Pro¹ X – state of production and delivery

[EskeRahn 5,399]

9 hours ago, Rob. S. said:

Hmm... My total was 406.33 € (from HK$3099 incl. shipping, payed by credit card) + 8.09 € (VISA foreign currency surcharge) + 79.61 € (customs/import duties) = 494,03 €.

Pretty much the same, Denmark has higher VAT than most with 25% though

[EskeRahn 5,399]

(moved a few posts over here from GPS thrread)

[VaZso 1,997]

Another update of Pro1X here:

Quote

by FX Technology

Oct 24, 2022 • 5:52PM

27 minutes ago

Pro1-X Update - October

 

Dear Pro1-X backers,

We are aware that some of our backers have expressed concerns about Expansys listing Pro1-X's on their website, and we want to reassure you that no IGG and website orders have been compromised.

Before our mass manufacturing phase, Expansys had pre-ordered a small batch of units from us. Considering Expansys is our long-term business partner and a well-established D2C electronics retailer, we agreed to manufacture and sell an additional number of units outside of our contractual shipping and distribution arrangement.

We understand that this is not ideal whilst we work to resume shipping, but we'd like to clarify that these units are not related to our IGG and website orders.

Thank you for your understanding and patience. If you have any concerns, please don't hesitate to get in touch with us at info at fxtec.com.

Team Fxtec

 

[zundappchef 92]

i see everyone being angry
and maybe rightfully so . but i might not be the most positive looking individual in this whole process of getting a phone
( actualy 2 )
but to me it seems that they are running out of money and need to liquify some of their assets in order to stay in business 
easiest way is to sell these phones to someone who can sell them and ship them 
still wondering what the shipping delays are , still seems strange to have to wait for that long in order to get it going again 
i know shipping is difficult everywhere currently , but i ordered plenty of stuff from china , india .USA and Kirgizstan lately and have recieved it all within 2 weeks  
different websites as wel . what might have happened with the shipping is that there was a contract to ship it all but that contract cannot be uphold because of a change in cost of shipping 

its all speculation !
maybe its time for FX to ask Expansys  for help with shipping 
then again best way for them to stay in business is to start development on a new phone already since it takes so long for them to develop and ship one anyway 

[EskeRahn 5,399]

17 minutes ago, VaZso said:

Another update of Pro1X here:

At the least it means that my nasty and rather paranoid theories can be put to rest....

The only bad thing here seems to be that the contract FxTec made with Expansys did not have a clause saying that Expansys could not put theirs up for sale, before they had packed and shipped those intended for Pre-orders and Backers.

That Expansys might have lost faith in the product and is selling them cheaper than even the Super Early Bird devices, obviously just add to the frustration. And there clearly is a risk of some regretting orders, and thus draining capital from FxTec. Let us hope the Expansys batch is very small, and that some use the opportunity to get a second Pro1X.

[Hook 2,907]

27 minutes ago, zundappchef said:

maybe its time for FX to ask Expansys  for help with shipping 

Expansys has been their shipping partner since 2019.  The problem isn't shipping-- when Batch 1 and 2 ship, people will get their phones quickly (2 day air once FedEx picks up, same as Expansys orders).  The problem is something about their contract with Expansys which has to be resolved.  Expansys themselves have no such obstacle.

[suicidal_orange 100]

22 minutes ago, EskeRahn said:

Let us hope the Expansys batch is very small, and that some use the opportunity to get a second Pro1X.

I don't want a second one but could buy on Expansys to actually get one this year if I could be assured of selling the IGG one later, but as always the update is vague - what is a "small" batch when it comes to complex manufacturing? The entire 2500 phones needed for IGG and outstanding website orders was already small enough to struggle to find anyone to bother making it, surely they'd need to round it up to 3000+ which puts the Expansys bit at nearly 17% of the total devices.  That's a flooded market...

Edited October 24, 2022 by suicidal_orange

[EskeRahn 5,399]

3 minutes ago, Hook said:

(2 day air once FedEx picks up, same as Expansys orders).

Well, though the shipping prices for the US are tolerable, they are a bit extreme for "the rest of the world", I paid HK$450, some paid $550, and well yes the did send it "express" when they finally got around to send it. It took a few hours over a week, and it was NOT due to them awaiting replies from me more than half an hour or so.

I ordered it Friday morning (CET), and they handed it to FedEx Tuesday evening, And I had it Friday afternoon.

AND as it is unlikely FxTec has ordered it "express", I would say two WEEKS is more realistic than two DAYS....

[Hook 2,907]

2 minutes ago, EskeRahn said:

Well, though the shipping prices for the US are tolerable, they are a bit extreme for "the rest of the world", I paid HK$450, some paid $550, and well yes the did send it "express" when they finally got around to send it. It took a few hours over a week, and it was NOT due to them awaiting replies from me more than half an hour or so.

I ordered it Friday morning (CET), and they handed it to FedEx Tuesday evening, And I had it Friday afternoon.

AND as it is unlikely FxTec has ordered it "express", I would say two WEEKS is more realistic than two DAYS....

I can only speak for US where FedEx handles it all the way to our door.  If there wasn't a mix-up with customs, I would have had the Pro1x for my friend on the third day from getting the tracking number.  I did get my Pro 1 in two days also.  And my friend who already received his from FxTec, much the same as I recall.  I said "once FedEx picks up" because of things like Expansys picking and shipping requires people and the people only work M-F until 6pmm HK time, so if you order on a Friday and it is close to or after 6 on Friday, nothing will happen until Monday.  Picking and shipping apparently, even if automated, requires a human step.

[EskeRahn 5,399]

14 minutes ago, Hook said:

I can only speak for US where FedEx handles it all the way to our door

It was so for me, though it had a number of air-jumps HK-UK-Leipzig-Copenhagen-Billund. and then 150Km in a Lorry.
But the 'express' parcel took 12 hours just to leave HK.

[sequestris 710]

On 10/20/2022 at 1:42 AM, sweetcortex said:

😂😂Here comes superman to save the day, right on time😂😂

Who made you an authority?

what role do you have in this scam?

Who is  paying you?

 

I have not read all your comments because I honestly think you are a laughable joke.
I noticed that you are having difficulty with your typing accuracy.
Perhaps if you had a proper keyboard with a dedicated SHIFT key you might have better luck
I am having a bit of amusement at a phone named after a personal lubricant, but hey you do you.
Why don't you go ahead and pre-order your slidey phone.

Have you read the reviews?

https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/astro-slide-5g

"While the hinge is impressive, the slide-out function isn’t very solid. A slight movement when swiping will have the screen wobble, as there’s no mechanism for the display to click into place once the keyboard is covered. It’s annoying, and feels like if I placed it in my pocket or bag the wrong way, the hinge would break."

"The speakers are mediocre at best,"

"The Astro Slide isn’t just unique for having a keyboard, it’s also one of the few phones on the market with a single lens — and not a particularly great one, either. Despite it having a commendable 48MP Sony IMX586 main sensor, mainly used on mid-range phones, pictures are noticeably grainy, brightness levels are all over the place, and color saturation looks way too dull."

Also, Android 11 only, so you would STILL be stuck with an antiquated phone. Score 😛

You done pissed off Google Girl Boy-o. That doesn't happen very often.
I tried nice. I tried just being supportive without minimizing you and the other human SPAM Bots.
That didn't work.
So now I will just be factual.

You are a pathetic, infantile, whiny, wanna-be.
What's the matter? Does KY-Android not have a user community as stellar and as advanced as this one?
Do you not get the audience you need for your tirades?
Did you get someone offering you commission? Do you get paid by the post or by the word?

I have  Pro 1. It is not "-Have a produced riddled with bugs?"
God the atrocious grammar should be enough to dismiss you. Have you ever proofread your handiwork?

Do you get that your screen name is derived from a study on mice?

"In an initial set of experiments, mice were given a choice between 2 chambers. When one chamber was coupled with stimulation of the sweet cortical field area in the brain, mice developed a preference for that chamber. In contrast, animals whose bitter cortical field was activated when they went into a chamber quickly learned to avoid it."

Ooh. Clever lad aren't ya?

You know what the best part is? I have my phone. Others here do.

Fxtec will outlast your trolldom. It might take a while for them to get their act together, but at least they are the main attraction and not some infomercial running at 2:00 AM when no one is watching.

I stand corrected, the BEST part?

I am not going to respond to a single word you say/type.
Suck it Spam Boy. You're a lame-ass boogeyman who has power only when people give it to him.

I say (for everyone else) let him blather. Eventually he will slither off like the snake he is.


 

[Stucadoor2 31]

I've got mine !

Can't wait to get the other one.

[Acurus 17]

18 hours ago, sweetcortex said:

What happens if they don't deliver in December?

They will tell us another story like in the last two years.

[Rob. S. 1,634]

23 minutes ago, Acurus said:

18 hours ago, sweetcortex said:

What happens if they don't deliver in December?

They will tell us another story like in the last two years.

It's only over when it's over. As long as they haven't folded, I'll keep waiting for my Sept 2019 order, and if it will be 2023. Until now, judging from all former experience, there is no reason to believe they wouldn't eventually deliver, as disappointing as such a delay is and as much as I understand everyone who'll say ok, then I'll pass.  

Edited October 28, 2022 by Rob. S.

[sequestris 710]

NM

Edited October 28, 2022 by sequestris

[Psycho Doc 4]

On 10/28/2022 at 11:43 AM, Rob. S. said:

Until now, judging from all former experience, there is no reason to believe they wouldn't eventually deliver

That's right! No reason!  And the earth is flat...

[FlyingAntero 825]

8 hours ago, Psycho Doc said:

That's right! No reason!  And the earth is flat...

There has been delays for sure but so far F(x)tec has not shown any sign that they wouldn't deliver in the end. Original Pro1 orders were delayed but most got their phones (and if you ordered later on then order was changed to Pro1-X).

Of course there can be financial obstacles but I think that F(x)tec is doing everything that they are able to deliver phones. IGG backers took the risk but pre-orders are more secured.

[Psycho Doc 4]

7 hours ago, FlyingAntero said:

There has been delays for sure but so far F(x)tec has not shown any sign that they wouldn't deliver in the end. Original Pro1 orders were delayed but most got their phones (and if you ordered later on then order was changed to Pro1-X).

Of course there can be financial obstacles but I think that F(x)tec is doing everything that they are able to deliver phones. IGG backers took the risk but pre-orders are more secured.

Of course you can see it that way. I see this after 20 months: F(x)tec are still spreading wrong specs of Pro1 X on IGG (e.g. out of the box). Anyone who still buys without reading the comments on IGG is buying under fake facts! As far as I know, this is even relevant under criminal law. No concrete information about contractual problems. Whose fault is it? No concrete statements from F(x)tec about their planned procedure regarding the large number of problems, described in this forum. Are there plans anyway? How could this number of problems happen, if allegedly quality control was repeatedly reason for delays? I end here listing, could name a few more. Expansys also seems to have somehow pulled back from their longtime partner F(x)tec. At least they make F(x)tec look pretty old in terms of contract negotiations for shipping. Expansys certainly don't do this without a reason. How do you know that F(x)tec is doing everything that they are able to deliver phones? Because they said so? Well, if everything they promised in the past was the truth and really happend, I would have received my Pro1 X months ago! Until now they showed much more about what they are unable to do. With all this, I can vividly imagine some scenarios in which we will end up having nothing in our hands. Because when I remember the last 20 months, everything that they are able to do may not be enough...

[Rob. S. 1,634]

17 hours ago, Psycho Doc said:

On 10/28/2022 at 11:43 AM, Rob. S. said:

Until now, judging from all former experience, there is no reason to believe they wouldn't eventually deliver

That's right! No reason!  And the earth is flat...

So which facts do you have that would substantiate doubts that Fxtec does everything they can to deliver those phones in the end, as extreme as the delays already have become for some of us? 

[suicidal_orange 100]

52 minutes ago, Rob. S. said:

So which facts do you have that would substantiate doubts that Fxtec does everything they can to deliver those phones in the end, as extreme as the delays already have become for some of us? 

I'm still optimistic but the fact that in two months no progress has been made in the contract negotiations really doesn't look good.  This is not an ongoing contract to ship X phones a month for the next 5 years, it's simply to ship a fixed number of phones ASAP.  The only point of contention is the price and assuming Hong Kong is like everywhere else prices are only going one way and that's up.  If they can't/wont pay what's demanded now they'll be further away tomorrow.

There's also the curious fact that December was given as an estimated shipping date months ago, as if they knew the negotiations were going to fail (I'll ignore the possibility that three months is long enough to make another batch as that is based on speculation...)

[EskeRahn 5,399]

4 minutes ago, suicidal_orange said:

There's also the curious fact that December was given as an estimated shipping date months ago, as if they knew the negotiations were going to fail (I'll ignore the possibility that three months is long enough to make another batch as that is based on speculation...)

That they knew back then that things is going to happen in December could have more explanations than your suggestion. My guess for the specifics in this delay is that the case has been put to court, and they got a court date in December.

But obviously this is just a guess, too.

Have you any suggestions for a rationale behind your theory?

If it is 'ordinary' negotiations, a known time frame from the start seems unlikely, and if they even expected the negotiations to fail, as you suggests, what could they possibly gain by a delay?
I have not kept an eye on the igg numbers, but doubt that many (if any) have been taking new perks this fall. So no (almost?) extra income and three month's extra salaries. Why would they do that if they did not expect a positive outcome, releasing 'our' devices for sending?

[suicidal_orange 100]

27 minutes ago, EskeRahn said:

That they knew back then that things is going to happen in December could have more explanations than your suggestion. My guess for the specifics in this delay is that the case has been put to court, and they got a court date in December.

But obviously this is just a guess, too.

Have you any suggestions for a rationale behind your theory?

If it is 'ordinary' negotiations, a known time frame from the start seems unlikely, and if they even expected the negotiations to fail, as you suggests, what could they possibly gain by a delay?
I have not kept an eye on the igg numbers, but doubt that many (if any) have been taking new perks this fall. So no (almost?) extra income and three month's extra salaries. Why would they do that if they did not expect a positive outcome, releasing 'our' devices for sending?

If they are that confident about the outcome of going to court it seems unlikely the other party would bother with the hassle and expense - lawyers earn at least 10x what a phone packer does and a packer could pack 100 phones in an 8 hour shift at just under 5 minutes a phone which seems reasonable - there are only ~2000 phones so two days at court and they're out of pocket, and they've got inventory clogging up their warehouse all that time.

What does who gain from anything in this mess?  From what I see everyone loses.  Expansys look incompetent (the few perks/orders they did ship were in random order) and are selling so cheap they aren't making much, if any, money from their direct sales, FxTec look bad for failing to ensure shipping order and have their brand value diminished by Expansys' low sale price and we, if we're lucky, will get a phone that's worth less than it should be.

[EskeRahn 5,399]

2 hours ago, suicidal_orange said:

If they are that confident about the outcome of going to court it seems unlikely the other party would bother with the hassle and expense - lawyers earn at least 10x what a phone packer does and a packer could pack 100 phones in an 8 hour shift at just under 5 minutes a phone which seems reasonable - there are only ~2000 phones so two days at court and they're out of pocket, and they've got inventory clogging up their warehouse all that time.

What does who gain from anything in this mess?  From what I see everyone loses.  Expansys look incompetent (the few perks/orders they did ship were in random order) and are selling so cheap they aren't making much, if any, money from their direct sales, FxTec look bad for failing to ensure shipping order and have their brand value diminished by Expansys' low sale price and we, if we're lucky, will get a phone that's worth less than it should be.

Totally agree on the last half. You misunderstood what I meant in the first part. If they knew/know when a court order is to be expected, they know that nothing is going to happen before that. Obviously there is still a risk that a court might rule in favour of the other party / assuming my guess is right that it is a court ruling we are awaiting...

[suicidal_orange 100]

If we have an agreement in writing and I take it to an impartial lawyer they will say "you're right" or "you're wrong" or "it's badly written, could go either way".  If it's clear I'm wrong my lawyer will say don't waste your time in court, if you're wrong yours will.  Only if it's unclear do you go to court to argue, but if that's the case you shouldn't be confident enough to say it will be over in [time frame].

Expansys aren't new to the shipping game so their contracts are not going to be badly written and for that reason to me the court theory makes no sense. Of course there's always the option that Chinese lawyers are more crooked than ours and flat out lie to make more money out of their clients - with such a huge population repeat "customers" may not be necessary.

[Hook 2,907]

And there is yet another possibility I have seen in the contracting world (In US, not China). (Again, I have no idea if any of this is what is happening here).  So even though FxTec got phones to warehouse before contract end, lock downs and low staffing prevented most of the phones from going out before the contract end. This means all work has to stop until there is a contract extension.  (I've proposed this before). 

But here is where December comes in, which I have not mentioned before.  Even if the contract extension is mostly pro forma (mostly a rewrite of the work order with new dates) and there is no additional money  required (possible), and then a few folks in the chain all sign off on it, it may be that whatever group meets to provide final approval of all contracts only meets maybe 4 times a year and the next meeting is December.  Even if this approval is uncontroversial and takes 5 minutes in the meeting, this cannot happen until the scheduled meeting.

Really, I have seen this scenario.  Have no idea if it is operating here, but it fits the facts.