Invergo (Kickstarter) - Page 6

Coffee preparation techniques besides espresso like pourover.
User avatar
SpromoSapiens (original poster)
Posts: 518
Joined: 12 years ago

#51: Post by SpromoSapiens (original poster) »

Good one, Dan! :lol:
Susan -- I couldn't agree more. It's a real shame. On the one hand, the naif in me wants to think that this kinda shenanigan is not what they teach in business school... But the cynic in me figures that his real problem is that he got caught, because from the charlatan perspective he was "too honest" from the beginning and left too clear a trail of intent. Now he's failed on a certain level even if he succeeds.

But... Let's just imagine for a minute that we do actually end up with beautifully functioning Invergos in our homes by, oh, say June 2015. Will we still look at the machine and think, "that dirty rat fink really pulled the wool over our eyes," as we sip convenient and delicious cups o joe? I don't know. I guess so, but delivering on his promise would go a long way in smoothing over this stain, if it can be smoothed over.

Wishful thinking, perhaps.

User avatar
Bob_McBob
Posts: 2324
Joined: 15 years ago

#52: Post by Bob_McBob »



This post is very enlightening. Based on what other posters wrote (his comments are deleted), Cameron estimated up front Invergo would need around $2.5-3.5m for an initial 10,000 unit production run. He said he planned to raise the bulk of the money through venture capital as well as business loans from family and friends. A poster even specifically called him out on not being able to provide the Kickstarter rewards unless he secures additional funding. Another poster advised him to significantly lower his goal from $250,000 to ensure a successful campaign on the second attempt. It sounds very much like the entire point of the Kickstarter campaign was to raise start-up capital for the company itself so they could try to get their real funding elsewhere.

Invergo is currently trying to raise funds on angel.co with an initial seed goal of $500,000. According to Cameron's recent Reddit posts (edit: deleted after I posted this), their overall goal is about $3m. So far they have $7500 from one of his relatives.
Chris

Advertisement
User avatar
canuckcoffeeguy
Posts: 1286
Joined: 10 years ago

#53: Post by canuckcoffeeguy »

The recent Invergo developments are even more curious in light of this:
Invergo may be dicey OTFES is the real deal

User avatar
SpromoSapiens (original poster)
Posts: 518
Joined: 12 years ago

#54: Post by SpromoSapiens (original poster) »

I don't mean to keep foisting potshots up here but I just thought i'd share this last gem from the invergo update comment section:

"whilst your coffee may not leave a bitter taste in the mouth, the way that you have handled this project certainly does."

Zing! The kid's not winning back any face over there. So, anyway -- yeah. I guess that's that, then.

User avatar
HB
Admin
Posts: 21983
Joined: 19 years ago

#55: Post by HB »

The last few posts have approached the level of personal attacks, which contravenes the site's Guidelines for productive online discussion. I've deleted them and locked this thread. If contributors have concerns about this decision, please contact me offline.
Dan Kehn

User avatar
another_jim
Team HB
Posts: 13872
Joined: 19 years ago

#56: Post by another_jim »

As a matter of mathematical curiosity, it is possible to reproduce any closed curve with enough sets of off-axis circular motions e.g. the Renaissance attempt to fix the Ptolomaic model of the universe by using a few extra sequants and eccentrics. The basic idea of motion in eccentric circles goes to a Greek dude called Poseidonius; who is at least attributed to be the first person out come up with it around 200 BC.

Now to more recent coffee history. Using spiral motions to pour the water in pourover brewing is something we all started seeing in brewing competitions around 5 years ago. In 2011, Bill Crossland used a two axis arm for a demo brewer at the SCAA.

Kudos for making this brewing method cheap and convenient, but a patent?
Jim Schulman

User avatar
SpromoSapiens (original poster)
Posts: 518
Joined: 12 years ago

#57: Post by SpromoSapiens (original poster) »

Recap / Update on Invergo:

For those just tuning in... In Kickstarter Update #6, the Invergo maker Cameron Hughes revealed that he had no ability or intention to follow through with production unless "angel investors" swooped in with an enormous additional sum of money, and that KS was essentially just a tiny nudge in the beginning, not the end, of this project. Disappointed and offended backers commented vociferously and continuously for weeks, with little to no reply. Even Mark Prince went ballistic, threatening to make public all the updates posted privately by Invergo if Hughes didn't respond to recent outcry. After no reply, Prince publicized the debacle on G+, possibly also elsewhere. Prince also publicly apologized for backing the project, as he felt guilty that his endorsement probably lead others to make the same mistake.

The KS comment section continued its downward spiral. Many backers claim to have reported the project to KS, accusing Hughes of fraud. Several demanded refunds. One started publicizing personal info on Hughes, including his university email address, his dean of students, etc. Finally Hughes resurfaced with news of a forthcoming update to be posted on Friday 11/21.

It didn't appear until Sat 11/22, but hey -- Update #7, at last! Invergo reports that they should be able to produce all 300+ machines using "low-cost low-volume prototype aluminum molds" with the money they already have. The additional $150k would still be needed for heavier-duty mass-production tooling, but his commitment to backers would be met. Regarding production, Invergo says: "The first step will be sending off the specification for the PCB both the mother board and the daughter board for the touchscreen. This will be done on Monday and right after Thanksgiving our contract manufacture will be going to china to hand off the drawings to the factory. After that we will be sourcing the parts for the machine we already have chosen a pump the ULKA NME 1C for it extremely quite operation -44db, we also will be looking to change the stepper motor to a geared dc motor and also looking for a thermoblock that is optimized for our machine."

Sooo... Things are progressing and Hughes appears undaunted. But it still seems troubling to a layperson like me, that drawings are going to factory and yet he hasn't finalized a choice for the thermoblock or the motor? Sounds kinda backwards... But all in all, I'm glad my $100 has not yet officially vanished, and I might well still get an Invergo. Hughes invites anyone interested to view the prototype machine at the Invergo booth at SCAA 2015 in Seattle in April.

This thread was previously locked, as you'll note from moderator posts above. Please folks, let's keep things civil here so we can continue to discuss! Surely there are issues of patents and ethics and transparency and KS etc all to be bandied about, and as long as we stay on-topic and appropriate, it'd be nice to let interested people continue to say interesting things.

As for me -- I've been holding back from commenting on KS, as a backer, as I still hold out hope for an Invergo. I don't think anyone really expected the product delivered on time, so a bit of delay is forgivable. Hopefully Hughes will persevere and keep his torch-and-pitchfork-wielding backers at bay with more frequent updates and replies.

Edit 11/23: I posted a question on KS and Hughes replied promptly. He said they finalize the parts before they send the drawings. Maybe that should have been obvious but it was unclear to me the way his updates read. Anyway the main point is, he's on a roll, communication-wise.

Advertisement
Bak Ta Lo
Supporter ♡
Posts: 934
Joined: 12 years ago

#58: Post by Bak Ta Lo »

Is there still a pulse in this project, or can we announce the time of death yet? At least we would have some closure if we call it.
LMWDP #371

User avatar
Bob_McBob
Posts: 2324
Joined: 15 years ago

#59: Post by Bob_McBob »

Hard to say how this one will turn out. After the funding debacle, Cameron said he redesigned the casing to lower the production cost and has provided a few updates about prototypes and manufacturing. Somehow he still seems more credible than the Arist guys...
Chris

Bak Ta Lo
Supporter ♡
Posts: 934
Joined: 12 years ago

#60: Post by Bak Ta Lo »

Seems strange to just go radio silent for so long, but common it seems from many KS projects. Why not ping the page or supporters once a week or so with 20-30 words of progress? I agree this one is more feasible than Arist, one reason I backed it was it seemed simple enough to get it done. Arist seemed like a "pie in the sky" type project from the get go. Waiting for my Invergo to spirograph me the perfect brew still.... :wink:
LMWDP #371