BFL Single in the wild (BOUNTY RECEIVED!!!)

[cypherdoc]

What's the size of the power socket on that thing?

The power-jack is 5.5 Outer-Diameter, 2.5 Inner-Diameter. Outer cylinder is ground and
inner core is +12V (Acceptable range: 10V to 14V).


Regards,

What is your current estimated delivery time?

[jddebug]

I'm a bit concerned that no one else has theirs yet.  Anyone who bought 10 of them get them yet?

Yes, it is interesting that there are no other confirmed reports of 'regular customers' (like gigavps) having received their orders since, apparently, BFL has been shipping them out for the past 7 days. One would expect many people would have received their shipments already. If they have, they are not talking.

jjdebug (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=60586.msg770964#msg770964) said that he received an email from BFL saying his Singles (plural) would ship this week; but I don't know when he placed it.

I placed my order mid november. I ordered 10. If I get mine this week or early next week I will take a picture of them all. I live in Alaska. Hoping that heat won't be a problem here. I am concerned about whether they will work on my Mac though.

Working on Mac should not be a problem. Mac is UNIX compliant and as far as cgminer or ufasoft compiles on it, then
using BitFORCE singles shouldn't be any problem at all. Once connected, the BitFORCE will appear as a ttyUSB which
is standard on all UNIX and LINUX based systems. We haven't tested it on Mac, however, the USB chip is Mac OSX
compliant and should work without problem.


Regards,

Well, once my singles arrive I'll figure it out. I have PC's too so one way or another I'll get them going.

[Epoch]

What's the size of the power socket on that thing?

The power-jack is 5.5 Outer-Diameter, 2.5 Inner-Diameter. Outer cylinder is ground and
inner core is +12V (Acceptable range: 10V to 14V).

How long is the outer cylinder (13mm, 14mm, 15mm?)

[BFL-Engineer]

What's the size of the power socket on that thing?

The power-jack is 5.5 Outer-Diameter, 2.5 Inner-Diameter. Outer cylinder is ground and
inner core is +12V (Acceptable range: 10V to 14V).

How long is the outer cylinder (13mm, 14mm, 15mm?)

The jack is 12mm.


Regards,

[Glasswalker]

Anyone who's ordered recently have any info on their order yet? I ordered 7 Singles, and am still waiting on the email with basic order confirmation/order number and to send payment info. (I had thought that kind of thing would be an automated email, but I was apparently mistaken)

Something like an automated "Here's your order number, thanks for your order, please send payment via method X to recipient Y with a note of your order number, note we are currently working on batch Z right now, which is expected in ? weeks lead time. Note this is only an estimate" would be an awesome automated response. Would let people feel much better about orders placed rather than random silence. And honestly shouldn't be difficult at all to implement.

One would think they would be eager to process orders and take money at least

I'm not trying to be a jackass, just trying to check in on info from any sources available (also emailed sonny, and used the web contact form an hour or two after placing my order to follow up).

I used to own a sales/import/export/distribution business, and I know how much of a nightmare it can be if you're understaffed. But that doesn't change the fact that people need to know what's going on. So if you can't keep up with contacts manually, at least provide an automated method to fetch limited info.

Also is the current expectation that they are meeting the 4-6 weeks on current orders? (I see lots of quotes of long order lead time, but those are all historical orders being shipped in the first batch at this point right?)

[jothan]

Anyone who's ordered recently have any info on their order yet? I ordered 7 Singles, and am still waiting on the email with basic order confirmation/order number and to send payment info. (I had thought that kind of thing would be an automated email, but I was apparently mistaken)

Something like an automated "Here's your order number, thanks for your order, please send payment via method X to recipient Y with a note of your order number, note we are currently working on batch Z right now, which is expected in ? weeks lead time. Note this is only an estimate" would be an awesome automated response. Would let people feel much better about orders placed rather than random silence. And honestly shouldn't be difficult at all to implement.

One would think they would be eager to process orders and take money at least

I'm not trying to be a jackass, just trying to check in on info from any sources available (also emailed sonny, and used the web contact form an hour or two after placing my order to follow up).

I used to own a sales/import/export/distribution business, and I know how much of a nightmare it can be if you're understaffed. But that doesn't change the fact that people need to know what's going on. So if you can't keep up with contacts manually, at least provide an automated method to fetch limited info.

Also is the current expectation that they are meeting the 4-6 weeks on current orders? (I see lots of quotes of long order lead time, but those are all historical orders being shipped in the first batch at this point right?)

Amen, bro. I used to work in customer service and BFL should sure use a hand or coaching on that front.

Their products are great, but the customer-as-an-investor mentality and the lead time are killers. A little investing on those fronts would make BFL go from ok to GREAT.

[RoloTonyBrownTown]

Just got my tracking number for one of my units (I ordered one very early, and one a couple of months later).  I was given the option to have the earlier one sent first and the second later on (which I took) or wait and have them both sent out at the later time, so they're absolutely respecting the order queue.

As for the customer service stuff, I know it can be frustrating waiting for a reply, but know that they've been extremely responsive right up until the units were finalised.  I don't think they're a huge operation and from what I gather it's just all systems go trying to build units and get them sent out to satisfy all pre-orders) and hence quieten down the rabble on this forum.  Unfortunately that's taken focus off new orders I guess, but that's just the price you pay for waiting to order (not that there's anything wrong with that, not everyone is willing to take the risk of pre-ordering an unproven product).

I'd suggest everyone just try and chill a little, and no doubt they'll get back to you when they get some breathing room.   As long as you've sent your order through (even if you haven't paid) I assume you'll have your place in the queue.

[tarrant_01]

Also keep in mind any and all delays in emails is a gooooooood thing.  It means that they are all working hard at building the units. My confirmation took about 4 or 5 days to get after ordering.  I ordered the day inaba got his (probably a lot of people did).

[Glasswalker]

All understood of course. And if it came down to a choice "email OR fulfill orders for paid customers" that's a no brainer. They should fulfill orders.

I guess what I'm saying is that it shouldn't BE a choice. They should either have thought about putting at least mild levels of automation (not hard at all to do) into their order process so paying customers got something other than complete silence for days on end (which is not considered part of the acceptible norm for online ordering/ecommerce). Or they should pay a minimum wage lackey to just give canned responses to emails to let people know. Hell setting up an auto-responder on the mailbox that lets people know "Hey we're fulfilling orders as fast as we can right now, please bare with us for another week and we'll get back to you" would go a long way towards this end. The PURE silence is the part that's driving some people nuts.

I've been in their shoes, fulfilling high customer demand, lots of orders, with a very small (2-3 bodies) workforce, to the point where I was working 80hrs a week. But I still ensured I was handling customer service

Anyway, not trying to be a jackass as I said, but I have to ask the questions, I've got shareholders to answer to for the $5K of their money we are trying to spend on BFL gear. It's not just my own personal interest I'm asking for.

On a lighter note, I do want to say congrats to them for getting a great product out the door, and I can definitely understand the level of stress they are under right now. It's not an easy job and I don't envy them for it (that's why I ultimately sold the business I had of that nature, after 2 years it was just taking up WAY too much time)

Here's to looking forward to my order confirmation I guess.

edit: fixed my typo "80 hours a day" changed to "80 hours a week"... I was tired lol...

[Inspector 2211]

I've been in their shoes, fulfilling high customer demand, lots of orders, with a very small (2-3 bodies) workforce, to the point where I was working 80hrs a day. But I still ensured I was handling customer service

Wow. 80 hours a day. My old boss used to say, "the day has 24 hours and if that's not enough, work through the night, too", but 80 hours a day, that definitely takes the cake.

[Glasswalker]

lmao, I'm tired... I meant 80 hours a week. I'll edit the original post

Thanks for the heads up

[Brunic]

Their products are great, but the customer-as-an-investor mentality and the lead time are killers. A little investing on those fronts would make BFL go from ok to GREAT.

Half the forums believed this to be a scam (me included) because of their abysmal launch/customer service/broken promises. They need more than a little investing on those fronts. The problem is not about their product, it's about everything else of their business. Their great product keeps them afloat, and I hope for them that they can correct this situation. Because if they keep this lack of structure and communication, it could kill their business.

As for myself, even if their product is great, I'm certainly not buying it right now. I believe in the "sell small, get bigger" model more than in the "sell crazy, patch after" model.

[RoloTonyBrownTown]

With their customer service, they will go down the tube once the competition shows up to play the ball.

Unless they have designed and manufactured their own waffers, they have no competitive advantage. 
Price is not competitive, customer service and marketing are nowhere to be found.

They only stay in this "mining business" because there is no competition.

Uh-huh, and where are all the other companies offering a comparable product?    Sure it may happen in the future, but first people will need to work out what chips are being used and then get hold of some. 

You first

[RoloTonyBrownTown]

On a related note, I just bought a RaspberryPi, so when that arrives (could be a while yet) I'll certainly try hooking up the BitForce to it

[runeks]

On a related note, I just bought a RaspberryPi, so when that arrives (could be a while yet) I'll certainly try hooking up the BitForce to it

Please do create a thread on this when you do, pretty please! My original plan when I ordered a Single (before I got cold feet and cancelled my order) was to hook it up to a 5 watt ARM system. Seems like the optimal solution to me, and nothing should prevent it from being possible as far as I can see. I'm not sure if cgminer has been compiled for ARM yet, but I read about someone running cgminer on a PowerPC CPU with a few modifications, which - as far as I can tell - have been merged into main cgminer.

EDIT: It does work: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=60257.msg776005#msg776005
I think if it works on MIPSel it'll work on ARM too.

[RoloTonyBrownTown]

On a related note, I just bought a RaspberryPi, so when that arrives (could be a while yet) I'll certainly try hooking up the BitForce to it

Please do create a thread on this when you do, pretty please!

You know it

[Glasswalker]

This is a post I just made on the Bitcoin Syndicate thread as well, but thought it should be posted here also for those of you also waiting on info from Butterfly Labs.

You can see the full thread, along with our shareholder poll to make a decision going forward here:

http://forum.btcsyn.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=37

Here are the full emails:

Here's the email I Sent them:

Code:

Hello, I recently placed an order for 7 Singles. I now have funds for my second batch of 7+ Singles as well, and have yet to even hear back from you about the first order (with even a simple automated response with an order number, or anything).

I require a response immediately. As I have shareholders to answer to. Without further response, I may be forced to cancel my order and go with an alternate option.

There is much speculation in the community that you are either:
A) A scam (admittedly an intricate one)
B) Incompetent at running your business.
C) Just badly overworked, and a nice new startup that wants to do good for the community, and provide a great product.

But C is definitely loosing that race.

I've been in your shoes before, doing a massive import/fulfillment/manufacturing business on minimal staff (1-3 people at most). And having customers banging down my door with orders, and questions, and QC problems, and support questions, all while trying to fulfill orders.

But the lack of any response when there are DOZENS of simple ways you could alleviate it with minimal effort is unacceptable. You could add an auto-responder to your email. You could have your website automate order confirmations with minimal work, if you're taking in that many orders that you have been able to do nothing else but that (not even answer emails) for over a week now, then you are likely doing enough sales to justify a minimum wage student for a couple hours a day to answer emails. (unless your significantly underpricing your product, in which case we go back to B above).

Ultimately you need to do something to re-assure people. Waiting a week or more for a simple order confirmation for people looking to give you money is unacceptable. Period.

I really wanted to see you guys succeed, and hoped your products would pan out, as you have the best price/performance out there. I was excited, and looking forward to getting my Singles (and in the future hopefully a Rig or two). But I can't wait months with money tied up waiting on you guys. That same money could be put to an alternative, and could easily make up for the performance difference in the time I'm spending waiting with it idle.

Also as I said, I have shareholders to answer to, and this isn't entirely my decision.

So don't disappoint me here, please respond ASAP and let me know what's going on (and do yourself a favor and do SOMETHING to solve the black hole of customer service you have right now, to restore the communities faith in you).

Thanks.

- Paul
CEO of the Bitcoin Syndicate

And their response:

Code:

Hi Paul, I appreciate your comments.  I really do.  It's a special sort of pain knowing  our customers wait and wonder.  

However, the rush of emails and contact attempts simply overwhelmed us and we had to make a difficult choice.    Production or PR.  We're schedule to dedicate some time to catching up on our email this week and it's my hope that our customers will find the means to accept our apology for the radio silence.  Certainly our original customers may as it means they get their units.

Please stand by, we'll resume normal communication within the next couple days.

Kind regards,
Sonny K
BF Labs Inc.

PS.  Feel free to share my comment with anyone else you know would be comforted by it.

I've informed them that the poll is in effect, and that they have until monday to respond and possibly sway the vote in their favor. But they have to answer several questions, and provide a guaranteed ship date in that email. Hopefully I'll get another response.

[Glasswalker]

Got another response back from Sonny at BFL to my questions. Seems I've got his attention now (he put my questions inline):

Code:

Hi Paul,

Not to make your customer service experience any worse...  but this is a good example of the immediate difficulty.  Email inquiries turn into ongoing conversations with several rounds of followup.  

In any case, you have my attention and I'll do my best to answer your questions.
 
- What revision (Rev1? Rev2? Rev3?) will our order be?

New orders at this point will be getting Rev3.  Rev 3 has a proprietary heat pipe thermal solution which comes out of manufacture 2 weeks from now.  Rev 3 also uses a few different parts all of which reduce heat generation or increase heat tolerance which are already on Rev 2 boards.  A bottom fan is used in Rev 1 & Rev 2...  and may or may not be used on Rev 3 depending on tests.
 
- What date can you guarantee shipping by for our order?

4-6 weeks from the date of payment.  Now that we're in production, the timelines are much tighter, so earlier may be possible, but please assume 4-6 weeks at this point. 
 
- Can we increase our order in size, now that we have our second wave of growth budget available?

You can only increase order size via new orders.  We can't retroactively increase volume on orders as it would impact others.
 
- Considering we're looking at buying 15+ units, can you do something to help us out due to the inconvenience? (a small discount, or a free Single unit, which would be less than a 7% discount which is not unreasonable I think). In this one time case due to the circumstances.

I wish I could help you there, Paul but in all likely hood we'll probably be increasing the price of the units as we get the time to focus on increasing their performance.   

- I'll leave it at that, and I hope you guys start to see the light. As I said I've been there, and know what your saying, but going forward, PLEASE look into some automation to stop this from happening again ;)

I've also been on your side and share your concern about the agony of crap response time.  I can assure you it's not an accurate refection of the way we run our company.  I trust you'll happily agree in due course.

[jamesg]

Got another response back from Sonny at BFL to my questions. Seems I've got his attention now (he put my questions inline):

I hope this helps to quell some concerns regarding their strategy.

IMHO they are doing the right thing by delivering for the people who believed in them (and paid) BEFORE proof was provided.

Can't wait to get my other 10! 

[TheOriginalMyth]

Its good to see that they have replied to at least some people, I wish i had the money to buy a few (Dam you university)