Yup! 
really? your responce to my identification of a industry standard (ISO, TL, etc) practice is met with "bless your heart " and “thanks for sharing your opinion”. expecially when it is in responce to your opinion…
A couple of questions for the Q&A.
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I have never seen the cost of replacement filters. On a competitor’s website, they say $250 per month for Glowforge filters. How often do the filters need changed and what will they cost? Please don’t fall back on the depends on how much you cut a day answer. One hour per day, 8 hours per day, etc should all be calculated.
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The cloud base software has always been a concern of mine. I have many PC’s, software, etc that still work long after the companies I bought from have moved on. If Glowforge is bought out, goes bankrupt, or ceases business, are all our lasers instantly door stops?
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Here’s a question…
How do you feel about grandfathering pre-order pricing to all who pre-ordered for, say, 1 year from production rollout? (Let’s say no more than 2 of any unit and the obvious caveat that you may not sell said unit(s) within x years. Enforceable by software lockout detecting a new IP range, for example.) Let’s say I get this thing, love it, and say “Damn… I should have purchased an air filter, or a pro, or 2 units so I can do twice as much at the same time.” This allows us, your loyal and faithful long-term customers, to be, potentially, twice as happy with the company.
Not sure if I’d take advantage of that offer, myself even. But it sounds like something I might do. And it sounds like something that would help restore people’s faith a little bit at little-to-no cost to the company.
- Tom
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To the extent possible I’d like more information about some of the issues. Are the units piling up with issues all experiencing similar problems or are there diverse problems. Are the issues related more to wear from use or related to the minutiae of design and supply issues? In the earlier delay, the information about the manufacturing and power supply issues helped provide useful context.
I’m not that concerned with the shipping date but I want to be sure what to expect from the product. Is this going to be more of a “magic box” device like an iPhone where once we get it does what we expect of it or else expect to ship it back for the manufacturer to replace the magic (or just replace them before expected wear occurs)? Or is it more like a Gaming PC where to get the most from it users should expect to learn how to do a lot of trouble-shooting on their own as part of the normal experience? To what extent will we be able to fix issues on our own? How much of the internal machine can be swapped out or replaced on a modular basis. The removable laser head is a good example. Is that the only part we’ll be able to swap out if the need arises?
Personally, I didn’t put money down to buy a laser printer because I’m afraid of technical issues. You buy a laser cutter because you want to do your own technical stuff instead of relying on third parties with better economies of scale. But I also don’t really want to ship a box the size of a small child back and forth with any regularity.
I do appreciate not shipping the machine until you are sure it is reliable but in the long run the machines that will last longest will be the ones that empower me to actively maintain them. Not having that would actually make me more nervous.
(To clarify my questions: 1) What types of issues have been piling up that led to the delay, if you can say. 2) How active can we expect to be in the maintenance of the machine when we receive them)
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JB,
Yeah, I did the CrunchBase thing, like always, and got the two lead firms on the series B funding. My main intent was to reach out to my guys to get more of an inside look at what was going on and how the delay was really being taken rather than spun to the community. I have no problems with Dan’s CTO side, it’s his CEO side that causes me concern. Maybe his VC’s will step up their involvement and mitigate any further missteps. We’ll see.
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My first reaction when I saw the words your Glowforge is not shipping was dismay. I thought why is mines not shipping what have I done to deserve being bumped from the list of pre-orders. Then I saw that the delivery was delayed…again & my next reaction was relief, then a little anger then back to relief. This may be a bit sceptical of me now but that seems to be a very clever piece of work, make us think we won’t be getting it all & that softens the blow that it’s delayed again. Anyway as you can probably tell I will not be cancelling my order as I was relieved that I will still recieve my Forge.
A few questions, may have already been asked & possibly answered in the past.
- Can we now revisit the cost of International shipping? The product will now (possibly
) be delivered around 18 months later than expected. $1000 is an awful lot of money for shipping. - Can overseas customers get in on the beta testing? The shipping process will need tested at some point.
Looking forward to receiving my Glowforge next year now, hopefully no more delays.
Cheers Dougie.
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@Dan,
Thank you Dan for the update.
Though disappointing, I am still a fan and will wait for a quality product.
I have backed several projects that were delayed over a year. By the time one came out, it was pretty much obsolete (COIN)
I still don’t see anyone advertising what yours can do as an alternative so I feel you still lead in this area. I will wait with no complaints but as many have noted, more frequent communication may help going forward.
Again, a big fan and I look forward to my Glowforge (whenever that may be)
Noting that you are manufacturing these in Milpitas CA, Maybe my Beta or Pre-Preproduction application can be revisited as I live locally to the factory and can pick one up.
Just thought I would toss that out there.
Paul
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Cross posted from the update:
@Dan, originally at the last delay update you had announced that the unit would arrive sans filter for those of us who ordered the filter. Now that we have another 4-6 month delay will the unit actually arrive with the filter. It’s a box with a fan/filter with some remote control, so unlike laser cutting, I imagine you guys could get that tucked and made in the interim?
Hello @dan as I believe to understand the head of the GF is removable due to the possibility of interchangeable accessories such as a head for 3D PRINTING is that correct? If so could you show tell us more about such new attachments and how much are you expecting they may cost.
Secondly is the air filter gonna come with my GF by July or do I have to wait even longer for that?
Thirdly as an international Pro buyer am I gonna be at the bottom of the “list” or is it gonna be shipped like the rest of the “same-date” buyers???
Greetings and good luck,
Mary
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TLDR: I feel for you, the situation sucks for you guys at HQ just as much as for us. Also please see questions section below.
To @Dan, and to the whole Glowforge team,
I can only wish for you to find some game-changing miracle, and find yourself somehow magically able to ship every single order by May somehow. Or at least months earlier than you currently expect.
The latest Schedule Update was heartfelt and very touching. As a customer I have to admire how invested you are in all this, and how much of a heartbreak this situation seems to put you in. And I do admit, as devastating as this is (and it very much is), you seem to be doing everything you can to compensate.
A smart person once told me that everyone makes mistakes, and what’s important & what makes a person is how they respond to their own mistakes. Your response is honest & professional; that matters a whole lot.
So I wish you a miracle, for both your happiness and your customers’ (myself included).
Questions:
I cannot avoid adding my 2 cents too of course…
• Will all Pro-Units be shipped by this timeframe? As of right now all pre-release units are Basic models, and there’s been little discussed publicly about the status of the Pro model.
• One thing that wasn’t mentioned and I am sure we would all like to know, is what this means for Air-Filter delivery, production\schedule?
• You have previously spoken about the warranty starting upon receiving the Glowforge, the schedule update mentioned it starting upon shipment. Which is it?
For international customers, such as myself, this makes a difference as shipping times (including time to clear customs) may easily be a month or longer (a lot longer).
• The compensations all seem fair. However I would like to address the extension of the warranty. From the beginning I felt that the original 6/12 month warranties were too short for a product of such caliber (even more so for us international customers who face additional bureaucratic and physical risks).
While I am definitely happy that you are extending them, I feel that a longer warranty is warranted. A long warranty is the one thing that keeps us customers feeling safe, and feeling the extent of Glowforge’s backbone & confidence. And given that we loyal customers have been waiting patiently (some more so than others) through 3 schedule delays (lasting over a year now), I feel that we all deserve an additional 12 month warranty.
I do feel for the GF team, all we can do is move forward. Thank you for taking the time to address our concerns and listen to our feedback. I hope that you get to implement our requests and suggestions, and I hope that I’m lucky enough to have my questions above answered here.
Looking forward to a bright laser filled future.
Unusualchild
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Thank you so much for the TLDR! I’m having to read tons of posts quite rapidly and I must admit I’m lightly scanning lengthy ones is not immediately relevant to my interests.
While I am glad that you have chosen to extend the warranty an additional 6 months, I’m curious—have you considered the possibility of offering any extended warranties for an additional cost? We can get a 3 or 5 year warranty from most businesses for things that cost only a few hundred dollars—since this is a very expensive, technical machine, I know I would certainly pay for an extended warranty on it. I’d hate to have spent all that money for a product which happens to break a few weeks after the warranty’s up and then not be able to afford another because the price is so much higher for them now than when I bought in.
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A couple of questions that come to mind, but first and foremost I have to say more than anything else I’d like to see real updates in a timely manner. By far the most annoying aspect of this whole process is the silence, followed by last minute updates, followed by yet another delay. If something has gone wrong, the current policy seems to be to say nothing until the last second. This is what I believe is the cause of all the “scam” weirdness that seems to be going around. The silence comes across as trying to hide something.
Anyway:
- Can you please clarify when you expect to be out of the pre-release stage?
- What is the biggest challenge that still needs to be overcome?
- With all the focus on getting the core product working, how is everything else doing? Lord knows the account management functionality is very bare bones right now. Will we be seeing updates to things like expected shipping dates, access to all the perks somewhere in the account, etc.
- When will we have access to the catalog?
- What kinds of issues are actually stopping the product from being shipped now? Lack of features? Poor final product? Breaking? All of the above?
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It’s times like these when I learn the time difference between US coasts.
Spoiler alter: it is not 2 hours.
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You are right, it is 3.
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Since you cannot recommend using any materials that aren’t Proofgrade, have you considered providing something to help users like me (who know absolutely nothing about materials whatsoever) to educate us on what we need to be aware of so we don’t melt our faces off? I know there’s a lot of information in the forums, and elsewhere on the internet, but that takes an awful lot of work to find & research it, and most of the links don’t exactly speak in layman’s terms for the noob.
Something along the lines of a tutorial video/blog post series, infographic/quick-reference sheet, illustrated comic book, animated flip-book… I dunno. It seems like offering SOMETHING beyond a generic “be careful” warning or “Go look it up” would be incredibly beneficial—at the very least as a starting point. Something that would help me be able to run to Lowes or Hobby Lobby and walk out feeling fairly confident that I’ve chosen materials that won’t cause my family to disintegrate when I try to make them a thoughtful gift?
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I understand they chose Flex as the manufacturer over 12 months ago, but have only just announced who they are due to confidentiality reasons.
I’m excited about the new head etc. but disappointed on the delay. I know many will not stick around (I myself am in a juggling contest with unforeseen home repairs that make the refund a very tempting solution) but I think those that stay till the end should get the founders discount indefinitely. Whether or not I am able to stick it out due to financial obligation, I still think this is fair for those who do.
I’m sure the product will be as fantastic as promised upon delivery and should accumulate many new generations of glowforgers in the future. Said new arrivals will be happy to foot the full bill on items, but the true believers who stuck with it from the beginning ought to be acknowledged for more than just a year in my opinion.
Forgive me @dan if I sound snotty, unthankful, or arrogant as I don’t intend to be. I really love your company and intend to stick around as long as financially possible.
[EDIT] I also apologize for not putting this in the form of a question. Could you pretend I did any way?
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Its been mentioned a few times that the crowdfunding money is being kept separate and they are paying day-to-day costs out of the VC money. Hence no issue if people want a refund. They will only start using the crowdfunding money as they ramp up manufacturing (to pay for the build parts).
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