Open hardware is fun while it lasts

[rhialto]

It seemed so much fun, an open hardware computer, designed by the famous Bunnie and xobs. Even with an FPGA.
After paying a year ago, I received my package in march, after months and months of anticipation.
Of course, customs screwed me over on the 21% VAT to be paid on import. Since the dollar had become more expensive in the mean time, they made me pay import duties over a significantly higher number of Euros than I had actually paid almost a year earlier.
The machine had to be assembled a bit, but after doing that... it crashed almost every time within 10 seconds of turning it on. One time it worked for an hour, until I looked at it wrong...
I mailed with the customer service of Crowd Supply (the crowd funding company) and after some to-and-fro they sent a package with a replacement motherboard, having determined that it was likely there were some bad cold-solder points. Unfortunately, they sent it in such a way that the customs wanted another pile of money from me (EUR 107 to be approximate). Clearly I didn't accept that. I mailed (for the nth time) that Crowd Supply should do something about this, somehow. But they never did. And after 3 weeks, the replacement package was sent back automatically.
So now I have shipped the whole thing back. And I'll be trying to get refunds, both from Crowd Supply and the customs. I fear that trying the latter is like trying to squeeze blood out of a stone..
Bah.

But at least I have strawberries with whipped cream today :-)

Comments

[lovingboth]

Not cheap, is it?