Author Topic: [GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]  (Read 29320 times)

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Offline LifeIsOnTheWire

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[GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]
« on: Wed, 03 July 2019, 20:52:05 »
Hi everyone, the Postage Board Mini group buy has launched as of today.

All worldwide orders (except Europe) are being taken on my new online store, CuriousKeyboards.com

All EU orders are being taken on Mechboards.co.uk

The previous round GB for the Postage Board was a huge success, and I have decided to upgrade to having a real online store to handle the orders. This should cut down on delays and processing times by quite a lot.

If you're not sure what the Postage Board Mini is, it is a controller board for Hand-wired keyboard builds, similar to the Teensy or Pro Micro. The advantage to the Postage Board, is that it mounts directly to a set of 3 switches on the top row of your keyboard. This makes for a much easier build, and much thinner too. Best of all, it provides a USB Type-C port, which is mounted on the top.

  • 25 IO pins available (4 of them pre-assigned as the top row, and 3 columns)
  • USB Type-C
  • Supports Type-C to Type-C cables
  • PCB will be matte black in colour, with silver contacts

Here is an image of a prototype of the Postage Board Mini https://i.imgur.com/3FUS2I6.jpg

Here is an image of the Postage Board Mini mounted on a keyboard https://i.imgur.com/dsxsqGU.jpg

The new Mini version improved upon several aspects of the previous model, based all on community feedback.

  • Smaller vertically, so it no longer requires any switches to be rotated!
  • Pinouts are all arranged along the edges of the board, for easier routing access.
  • Better labeling of the IO pins, specifically the pre-assigned Columns and Row pins, to allow you to know which IO pin addresses they correspond with
  • The Group buy will run from July 3 until August 3. I anticipate being able to have all the orders shipped out 1 month after the close date of the group buy.

The boards are priced at $20 each. To help with shipping costs, I am offering Free Shipping for all orders of 5 units or more within Canada, US, and Europe. Please contact me with any questions about larger orders.
« Last Edit: Sun, 04 August 2019, 11:56:31 by LifeIsOnTheWire »

Offline Signature

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Offline TuCZnak

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Looks really nice, but TBQH at 20 USD per piece it seems like a tough sell vs regular Pro Micro...

Offline Anakey

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a pro micro that you have to find space to mount in the case and that will inevitably loose its connector, either way if you don't like it don't buy it.

Offline TuCZnak

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a pro micro that you have to find space to mount in the case and that will inevitably loose its connector, either way if you don't like it don't buy it.

1) I like it
2) I'm gonna buy at least one despite the price
3) Just pointing out the obvious problem of paying 10x more for a bit of convenience
4) What's up with the agression, whiteknighting much?

Offline valkyr1e

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I'm very interested, but I've never done handwiring before.
1. Will the fact that it's a bit different (mounted onto 3 switches) pose challenges for novices like myself?
2. Will there be any special soldering required (other than ordinary throughhole)? Thanks

Offline dephcon

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I'm very interested, but I've never done handwiring before.
1. Will the fact that it's a bit different (mounted onto 3 switches) pose challenges for novices like myself?
2. Will there be any special soldering required (other than ordinary throughhole)? Thanks

This actually makes handwiring easier since you don’t have to figure out a mounting solution, you just mount it to the switches and wire the matrix directly to the board. There are specific pads on the board that are labeled where rows and columns pass through the matrix. I used the first version for my first handwired build and it was extremely easy.

If it’s anything like the first one, you won’t need to worry about any special soldering other than soldering the specific row and column pads to complete the matrix. If you’re thinking about building a handwired, this is a great way to start.

Offline LifeIsOnTheWire

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I'm very interested, but I've never done handwiring before.
1. Will the fact that it's a bit different (mounted onto 3 switches) pose challenges for novices like myself?
2. Will there be any special soldering required (other than ordinary throughhole)? Thanks

1.  No it will infact make it easier.  The 3 switches that the board mounts to are internally wired within the board, and have their own diodes, so you can really just forget about those switches.
2.  The only soldering required is the 6 pins that hold the board to the 3 switches, and then the wires that you solder to the board to connect your rows and columns.  All of the components on the board will be pre-assembled, and pre-soldered.  The board is ready to go

Offline OkKarma

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I would love to buy some but I probably don't need 5, and after import fees and postage it'll be far too high for an EU resident.

Maybe next time an EU proxy? :)

Offline beekey

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I would love to buy some but I probably don't need 5, and after import fees and postage it'll be far too high for an EU resident.

Maybe next time an EU proxy? :)
Same here.

Offline TuCZnak

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I would love to buy some but I probably don't need 5, and after import fees and postage it'll be far too high for an EU resident.

Maybe next time an EU proxy? :)

Since this is from Canada and not USA, shipping is actually reasonable - I paid little over 7 USD for shipping. And one board should fit under the import tax limit of most EU countries, since that should be above 20€ everywhere IIRC.

Offline LifeIsOnTheWire

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I would love to buy some but I probably don't need 5, and after import fees and postage it'll be far too high for an EU resident.

Maybe next time an EU proxy? :)

Great news!  Mechboards.co.uk has just joined the GB as an EU vendor.  This should help with shipping and import fees for EU buyers.

https://groupbuys.mechboards.co.uk/shop/postage-board-mini/
« Last Edit: Sat, 06 July 2019, 09:12:04 by LifeIsOnTheWire »

Offline dingusxmcgee

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Might be a silly question, but how well do you think this would work for a pre-designed case with a usb cutout on the far left? Like this one designed for the Prime_E PCB: https://www.instagram.com/p/ByECVTWo1qE/

Offline Anakey

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Might be a silly question, but how well do you think this would work for a pre-designed case with a usb cutout on the far left? Like this one designed for the Prime_E PCB: https://www.instagram.com/p/ByECVTWo1qE/

Its not a silly question, however there may be issues due to the switches being at an angle as opposed to being horizontal, even if it does fit with the 3 switches, the edge may sick out enough on the far right to then come into contact with the edge of the case due to the angle. It is probably better off to ask the case designer for the dimensions and then see if there is enough clearance for the usb etc.

Offline dingusxmcgee

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Might be a silly question, but how well do you think this would work for a pre-designed case with a usb cutout on the far left? Like this one designed for the Prime_E PCB: https://www.instagram.com/p/ByECVTWo1qE/

Its not a silly question, however there may be issues due to the switches being at an angle as opposed to being horizontal, even if it does fit with the 3 switches, the edge may sick out enough on the far right to then come into contact with the edge of the case due to the angle. It is probably better off to ask the case designer for the dimensions and then see if there is enough clearance for the usb etc.

Ah, good point on the angle, was so preoccupied with the usb location I hadn’t considered the angle of the switches that will be mounted!
I will see if I can dig up some more info. Thank you :)

Offline MongUm

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If I want to make my own plate for hand-wired keyboard using this board, what would be the exact distance between switches? 19.05mm?

Offline LifeIsOnTheWire

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If I want to make my own plate for hand-wired keyboard using this board, what would be the exact distance between switches? 19.05mm?

Yes it was designed for 19.05mm spacing. 

Here is a diagram that might help you https://i.imgur.com/W7sBwDE.png

Offline MongUm

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If I want to make my own plate for hand-wired keyboard using this board, what would be the exact distance between switches? 19.05mm?

Yes it was designed for 19.05mm spacing. 

Here is a diagram that might help you https://i.imgur.com/W7sBwDE.png

Thanks! It helps a lot.

Offline valkyr1e

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Just purchased some. Thank you for this great work!

Offline LifeIsOnTheWire

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Just purchased some. Thank you for this great work!

 :thumb: I'm glad to see people like the idea

Offline LifeIsOnTheWire

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1.5 days left to order!  Orders will be closed on Aug 3 @ 10pm CST. 

Offline LifeIsOnTheWire

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The Group buy order period closed last night.

Thanks to everyone who ordered, the group-buy was a success!  We have 400 boards ordered.

The order has been submitted to the manufacturer, and I will continue to post updates here throughout the process.

I do have some extras on order, so reach out to me if you missed the GB.

Offline LifeIsOnTheWire

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Re: [GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]
« Reply #22 on: Wed, 11 September 2019, 06:46:47 »
Just an update for everyone, because you're probably all expecting these to ship right about now.

I'm a few days behind schedule due to a customs paperwork error.  I was dealing with getting it cleared up over the weekend, and the shipment is set to be delivered to me today.

I'll be doing some quality tests on them, and then I should have them shipped out over the course of a few days.  Based on my experience from my last GB, it will probably take me about 3 days to package and ship this amount of them. 

Offline ideus

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Re: [GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]
« Reply #23 on: Thu, 31 October 2019, 08:44:37 »
I have not received my boards yet. Hoping to get them soon, or at least some information.

Offline ideus

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Re: [GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]
« Reply #24 on: Wed, 20 November 2019, 21:58:31 »
I have not received my boards yet. Hoping to get them soon, or at least some information.

I sent the OP a PM and an email with my order's details. I hope to get some information on the delivery status.

Offline ideus

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Re: [GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]
« Reply #25 on: Thu, 21 November 2019, 20:55:32 »
I wonder if some of you guys have received your pcbs already. The OP has been inactive since the 31st of last month and I did not have any reply to my communications over the PM neither on the email.

Offline justinhigley

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Re: [GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]
« Reply #26 on: Thu, 21 November 2019, 21:13:07 »
I received the five I ordered without any issue. Looks like OP's reddit account has also been dark for the last 18 days:

https://www.reddit.com/user/LifeIsOnTheWire

Hope OP surfaces soon to track down what happened to your order. Good luck!

Offline ideus

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Re: [GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]
« Reply #27 on: Thu, 21 November 2019, 21:42:37 »
I received the five I ordered without any issue. Looks like OP's reddit account has also been dark for the last 18 days:

https://www.reddit.com/user/LifeIsOnTheWire

Hope OP surfaces soon to track down what happened to your order. Good luck!

Thank you very much for the replay. It gives some hope that I may get some information soon.

Offline LifeIsOnTheWire

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Re: [GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]
« Reply #28 on: Thu, 28 November 2019, 07:36:42 »
Sorry for the lack of reply folks.  I stopped checking the thread assuming that my Geekhack account would email me notifications.  PMs sent

I'll do my best to watch my Geekhack pms and this thread incase anyone's packages go missing.  I've got a few spares left that I'm hanging onto in the event any packages were lost in delivery.

Offline gipetto

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Re: [GB] Postage Board Mini [Orders closed]
« Reply #29 on: Mon, 13 July 2020, 17:11:27 »
are any of these still available?