# Adafruit, Chip heist, Hackerspaces - The Kit Conniption

- Show: [The Amp Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour)
- Published: 2011-04-26
- Length: 1h 03m
- Episode: 40
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2011-04-26-adafruit-chip-heist-hackerspaces-the-kit-conniption
- Listen: https://theamphour.com/the-amp-hour-40-the-kit-conniption/

## Summary

Hosts Chris Gammell and Dave Jones discuss the challenges of building a kit business, with Jones advising that lowering the bill of materials (BOM) cost is critical to achieving the high margins necessary for viability. They debate the use of Kickstarter for hardware, with Jones warning against taking customer money before the product is proven, and discuss licensing options like the Open Source Hardware License versus Creative Commons for protecting intellectual property while allowing community contribution.

## Chapters

- [0:28](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2011-04-26-adafruit-chip-heist-hackerspaces-the-kit-conniption#t=28) Intro and Hackerspace News
- [10:36](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2011-04-26-adafruit-chip-heist-hackerspaces-the-kit-conniption#t=636) Chip Heist and Data Center Power
- [26:38](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2011-04-26-adafruit-chip-heist-hackerspaces-the-kit-conniption#t=1598) Kit Business BOM Costs and Margins
- [31:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2011-04-26-adafruit-chip-heist-hackerspaces-the-kit-conniption#t=1897) Kickstarter and Funding Advice
- [39:46](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2011-04-26-adafruit-chip-heist-hackerspaces-the-kit-conniption#t=2386) Open Source Hardware Licensing
- [54:51](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2011-04-26-adafruit-chip-heist-hackerspaces-the-kit-conniption#t=3291) TI Social Media Strategy

## Topics

- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Crowdfunding & preorders](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/crowdfunding)
- [Intellectual property](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/intellectual-property)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)
- [Sourcing & supply chain](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sourcing-and-supply-chain)

## Most relevant to

founders before launch, early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Adafruit (company)
- SparkFun (company)
- Nottinghack (company)
- Facebook (company)
- Texas Instruments (company)
- Arduino (product)
- Dick Smith (company)
- Electronics Australia (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Ep. 23 - Making Money with Open Source Hardware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/open-hardware-manufacturing-podcast/2024-06-27-ep-23-making-money-with-open-source-hardware) (Open Hardware Manufacturing Podcast)
- [Ep. 22 - Pricing Your Product](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/open-hardware-manufacturing-podcast/2024-06-13-ep-22-pricing-your-product) (Open Hardware Manufacturing Podcast)
- [Advice Line with Jamie Siminoff of Ring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-08-22-advice-line-with-jamie-siminoff-of-ring) (How I Built This)
- [277: The Sport of Kings](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2019-02-08-277-the-sport-of-kings) (Embedded.fm)
- [13 Reasons Why New Hardware Products Fail](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/predictable-designs-podcast/2022-11-23-13-reasons-why-new-hardware-products-fail) (Predictable Designs Podcast)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2011-04-26-adafruit-chip-heist-hackerspaces-the-kit-conniption. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to The Amp Hour.