I’m not worried. @dan has done quite a lot in the past year and change, taken a revolutionary new spin on laser cutting, and the proof is already shown in the progress. There’s a 22 minute video from tested that shows glowforge and Dan showing how the trace worked, how lining up a cut works, with a walnut and frosted acrylic tea light candle holder, and really, that was how long ago? The devout and regular forum users that have read most or all of the posts from the team have certainly had photos of progress. There are a handful of people with beta user tags pumping out pics. There is progress proven.
I just walked into my local Walmart and a sign said 35 days til Xmas. That’s 42 more days for the final progress to STILL HAPPEN for those first backers. So chill.
I had an idea for a product the summer before glowforge was even told to me. I got my business started, got my trademarks and patents sorted out, got the business licensing, website established, and after the headstart I had, I would say I still have less progress done than the GF team, lol. I have prototypes, I have custom crafted products, I have some repeat production designs, but I still have a ways to go.
All you naysayers should pipe down and respect the progress this company has proven already. What have YOU done since last October?
Perfectly understandable to be a bit antsy about delays, but the team has made a lot of progress over the last year, the betas have been churning out projects that display almost all of the functionality of the machines, and @dan is conspicuously absent from the forum these days except for the occasional pop-in to let us know he’s still breathing…ALL excellent signs that the machines are about to make their debut to an adoring audience.
Dan can’t show us proof, or make videos, or take pictures right now. He also can’t answer each individual question that gets directed to him specifically (much as he would like to, and I’m sure he does)…because he is currently busting his tail trying to get those machines out the door. That’s job one and it’s going to be nose to the grindstone until they ship. Also a very good sign.
The next scheduled update will come soon after November. They are planning a limited ship out of pre-production machines at the end of this month to some of the people who signed up for Beta testing. If that goes well, the machines will go into full production for delivery to the crowd-funders.
Unfortunately, that’s all that anybody knows right now…including Dan.
If you need something to do to make the time pass, now might be a good time to pick up a few samples of things you want to use in the laser, work up a few designs, or do your holiday shopping to get it out of the way. I’m planning to cook up a bunch of meals and fill up the freezer, so we actually have something to eat once that email goes out…my way to try to get ahead of the game.
Hah! Im in the March delivery group and I’m going to need every bit of that time to clean up my Post-Apocalyptic workspace to make room for the GF and the onslaught of materials to come along with it. Explosive hobby Disorder is a killer.
The progress is great, but for some who have been expecting a deliverable since December 2015, its tempered with a bit of a disappointment of having slick marketing done that implied the product was much further along than where it was.
The revolutionary part is what a lot of us were sold on, and unfortunately right now its all vaporware. Hoping that there wont be another delay, because based on how poorly the communication has been on what features are done, and where we are in the process, I know I wont be hanging around for another 3-12 months for my unit.
Yep… One more delay and I’m out. Based on the limited beta users and the fact that I have not seen one beta user push the envelope to really test and push this laser. The only reason I ordered the GF was for the scan and cut ability and be able to run it off a mac. Now I’m at the point off just purchasing elsewhere and get a cheap windows machine to run the thing.
I’m still waiting for the 3D engrave features or variable pulse grayscale engraving myself. The rest is or has turned out to be of little interest to someone with a laser already. The camera features are more candy than steak for me. The pass through turned out to be pretty useless as implemented. It might open up new horizons for people who don’t have one now although I’m surprised there are that many who would spend this kind of money on something they have no experience with. But I value the US presence & support and this forum enough that I’m sticking with it.
For me, I had no desire for a laser cutter. I didn’t even realize it was a thing. Then I saw the promo video and thought “I need one of those!”. It’s a tool. A tool that will make many of the things inside my head able to come out into the real world.
I’ve used industrial laser cutters. I bought Glowforge because it promises to make the process much easier, so I can focus on making things instead of fiddling with settings. And it’s nice enough looking, and has built in air filtering (Pro) that I don’t need to hide it in the garage, but can keep it in the house where it’s convenient to use.
The ability to have it in the house and filtered (spousal nasal acceptance factor) in addition to the simplicity of operation (for the spouse) makes the GF a perfect laser unit for all in the house.
Many parents spend a lot more on their kid’s first car, even when the kid has zero driving experience. The potential is there to learn, gain experience, and prosper because of it.
A more expensive car might have better safety features, like well thought out mechanisms, advanced sensors, and smart warnings. You may not care for these extras, or they may be very important to you.
A very cheap car might not even come assembled correctly from the factory. You may have to learn where every bolt goes, and why. That might help you out later. Or it might work just fine from day one.
Granted, for some people, taking the cheap car apart-> upgrading all of the components-> rebuilding it-> using it until it breaks again-> repeating is a more satisfying approach. Others may want to that once, and never again. Still others don’t want to have to touch tool to vehicle, ever.
That is the end of my “used car vs new car for teen drivers: glowforge vs k40 for home lasering” comparison.
All I’m looking for is 2 items from the feature list on the Glowforge website from September 2015. . .
DXF direct to GF and kerf adjustment. I think Dan has made it pretty clear that neither of those items are going to be on the freight forwarder truck when units ship. So as I’ve been saying of late, it just is what it is.
Those are a couple I gave up on. The first I can work around - although I do most of my work now using DXF as the interchange format, I can do SVG for the GF and DXF for the other stuff (and a “print” driver from Corel). No biggie, The auto-kerf adjustment would be outstanding but I’ve been doing it manually so I’ll just keep that up. Right now the only things I can’t do that I want are the two that I’m still waiting to see.
Regarding the filter for in doors. I ordered the Pro and cancelled the filter several weeks ago. Reason is I have a top of the line microwave in my kitchen that recirculates through a carbon filter. Since day one it never removes kitchen odor nor much of an effect on smoke. Ended up venting through the roof which makes a huge difference. Granted the GF may be a bit more efficient?. So for me I will just stick the exhaust hose through my garage door and if inside the window.
I spent thirty years as a manufacturability engineer in central office switching equipment which is at least two thousand times more complex than the GF with over fifty million lines of code and later consumer products similar to the GF. In all that time, I have never witnessed such schedule slippages. We new months prior to shipping if a product would be ready to ship. I’m beginning to think that the GF was in its infancy, if not an embryonic state when being marketed over a year ago and that they new it so that they could raise development funds thus keeping investor money for security. I am very disappointed to date.
So, do you feel better now that you have vented? Several had mentioned the ultimate remedy. The GF is just a laser cutter/etcher, not the remedy to the worlds problems (or yours). It promises to be the easiest to use…bringing power to thousands. I kind of think you’re going to be disappointed, no matter what kind of GF you receive. I hope you will be happy with it. - Rich
No idea what qualifies as top-of-the-line in your situation, but my experience has been that many above-stove fans are a joke. The filters used in them tend to be so laughably thin, they can’t efficiently do much of anything. If you want to filter out especially stinky smells, you need to do either a thicker or multi-stage filtration, depending on the particles and their size you’re trying to filter.
X[quote=“jamesaellis1, post:77, topic:3468”]
I’m beginning to think that the GF was in its infancy, if not an embryonic state when being marketed over a year ago and that they new it
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I believe that is not an unreasonable assessment. At this point, I’m hoping we are getting somewhat closer to the Glowforge in the promotional video of September 2015, bare the stated software features that won’t be delivered out of the gate. As an early in line crowdfunder, I’m hoping to see one at the door by the spring. If it arrives sooner, I’ll be happy (and Pleasantly surprised).
Hey Rich, no need to be so aggressive in your response. I was not venting, just penning my current thoughts. I have the ability to purchase whatever I want. The reason for the GF is for my hobby in which I design and manufacture large radio controlled jets and other aircraft. What appealed to me about the GF is that I would be able to draw on a piece of material and have it scan and then cut for a rapid prototype turn around. This alone would save many hours of continuously drawing and redrawing in vector graphics then sending the file out for cutting.
I ordered the pro so that I could cut longer parts for airfoils and the like. So forgive me if I’m a little skeptical after waiting fourteen months or so. Other than seeing maker fair people draw and cut/etch very simple examples. I have not today seen anything that approaches any other laser on the market. Include to this that the very few beta folks have not as yet produced anything of complexity that uses the so called advanced features that we have all been sold on.
Regarding disappointment. Currently I am disappointed in regards to the shipping always being promised then changed. Yes, this can happen but it does tend to make one feel a little jumpy with a few bucks on the table. If the GF does have at least scan and cut with a usable and accurate pass through and can actually cut 1/4" ply then I will be more than happy. The other item of import is the multi platform ability which it obviously does have. So you are totally wrong in assuming that nothing would please me.
Dodds… Yes, You are totally correct in regards to the microwave filters being crappy. All that I’m saying is that it made me think that I should not bother having one and hence the cancellation.
I personally would like to see more update on the shipping and also live video of this thing doing what it is supposed to do. Until then its really vapor ware.
