Been following discussions on the Mini. Looks fabulous.
Only wish your communication was as good as the Mini.
Your customers are listening.
Please don't make promises you can not keep.
Thank you.
Maple Mini - Any News?
(6 posts) (4 voices)-
StephenFromNYC
ModeratorHello-
elyhertz, I am glad you are looking forward to using a Maple Mini.
Three weeks passed between the Maple Mini prototypes being sent off to fab (Feb 8; see the blog) and the release of photographs of Maple Minis after their arrival in Boston (dated March 1; see the blog). If you factor in one week for testing then I would say the LeafLabs team is currently working with a four week cycle.
I do not know when the Maple Mini and Maple IDE 0.1.0 will be officially released, but an earlier message on the forums said they will be released together. I assume this is the result, for example, of fewer I/O pins on the Mini. I assume the new IDE software will use conditional compilation to create the proper code for the original Maple and the Maple Mini.
Have you checked out the February/March software IDE snapshots? I do not remember if they were already modified for use with the Maple Mini.
What features, besides use on a breadboard (size, weight, ease of wiring), do you need in the Mini? I do not think the Maple Mini will offer functionality which does not already exist on the original Maple. The Maple Mini will have the same memory, clock speed, etc.
The LeafLabs team made some mistakes developing the original Maple board. Apparently, the first version used a simple two-layer board, but the current version uses a four-layer board to reduce the noise. All of their experience will go into making better products.
Specifically, what promises have been made/implied which you are afraid will not be met by the LeafLabs team?
Thanks!
Stephen from NYC (full disclosure: I am not a member of the LeafLabs staff)
Posted 4 years ago # -
robodude666
MemberPatience is a virtue. Wait. She'll be out soon enough.
I've contacted LeafLabs last week and they're waiting for the Maple Mini boards to come back from fab. The images of the unit posted on the blog was the final prototype. They verified that the latest changes fixed issues they aimed to fix and sent the final final design off to the manufacturer. Expect the Maple Mini to be out soon =]. Libmaple was updated recently to fix some bugs related with the Maple Mini, so v0.1.0 is coming out soon.
As for promises, they made none. LeafLabs has never set a release date for the Maple Mini. They've shown us progress of the prototypes, but they've never said expect it by XXX date. They only give us a promise when it's in their hands and ready to go.
I agree. LeafLab's communication isn't that great, but hey... they're busy working on some fantastic products, and I don't blame them. (Not every engineer is social ;).) They may not keep us up-to-date; they may not post on their blog very often, but hell... send them an email and you'll get a response very quickly. At least, that's what my experience has been. Regardless of whether I have a serious question, or nagging about the progress on the Mini or Native, I've ALWAYS gotten a response via email in a very swift fashion.
StephenFromNYC, as for what's so sexy about the Mini? It's not attempting to support an arduino-compatible design which makes it much easier to work with. PORTA is broken down into two contiguous 8-bit sections (PA0-7, PA8-15). This makes it VERY easy to interface 8-bit and 16-bit parallel devices (LCDs, SRAM, etc.). PORTB is available with some contiguous pins as well (PB3-7, PB10-11, PB12-15), and the three pins from PORTC are also together (PC13-15). It's also breadboard friendly, which is great for those of us who hate shields.
As much as I will miss 4 GPIOs and 5 ADCs, I'd give them up for an easier-to-work-with design... That is, until the Maple Native comes out (eventually).
I'm eagerly waiting for the Mini, but I'll wait until it comes out.
-robodude666
Posted 4 years ago # -
elyhertz
Member"Making promises that can't be kept." That was harsh, I take it back.
Communication can still be improvement.
Why not set a release date so customers & distributors can plan,
then stick to the date. If you run into issues, just communicate.
I'm talking 5 minutes worth of words in a post at least once a week.
This is best for all parties.
Thank you.Posted 4 years ago # -
mbolivar
LeafLabsUpdate: here's the post:
http://leaflabs.com/2011/04/maple-restock-and-maple-mini-status/
Posted 4 years ago #
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