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Kano Ships 18,000 Learn-To-Code Computer Kits
drkim writes Kano Computing is a startup that plays in the learn-to-code space by adding a step-by-step, hand-holding layer atop the Raspberry Pi to make learning about computational thinking child's play. Kano has now shipped all the hardware kits in its first batch of crowdfunded orders and pre-orders. That's around 18,000 kits in all, co-founder Alex Klein confirmed to TechCrunch. The lion's share of the first batch of Kano kits — almost 13,000 kits — were ordered via its Kickstarter campaign last year, with a further 5,000 pre-orders taken via its website. The kits cost $99 (plus shipping) to crowdfunder backers, or around $160 (plus shipping) if pre-ordered on the Kano website. The company plans to focus on selling mainly via its own web channel from here on in, according to Alex.
Come to think of it; it's good to hear about any crowdsourcing project that delivered.
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
There was an HDMI cable that we were using in the kit and it was working fine but we cracked it open to see what was inside and we found that the number of cables inside the HDMI cable was like half what it should of been. So we switched that,” said Alex.
“The other one was to do with the Kano keyboard, which has an integrated touchpad and click and the Bluetooth connectivity and USB RS as well. Pretty complicated product. And we have one main supplier for it, who was relying on a couple of sub suppliers for a few components inside. And we did a full factory audit, just before shipping — to gauge social and environmental standards, working conditions. And everyone passed with flying colors But there was one component in the keyboard, the battery, when we went to the factory of the sub supplier it wasn’t up to our ethical standards of how we’d like to manufacture.
“This supplier was very much like China five years ago, so we ditched that supplier.”
Attention to detail - rejecting something that works because it isn't good enough, is impressive. Would I have thought to strip the cable to see if the wire count was up to standard provided it worked? Would I have forced the sub to change battery suppliers? I don't know.
They were two months late due to this, but this is a reasonable time/quality trade-off - especially on a launch product. This is the sort of thing that makes me want to see what they have up next, and the sort of thinking we need more of.
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
Computers Shmomputers, when I was a kid this is what we used to learn programming http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D...
I actually received one of those as a Christmas present back in 1966! It actually was a good learning experience and fun for a nerdy kid.
and then you still have to buy a screen for it.
Or reuse your existing television.
The premise that you need to buy this in order to learn how to program is nothing short of a scam
You do if all you have is a phone or an iPad brand tablet or both. One of my coworkers has no computer at home.
While the price for the hardware is not awful, they have also built a whole structured environment to help kids learn to code. It's all well and good to simply sit a kid down in front of a Linux box, but unless the parents themselves know how to code, how is one supposed to know where to start the learning process? A tightly restricted H/W platform makes the S/W package tons easier to deploy.
And the intent is that you'll use a TV as the screen, not a monitor (although you certainly could.)
The US has no real industrial/education policy, just quarterly ROI targets, so we destroyed our space program, manufacturing capability, etc., because it was in the short-term ROI interests of various corporations.
On the flip side, we accidentally made the internet, so roughly half the people on the planet have access to virtually limitless knowledge, empowering anyone to do amazing things. That's good.
Enable 3D printed prosthetics!
The kit is for people who want a computer, keyboard, software pre-loaded on an SD card, book, etc.
You're expected to plug it into a TV that you already own, which is why they don't include a monitor.
You can also just use the software. It's a free download (http://www.kano.me/downloads) and all of the source code is on GitHub. Heck, they even let you download the content of the books for free.
So the premise is that if you want the physical stuff (Pi, keyboard, books, software on SD card) it's $129, and if already own the physical stuff you can download the software and instructional content for free. Given that they invested a lot of effort into creating the instructional environment and the content, it's pretty good that the give it all away. But their goal is to educate kids, not to make a lot of money.
So how exactly is it a rip off? You're too lazy to download the software and books they give you for free, so you want them to package everything up for cheaper than $129? Really? Do you think their work is worth nothing?
Enable 3D printed prosthetics!
The Linux-based smart TV is probably locked down to run only apps chosen by the TV manufacturer, not unlike a TiVo DVR. The advantage of an external Linux computer based on a Raspberry Pi is no tivoization.