Mon Aug 24 '20 Announcement
over 3 years ago
– Mon, Aug 24, 2020 at 01:11:49 AM
Minor Update: Good evening Backers! We are preparing what may finally be the final version of our Pearl Buds, arriving at our office next week. If this version passes all of our tests (both tech and aesthetics), we will prepare a brand new finalized shipment schedule.
For those who would like a color change, please look forward to a new method that will allow you to do so by sending over your name, contribution #ID, and the color you want to change to. For those who need to change their shipping address, please send us your contribution #ID, full name, and new address via an email at
[email protected]. Thank you!
While we do not have a proper graphic prepared just yet (like we did for the other posts), expect the following (and more) to be covered in the next major update:
• Final Finish for Gold/Silver/Black
• Demonstration of using the product (in images, possibly video)
• Pearl Buds Box & Packaging
• Pearl Buds Finalized Case (with proper logo printed on, etc.)
• Pearl Buds Bluetooth RESET button (on the case)
• Different sized Earbuds and increased softness
Fri Jul 24 '20 Announcement
almost 4 years ago
– Fri, Jul 24, 2020 at 08:27:39 PM
Good evening backers. We have a lot of updates for today. It might have taken a bit longer than we expected to get our newest prototypes, but they’re here and we’ve spent five days testing them. Let’s begin!
Exterior: Silver Finish is Ready
On the left (in the graphic), you will see our silver Pearl Buds. We’ve gone around 4 different color changes and are now satisfied with the status of our silver buds.
The case is also silver, and shares many of the features and functionalities that was seen in the previous updates. It’s 90% ready, with the only things left for the case being:
1. Printing PEARL on the top lid
2. Manufacturing a case holder for streamlined solar charging
3. Adding a Bluetooth Reset button between the two earbuds
4. Increasing the weight of the base for balance
Interior: Finalized ANC, Touch Controls
We can confirm that the following features have been implemented into our newest prototypes and are functioning between 90-100%.
1. ANC (Active Noise Cancellation)
Only works when both buds are being used
Small LED light flashes Blue when ANC is on
2. Touch Controls
Play, Stop, and Skip Music
Go to Next, Previous Song
Accept, Reject, and Hang Up Phone Calls
Turn off Voice Control, Activate ANC
Manual: We have just started working on the custom Pearl Operation Manual after being provided the 2D technical art and designs for the semi-final version of Pearl Buds from our manufacturers recently. At the moment, we only have plans for a manual in English, but if time allows, we will budget the manual to be translated into other languages digitally. We have attached some of these images below.
Shipping: With only a few things to work out for the final prototype of the Pearl Buds, we are gearing up to ship. Unfortunately, we cannot provide a guaranteed date at the moment, but the goal is to have these Pearl Buds in your ears before the end of this chaotic year. We will most likely have a better time range for you once our next update is out. We understand the frustrations, pains, concerns, worries, and stress that our backers have felt over the course of this year -- hopefully this indepth update shows how committed we are to bringing you the best pair of earbuds that we can, despite all of the towering obstacles that stand before us.
Efforts: Throughout the last month, we’ve dealt with faulty colors, incomplete functionality, and some other problems that have... plagued our development, both in the United States and in China. We just wanted to include some photos of the failed versions of our recent prototypes and express that so many things can take unexpected turns, even if the designs and dream behind the earbuds are well-thought out and serious.
Please note that due to a difficult situation within upper management, only one person is handling the entire brunt of the responses on the VIP Facebook group, emails, the visuals for these updates, communications with manufacturing in China, quality testing and assurance, private messages, logistical changes for customers, and more. They have been putting a great amount of energy and time into bringing this project into the hands of backers around the world as of late, and will double down over the next few months to make sure that the Pearl Buds become a reality!
We appreciate the trust and patience our backers have placed into us. Please look forward to our next update, coming in August!
Regards,
Pearl
Sat Jul 4 '20 Announcement
almost 4 years ago
– Sat, Jul 04, 2020 at 12:02:48 AM
Good evening backers. We hope everyone has been staying safe recently. COVID-19 has spiralled out of control lately -- particularly in the United States; we wish everyone health and safety over the next few months. In regards to the COVID-19 Care Packages, our CEO Eddy Zhong will provide a more thorough update during this month that directly addresses the care package situation. For this update, however, we will dive into the current status of our Pearl Earbuds and provide a new update as to when we expect to ship our earbuds.
PS: Happy Independence Day!
Improved Paint Finish
During the last update, we showed a version of the earbuds that could play music and connect to devices via Bluetooth. For this update, we can confidently say that we have achieved a high quality gloss finish over the earbuds.
The image on the left is the newest iteration of the Pearl Earbuds (Black), and it gets us excited seeing it like this. Please note that this photo was taken in Shenzhen, China. Once this version (and the other colors) arrive in Los Angeles, we will take higher quality photos that showcase the beauty and results of our hard efforts and your contributions.
Below, you will see an image of the earbuds out of the case. At the moment, our Black earbuds are the best looking ones, and we are constantly in contact with our manufacturers to bring to you the best quality Gold and Silver earbuds as soon as we can. For now, gander at our Black Buds.
Shipping Delay & Current Problems
Unfortunately, our manufacturer has run into some problems in regards to quality checking. One of the last remaining hardware issues (besides better gold and silver finishes) is that the size of PCBA, or Printed Circuit Board Assembly, is still a tad bit too large. The result is a small gap as seen in the image to the right that doesn’t look as aesthetically pleasing as what our original earbud renders were like.
Because of these issues, we will have to push back our July-tentative shipment period. We will announce our newly planned shipment period within the next two updates. Some of the things that we are aiming to tackle in July include:
[1] Finalized finish for Gold / Silver earbuds
[2] Reaching the ‘Debugging / QA’ stage of the software we are developing for the earbuds
[3] A translated operation manual for backers to check out
[4] General Quality Assurance (stress testing, quality checking)
These are some big tasks, but completing them will bring us closer and closer to bringing YOU the ultimate listening experience. Thank you again for the time, money, and effort that you have put into us, Pearl Audio, over the last 6 months. We will continue to bring you updates and launch an amazing product!
Regards,
Pearl
Sat Jun 20 '20 Announcement
almost 4 years ago
– Sat, Jun 20, 2020 at 07:08:20 PM
Good evening backers. We apologize for our lack of communication on all fronts over the last 26 days. Delayed prototype shipments, failed stress tests, low quality paint finishes, COVID-19, and our continued failures to bring results to your table over the last two months have been stressful to deal with and recover from. However, our dream of designing & bringing affordable, high quality earbuds is still our top priority. Please take a gander at the updates we have to show for today - it may not always be groundbreaking news, but hearing from us regularly is a goal that we are striving to achieve... starting with this backer update. We have brought all of our updates into a graphic that will show all of the progress we have made thus far, as well as what we will be striving to achieve in the coming weeks.
Text from the update image can also be seen below:
We received our new prototype for the Pearl earbuds only a few days ago. Current functionalities include the ability to connect to Bluetooth and play music. The quality is quite high - the sound itself is clearer than the Apple Airpods. However we have some reservations about the sound quality of the bass and overall volume of the earbuds - these two concerns have already been expressed to our manufacturer and they are already working on an updated iteration of the prototype. That one will have a colored finish and is scheduled to arrive within the next 5 days.
Testing and evaluating our newest prototype
This is what our prototype (v3) looks like at the moment. It is lacking a proper finish but the functionalities are intact, albeit some needed bass upgrades and wire cleanup. It charges fine and Bluetooth works too. We are receiving the colored finish with updated specs from China in the next 5 days or so, so expect an update about the results of those buds soon!
Our apologies, and expect more frequent updates!
Again, we apologize for the lack of communication across all mediums over the last month. Now that our team is back on our feet and working with higher and higher quality prototypes at a steady rate, we are coming closer to being able to deliver what we promised to thousands of backers around the world. Please look forward to our next update!
Regards,
Pearl Audio
Mon May 25 '20 Announcement
almost 4 years ago
– Mon, May 25, 2020 at 01:57:43 PM
Dear Backers,
If you are a COVID-19 care package client, please read our previous update on this matter to get your supplies. We have made a mistake inputting the correct email address. Please email [email protected] instead of the one in our previous update.
If you have already sent the email, simply forward us that email to the correct email address and we'll take care of it.
Our apologies for the inconvenience, and we'll do our best to ship these out as fast as we can!
