able to catch them all now. If you have any problems don't hesitate to email us at support@riftlabs.com.

Better documentation with video examples are a priority and will make their way onto the getting started section over the next couple of weeks.

Developers

There is a fair amount of interest in talking to the Kick from other devices. We have been working on ways to make that easier. We'll get a developer section up on the website before long. In the mean time, email us if you want access to the communication protocol and documentation.

Hi,

All Kicks will be shipped by Friday this week. The packages are sent by post.

The factory thought they could ship everything by last Friday, but that was too optimistic. We are in contact with the factory daily, and they are confident that all the rest will be out this Friday. If you haven't received a dispatch note by Friday night, get in touch and we'll sort it out.

The DOA bug has been found and squashed. (See previous update) The main problem was a current leak that caused the battery to drain even when the Kick was turned off. It was a firmware issue and has now been fixed: You can install the latest firmware update from the downloads page. If you have access to a Windows PC, the firmware update is Drag and Drop. Instructions on the download page. 

If you are a glutton for punishment, like Pauric, you can do it on a Mac as well. However, OSX tries to write hidden files to the Kick during the firmware update and that chokes the process. This can be avoided by opening the terminal window and type in unix commands. If you are not comfortable with this, my advice is to find a friend with a Windows PC instead.

Thanks for all the positive feedback and comments on Kick on Twitter, Facebook, here in the Kickstarter comments, and by email! It is great to learn about your experiences with Kick! To those who are still waiting: thanks for your patience! It has been a long wait, but Friday your Kick will be in the mail.

Hi guys

We know you are eagerly awaiting your Kick and we are shipping as fast as we can. We are doing a lot more QA testing than originally planned so final assembly is taking a lot longer. We have shipped about 70% by now.

We have received a ton of positive feedback. Thanks! It really means a lot to us. But about 2-5% of the units are DOA. It looks like some of the Kicks runs out of power during transit and gets stuck. It needs help to get unstuck.

The good news is that it fairly easy to fix yourself. If you receive a Kick that won't turn on, this is what you can do:

1. Charge the Kick for a while, 15 minutes will do. We want enough juice back in the battery to allow it to turn on.

2. Press the reset button. The Kick will now turn on. 
-Use a paperclip and reset it through the little hole between the USB connector and the charging light.
-There is a reset button in there, you will feel a little click. If you don't feel a click, try pointing the paperclip slightly towards the front.

3. Let the battery charge fully. 

So far, all backers who received a DOA Kick got it working again using the above method.  But if you still have problems, email us at support@riftlabs.com. We are working on a firmware update to avoid this happening in the future. We'll also get an illustrated step-by-step guide to the DOA issue up on the Getting Started page as soon as we can.

Thanks for your patience. Thanks for your support. 

Shipping at last!

The production errors from last week are found and fixed. All Kicks have had the last version of the firmware loaded and it all looks good. The first proper shipment goes out this afternoon. Yay!!

Prep for firmware updates

Firmware updates are the way to add new features and improvements after the Kick has been shipped. In the shipping version, firmware updates are done by connecting the Kick to a PC with a USB cable. It is a simple and safe Drag and Drop thing. But USB firmware updates are really meant to be the fallback option. In the future we will try to deliver firmware updates via the App, so it is all fully automated. But this takes a lot of testing and tweaking as you can imagine. Over-The-Air firmware updates can not be allowed to fail. We don't want a global mass exodus of Kicks as a result of an update bug :-) So for now updates are done via USB.

The first firmware update will come in a couple of weeks. Note that there is currently an issue with color linearity on low brightness. When emitting white light on low brightness the colortemperature warms up. There is no problem on higher brightness settings. We did not want to delay shipping any further. The next firmware update will adress this issue. So when the time comes, you want to have access to a Windows PC. (Updates can be done from a Mac as well, but it is not Drag and Drop).

For the "pics or it didn't happen"-crowd:

Ready for shipping. This is about 10% of the volume.

Labeling and packing materials. We can't just walk down to the local post office and hand in 1500 boxes through the window.There is a ton of rules for international shipping: forms, declarations, lists, barcodes, stamps, signatures, etc, etc. You don't want to know. 

Awesome Janos "The Watchmaker" Sr. presides over the final assembly and check out. He has an iron fist in a velvet glove. We don't share a common language (apart from "engineering"), but he has pantomimed the improvements he wants to see in the construction of the enclosure and the packaging materials.

We will send you a dispatch email as all the Kicks are shipped over the next few days.

Buzz, klang, whirrr, the wheels of industry are in motion.

Kicks are rolling off the production line as we speak.

We are trying to ship in roughly the order the pledges came in and the first of you will receive your Kick(s) about the time the new version of the App becomes available in the AppStore.

A new version of the App is going up for review shortly and should become available in the AppStore by the end of the coming week. It won't have new fancy graphics, but it should work well. Better looking graphics is planned for the update after this, in the near future.

For those who like to geek out on production processes, here is a grabshot of the flashing and testing of the electronics:

Explanation: First the bootloader and then the firmware is loaded into the microprocessor flash memory. (The processor does not store its program on a harddisk, it stores it in internal flash memory.) If this process passes without errors, the Test Fixture checks voltages around the board, via a bed of nails that touches testpoints on the board. It then reboots the board in a selftest mode. The board runs test on its own internal functions, and then configures and tests the WiFi communication. This is what takes a little while. 

If everything is OK,  the serial number, version numbers and other info is logged. The board then lights up the emitters and the operator checks and OKs them. Next, the signal LEDs lights up and the operator checks that they are OK. If all tests checks out, the Test Fixture display PASS and the board goes on to the next production step. (If any errors are detected, the board goes over to the guy who checks what the problem is. It the problem is not a simple fix, the board is lovingly marked P.O.S. and is sent to yours truly.)