In hardware, "undefined" means "expensive"
Your OEM sample might be a real production unit... or a bench Frankenstein.
Two reasons you ask an OEM supplier
These are your SOPs. Can these workers read them?
Recently, I saw an SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) where the device's enclosure was named "a dwelling."
Why a Chinese boss won't walk you out
The boss of the factory met you at the airport. But after the meeting at his factory, he just vanished
Do not overengineer
I have been working with different engineering teams for years, and the only thing that has been common to most
The day cheap parts get expensive
Imagine you are a hardware founder. An order is about to ship next week. 10K units, $100 gross margin each.
The Importance of "Tea Test"
I call this the "tea test". It's the simplest way to get the best possible deal
Build in China
If I were a hardware founder building a new electronics product today, in what country would I start mass production?
Make it simple
Founders, it sounds counterintuitive, but hear me out. In wearables, every fraction of a millimeter matters. You fight to reduce
Why contracting Foxconn will destroy your startup
The size of your key suppliers is crucial for your hardware startup. Suppliers of the wrong size will literally kill
I don't just assign serial numbers
I don't just assign serial numbers to my products. I create a strategic numbering system. Here's
