Update on Mudita Pure development and production calendar

We have an important update on the development of Mudita Pure.

We’ve decided to postpone the shipment of Mudita Pure and plan to start shipping in September/October 2020.

There are several reasons for this choice: first, after the testing period we saw room for improvement in various elements and decided to take these additional months to strive for perfection, and second, we’ve come across a few issues while preparing for production. 

Mudita Pure is the first device that we release out of the whole product line. We want it to be ideal. Our goal is to give you a unique experience, both in terms of design and usability, that will be a statement about the quality we’re aiming for every time.

We’d like to tell you more about the planned improvements and the progress, as we’re entering a challenging but really exciting stage of production.

Hardware status and timeline

We’ve already started to produce the first PC boards in the selected factory in Poland.

In March, we’re going to start the first assembly trials of Mudita Pure. It will have all the final components. These pieces will serve us for testing purposes. We sincerely can’t wait for this!

In April and May, apart from testing the phones, we will be optimizing and improving the production process. At the same time, the molding forms for the casing elements will be produced.

In June, we will run the second round of production. We’ve already collected most of the components needed for assembling the phones for our backers, such as integrated circuits, E Ink displays, speakers, microphones, and they are stored in the Polish factory we’ve selected for the final assembly.

In July and August, we booked the time for the New Product Introduction stage in the factory to check the production process and introduce the final improvements before the mass production stage.

In September the mass production of Mudita Pure starts.

In September and October we will be shipping Mudita Pure to you!

Mudita Pure casing

The injection molding forms are in the final stage of development and some of them have had their first trials. The picture below shows how big the structure is that produces a small plastic component (red color for body part).

The injection molding forms are in the final stage of development and some of them have had their first trials. The picture below shows how big the structure is that produces a small plastic component (red color for body part).

In the last update, we shared some information about selecting the final colors and materials for the casing of the phone. While working with the partners that will be producing them, it turned out we need additional work to the desired texture, not too shiny, and not entirely matte, while keeping all of the elements in the right colors.

It’s a challenge, because to achieve the dream effect, we need to use a few different technologies, performed by several companies. We’re making 7 molding forms: 5 will be produced in Poland, 1 in Germany and 1 in China. The Mudita team have been visiting our Polish and German partners regularly over the last weeks.

The Mudita team have been visiting our Polish and German partners regularly over the last weeks.

Frontlight

We’ve also improved our technology for the uniform frontlight. The E Ink screen is perfectly readable in the sunlight and in medium light, so there’s no need to keep the light on all the time.

When it gets too dark to use Pure comfortably, the frontlight will switch on automatically. It gives a soft light directed from the frame of the screen, not from behind it. We added a special layer of reflective foil which guides the light directly onto the display.

We added a special layer of reflective foil which guides the light directly onto the display.

Navigation button and keyboard

Over the last few weeks we’ve also been testing the latest prototypes. Based on the experiences of some of our testers, we’ve decided to rethink a few details of Pure’s navigation button. We’re now in the process of optimizing its haptic perception.

We’re also working on the best solution for the keyboard, both in terms of its look and usability. We’re looking for the perfect colors to match the casing. We also need to find a sweet spot between good looking details and the readability of the symbols.

Mudita team designing the phone

Testing

In the previous update we showed you some of the testing machines we’ve built and we’re happy you loved them! We will use the additional time to develop new ones and we’re now planning to construct at least 6 of them and use them during the production process. Our engineering team designed tools for testing the elements such as antennas, PCBs, batteries or E Ink screens. Below you can see the designs of three testers we’re currently developing:

• Battery Tester that will be used to confirm whether delivered batteries are working properly and the parameters are the same for all pieces.

•  Mainboard Tester for functional testing of PCB_MB after the construction.  

•  Upper Module Tester will be checking PCB_UM after the construction and the core parameters of its components.

Our engineering team designed tools for testing the elements such as antennas, PCBs, batteries or E Ink screens.

Production process

In the last few weeks we’ve been improving and adjusting our production process. It is divided into 4 stages: Preparation, Front, Body and Assembling. It allows full traceability for each component and Mudita Pure sample. This way we can catch a possible fault in a particular phone early and determine the exact cause.

We’ve selected all partners for producing different elements of Mudita Pure and doing the final assembly. We’re really happy with the assembly process we came up with - thanks to well thought out design, Mudita Pure is fairly easy and fast to assemble. You can see the simulation of the process on the original Kickstarter update.

Certifications

One of the most time-consuming demands we need to meet are various certifications. To go smoothly through the certification maze, we’ve selected two global certification companies that will provide us with testing and certification services. Mudita Pure needs to be certified in three domains: safety, EMC and wireless.

To certify Mudita Pure in terms of safety, we’ll need the final device, but the other two domains of certification can be completed on the T4 prototype, that we will already have in March. As soon as we have it, we will start the testing required for FCC, IC, and CE certifications.

We’re also getting ready for the final SAR value testing. In March, we’ll run the pre-final round of tests, using the latest prototype. We predict that they will be accurate and very similar to the final results, those will be performed on the first samples of the phone.

In most countries Mudita Pure will connect with a local carrier without any additional steps. But in the US, our product needs to receive “network-ready” status from some of the carriers separately. We’ve already started the process of obtaining that status from the biggest carriers.

We understand that you want to start using your Mudita Pure as soon as possible. We can’t wait either! At the same time, we’re confident that the additional time we’ll spend on improving the details and the production will be very meaningful for the overall quality and experience.

We’re really happy about the journey that bringing this project to life has been so far. Learning and improving is a part of this process. Thank you for being with us and for your continued support, patience and understanding! Expect more frequent updates on the development of Mudita Pure as we’re getting closer to shipping it to our backers.

Team Mudita