Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

jonproject

macrumors member
Aug 16, 2010
80
266
"Pledging support for the Kickstarter project is more like an investment"

Wrong answer. Pledges are not investments. They are pre-buys. If the project reaches the funding goal then your credit card gets charged. If the project ships then you receive your product. This has nothing to do with investments. You do not own part of the project. As a backer you do not get a financial return on your money. You get a product. Or as Kickstarter likes to call it, a reward.

We ran a very successful Kickstarter project for our family's on-farm butcher shop. We raise pastured pigs and deliver year round to local stores and restaurants as well as individuals. Initially we had funded our project in part through CSA Pre-Buys of pigs (http://SugarMtnFarm.com/csa). This spring we did a Kickstarter project to raise $25,000 more in funds to help with construction. We got $33,000 in backing. Some of that (10%) goes to Kickstarter and Amazon. About half of it goes to fulfill rewards which consists of shipments of our pastured pork once the butcher shop is up and running. The remainder is what goes into equipment and concrete to make our project happen.

If you are curious about the outcoming of a successful (Macintosh based no less) project check out:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/sugarmtnfarm/building-a-butcher-shop-on-sugarmountainfarm

and you can read more about our butcher shop at:

http://SugarMtnFarm.com/butchershop

Monday we make our final structural concrete pour when we'll pour the upper bond beam and ceilings of our building. Then we get to work on the interior during the winter.

It is important to understand that Kickstarter projects are pre-buys of product and they are not investments. This is both a legal and an economic distinction.

Cheers,

-Walter Jeffries
Sugar Mountain Farm
The article said it was "like an investment". I doubt anybody took away from that thinking they were getting equity in the company. It's like an investment in the sense that you are giving a company money without a guarantee of any return. In this case, the return is what Kickstarter calls the "reward" or the product.

Point is: it's not a store. You are giving companies money and there's a chance that you will get nothing in return.

I'd like to know what percent of Kickstarters that reach their goal actually wind up paying out the rewards to all their backers.
 

gmanist1000

macrumors 68030
Sep 22, 2009
2,832
824
So are you saying his write up is "immature?" "Some" immature (more likely one or two) writers does not make all writers immature. Do you really think this site would employ a writer who has a track record of being shady in his/her journalism? No.


I'd love something like this despite how much I shy away from putting crap on my key chain. It would be good in emergencies.

No, I'm saying Gizmodo has their fair share of immature journalists. Never said it made his write up immature, In fact, I think MacRumors has the best journalists out of any tech blog.
 

FloatingBones

macrumors 65816
Jul 19, 2006
1,483
738
I am troubled by one sentence on the Kickstarter page:

The Nomad cable is patent pending.

What exactly is novel about this product? Why would a patent be approved?

Perhaps the plastic cover secures the USB end to the keychain in some novel way? :confused:
 

satchow

macrumors 6502
Jul 11, 2011
467
186
No, I'm saying Gizmodo has their fair share of immature journalists. Never said it made his write up immature, In fact, I think MacRumors has the best journalists out of any tech blog.

Not to name names, but I can't read anything Jesus Diaz reposts. His headline for this article would be "This is the cable you want for your iPhone 5"
 

pubwvj

macrumors 68000
Oct 1, 2004
1,901
208
Mountains of Vermont
The article said it was "like an investment". I doubt anybody took away from that thinking they were getting equity in the company. It's like an investment in the sense that you are giving a company money without a guarantee of any return. In this case, the return is what Kickstarter calls the "reward" or the product.

Point is: it's not a store. You are giving companies money and there's a chance that you will get nothing in return.


It is specifically NOT like an investment. This is a legal issue having to do with regulations on investing. Kickstarter is MUCH more like a store than anything else. It is a store for PRE-selling.
 

MattInOz

macrumors 68030
Jan 19, 2006
2,760
0
Sydney
It is specifically NOT like an investment. This is a legal issue having to do with regulations on investing. Kickstarter is MUCH more like a store than anything else. It is a store for PRE-selling.

These guys don't agree with you.
kickstarter-is-not-a-store

With a product from a store I have legally back expectation and recourse. With Kickstarter I have neither(doesn't stop me backing projects).

It's an investment in social outcomes not financial ones.
The rewards seem to be nothing more than to create a group of customers to market your new product for you once it's ready.
 

FlunkedFlank

macrumors member
Sep 21, 2012
69
23
Personally, my lightning enabled iOS devices never get plugged into my laptop (unless that's the only charging device I have nearby). I've never synched with iTunes as my devices are restored from iCloud backups and my media is in the cloud via spotify Netflix etc and until recently iTunes Match. Just my personal usage, but this looks cool if you do sync with a laptop.

What about videos from the camera app? Do you not take any?

I use wifi syncing most of the time anyway myself, plus this cable is too short and the cap thing is ridiculous, but anyone who takes videos (which I always assumed most people did) is stuck syncing for those at least.
 

jmitch720

macrumors member
Mar 2, 2009
44
5
Damn... they're already sold out of 5, 10, and 15 dollar options. Is 20 worth it...


I disagree. For $19, I can buy the 3 foot Apple Lightning cable, or for an extra $1, I can get this one that will always be on my keychain. I would rather have this one. I won't forget it if it's on my keychain, and I can plug it right into my keyboard at work, so the shortness is not an issue.
 

bkushner

macrumors regular
Jan 29, 2011
240
66
Wow... Just when we thought the OEM cable was to short.... I wouldn't pay 5 bucks for a 3" USB anything, much less the 10-20 they will want.... Why would you need to tote a 3" cable around on your keychain?

ever been somewhere with your phone and you need power and there are computers around?
 

steffi

macrumors 6502a
Jun 7, 2003
862
12
Why not just get any 3" cable and a piece of string to attach to your keychain?

Don't you think it would have made more sense to anchor the lightning connector to the keychain instead of the USB? Since that is the piece that has the exposed contacts.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.