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90 points LorenDB | 1 comments | | HN request time: 0.212s | source
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utopcell ◴[] No.42178947[source]
Though it is cool to see a minute FPGA dev board, I don't see the value proposition here. At $45, it is too expensive to use in a product. What is the killer app for this board?

One can get a significantly more powerful Tang Nano 20K [1] kit on Amazon right now for $31 [2].

[1] wiki.sipeed.com/hardware/en/tang/tang-nano-20k/nano-20k.html

[2] https://www.amazon.com/youyeetoo-Sipeed-Development-RISC-V-E...

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Lerc ◴[] No.42179497[source]
Custom hardware has always been hard and expensive. It's really amazing that this can be done for just $45. Playing with tech like this is usually for the appeal of it in itself, which is what makes the price worth paying.

That said, It would be nice to know the cost breakdown and what kind of price could ultimately be achieved if someone came up with a use that needed 10,000 of these.

I kind of like the idea of a tiny game console that had something like a RP2040 inside and these were its game cartridges. Use an actual microSD for purely software games, and the FPGA for cool experimental stuff.

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utopcell ◴[] No.42179758[source]
It's really not anymore. It's trivial to make cheap PCBs and PCB assembly is even free in most cases (checkout jlcpcb.com for example).
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1. Ccecil ◴[] No.42185158[source]
From the article under "Manufacturing plan"- "We will outsource PCB fabrication and assembly to PCBWay and handle final programming and testing ourselves, here in Cambridge UK. We have developed a programming jig, along with a suite of extensive automated tests to speed things up."

To sell from outside China and make a profit it is still difficult.

I work with a project that had nearly identical production model (not PCBway but another CM) and when the US tariffs came about it was a major hit. A lot of manufacturers skirt these tariffs through various means (none legal) as well as produce without having to produce IP in house or pay staff for further development...both of which create a significant amount of profit which often cannot be accrued by a small project/team on it's own.

Saying "They could do it cheaper..." is often the response from those who are used to alibaba prices. There is a lot more to consider in those cases. When you start to actually get into production you quickly learn that you cannot (and shouldn't bother) competing with offshore production (and cloning). Just set the price and make the product.

The real problems start when your project becomes popular enough to be copied.

This is all much more difficult when the hardware is OSHW (as ours is).