GameStick Android Console Developer Units Shipped, Kickstarter Units Delayed Until June
GameStick, a small computer-on-a-stick with a companion controller that plugs into your TV’s HDMI port and plays Android games, has done the Kickstarter thing as well as could be expected, and now the company has shipped developer units. The GameStick team says that over 600 developers have jumped on board the GameStick bandwagon, including indie and major studios, although one batch of devices has been held up in customs.
However, Kickstarter backers won’t be seeing their GameSticks until the middle of June due to some manufacturing changes (which seem to be de rigeur with these Kickstarter darlings that experience an unexpected demand for volume.)
GameStick says that it was initially planning for a main production run of about 1,000 units and was going to make them with the same silicon molds it used for the dev models. However, demand shot up to tens of thousands of units, and the silicon mold method can’t scale that way. GameStick is instead using production facilities in Japan and Germany, which will cause a delay in shipping for a few months.
The good news is that because of grassroots support, GameStick has a much better chance of success; the bad news is that because of that success, units will be delayed. So it goes.
However, Kickstarter backers won’t be seeing their GameSticks until the middle of June due to some manufacturing changes (which seem to be de rigeur with these Kickstarter darlings that experience an unexpected demand for volume.)
GameStick says that it was initially planning for a main production run of about 1,000 units and was going to make them with the same silicon molds it used for the dev models. However, demand shot up to tens of thousands of units, and the silicon mold method can’t scale that way. GameStick is instead using production facilities in Japan and Germany, which will cause a delay in shipping for a few months.
The good news is that because of grassroots support, GameStick has a much better chance of success; the bad news is that because of that success, units will be delayed. So it goes.
