# Year End, 2017

- Show: [The Amp Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour)
- Published: 2017-12-18
- Length: 1h 04m
- Episode: 372
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-12-18-year-end-2017
- Listen: https://theamphour.com/372-year-end-2017/

## Summary

Dave Jones of AEV discusses the logistical and financial challenges of fulfilling his successful Kickstarter for the AEV Multimeter, including component supply issues and complex international shipping. Chris Gammell of Contextual Electronics critiques the Raspberry Pi Foundation's push for commercial use of their boards and discusses the rising cost of prototyping services. The hosts also reflect on industry trends, including the failure of Patreon's fee hike, the stagnation of 3D printing in manufacturing, and the lack of scalable open-source hardware companies.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-12-18-year-end-2017#t=0) Introduction and AEV Multimeter Kickstarter Success
- [3:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-12-18-year-end-2017#t=222) Logistics, Shipping Costs, and EU VAT Challenges
- [14:55](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-12-18-year-end-2017#t=895) Component Supply Issues and Fulfillment Complexity
- [16:30](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-12-18-year-end-2017#t=990) Critique of Raspberry Pi Commercial Use and Cheap Arduino Modules
- [25:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-12-18-year-end-2017#t=1518) Kickstarter Vultures and Privacy Concerns
- [30:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-12-18-year-end-2017#t=1821) Patreon Fee Backlash and Podcast Updates
- [46:33](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-12-18-year-end-2017#t=2793) Future Tech Predictions: 3D Printing, Robotics, and Open Source

## Topics

- [Crowdfunding & preorders](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/crowdfunding)
- [Logistics & fulfilment](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/logistics-and-fulfillment)
- [Sourcing & supply chain](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sourcing-and-supply-chain)
- [Open-source hardware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/open-source-hardware)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- AEV Multimeter (product)
- Raspberry Pi (product)
- Arduino (product)
- CH340 (chip)
- ATmega328 (chip)
- Neoden 4 (tool)
- PocketBeagle (product)
- LoRa (other)
- Patreon (company)
- SparkFun (company)
- LulzBot (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [44: Light Up Strikes Back](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2014-03-26-44-light-up-strikes-back) (Embedded.fm)
- [470: Upping the Chaos Level](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2024-02-09-470-upping-the-chaos-level) (Embedded.fm)
- [186: Sleeping on the Factory Floor](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2017-02-09-186-sleeping-on-the-factory-floor) (Embedded.fm)
- [100: Unintentional Radiator](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2015-05-06-100-unintentional-radiator) (Embedded.fm)
- [36: Drive the Boat with a Wii Mote](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2014-01-22-36-drive-the-boat-with-a-wii-mote) (Embedded.fm)

## 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/2017-12-18-year-end-2017. 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.