Big Updates
Hey all! Once again, I've fallen victim to providing updates through several other channels and neglecting the Kickstart channel, this post aims to rectify that.
Bad News
I'm aiming to get the bad news out of the way first - we're running a little bit behind our September schedule, but not by much. The reason for this is semi-conductor shortages affecting a few key components. These components are specifically made for the automotive industry and offer valuable voltage filtering and spike protection capabilities to our boards. We believe these protections are a paramount to the SwitchMaster's operating environment. so not willing to compromise on those. Now, onto the good news!
Good News
OK the good news - the SwitchMaster v2's are going to be INSANE. We've done alot of work on the board and added a tonne of new features which we thing will really take things to the next level. Our testing definitely proves this true!
1. USB Charging - after much deliberation, we've decided to dump the 4x1A USB chargers in favour of 2 x QuickCharge 3.0 ports, capable of putting out 24W of charging capability. We figured its better to be able to charge 2 devices quick and hard, rather than 4 at a snails pace. The QuickCharge ports are fully compatible with all older USB charging protocols.
2. Temperature Sensing - Temp sensing is fully tested and operational. You are now able to control multiple outputs based on the temperature. The board is now also capable of throttling itself by using the onboard sensors.
3. Improved voltage switching - we've added in voltage cut-ins enabling you to turn on outputs when a certain voltage is reached. Cut-outs functionality is still there :)
4. Switch names - switch names are now stored on the device itself and will sync across mobiles.
5. Override notification - the SwitchMaster v2 will notify the app if overrides are active. By design, the overrides are exactly that - overrides, so the MCU is not able to switch these, but you can at least have the visibility.
6. Case redesign - the case has a had a few tidy improvements to improve it's usability. We've added some extra cable entry/exits and generally just opened things up again to get things easier to access.
7. Board changes - the board changes have been extensive so we wont go into everything in-depth here, but holistically we've made improvements to: reverse polarity protection, general layout, better trace routing for longer data runs to the MCU. We've also made a number of key changes that improve thermal conductivity of the board, sucking away heat from the warmer components that may need some help shedding some extra heat.
Other than some chip shortages - we are otherwise looking good! The new cases are in full production and things are well on the way! We'll be starting to get boards out by the end of October!
Please give us a yell if any queries or comments!