MacPro (Late 2013) mini-ITX case mod

Winebaths

Caliper Novice
Dec 6, 2015
22
3
He seems really spotty about responding to peoples questions unfortunately... I've asked a few on kickstarter and twitter and only have gotten a few non-specific answers. I think if he was more vigilant about it people would be more willing to back it
 

QinX

Master of Cramming
kees
Mar 2, 2015
541
374
He seems really spotty about responding to peoples questions unfortunately... I've asked a few on kickstarter and twitter and only have gotten a few non-specific answers. I think if he was more vigilant about it people would be more willing to back it

That's how I felt since he's opened the topic here. Very unfortunate because either he's hiding some important data or he is severely underestimating the amount of communication required to fund this project.

Even if there are certain limits to the hardware that can be used, just be up front.

Show people a video of the current prototype with hardware in it, show how the front I/O is connect, don't just write vague text.
 

Winebaths

Caliper Novice
Dec 6, 2015
22
3
I did back and was one of the first, but honestly I don't see this meeting the pledge amount, still over 100k to raise over less than 30 days.

Even though the time is large, a lot of the initial hype he could've capitalized on is gone since he's waited so long to get this off the ground
 

PlayfulPhoenix

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Communication and PR are critical to the success of projects like this. It's taken over my time for a while now for KI.

That said, there does seem to be a bit of a spike in supporters today, so this is far from over. Lots of time to go.
 

Phuncz

Lord of the Boards
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May 9, 2015
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Update #4: We're Not A Fruit
Posted by Alexander Gomez

We have received numerous questions and comments regarding Dune Case’s aesthetics and whether we considered this prior to Kickstarter.

Please be assured, we did our due diligence. It would be foolish not to.

Dune Case is just a case, not a computer. Prior art exists for cylindrical cases designs pre-2013. We refined our design to support mini-ITX components.

We hope this reassures our current and future backers.

Alex


It's just below 30% now, so he must have been doing marketing somewhere since it was 20% a few days ago I believe.
 

Winebaths

Caliper Novice
Dec 6, 2015
22
3
Man I really want this to become a reality, what I'm wonder though is why they set their goal so high? The NCase M1's indiegogo was only 3k:


Granted, the price of the dunecase is lower than that of the NCase M1, but I wouldn't have minded spending a little more to make it an easier kickstarter to finish
 

QinX

Master of Cramming
kees
Mar 2, 2015
541
374
Man I really want this to become a reality, what I'm wonder though is why they set their goal so high? The NCase M1's indiegogo was only 3k:


Granted, the price of the dunecase is lower than that of the NCase M1, but I wouldn't have minded spending a little more to make it an easier kickstarter to finish

That was for the prototype M1

Here is the real campaign
 

PlayfulPhoenix

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Feb 22, 2015
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Man I really want this to become a reality, what I'm wonder though is why they set their goal so high? The NCase M1's indiegogo was only 3k

That was for the prototype M1

Their pricing, and their goal, are actually very low for what they're offering.

And in any case, I don't think any struggle to hit the goal will have to do with the enclosure itself, so much as the promotion and communication angle of things. People can't pledge to campaigns they don't know about, and most who do know will be hesitant to contribute if there's not a lot of past or current communication about the project.

The good news is, that's pretty easy to address (compared to fixing a bad product/idea). I don't know that we've seen it addressed yet, though.

EDIT: To their credit, "We're not a fruit" is probably the best title they could have ever given to that status update :p
 
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Winebaths

Caliper Novice
Dec 6, 2015
22
3
I see, I guess I was mistaken.

I really want them to take some really detailed pictures of every part of the case, any sort of ambiguity leads to less people willing to pledge imo
 

Phuncz

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May 9, 2015
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And another update today. After this one I'm going to stop doing his work here:

Why We Chose Kickstarter for Dune Case
Posted by Alexander Gomez

When my partner and I started to think about how to bring Dune Case to life, we looked at several options. We decided crowd funding was the best way to reach an audience that shared our entrepreneurial spirit.

We aren't a corporate entity with lots of funds looking for a clever way to market. We are two guys with a product that we believe can impact the PC and case mod market. Kickstarter and crowd funding make it possible to bring this design to a community of backers who support innovative ideas. It gives us a mechanism to listen to the community, share our journey, and, with your support, complete the transformation from idea to product.

While we’re not a corporate entity, we have spent years around product development and manufacturing. It’s why we are confident in the design and what will be the final product. We spent a year of personal equity, time, and resources to get the design completed and ready for tooling. Our goal now is to get the funding to finalize the tooling of what we know is a really novel product for the Mini-ITX and case mod community.

We are incredibly thankful for the interest, comments and suggestions from the community and the backing we have received to date. Our hope is you continue to support us and spread the word so we can go the distance. We believe we embody the original spirit of Kickstarter, entrepreneurs with a great idea supported by a community that encourages innovation and risk taking.

Alex
 

PlayfulPhoenix

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See, this is all stuff you clarify before a campaign begins, and/or incorporate into the campaign itself from day one. Perhaps they've done so someplace that I'm not aware of (can't say I've been following this too closely), but the fact that they're posting these suggests to me that it's in response to questions from backers.

That's potentially very damaging, because it lends the appearance of being unprepared or not being very thoughtful.
 

PlayfulPhoenix

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It's on MacRumors, this might be very good for them to succeed in the Kickstarter campaign.

The irony in this is palpable.

Still, I wonder what will happen as a result of this! How this affects pledges will say a lot about the audience MacRumors has, actually.

(Nice catch, too, Phuncz)
 

iFreilicht

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Feb 28, 2015
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It seems to be full of trolls, regretably. Or those might just be the people that click the Reply-button.

It's the same with comment sections on most other tech websites or youtube. Once the amount of trolls or idiots has reached a critical amount, no sane person will take part in the discussion because it's not worth your time.
 

Winebaths

Caliper Novice
Dec 6, 2015
22
3
Looks like my trepidation may have been misplaced, looks like it got a lot of coverage recently and it's up to like 40k now!
 

Phuncz

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May 9, 2015
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It's still on MacRumors on the top spot in the sidebar, otherwise I have not seen it mentioned.
 

jØrd

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im fully uninformed but i wonder part of the reason this case isnt seeing bulk hype generation from its creators is to try & keep it off Apple's radar fir as long as possible....? pure speculation on my part though.
 

Phuncz

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That was also my assumption at first, but he seems so confident, reassuring he "has done his due dilligence" I've read multiple times, because Apple makes a desktop computer and he makes a PC case, it's not a problem. Still, with Apple opposing the government over paving the way to being forced to make a backdoor into every iPhone, their legal department probably has more important things to take care of now anyway. If it did indeed would want to stop this before it ever reaches fruition.

Or maybe Jony Ive is dying to see if this ever sees the light of day.
 

jØrd

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ive seen alot of talk about "due dilligance" and some vauge mentions about how you cant pattent a cylinder. What i was really hoping to see was a well thought out explanation of how they came to the conclusion they did. perhaps a little legaliese, some examples of the prior art they mention. Perhaps something about how they view the trademark and copyright aspects and not just the "you cant patent a cylinder". Im not saying they havnt thought it through or that they will get some angry apple heavy come shutting them down. im saying i wish they had have presented their side of the argument. Afterall, kickstarter doesnt refund backers if a project falls on its arse after its funded, kickstarter doesnt back its backers for sh!t. Consumer confidence is a thing. In the end all the vaugeness and lack of any real explanation of what their position is on what is probably the first question on the mind of anyone who sees this left me w/ a lack of confidence in the team, it doesnt help their not doing much of anything to promote their product either. kind of feels a little smoke & mirrors. time will tell i guess
 
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