Being transparent is one of our core values, for the good and the bad. That's why we write these updates even when we bring bad news, and we go the extra mile to ensure everyone is updated.
But right now, we believe being fully transparent is not helping. It's creating expectations we aren't meeting; we're crushing your hopes and we feel terrible.
During the last two months, we've been shipping keyboards non-stop, and thousands of keyboards have already found their home, but during all that time, our assembly factory has been changing the schedule every single week. That makes it impossible for us to share and stick to a detailed shipping plan.
If they tell us X, we tell you X. But next week X turns Y, we tell you, and you are rightfully mad at us.
After meeting with the people at the factory multiple times during the last few days, they've given us 3 different timelines for the remaining keyboards. So, we believe the correct thing to do is stop trying to match an ever-changing schedule and stop sharing a detailed assembly plan. We simply can't trust the information our factory is giving us.
That said, although we can't ensure the exact date on which a specific keyboard configuration will be shipped, we know the factory's manufacturing output. We expect the factory to finish assembly and ship all the keyboards during December. They plan to do it earlier, but we can't trust that plan.
So, if your Defy hasn't shipped, expect it to ship any day this month. We will email you once the keyboard leaves the factory and then email you again a few days later with the tracking number.
This is what has shipped so far and what's left:
Of course, we'll continue communicating what has been sent each week so you can check the progress and ensure you get your email and tracking number. The best way to follow that every week is on our Discord Channel.
Why has the factory changed the schedule so many times?
The main reason the factory constantly changes its schedule is our quality control.
We find and reject little imperfections, and they must re-do that component. So far, the main two issues that we've seen are with the laser-edging of the keycaps and the palm pads.
For example, two weeks ago, we disregarded a big batch of black English US keycaps and palm pads. This has caused the factory to shift to keyboards with white keycaps and palm pads.
And that's the tip of the iceberg; we constantly reject many components in QC (not necessarily entire batches, a few here and there) that they need to re-do, which also causes adjustments.
We feel you. We hate delays more than anyone
We totally understand that you are eagerly waiting for your Defy and are annoyed by the situation. We feel the same way. We receive countless weekly messages from hundreds of users in the same situation.
We want you to be able to enjoy the fantastic keyboard we've put so much effort into developing. We want happy customers, and delays don't make people happy.
That said, we assure you we are doing everything possible to deliver all remaining keyboards ASAP.
In the meantime, the most friendly customer support team on earth will be there to answer any question.
To conclude: we are still a young startup making mistakes and learning. I'm not saying it to elude responsibility but to acknowledge the situation openly.
If you've followed us from the beginning of our journey with the Raise in 2017, you know that we've gone through thick and thin, but all those experiences helped us improve and grow. And eventually, create better products and services.
We'll keep pushing for better with a single goal in mind: making the best keyboard we can imagine and wowing you with it.
Thanks for your patience and support 💪
