airtame

[airtame]

Getting ready for launch & final hurdles

It's been a crazy week here at AIRTAME HQ - from the announcement of the deal at the start of the week with EET Europarts as our worldwide logistics provider, we've already managed to ship devices to ~3000 eagerly waiting BETA backers in the past few days. This number is more than we have already in the wild currently & we're on track to have all BETA orders out and en-route in the coming 5-7 days. Since the last release (v0.1.6) we’ve been working hard within the team to determine the final milestones before we can create a release ready for the first public version (v1.0.0). There are a lot of things to be achieved in a very short space of time, so we recently took it upon ourselves to uproot the entire office (and staff) to a remote location in the Danish countryside for 2 entire weeks. It’s from this camp we’ve set the KPIs needed and have been working hard on the last software update (v0.1.7) before we move to v1.0.0-BETA in time for the release in late Q2. You’ll be able to read about the host of changes due in the upcoming software and firmware releases below - otherwise you can check out what we got up to at our “LaunchCamp" in the video.

Since the release of v0.1.6 on the new architecture, we’ve been making great progress with some of the core features, along with going back to basics with the user interface. We’ve taken what the BETA community have said, and looked to have made major improvements in the usability of the system not only to stream, but to also manage devices / applications. In the upcoming release we’re going to also see some key elements such as the startup guide with a fresh look and simpler instructions on how to stream for the first time. We hope we’ve now made the process as simple and intuitive as we can. Installation needs to only happen once. As soon as you’ve got the application, you’ll be able to stream to a nearby AIRTAME within a couple of clicks. Once you’re set up, we’ve also made underlying changes to the way that you interact with AIRTAME. From the new standard splash screen you’ll get a direct overview of usage notifications* and connection strength** along with all the information needed to connect*** all in one place. The customisable splash screen is something that we introduced in an earlier release, but now we’ve also made a sleeker version that provides a “minimal” look to the system when it’s sitting in “ready to stream” mode. All of these improvements should make a big difference in how easy it should be to stream. From first time users through to experienced streamers, this should be a seamless experience.

Experimental audio / video sync

As you may have seen in the update video, we’ve been working with how best to now layer audio sync (so that the sound comes from your monitor / TV directly as opposed to the laptop). It’s one of the really big requests, and felt that now would be the time to release it ready for early testing. In the coming version (v0.1.7) you’ll be able to toggle your audio options directly in the system preferences (will only work on v0.1.7+ firmware - so be sure to update your device when prompted!). This version will be made available in the coming days.  When using audio, we recommend that you apply a sufficient buffering period (this is experimental after all!) and please be patient. It might take a few attempts to determine the best settings for your particular setup / operating system, however once there, you’ll be sure to see a difference in the quality of the stream as to what you were achieving previously.

Shipping

No update would be complete without a quick update on the shipping process :) As you may have seen recently, we’ve signed with EET Europarts as our 3rd party logistics (3PL) provider alongside them becoming one of the first master distributors across Europe. With the new deal, it will see that all the remaining preorders / contributions will be handled through EET Europart's system automatically (the previous ~3k devices were really labour intensive!). We also get to work with their current logistics providers, which mean were able to swap out our previous 6-8 week shipping down to around 3-5 days with tracking. This is great news for us moving forward, but it also means we have some major integrations we’re having to implement so that we’re able to streamline. The process means that as soon as a confirmation is made (in the future an order) we’ll be able to have it picked, packed and ready and waiting for dispatch within 5 minutes. A number of BETA orders have been leaving in trial batches and will continue throughout this week. Once we’re fully satisfied that everything is set, we’ll get them to clear out everything in a few large batches - the automation process for the future means that we’re really cautious at the moment in how we proceed (as not to lose 000’s of eagerly awaited devices!) To confirm - if you opted for BETA, your order will be dispatched within the next 7-10 days (this is final, bar a major disaster). Public release devices will be dispatched and made available from throughout June & certified publicBETA devices will be somewhere in between :)

#Campaign Update

[airtame]

Improvements and structure

It’s been a real busy few weeks as we sprint towards our goal of releasing the devices out in public release and we’ve made some great strides in a real short space of time. The team has grown by 50% since the end of the year with additions throughout the dev team to more than double our existing resources within a short period.

The additional manpower means that we’ve been able to do some really awesome things that we’ve been wanting to do for a while - one such thing is that we’ve built an entirely new tray (the software you download for your desktop) from scratch under one unified platform using node.js within the past month. Since our last update we’ve managed to overhaul the entire underlying structure in that time. Under the new platform we’ve also unified the desktop operating systems. The previous platform (QT framework) had to have separate builds for each operating system, and meant that any features we wanted to release had to be built separately each time. It’s a big improvement that is much more stable and makes it easier and faster for us to include and release new features across all of the platforms at once, as opposed to having to build entirely separate features for each individual platform. This basically means that we’re able to more effectively roll out new features and will enable us to focus on delivering smaller updates on a frequent basis from now on.

With the move to the new platform, we’re also happy to announce that we’ll be able to provide full Linux support from v0.1.6 onwards! Our long suffering Linux users have had to use patchy early versions, and had (very) limited support - but not any longer. From today, you’ll also be able to get the new linux tray directly from https://airtame.com/download

The new version of the PC software also come in a stand alone version that means that AIRTAME can run without the need to go through an installation process. For organisations (or anyone for that matter!) that have guests that instantly want to use AIRTAME without previously having the software installed, can simply run a .exe file that will launch a basic version of AIRTAME that enables them to stream - and when finished, nothing is left on the computer / device. This not only dramatically decreases the time on a PC to start the first stream, but also opens up the possibility of allowing non-admin users access to AIRTAME quickly and effectively. 

For the firmware running on AIRTAME, we’ve also released v0.1.6 which also includes a big improvement in a module we have been working on since the end of last year. It’s the module that handles the video stream from the computer and “Decode module” (basically the part that receives the stream from the dongle, so it can be seen on the screen). Until now we have been using the standard module provided by Freescale, the manufacturer of our processor chips. 

Whilst it would have been great (and much easier!) to continue using this, the module provided had some bugs that meant we simply didn’t (and couldn’t) have full control over how the video stream that was being handled. With our new shiny module that we’ve crafted in-house, we’re able to control all aspects of the video stream.

In terms of features, this means that the 1080p output resolution is out of “extreme experimental version” to be made available as standard. This will give a much sharper resolution for text and graphics, without having to compromise on the stream. There are also some small (but great) improvements such as improving the WiFi scanning module (which means that we can find local AIRTAMEs much more effectively), and fixing cases of the missing cursor for Mac 10.10 (Yosemite) users. 

The final announcement is that we will also be launching publicBETA with v0.1.6 - so as soon as we receive the new devices from the manufacturer, we will commence shipping to those waiting ASAP.We're shipping another 4.750 devices that will increase our BETA community to +7.500 members across the globe preparing us for the public launch in Q2.This will be done with our new master distributor after the lessons learnt from the initial early release (up to 10-12 weeks delivery time & multiple devices going MIA). We'll be able to offer much more efficient shipping options, but there will be more info on this at the end of the week :)

#Campaign Update

[airtame]

Mobile in focus

iOS

Since the launch of the iOS app, we’ve now added .pdf support and the ability to stream images and documents directly from your applications. This means that you’ll be able to grab a .pdf document or image directly from Dropbox / Google Drive / One Drive and be able to stream to your monitor in a couple of clicks: It’s also got a shiny new mobile presentation mode that turns your mobile device into a hand held presentation remote, along with a handy timer so you can see what stage you are in your presentation at a single glance:

Android

Android has gone from v0.5.3 to v0.5.6. What does that mean you ask? Here’s an overview of the features and fixes: > Launch AIRTAME from other apps > Native PDF conversion > Pinch and zoom > Streaming progress indicator > Direct IP connection > Adaptation for 10” tablets   You’re now able to open up .pdf files and images from your applications as with the iOS app, but in Android you’ve also got a built in Dropbox functionality, that enables you to view and search through your content directly within the AIRTAME application. This is how it eventually will work on all mobile platforms, so you easily can browse around in your favourite storage services and stream content from within the AIRTAME application directly -  at the moment you'll have to "live" with going into each relevant application directly and then selecting which documents you'll like to stream to the AIRTAME. We're constantly working on getting the details in the user flow right. Our focus is to create the smoothest process possible and create the small "oh that's cool" (or "oh là là" moments as Benoit would say) when streaming your presentations and images.

Have a cool idea to better the experience?

Join the conversation and our community at forum.airtame.com For the next step (and natural evolution) we’re working on a way to get your other media (videos etc.) via the application to stream directly. It will be the case as usual where we’ll stage the development over the different updates, starting with local / native media support and then move up from there, but more about that in another update :) To find the applications, you can follow the links below: iOS Android Until next time - happy streaming!

#Campaign Update

[airtame]

We have a new home!

From now we'll be providing the campaign updates along with thoughts from the team and the latest news through http://blog.airtame.com

We look forward to seeing you there :)

#Campaign Update

[airtame]

Progress moving forward

Hi backers!

Since the last update we’ve been focusing on the product release, and we've been satisfied with the results so far. Whilst it’s still a long way before we’re able to comfortably have AIRTAME in the market with a minimum amount of issues, we’re happy to see the progress from the first release to where we are now. Below are some of the changes made in the previous weeks:

Software: v0.1.3 - v0.1.5

A initial setup guide

System tray update

Automated crash reporting

Improved stream performance & stability

Updated windows installer

Initial Linux version & support

Upcoming features include:

Early audio support

Firmware: v0.1.2 - v0.1.4

Manage device update

New password logic

Setup illustrations

Fixed SSID with spacing issue

Enabled the reset button

Custom splash screen (with URL)

Upcoming features include:

Upgraded jitterbuffer (streaming) module

New decode module

WiFi stability

BETA

As we go through our development with as much transparency as possible, we recently made the BETA area open to the public on our forum. What you see is real time development with insight into the inner workings of the system as we scale AIRTAME to be ready for wider public use.

At this moment in time, we're waiting for the final early release devices to be received so that we can get an overview of the fixes needed to be made before we release the publicBETA. The decision to make the release will be in collaboration with the existing BETA community and the dev team so that we can ensure a stable product moving forward. This will be the same process going from publicBETA to public release later this year. We expect to have a clearer indication in the coming weeks, however at the moment we do not expect for publicBETA to be made available within the next 3-5 weeks. You will however be kept in the loop & updated as we know more :)

Below are the main resources we'll update to keep you in the loop: > forum.airtame.com > airtame.com/status > isAIRTAMEshipping.com

Updating from the initial firmware

All of the devices we currently have in stock are running v0.1.2 - whereas this was OK for early BETA release, there are simply too many bugs and issues for us to release as a full BETA.

We’re currently going through each device and manually updating each one of these in the warehouse to the most current version of the software (v0.1.4) and onwards before we ship them. Whilst this is a lengthily process, it would mean that once we are finally in publicBETA we’ll be able to focus on feature development, rather than system startup. The software running on AIRTAME is always available for update to the latest release once it’s connected to the internet, but by updating the devices to version0.1.4 manually it removes some of the internet connection glitches that meant it was really difficult to update in some cases.

Hardware

We’ve been really happy with the final build of the product. With over 3500 devices out in the wild, we’ve had 6 devices with a fault. It’s great testament to our manufacturing partners Jabil - once again showing why you work with the best when you can. We’ve also manage to improve the testing process for each of the devices as they come off the production line, which has meant we’ve been able to increase our production capacity by over 40% this month alone.

Mobile

Our iOS app is now available and can be found directly in App Store! The first version has had some great feedback from the BETA users in the forum (http://forum.airtame.com). Whilst the first version only displays local images, there already is an update on the way that will let you stream your local pdf’s - an early MVP for remote presentations.

The Android application is shaping up quite nicely with an update that converts presentations quicker than previously, and has already got full dropbox image and file integration that will let you stream your presentations and pdf documents straight from your dropbox account.

Shipping

To follow on from above, the next batch that is due to ship is publicBETA. This will be our largest shipment to date with over 40% of our total back order / pre-orders and contributions within this batch.

It’s a huge undertaking that makes us excited at the same time, as then we would have over 60% of the orders out in the wild - all at the same time as being in BETA!

Whilst publicBETA will be a huge step forward from the early release, please bear in mind that it will still be in BETA. There will be bugs in the system and features missing. We’ll be working methodically and strategically alongside the BETA community to develop the features through future releases and beyond. www.airtame.com/status is the best place to keep up to date with the release schedule.

If you cannot wait to get your hands on your device and want to get down and dirty whilst in the midst of early BETA and fight some bugs with us, we’ll be happy to move your order forward. Simply fill in the application form at www.airtame.com/beta-application and let us know what plans you have with AIRTAME during BETA :)

#Campaign Update

[airtame]

NO images

We're currently migrating this page, and whilst moving some parts we broke the interwebs. So, at the moment, there are no pretty pictures for you to see, but we promise that they will be back soon!

[airtame]

Update on the new updates!

Since our last update there has been some fantastic milestones, so apologies in advance for this large update! Here is an overview to help you navigate / skim:

Hardware status

Shipping and accessories

Firmware changes

OS updates

Mobile progress

Resource overview:

Shipping - isAIRTAMEshipping.com

Order - airtame.com/my-orders / airtame.backerkit.com

Support - support.airtame.com

Release overview - airtame.com/status

Hardware Our manufacturing partner Jabil have been in full production mode for the past months of the final AIRTAME ‘Box Build’, which means that we have all parts / accessories (for the AIRTAME) / packaging in stock.

As we have mentioned in previous updates, producing hardware is not an easy task when you have to ensure that all components arrive on time and all ensure that all the hardware tests are running smoothly. In our particular case we have three accessories that accompany the AIRTAME. A Micro USB Cable, HDMI Extension Cord, AC Adapter and packaging consisting of yet another five parts, Sleeve, Box, Insert to separate accessories, plastic tray that protects AIRTAME and a user manual that is mandatory to include.

All of the early release devices left without the final packaging, but everything was able to be in place for the BETA release.

Test equipment Most of the time we have spent on hardware since the last update has been on test equipment for not only certification, but also within the mass manufacturing process.

Every AIRTAME that comes off the production line will go through 36 automated tests which takes around 140 seconds per device (15,000 units @ 2+mins per device!)

Each of the tests includes a minimum and maximum limit, so if any of the devices fail the limits, they will be rejected to be placed for repair or to be discarded.

Below you can see a screenshot from the test equipment showing a graph of one of the WiFi tests showing the results from 69. It shows the quality of the signal from the 5GHz WiFi chip in AIRTAME. The left window shows in what order all the tests are being performed.

Adjusting the test equipment is an ongoing process and the last month we have worked on the different limits and optimized different test procedures and reduced test time from the start, which was around 240 seconds.

The test process is one of the areas our product team will work with even further to optimize, whilst at the same time ensuring that we do not let our standards slip! This process is currently the slowest part of the production process, and creating a bottleneck on our weekly maximum production, but we’re confident we can get it done as so not to disrupt the mass production process any further moving forward.

Certification At present, 90% of the tests have been performed and passed. The last part is a test that allows AIRTAME to transmit on a range of 5GHz channels called DFS (Dynamic Frequency Selection) these are specific channels that require extra restriction because (rumour has it) it’s used by military equipment and “weather radars”... (Note: do not operate AIRTAME if you are based in Area 51).

This test required some additional high end enterprise network products and specific preparation of a setup that will be shipped to US in the first week of January.

For this particular test, we have to place a router and AIRTAME in a chamber with a large antenna to simulate a military radar & have the AIRTAME and router switch frequencies within a specific timeslot.

It’s a really technical task that involves a lot of experience - so we’ve employed the resources of Scanditek to help us configure AIRTAME in the best way for the different network environments around the globe.

In the picture below from Wikipedia you can see what additional channels AIRTAME are being tested with at the moment and you can read about the DFS channels here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WLAN_channels

Accessories and shipping We’ve been in heavy testing with various accessories throughout the past year. We’ve had literally hundreds come through the office, and to date there have not been any that we’ve be totally satisfied with. They have either been really beautiful, but work 10% of the time, or really bad housing, but work perfectly like a pack mule each and every time - there has been nothing in between…

Using micro USB has meant that there are very few aftermarket accessories available for our specific use cases, so we’ve taken the decision to also investigate the possibilities of creating our own accessories. This however means that we must go through the same FCC and CE testing and certification process as we are currently going through with the main AIRTAME device.

In the meantime we’ll continue to also investigate various 3rd party accessories - but either way, you can expect an update on this soon :)

Shipping We have now commenced the first major release of AIRTAMEs in the wild! Once again, it’s been a learning process ... the system designed for us initially by our logistics partner DHL would have been great for hundreds of orders, but with tens of thousands to be processed, it’s meant that the initial system was fully overwhelmed.

There has been a change in the release schedule, of which you can see here: www.isAIRTAMEshipping.com

We’re currently working with DHL to change our fulfillment process to be ready in time for the BETA shipments, as we cannot currently continue in the same way - it’s far too frustrating for all parties involved!

First version release & updates

Firmware Since the last update a little over 4 weeks ago, there have been 3 firmware updates, starting from having the the very basic features of streaming over a single 2.4GHz WiFi band, through to now having the full Dual Band 2.4 and 5GHz functionality - which has resulted in a much better streaming quality.

To do this, we have put a lot effort into the user interface and setup flow to have a really simple setup flow and an easy process in being able to use the different streaming functionalities.

The result of this is a new setup flow and a redesigned splash screen design on the monitor:

From our 100 early beta testers we have received a lot of feedback on functionality and stability. There are multiple variations that are available through the combination of hardware and operating systems that AIRTAME needs to operate within.

We’ve been focusing our efforts on the stability of each of the features released and the automation of the crash reports. This will allow us to streamline some of the manual feedback we need to receive and increase our pace and agility through our software development. You’ll be able to get an overview of the releases past, present and future at www.airtame.com/status

Software We’ve been making some steady process with the desktop applications. From the first release, we’ve been working on the stability of the basic stream & having basic audio support available.

There are now two modes that you can operate your AIRTAME - “fast” and “safe” streaming.

As you can see above, audio only currently works in the safe streaming mode. Fast streaming will support this feature in the future, but if you’re main use is to stream media (online or local), we would always recommend the safe streaming feature.

With the Raspberry Pi image, we’ve had to unfortunately move this along with the public release. We really wanted to be able to have this out, but we’re just not able to provide any support for it at the moment.

However, with all this, we’ve been working quietly in the background on our Linux application - it’s currently going through the final stages of QA, and we expect to have this release very soon! Expect it within an update near you soon :)

AIRTAME going mobile As of just the other day, the Android AIRTAME app made it’s very first steps into the wild onto the google play store.

You’re able to now wirelessly send local content from your phone or tablet to your AIRTAME with 2 features: Gallery and Present.

Using the display function, you can gather content from your photo stream and instantly create albums to be streamed onto your AIRTAME in a few clicks.

Using the presentation function, you can use your device as a remote and guide throughout your presentation. You’ll get a full overview of the presentation with an on-screen timer and a preview of the upcoming slides.

At present, we’re able to support the following formats:

JPEG

Powerpoint

Keynote

PNG

Excel

Numbers

PDF

Word

Pages

We’re only able to support static local content in this version, but in the coming releases we expect to be able to provide video support as well as online storage integration from some of your favourite providers such as Dropbox, Google Drive and Box. As for the iOS app we’ve made great strides in the recent weeks with our newest employee David. Within a matter of weeks he has been able to get the very first version with a slick gallery application that lets you select and stream images from your device. In the coming releases we’ll also see such features as Present mode and video support akin to the android application.

We’ve already submitted it to the app store, so we hope to see it available by the end of the year, however it’s in the hands of Apple as to when we will see it.

The native windows phone application will be on hold until we can find the right resources for us to complete this application on the same foundation as the other operating systems - however we will be building the functionality upon the features of our other applications.

Those with a windows tablet or device that runs Windows 8.1 or 8.1 Pro is able to already utilise AIRTAME directly as a desktop application.

Next steps

This is a rather big update to go through we know, but we hope it gave you a snapshot of the progress we’ve been through in the past 4 weeks!

We’ll commence shipping of BETA devices from the new year, and we’ll be working through the holidays on the upcoming update.

In meantime, Happy Holidays from all of us here at AIRTAME!

#Campaign Update

[airtame]

Test to impress

Hi backers, We’re starting to ramp up AIRTAME testing, and we want to include you! If we have learnt one thing during our crowd funding campaign, it would be that it is really damn important that we involve as many people into the process as possible - and as early as possible. This is something that we acknowledge that we have not done nearly enough of recently. However, as of today, that will change. Working with our initial batch of privateBETA members, and with further more to join in the coming days, we have learnt so much as the AIRTAMEs have come online in the wild as on a daily basis they provide us with lots of really valuable feedback, share ideas and report bugs through our forum - all critical for making a truly great product. It’s been a steep learning process, and now with even more testers, we’ve been able to provide continuous updates - with at least 1 major update, and a handful of minor updates a week! We’re focused on delivering a great product for as many use cases as possible, however we know that we can only do it one step at a time - and would be foolish for us to try to do everything right now. Working with our privateBETA team, we’ve realised that we need to structure all the feedback we receive, so that we can utilise it effectively in our development production and updates. So as to not literally flood the development team from the very start, we are pleased to announce that we will commence shipment of AIRTAMEs in stages as we develop the software to be suitable for as many base use cases as early as possible. All of our Indiegogo orders will be receiving an email to confirm your delivery address, order and option of participating in the following:

Early release Providing technical and structured feedback is required if you wish to participate in this early program. NOTE: Limited number available.

publicBETA (staged shipping from Dec) This release will be still under heavy and constant development, but will be a more stable version of the software. We would still of course like as much structured feedback as possible, but not a prerequisite.

Dependant on the response from our Indiegogo backers, we will then roll out the same offer to our pre-order batches.

It’s important that we ship our development updates out in stages, so that we can ultimately cover as many use cases as early as possible. As mentioned above, both releases will be going through constant updates through the feedback that we receive. We want to make sure that expectations are aligned, and that those who expect a more ‘complete’ product should wait at least for our releases in 2015.

The devices however have not yet been certified (they are currently in final preparation for testing in the UK for the CE, FCC, C-tick and A-tick). What this means is that what you will be sent is classified as a prototype. It is important that you understand this - as without your confirmation that you are willing to receive this product, we cannot send your order to you. There are also other benefits such as import customs classify such products with little or no additional taxes in the majority of countries. 

We expect to be able to fulfill all of our existing orders from the original Indiegogo campaign, pre-order batch 1 and the majority of pre-order batch 2 by the end of the year.

Currently to date, we have now fulfilled 100% of two of our indiegogo perks - and with the early release and publicBETA we will be opening up to as many testers as possible as we scale up production of both hardware and software. We currently have just over 100 awesome dedicated and meticulous privateBETA members in the program that take the AIRTAME through it’s paces in all sorts of environments and use cases. On a daily basis they provide us with valuable feedback, share ideas and report bugs - all critical for making a truly great product.

What’s the status so far? Since we ended our campaign a little over 37 weeks ago, we’ve been working around the clock to go forth and create a new and better wireless standard. As with almost any journey it has been a bumpy ride. Not a surprise when you have to create a system for scale.

When working with wireless technologies, you have to succumb to the reality that you do not control everything that happens between point A and point B. You can be pretty sure, but with differing factors such as various routers, AP’s, operating systems, TV’s, projectors, walls to name a few - and to throw into the mix, the jungle of other transmitting devices that regularly find habitat in the modern workplace and home, and you’ve got yourselves a minefield of telecommunications that have to be navigated through with efficiency. It makes it much more difficult having not only a platform and hardware agnostic solution, but also an environment agnostic solution with a proper stream at all times.

What’s the delay? It basically meant that the year of preparation that was done before the crowd-funding campaign for a couple of thousand devices was quickly of little use. However, with the cloud (pun intended), there usually is a silver lining. With your help, along with 000’s of other backers from around the world, we dramatically changed what was possible. By not only having a pure device that was ours, rather than a 3rd party integration with no care other than basic functionality into the electronics or housing, meant that we were able to create a product that was uniquely suited to everyone’s needs. It meant that we were free to really make a difference in how users can interact with a wireless streaming system.

As we however go through the alpha testing process, it’s however becoming abundantly clear to us that we cannot support the amount of use cases that are potential with AIRTAME from the very beginning - so with your help, we want to be able to identify the priority use cases, and see where best as a team and with you, as a community to help us move forward together in order to deliver a pure cross platform streaming system that we all know is possible.

The software will be released in stable versions as continuous updates - as you probably know we can easily update the software on both AIRTAME and your devices ‘over the air’. We will be launching initially with device to monitor duplication for Mac, Windows, Linux and Android.

What’s the next steps? You will receive a mail from us shortly in order to confirm your delivery address and order.

On a side note, a number of you have added a secret perk during the campaign. This should already be placed in your order confirmation automatically. If it is not showing correctly, please notify us at [email protected]. Please note, that "Secret Perk" contributions were only available during the campaign. This option is not available for during this confirmation process.

Our original backers have been with us from the start.  - If you feel that AIRTAME is not the system that you contributed for, we urge you to reach out to [email protected] as soon as you can. We are welcome to hear from you to resolve any issues that you may have. 

As we move to even greater transparency through the organisation, we’re in the stages of making our release schedule public for upcoming features. This will be a continuous work in progress as we go through publicBETA and then even when we are in full public release, a practice that we think should be continued as we grow even more features into AIRTAME.

The number one priority from day one has to create a new and better wireless standard and to give everyone a great experience using our product.

We’re so incredibly anxious to get AIRTAMEs into everyones hands - but there’s not enough hours in a day at the moment! We’re still learning to find the balance between a perfect product and ‘on-time delivery’. This is our chance to include even more people in the mission of creating this new and better wireless standard. Together we can make it perfect.

Regards,

  The AIRTAME team

ps - We've made a handy guide for the different AIRTAME statuses  https://airtame.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/sections/200662622

[airtame]

'Forever funding' update

Hi backers,

With the update via IGG the other day, we just wanted to clarify how this affects our original backers from the earlier campaign.

The main problem seems to be stemming from the naming of Indiegogo's “forever funding” pilot program.

Firstly - this does not mean that we have switched our shipping deadline to ‘forever’!! We are still fully dedicated in working towards the one and only shift in shipping (+/- a few weeks for some minor PCB corrections) we announced in March.

http://behind.airtame.com/post/80872633440/indiegogo-update-2-manufacturing-shipping

Secondly - we certainly apologise for the tone of the update we sent out previously. We were rather excited and privileged about being asked to participate in such a ground-breaking pilot - and wanted our backers to know some of the things that you have helped us achieve.

In the coming weeks, we will be looking to see how we can work with you all on a more open framework. How this will work in practice is something that we will be working on heavily in the coming weeks - with a solution that we have in mind that we think would work for everyone. We imagine it as a way of continually developing the system, but at the same time as getting you the product that you contributed for with as little further delay as possible.

We are nearly to the day, 9 months since we ended the campaign. The initial schedule that was released at the start of the campaign in November would have meant that we planned to commence shipping at the end of May. This means, from the original schedule, we are currently just over 5 months behind. To put the delay into perspective, 75% of all crowd funded projects are delayed. We, with your support made it into a very select club of only a handful of projects that made it over 500% in over funding. To relate directly to these projects, they have been delayed by on average 18 months from a promised delivery date. This however is not an excuse for why we specifically have been delayed.

With the additional features and stretch goals that you helped us reach, it meant that whatever we had planned in the previous 12 months before the release of the campaign was of little use. You do not need for us to tell you again the features that we added that fundamentally changed the very fabric of what we were going to deliver.

However, with the ability to produce our own hardware as opposed to a 3rd party device integration, it meant that we were able to start creating a system that would be suitable for so many use cases - and not just the streaming of media from your device to your home TV across multiple platforms. We have from the very start built into AIRTAME the ability to support as many use cases as possible - from simple streaming of your entire desktop in your meeting room, installations in religious institutions and all the way through to to working with some of the leading space agencies in the world….. a rather large spectrum of use cases as you could imagine!

There are many streaming devices that were before us, and some after our release that want to keep you within a specific operating system. This is something that we refuse to do. We know that this is one of the important features that you really wanted from the start - however, it is also one of the the hardest things to achieve. This is also something that the vast majority of our competitors are not willing to do.

So to recap - the new pilot program on indiegogo does not, and will not affect your original contribution in any way, shape or form. In the same way that pre-orders accepted on our website or orders from hundreds of organisations from around the world, do not affect your original contribution. If anything, the more use cases we can go through and discover in these early stages, the more use cases we can support within the very foundation of the AIRTAME system from as early as possible.

Without you, we would not be in the position that we are now. If however our current and future processes and timeframes are not something that you wish to be a part of, we urge you to reach out to [email protected] as soon as possible. We pride ourselves in trying to resolve as many issues as possible - albeit slowly (don’t forget, we are still only 13 full time employees!) and ask that if you have any questions or queries to drop us a mail, and we will see how best we can resolve your issues.

As we mentioned earlier, we look forward to working much closer with you from the coming weeks, and again, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts, and the top of our stream for all the support you have shown us so far.

Regards,

The AIRTAME team

#indiegogo backers

[airtame]

An update from our manufacturing facility whilst we prepare for the final stages before we commence certification testing and the mass manufacturing production batch!

#indiegogo backers #WEBexclusive

[airtame]

Update #7 - Prototype production

Hi funders! Since our last update, our focus has been on the release of the private BETA program (#BETA100).  From receiving the initial devices v.1b from our new manufacturer, we've been running each one of them through a personal setup and final test.  As some of you may know, we detected a fault on the WiFi chips early on in the testing process, that meant that we were not able to achieve the type of distance that we had initially hoped for. Even though we had to go through some heavy testing, we found the solution - a simple addition of another component whilst moving another - was all it took to bring up the levels we were expecting for our private BETA. As some of the devices had already been manufactured, Marius took it upon himself to hand place each one of the components, so we could get it out within the week. In his little workshop he sat around the clock to insert a component that was 0.6mm x 0.3mm x 0.3mm. All we can say is that, we certainly won't be playing him in a game of 'Operation' any time soon!

In the meantime, we have pushed the changes to the PCB layout, and are in the final stages of being able to complete the gerber file ready to set ourselves for mass production. With a number of tests are in place before we are able to obtain our FCC and CE certifications, we're hopeful that the new v.2 PCB's will be the final version that go out to the public.

So, even with BETA devices in the wild, there is still a way to go. There are a number of feature updates and optimisations that will be sent out throughout the privateBETA program that will enable us to really move from where we are to be even closer to the public release.  Until next time! The AIRTAME team ps - Is there a subject that you want us to cover? Drop a mail to [email protected] & let us know!

#Campaign Update

[airtame]

Update #6 - Manufacturing partner

We’ve got some really exciting news to announce today - we have signed a partnership with Jabil as our global manufacturer. 

Working with a Fortune 500 manufacturing partner like Jabil is a true milestone on our wireless journey. Currently the 3rd largest manufacturer in the world, Jabil was recently recognised by Fortune Magazine as one of the Fortune 500 Most Admired Companies.

Currently manufacturing for companies such as Apple, Cisco, HP, IBM and General Electric amongst others, we’re excited to be a part of this exclusive group of organisations. 

Not only are they able to deliver the scale and quality that we demand, but at the same time, we have very similar principles in lean methodology. 

The entire company culture is built about the concept of lean manufacturing and Kaizen principles - constantly driving improvement and innovation by reducing waste and increasing process speed.

We have chosen to work with one of their European facilities based in Poland, where we will have direct access to the facility & our team members within a short hop, skip and a jump away across the continent. Even the simple fact of being in the same time zone will enable us to communicate effectively and ensure that the final manufacturing process is a smooth one.   

Our new production line  

Freshly suited up with some components  

Ready for inspection  

Last check with some tender love and care  

BETA dongles in the office for final testing!  

We also happy to announce the new (and even closer to the final) shipping estimates:

BETA: within 2 weeks

Pre-payment: late Oct - Nov Pre-order batch1: Dec Pre-order batch2: Jan

www.isAIRTAMEshipping.com

Until next time!

The AIRTAME team

[airtame]

Update #5 - v1.0 up and running!

Great news everyone! The first version of our very own hardware is now up and running. It’s still in heavy development mode - but we were so excited, we had to share the news with you!

We have made a video taking you through the process over the past weeks around assembly of the first hardware and the ‘board bring up’ process (it basically means testing all the circuits and components on the board and getting the software running on the hardware for the first time).

We are really excited that we now have our own hardware in house and we can start tweaking it to be ready for the second version. As you know, so far we have been running our software testing on Raspberry Pi’s and the Wandboard for development until we decided on which components we wanted to use within the dongle.

Below is a short description of the process shown in the video.

As some of you may have seen via our Facebook page, the version 1.0 of the PCB's made their way from the manufacturer to our offices in Copenhagen!

From PCB to prototype

Even though this was a huge step for us and the product team, there was still a long way to go. For one thing - this is a naked PCB - there are no components attached to it yet.

As you can see in the video above, there were a number of steps taken that took us from the naked PCB to a running first version.

Populating the board with the components for the first time is actually a time consuming process because all the machines need to be calibrated and adjusted in order to house the components at the right position securely. Todays components are getting smaller and smaller, meaning that the machines need an impressive accuracy to place the components correctly. The AIRTAME dongle includes components that have a "metric code" of 0201 - which is not actually shown on the chart below, but are 0.6 mm × 0.3 mm (0.024 in × 0.012 in) in size (= really really really small). Using components this small has allowed us to fit everything into our space constraints, but with the trade-off of complicating the manufacturing process.

The first time this is done, it’s a painful process, as it will set the precedent for the remaining PCB’s - also will become a guideline for the manufacturer - so something that has be 110% correct! Something of which is rarely correct the first time. One of the sides took over 8.5hrs to set and align - the other side however was a walk in the park at only 3hrs…

Here is the PCB with components:

Marius was working through the night with the team in order to get everything set. To give you a little indication of time scale - he got the call at midnight to say that side 1 was complete, and by the time he drove up to the northern part of Denmark, the other side would be also complete - not usually a problem, but given that he also had to be at the airport at 6am the following day in order to be on the other side of the country to go through the board bring up process - it meant for a rather sleepless night...

(However, needless to say, he made the flight)

At RTX the product team went through the steps of firing up the device for the first time. It was really exciting to see the changes, as going from a concept to reality is a scary, but fantastic thing at the same time!

The first couple of days of the board bring up meant a lot of check points and software additions:

The way board bring up works usually is by first verifying that the hardware is in place, which in practice means that various power sources, connections and components are visually inspected and measured to be 100% sure that they are correct. The next step in the process is to apply power to the board, and measure the power consumption to be sure there are no short circuits - and blow anything up! At this point, we could see that the Freescale chip was alive, and we were able to communicate with it, however we did not know if the memory, the micro-sd, the USB ports, the HDMI port or the WiFi worked.

In order to run anything on the dongle, we first had to get a bootloader to work. Our choice of bootloader is the excellent Das U-Boot, which has full support for the IMX6, which made our life a lot easier. It is also one of the most used bootloaders for embedded boards, so the support is great too.

At that point, we reached the most critical point in the bring-up - configuring the memory. Attila and Emil, together with RTX, spent about a day tweaking various timing parameters in a big list of registers until they reached the point where they thought the memory was stable enough for use.

From then on, the rest of it went really fast. First the SD card was enabled and worked perfectly, then we got our first Linux kernel booted. We verified that the USB host port works by plugging in an USB Ethernet adapter, and it worked great! The HDMI port could show an image, the LEDs could blink and WiFi also performed nicely.

Finally, we were brave enough to launch the AIRTAME software, and in no time we were streaming away.

Progress is being made now at a rapid pace. There are still a number of elements that need to be amended from v1.0 before we can take the next steps into having v2.0 ready for BETA, but more on that next time. 

Please note - before we all get carried away, there is still A LOT to be done in regards to testing and security even before we can start on the work needed for v2.0 and then going through the certification phase.

As always, if you have any questions or would like to know more, please drop a mail to [email protected].

Regards, 

The AIRTAME team.

#Campaign Update #indiegogo backers

[airtame]

Indiegogo update #4 - Freescale chipset

As we promised previously, we will now delve a little deeper into the very core of the AIRTAME dongle - the Freescale processor.

One of the stretch goals during the Indiegogo campaign enabled us to look at an upgrade on the original generic 'AllWinner' chipset from China, to a dual core premium processor from Freescale. Even though we had the iMX6 in mind from the start, we certainly shopped around - from Texas Instruments through to Broadcom, we looked at them all...!

So, instead of us writing and trying to explain to you why it’s great, below is a video of our Senior Developer Harris explaining to you why it is so important, and what it means to have such a chipset in the dongle.

So - what Harris is saying, is that when we send the same image / video via the Freescale chip, rather than through the Raspberri Pi (which also runs the very powerful ARM6 processor), we can achieve better colours and depth - just like you have with TV’s - some look better than others.

All of extra goodness does not require more power from your computer / mobile / tablet - or more bandwith from your WiFi - something we’re really proud to have achieved.

Don’t get us wrong - the original processor would have been more than sufficient for the initial functionality of the AIRTAME dongle in the first years, but the upgrade has meant that we are able to support some really great functionality from the very start - such as being able to produce a better quality stream or future features such as split screen between different sending devices - all without the need of a hardware upgrade.

Whereas we know this is not the usual thinking for an electronic device manufacturer, we know that the hardware is only a small part of the overall AIRTAME system of the future...

But, we can hear you asking - what exactly does this little thing do? Why do we need this thing in our dongle?

GEEK WARNING - The content below contains a high number of acronyms and long words. However, it goes to explain a little more in depth of why we even need such a processor within the AIRTAME dongle...

i.MX6 overview

Freescale i.MX6DL SoC The core of the AIRTAME hardware is the Freescale i.MX6DL SoC (System on Chip) that basically means that it has more functionalities (circuits) integrated. For AIRTAME that means that both the CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphic Processor Unit) and all the connectivity are built within the same chip. The primary functionalities we use are:

CPU Platform (Step 1 - Handling all the data) The i.MX6DL consist of two ARM Cortex A9 processors running at 1GHz. The primary task for the processor in AIRTAME is to:

Handle the data sent over WiFi

Decode and play back the audio stream

Adjust performance settings and control the user interface of AIRTAME

Security Unit (Step 2 - Data encryption and decryption) The security unit in the I.MX6 is used to accelerate the encryption and decryption of all the data that is sent. This means that the AIRTAME stream is secure at all times, and helps to prevent all types of malicious attacks.

Multimedia (Step 3 - Playing back video stream) The multimedia part of the SoC is taking care of playing back the video stream sent to the AIRTAME dongle. Playing back a 1080p / 30fps (Frames Per Second) video stream is typically a really demanding task and would not be possible for the CPU - so we have integrated a hardware accelerated “video decoder” to take care of that task and relieve some pressure from the CPU to make it possible in a seamless way.

Image Processing Unit (Step 4 - Image enhancement and resizing) This part of the i.MX6 is the last part before send to the screen through HDMI. This is where the video stream is for example resized to fill the whole screen if for example a 720p stream is sent. It’s also where all the image enhancement like contrast, brightness and saturation is taking place explained in the video above.

So, there you have it... An in-depth breakdown of our chipset. If you have any suggestions as to content for these updates please send us a mail to [email protected] with the subject "I think you should talk about..." and of course, if you have any questions, please drop us a line at [email protected]

Until next time!

The AIRTAME team

[airtame]

Indiegogo update #3 - Prototypes

In the past weeks since the last update, we have been working round the clock to ensure that we keep up to speed on the deadlines and ensuring that we do as much as we can to get the dongle in your hands as quickly as possible! (Yes, we know how that could sound...)

Hardware update

We’re excited to announce that the development stage of the hardware prototype is now complete! The first prototypes have already been ordered, so we are now waiting like impatient kids to get our hands on them to test - this should be within the next 10 days or so, but you will of course be the first to hear about it when they do arrive!

The PCB ended up being an 8 layer construction - in basic terms, there are 8 individual layers that have been used to connect all of the components. We’ve managed to squeeze all of this into a compact space using all of the available space we had. The image below shows a snapshot of the PCB (printed circuit board) from above - if you look closely enough, you’ll hopefully not be able to see anything of which is top secret…

Two Micro USB connections

Now that we have the final design in place, we can also announce that we have changed the normal USB port to a Micro USB port instead. The reason being is that the physical size of the connector, along with the other new components would have made the dongle much larger than anticipated. If we stayed with the normal USB, the AIRTAME would have been 5mm taller, 7mm longer and 4mm wider (to translate to those in imperial: around a 1/5 inch taller & 1/4 inch longer). We are sure that you agree with us in that size does matter! In saying this, all those that ordered accessories from us through the indiegogo campaign will receive sound cards and ethernet adapters that use Micro USB instead, so you will not see any difference when using the product.

To clarify - even though we have micro USB ports on the dongle, we will still be supplying the power cables (for TV / power adapters) with a standard USB port!

Mechanical design (Casing)

With the interior workings of the product finalised, we have crafted the exterior of the product to suit. We have moved a few items around such as the lightguide & where to have the split lines of the product - all at the same time, making sure that everything fits together perfectly. In the next update we’ll go through the assembly process with you, and why it takes up to 6 weeks to manufacture just the tools we need for the plastic injection moulds.

Searching for the right manufacturer

Also since the last update, we’ve been sending our product man Marius (literally) around the world to help source the best manufacturing facility for our device. We’re keen to ensure that whoever we choose will be someone whom we trust with your product - something we don’t take lightly! Below is a short video from that trip to give you a little insight into what went down.

On the first leg of the tour, Marius went out to Asia to speak with some of the world’s best known manufacturing companies such as Foxconn, Quanta, Wistron and PSI. He was joined on the tour with 20 other hardware startups from around the world that have also recently closed their crowd funding rounds. We’ll also be following up on his adventures in an update in the near future!

As always, if you have any questions, or just want to say hi - feel free to drop us a mail at [email protected] or [email protected]

#Campaign Update

[airtame]

Delivery address changes

We’ve had a number of people contacting us to notify us of a change in delivery address, and just wanted to clarify with everyone the process we will be going through during the shipping phase.

For all of our indiegogo funders, we will send out an email to the email address you provided when you contributed to the campaign. It’s through this email that you will be able to confirm your order and your delivery address. It’s at this point that you need to ensure that we have the most up-to-date address for you. The information that we receive will be connected directly with our shipping partners, to ensure that we don’t mess up any of the details when it comes to shipping the AIRTAMEs!

For pre-order units, we ask that you go into the confirmation email sent from [email protected] and click the link provided to amend your delivery address details. We will also send you a confirmation email before we ship, so that you can confirm, amend or change delivery details once again.

Whatever happens, we will contact everyone that has contributed to ensure that we do not miss anyone!

#indiegogo backers

[airtame]

Team update #1

We wanted to give you a quick update from the office with an insight into some of the people who have joined our team since the start of the year…

Harris Georgiou - Senior developer Harris is evolving the core technology behind AIRTAME to the next level. The development of hardware accelerated encoding, combined with his expertise in the network stack aim to maximize the user experience because it is not simply about good and bad, it is about good and better.

Emil Renner Berthing - Embedded Linux developer With a background in mathematics and strong ties to the open source and hacker space communities, Emil loves to dig deep and figure out how stuff works or why it doesn’t. Emil will be making sure the software on the dongle runs smoothly from the deepest levels of hardware herding all the way through to the core of the AIRTAME application.

Benoit Hebrard - Android mobile developer Previously working with Sony developing multimedia applications for Java Android. Before that, he had experiences at both Motorola & Philips. A keen traveller, he went through 15 countries in 9 months backpacking with stops such as the Everest Base Camp in Nepal.

Zaki Wasik - Front end developer With an understanding of both design and development - not to mention a great passion for startups, Zaki helps the team strive for delivering the best UX on the market. 

We’re really proud of the team that we are assembling, but we’re still on the lookout for more great people to join the team. For our open positions, please check out http://airtame.com/jobs - if you don’t see a position that you would be PERFECT for, please do not hesitate to drop us a mail with your CV & cover letter to [email protected]

#team update