Planet Computers : Gemini - Psion Returns


How do I find out when this campaign ends? Next to the goal strip it just says a month left.
 
How do I find out when this campaign ends? Next to the goal strip it just says a month left.

Not sure on the exact date, but the Gemini PDA campaign ends in 27 days. It shows that on the search page under the thumbnail for the campaign
 
I posted this in the Vega+ thread but I'll post it here in case anyone hasn't read about the situation with that indiegogo campaign, it may save someone a bit of cash and a lot of stress.

This article briefly covers the events of the Vega+ campaign:

The Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega Plus’s Indiegogo campaign is a serious mess

What did make me think though was this comment by Rnet:

http://www.theverge.com/2017/3/12/1...lus-indiegogo-campaign-funding-ship#419412021

Anyone thinking of backing the Gemini PDA may want to think about this due to the campaign being created by one of the Vega+ creators.
 
As I mentioned in the other thread, this was discussed here a few days ago. Basically Jancko is the CEO behind Gemini PDA, he is also a director of RCL behind the Vega Plus. He was broought in late on the RCL team after two of their directors walked taking the firmware/EMU with them. Jancko was then brought into RCL to write that SW.
 
Last edited:
Another thing that hurts with this Psion5 remake is: the Psion5 keyboard was too small, the Psion Netbook keyboard was big enough.

In my opinion of course.
 
Here's the latest Gemini PDA Indiegogo campaign update:

"It has been a very busy week as the campaign reaches its midpoint.

Thank you for all the messages of support, your contributions, your comments and your questions.

We have been actively finalising the product specifications taking into account your comments.

The main points raised have been the following:

  • What are the Operating system versions and flavours?
  • Is the Operating System upgradeable and how open is the platform?
  • Will the device have a rear-facing camera or should we keep the beautiful design without having a rear-facing camera?
There have also been questions on the supported LTE bands and international keyboard layouts.

We are confirming that we will be aiming to launch with Android 7 on the Android side. On the Linux side, we are actively discussing with several companies including Canonical (Ubuntu), Jolla (Sailfish OS), Mediatek and others on how we can achieve a truly open Linux environment. We further confirm that we are committed to having an open platform and that the operating system will be upgradeable in both OS cases, Android and Linux. This means you will be able to re-flash the OS.

There has also been a lot of discussion on the pros and cons of having a rear-facing camera. There seems to be a lot of demand for this feature, but also some backers do not want to ruin the beautiful design of Gemini. The main issue with having the rear-camera is that the camera module is too thick for the top half of the Gemini as the camera module usually sticks out of the phone shape. So we are now considering having two different designs for the top cover: one as shown in the crowdfunding images and video and a new add-on cover that will have a camera module situated in the middle of the top cover - so that we can support both wishes. We have asked our design team to look into this. More details to follow on this.

We are now planning to visit Mediatek and their ODM partners in Taiwan and China in the next two weeks to start planning the final BOM of the product, the board and production plans. Meanwhile, we are focusing on the software and firmware development using Mediatek's development boards."
 
what kills me is my psion 5mx keyboard is too small for me to really type on. the psion netbook is actually usable.

i used to scoot around my workplace with the psion netbook running linux, keeping ssh sessions up for my admin work. it was sweet.
 
Not been watching this campaign too closely but did just see this on a recent update:

We just wanted to remind our backers that under Indiegogo's Terms, all contributions are donations to help us create the Gemini PDA keyboard mobile device, and not purchases where you're guaranteed to receive an item. We have every intention of sending your perks out to you, but like many crowdfunding campaigns there might be some bumps along the way. We really want to bring back the PDA clamshell mobile device and are fixated about starting Gemini production on time. This is why we are going to visit our Far Eastern manufacturing partners next week. We are working towards delivering a working product on time, but we cannot absolutely promise this as we are still in the "concept" phase. Now that all that's been said, we want to show our backers we're committed to giving you concrete details about our development each week, so that you are always well informed of progress, and we're confident we'll surpass your expectations!
 
LOL

"We just wanted to remind our backers that under Indiegogo's Terms, all contributions are donations to help us create the Gemini PDA keyboard mobile device, and not purchases where you're guaranteed to receive an item"
 
LOL

"We just wanted to remind our backers that under Indiegogo's Terms, all contributions are donations to help us create the Gemini PDA keyboard mobile device, and not purchases where you're guaranteed to receive an item"

Has anyone started a funding campaign to literally do nothing? I.e., "Fund me to be a shut-in for an indeterminate amount of time! For every $25,000 raised I will not leave the house for a month. Just think about it, for $300,000 I'll be stuck here for a full year! Stretch goal at $1,000,000 - all windows will be blacked out too!" Small type - "*Excludes legal, medical, dental, veterinary, psychological appointments, walking my dog, trips to the casino, family vacations, educational excursions including college classes, employment..."
 
Not been watching this campaign too closely but did just see this on a recent update:

We just wanted to remind our backers that under Indiegogo's Terms, all contributions are donations to help us create the Gemini PDA keyboard mobile device, and not purchases where you're guaranteed to receive an item. We have every intention of sending your perks out to you, but like many crowdfunding campaigns there might be some bumps along the way. We really want to bring back the PDA clamshell mobile device and are fixated about starting Gemini production on time. This is why we are going to visit our Far Eastern manufacturing partners next week. We are working towards delivering a working product on time, but we cannot absolutely promise this as we are still in the "concept" phase. Now that all that's been said, we want to show our backers we're committed to giving you concrete details about our development each week, so that you are always well informed of progress, and we're confident we'll surpass your expectations!

Yeah I saw that the other day, I thought it was the weirdest update Ive seen in a while. Unsurprisingly backing is at a trickle for some time - only 3 days left now.

The thing is, I don't think Indiegogo says that anywhere. In fact what Ive seen says the opposite. Mind you , I haven't had an exhaustive search on Indiegogo T&Cs

Also, as I discovered last time I took a deep dive into crowdfunding, the thing that matters is what the Perk says and whether it constitutes a contract of sale. In simple terms, if a perk says , give us $x and we will send you this product, then that constitutes a contract of sale. It's that simple. You would literraly need to say in the perk that it was a donation
 
Last edited:
Hmm, it's promising that they've revised that 2800x1440 display back to a slightly more believable 2160x1080, but there's still a lot to be finalised on that device, not least the keyboard, and how they're going to fit an 8000Mah battery in that case. It does suggest they're being somewhat realistic, and not adverse to dialling back on the hype now the campaign is nearly in the bag. How far they'll have to dial back and when they actually get devices out remains to be seen - if anybody has anything with a CPU in from them by end of this year I'll be surprised.
 
Wait for the backlash in the comments when the backers realise that what they've backed can't be delivered in the time-scale or the form-factor as shown.
 
Is there anyone left on the planet that thinks they will get a crowdfunded item on time though.

I think of crowdfunding delivery dates as though the campaigner went through this process - oh look we have to put a delivery date into the campaign, shit , what do we put. Lets spin the wheel

That said, yeah, there is often backlash when dates are not met. So I guess a lot of people must still belive the dates
 
Last edited:
Back
Top