Hi Guys,
First of all thank you very much for all support, we are having a amazing campaign at Indiegogo. (http://www.indiegogo.com/veloso3dprinter)
I would like to clarify few things about the project:
What is the Kit?
I saw many negative comments in different blogs about the kit price, I believe that most of the comments are coming from people who believe we will be building the kit in my kitchen using components from the hardware store across the street. Additionally people are questioning the ability to provide support for the software as they believe are just people developing it for fun during free time.
My apologies for not explaining this before and creating this confusion. I understand the negative comments as I would also not pay 4K USD for something that will be produced in someones kitchen (place where 99% people are mentioning - LOL).
We have been developing a very professional kit, which will be manufactured in China with high precision components and plastic injected parts. The result is a good looking kit as well precision and great quality. The pictures you see so far is from our first working prototype, the kit looks much better. We will release the new kit pictures soon, you will be surprised. Why we havent share this so far? Because the new version uses a slightly different process than the one we have posted in the internet and we don't to make the details public on internet before the end of the campaign.
So, please don't think you are buying a "kitchen" manufactured machine. We moved to very professional mode for this kit long time ago, and we have all sort of engineers working in the project.
Additionally the software is not a weekend project, we have a small team working for over 1 year and 8 months full time on it. Just compare our software with the existing open sources... yes, difficult to compare... :-)
We are setting up the suport for both kit and software following best industry standards and I am sure everyone that acquires the kit will be more than happy with that.
I will provide some new pics soon, new objects and videos.
BTW, electronics are not standard 9.99 boards in the market but a special designed board.
Does it means if I buy the blue print I will need to build special precision parts?
This would be the preferable option, but you can still develop a machine using the hardware shop material or things from ebay. But we can't guarantee the quality.
We will create a forum where people who wants to build their own machine would be able to share their experience.
BTW1: Some people are getting upset and writing terrible things just because they are not getting answers for their questions. I am really sorry about it, and I apologize. We are receiving over 100 emails daily and many comments in the blog. Unfortunately we have huge backlog of questions which we expect to clean soon, right now our focus is on the design/development, so there will be always a bit of delay in the answers. Please don't take conclusions by yourself and kindly contact us by email (veloso3d@gmail.com) if you have any question or concern.
BTW2: I don't understand why so many people is asking for open source project... ???.. sorry the project is not open source as you expect.
Cheers
keep plugging away at it and dont worry too much about negative comments, especially where people are jumping to unfounded conclusions
ReplyDeleteJunior! Great work, nobody has a kit even close, so forget the negative comments.
ReplyDeleteOn the net you will ALWAYS have negative people saying horrible things. Even if this was out of your kitchen it still beats everything else. Don't waste your time with those people, this kit is the future of 3d home kits.
don't worry
ReplyDeletewe are 100% support you
Junior, you've missed the point of many of the concerns. Belittling them here as simple negativity or impatience doesn't help.
ReplyDeleteSmall team or not, you still haven't addressed the questions about software guarantees/assurances/escrow. *That's* why people are asking for open source, because those issues then become almost completely moot.
If you can't provide escrow or something, people are shelling out a lot of money for proprietary software which is the heart of the kit, and which may or may not be available in the future, which may or may not work on the latest operating systems 3-5 years from now. Or, you may say something like "Hey, if you want this to run on Windows 8 or whatever, you need to pay me $1000" and people will be stuck. For example, in June, you said the software was cross-platform (screenshots are even Mac, as I recall), but in the FAQ you've said it's for Windows.
What about bug fixes? Is your small team going to have the bandwidth to quickly deal with all the bugs that get uncovered once you release this in the wild?
You may have your heart and mind in the right place, it's time to get the legalities there too and also provide some transparency and promises around your software.
I believe you're in Singapore, right? That makes it even harder to because getting satisfaction from a non-US, non-EU company can be extremely difficult should you fail to provide updates and whatnot in the future. There's risk to the buyer.
As to answering email, I understand that. However, you're also actively censoring (on your blog) the comments which ask those questions, and deleting others from the indiegogo campaign. That's different, and has nothing to do with workload. It's about trust now "just because they didn't get answers to their questions", and it's not just "offensive" stuff you're deleting/censoring.
Now that you have commenters on hack-a-day where they aren't being censored, it seems everyone is seeing the full spectrum of concerns, not just the things you let through. I agree there are some trolls and haters there as well, but don't let that distract you from the legit concerns. If you're not ready to address those, you really shouldn't be asking for money.
I really do wish you luck with this. Just take care of the important issues above and beyond the engineering and design, and work on your communication and transparency. You seem like a business-minded person, this should be somewhat obvious.
Sorry, neither I nor my hackerspace are going to buy some closed source kit.
ReplyDeleteDo not understand why people are so complicated, the work was done by specialists, a project of high quality, genuinely interests me, do not buy now for being unemployed but it is a dream for the near future, opensource? There are several on the Internet, a little research should be enough to find them, are not good enough? This is best? This is the reason this has a cost, a very fair cost. Keep up the good work, negative comments from people who can not see beyond their personal interests will always exist just as they always will be people who admire your work and it is there that you should pay attention.
ReplyDeleteIt is unrealistic to think that you shall be able to "protect" your design. There are several sites already with similar resin plans available free. You might save yourself a lot of headaches if you just went open source, and win a few fans in he process. I say it again if you make a good product it will sell. Best of luck with your great printer.
ReplyDeleteHello Junior, can you record please full printing video for some medium/large item?
ReplyDeleteIf I going to bye the printer, I need to see how much time it printing and in conclusion what quality we have
Thank you
Hi Junior, there are always haters, those people need to get out more if they just sit around trolling the indiegogo site. I'm with Dan, and Unknown your prototype is absolutely amazing and the quality blows my mind every time I look at the images. I can only imagine what the final kit will look like!!
ReplyDeleteI haven't got passed the 'boss' for purchasing the full kit yet, but I'm seriously working on it (things like doing the dishes etc. =) ).
Thanks for writing this! I can't wait to see and hear more information on the project. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteGood luck!
Hi Pete,
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for your comment, I really appreciate it and I believe you raised a extremely important point.
We are evaluating a escrow agent for our software to make sure we protect the rights of the buyers in case we fail to provide the right support. I will provide more details on this soon as well the license agreement.
Yes, the software we are developing is cross platform, however because of limited time to implement the USB interface with the controller board we will just be able to release the Windows version. We will evaluate the possibility of implementing the USB interface in other platforms in the future, as the software is ready for it.
Most of comments I see in hackaday are people talking about 50 dollar controller board, 10 dollar resin, 100 dollar printer. I truly believe everyone has the right to design and implement the project he/she wants within the budget they are willing to spend, nobody is forced to support us. Unfortunately as you said there are some trolls and haters that just post offenses on internet. I wish we could use the 50 dollar controller board, 10 dollar resin and build 100 dollar printer, with quality of course.
I would really appreciate if you can drop me an email, so we can keep in contact. veloso3d@gmail.com
Regards
does your software work on the mac? i see in the picture at the top of this page a mac running your software, but in the FAQ it states it runs on winblows. i am in if it works on mac!
ReplyDeleteCan you explain how this is substantially different from makerbot or reprap?
ReplyDeleteTo answer your question about the expectation of open source. I can't speak for everyone one, but, for myself it has to do with the language of the promotional material. When I hear a high quality, in comparison to other projects, 3D-Printer that could be available for all. My mind goes to two related places.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I think of other 3D-Printer projects that have a similar "available for all" ethos. The ones that immediately come to mind are rep-rap & makerbot. Both of which, unless I'm mistaken, are open source projects. Then I think the likely rational behind why they are open source. And that goes back to the ethos. If I am interested in making something widely available to the most people, then open source is one of the best, if not the best, way to go.
The idea is great but I live far from yours and this is something new in my place
ReplyDeleteBryan: It is a completely different process. As different as making a building out of bricks instead of wood. Look up videos of the Reprap or Makerbot (extrusion printers) on Youtube and then watch a video of Junior's design (UV curing resin printer) working.
ReplyDeleteThe Makerbot style printers extrude melted plastic in layers, resin curing printers solidify a pool of liquid resin layer by layer with light.
@Junior
ReplyDeleteGreat. Thanks for the info. I'll look forward to the details. The escrow should give many peace of mind.
I'm still pretty wary of the proprietary nature of the software and interface combination, having gone down that path before (with CNC hardware/software), and left with less than I had bargained for and a platform that has essentially stagnated.
Thanks also for the invite, but I'd prefer to keep the conversation out in the open, so everyone benefits.
Pete
I have been watching this project and blog with interest for a while- one year plus now and counting. I am not interested in buying this kit or even in your method or software. What has held my interest is to watch how this venture has went from a almost DIY kit or build concept to a LUDIFY (Let Us Do It For You) for a price business pitch. I am not in any capacity convinced by any of your arguments for your methods and intents or the arguments against Open Source design and SW/HW either. MakerBot as an example in a similar related product offering and niche is making a pretty decent business and profit off of a model of working from an opensource based design and SW and even they have faults I would tend to poke at as well. Even they don't give enough credit, mention or respect to reprap and other developer groups and models in their opensource reference based model either.
ReplyDeleteI am wondering where or when any of the people from whose brains you picked or from whose work and documentation you picked up or took things from to make your "solution" work are being credited or reciprocated any mention or thanks thereof back to in all of this venture? It is likely a very very good thing that there are several groups out in the wilds of the internet working on open source based alternatives to this to keep things in balance and perspective- (ahem check possibly as well...).
What is this product going to do so well or reliably that is going to set it far enough apart from opensource and true DIY to justify the pricetag and commitment from a potential customer? Hot air and promises are a dime a plenty especially in internet driven and administered business models or chains. What about continued cost of consumables such as the resin materials, variations in projector units and especially their illuminating lamps and local conditions variables? Even for the people on board for the full 4K investment experience there is a whole plethora of pitfalls and what-ifs that can and will arise from their individual circumstance or situations that will have to be dealt with in the name of customer support much less all the confusion and anxiety of them trying to learn to operate the modeling and operation SW properly and to their own satisfaction and expectations.
Also I am not buying the argument about how your engineered in China HW and controller board is going to be any superior to something done on an ARM or AVR etc platform open source HW design device either. It looks to me as if these proprietary or esoteric controller boards are still only going to be $50 USD value boards made in China but with the seal of approval of this business outfit. Is this seal of approval really worth xxx $ more or not? You are right about it being your business model and concept and your way to do it but that doesn't mean necessarily that it is the best or only way to get there except maybe in terms of per-unit-profit margins for your business.
About all there is left to say is good luck - you are definitely going to be needing all you can get and then some and hope you are ready for the real work to begin as it has only really began once those kits are in the hands of the end users. I have had experience in the past in commercial business and resale and support of developed or engineered systems and the accompanying headaches and hell.... so I sort of know what to expect and so on...
Hi junior, I sell 3D printers in the professional segment and would like to get some information to market your printer to some of my customers. I was looking for your email, but cannot find it. If you would be so kind as to get back to me at my email below, I would greatly appreciate it.
ReplyDeleteThank you,
Peter
Peter@solidmodelusa.com
Hi Junior,
ReplyDeleteI sell 3D printers in the professional market segment and would like some information to market your printer to some of my customers. I was looking for your email, but I have not be to find it. If you would be so kind as to contact me at my e,
Mail address below, I would greatly appreciate it.
Than you,
Peter
Peter@solidmodelusa.com
Hi man,
ReplyDeleteI wanna purchase one of your kit, but still have questions before it.
1. my target is USD399 version, could please explain what is "software price after indiegogo (USD549)?
2. how should i do to synchronize your software and the motor system?(perhaps this is included in your pdf description)
3. is it possible to download your 3D software (i am not sure how big of this software, 700MB?)to replace by sending a CD, because this can save money and time both.
Thanks for your answer.
Best regards,
Christopher
I was considering the Objet Eden 500v polyjet. Can your printer provide the same resolution?
ReplyDeleteAlso looking for a spec page, but no luck so far.
Thx a lot
I'm really into buying your product but I need to ask you some questions first. I'm Living in Poland and I want to know if I can use any type of photopolymer for printing or it should have special composition? Also I'm wondering if you could send me a sample of printed element (it would be great if you could send me a sample of printed ring). I'm a jeweler and I want to try the material mainly for sanding, grinding and also check if I can use it straightly for "lost-wax" method.
ReplyDeleteFilip
HI Junior,
ReplyDeleteTudo bem?
I'd like to ask you about the Indiegogo campaign. If it does not reach
the goal they say the contribution will be refunded. In that case can you instead keep that amount and add to the new price for the items i contributed? And invoice me for the remaining?
I want it anyway. This is way cool. I've got to have it.
Great work!!
Parabens!!
Eduardo
Hello dears,
ReplyDeletecould be possible to see some pics about the final complete-kit design?
And will be great to see more pics and videos about the process and the results. I've sent to your team a 3D model of sculpture, "Morpheus" head. It have lot of small details and the original artist's signature on its side. If you want to do a video and pics about its printing, I'll be honored.
Thanks and Rgards,
Mattia
I am in Singapore. How about letting me have a glimpse of your prototype. Where do you live? Are you an expat in Singapore? Singapore do not have any local Spanish citizens that were born here. I am a local here. I can put everyone's fears to rest if I just see your prototype.
ReplyDelete@junior
ReplyDeletegreat, how can i buy the tray and the resin?
do you have any website?
frankly my concern was if i bought this kit from you, you wouldn't be able to supply me the resin, tray and other spare parts because i don't see it on your website, which only sells the machine.
John
Hello Junior,
ReplyDeleteI made a post on my blog(In French) about your printer and your campaign. I hope this will help !
Regards,
Didier
I forgot to mention it, the post on my blog is at this address : http://replica-3d.fr/kit-imprimante-3d-haute-resolution-des-nouvelles-du-projet-de-junior-veloso/
ReplyDeleteBest Cheers
Didier