production & displays

[Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller]

Am 24.08.2013 um 12:57 schrieb kardan:

> On Fri, 23 Aug 2013 12:36:42 +0200
> "Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller" <hns at goldelico.com> wrote:
> 
>> If 200 people agree to put 599 EUR on the table we could start
>> production tomorrow (well, we need 6-8 weeks to get the components)
>> and 200 GTA04 boards would be available in November.
>> 
>> We could also order 200 3D-printed cases, earpieces etc. to make
>> complete phones. One issue is that we have just ~70 display modules,
>> and they are out of production for a long time. But there may be some
>> remaining stock in Asia, so it appears to be a solvable problem.
>> 
>> Doing a redesign for a different display, different case (N900) is
>> also possible, but takes more time (estimate 4-6 months).
>> 
>> But it also needs 200 * 599 EUR on the table. Not to start design or
>> production (that has become my hobby), but to buy components.
> 
> I don't get this passage. Note I am not a hardware expert so it is not
> clear to me how 200 boards can be available in november if a redesign
> with a new display takes nearly half a year.

The displays (Toppoly) are no longer in production but we have some in stock.
And, the GTA04A5 board is designed to use them. So it is just about producing
again based on the existing design.

Changing the display to a model that we can buy in any quantity from running
production needs to redesign the PCB and test and qualify that for production.

> Where are 130+ displays supposed to materialze until november? I

Sometimes, companies buy components and after 2 or 3 years they end production
of the devices using these components. And then, they try to sell their overstock.
There are component brokers who are experienced in getting such "old"/"obsolete"
components.

> understand your assumption that there is some stock somewhere and would
> love to see that proven with a reliable price tag.

That has not been researched - and may change every day. I can't tell if it is
easy or difficult before someone starts to really buy them. It may be just some
Alibaba search or a search for a needle in a haystack.

But *I* will not start this research before it is clear that we need them, because it
would be waste of my lifetime...

-- hns