18 December 2021

Update #6 | Looking back

August 2021 was a special moment. We had completed the Wooting two HE production without any major issues and had everything on its way to our warehouses. Batch 2 would come in a little latest due to the IC supply, but nonetheless, we were ready to round up a large chapter in the Wooting book.

September, October, now November. No blog updates, but boy, a lot of email and Discord updates concerning the Wooting two HE.

Ocean freight was hitting a lot of issues causing delays, especially heading towards Europe. This delayed ocean freight for both batch 1 and 2 to Europe (orders starting INT) by a month. No fun at all.

It was even less fun for new members to get up to date with all the context and what to expect from their order. We had done our best to frequently update Discord’s stock_updates channel, email direct with status, and reply timely when status was asked.

Now we’ve almost completed all the Batch 1 and 2 deliveries for the Wooting two HE. There are only Batch 2 ocean freight orders (starting INT) pending. Then we’ll only have ISO models in stock on our Europe/International store. All the ANSI models on both the Europe/International as our North American store are sold out.

The pre-orders for the ANSI model are now for the following production that’ll include pre-installed Wooting double-shot PBT keycaps. Shipments for, what is essentially, batch 3 are estimated to happen in April.

It’s time to reflect on the entire journey.

11 August 2021

Update #5| Batch 1 coming in hot!

The Wooting two HE Batch 1 Mass production was a success. On the 30th of July, the entire production was completed including during production quality control.

We encountered 1 non-critical issue. Too much lube. 5-12 switches per keyboard have a small radius of lube around it on the plate. When the lube was cleaned from the keyboard, it would reappear the following day. Since the issue does nothing to the performance or function, but only appearance, we decided to complete the production.

All the goods were picked up and on their way. The winner of the race is already known: air freight Batch 1 for all orders starting with INT. We already have them in our warehouse and are getting all the final details ready for batch shipment.

Learn more about the delivery in this blog post.

7 July 2021

Update #4 | A little push back.

If you have been following us you know last week (6th of July) was the planned mass production of the Wooting two HE batch 1. To our surprise the planned production has been pushed back to the end of July.

What happened?
Before the D.V.T. (Design validation test) we made a minor adjustment to the top-plate to ensure a nice and tight fit with the bottom case. When we received the samples we checked them. Everything was perfect and we gave a green light for production.What we didn’t take into account was the lead time of these new and improved top-plates, 30-35 days. Luckily the purchase order for the top-plates was placed right after the D.V.T. was approved.

The mass production of Batch 1 will take place on the 29th of July.

This issue won’t influence batch 2 and its release schedule. Curious what batch you are in? We made an online batch checker.

Jeroen will elaborate more on the pushed back mass production in the latest update video.

16 June 2021

Update #3| At the doors of production.

A long awaited update. I was struggling to find the time and clarity that I needed to this update. While reviewing the DVT (final) sample, I decided to create a video update. The following topics are covered and also time stamped in the update video:

• Wooting two HE – Batch 1 production
• Wooting two HE – Batch 2 production
• Express shipping option
• Review DVT (final) sample
• Taking a closer lookHow to upgrade to PBT keycaps

Wooting two HE batch 1 and batch 2 will be produced at different times. Batch 1 will go into mass production on the 6th of July. The lead time to delivery includes two logistical phases.

• Factory to warehouse
  We will divide the batch into 2 shipments, 1 by Air, 1 by Sea. Air can take up to 2 weeks; Sea can take up to 6 weeks. The Airfreight shipment will be a buy-in option if you want an express delivery and shave off a lot of time. This is expected to cost an additional 10 EUR/USD. We will contact you with the details, when ready.
• Warehouse to the front door (last mile)
  The last mile shipments in the USA can take up to 1 week depending on the state. Within the European Union (EU), it will take anywhere between 2-5 business days. International (outside EU/US) this can take anywhere between 1 to 4 weeks. We will offer a DHL Express option to International orders from selected countries. If this option is available, we will contact you.

Talk with us on twitter.

22 April 2021

Update #2| Buckle up.

This is the first written update for the Wooting two HE, if you’re new to these updates, buckle up, you’re in for a ride.

When we were close to mass-producing the Wooting two LE (the limited edition predecessor, delivering soon) and launched the Wooting two HE, we had made all the proper preparations:

1. Semi-finished the packaging design, just needed to sign off details.
2. Started building a new PCBA prototype that would save a few components and lower cost.
3. Placed purchase orders for the uncommon and most essential IC parts (hall effect sensors).

Since almost everything is the same for the Wooting two HE compared to the Wooting two LE – I thought this would be a straightforward and not too difficult process. Easy to predict a shipment date. But we have some type of omen that challenges us every step of the way. It’s incredible how complicated and challenging this whole business and process is.

How are we still around?
Plain and simple – You – believe in what we do and have the patience for us to figure it all out and deliver.

It started with the Wooting one, then two, and big-time with the Wooting two LE. The Wooting two LE status? Remember that Suez canal situation? That just delayed the boat shipment to the EU by about a month. This comes on top of all the other challenges these backers already had to endure during development. Really, a lot of love if you’re one of them reading this.

Yep, I’m warming you up. The Wooting two HE is going to be a little more bumpy than expected and I’ll write a few more updates than expected. I’m going to cover the following:

• The top plate manufacturer challenge (solved?)
• The procuring IC parts challenge (pending).
• Are you in Batch 1 or 2 and when you can expect delivery
• What we’re going to do to ensure faster delivery (Airfreight option)

Talk with us on twitter.

03 March 2021

Update #1| Closer to mass production.

The Wooting two HE is getting ready for mass production. Most of the essentials were completed with thanks to the Lekker Edition (LE) production (the limited edition predecessor). We started to check off a lot of smaller items including packaging, contents, and colors. Items we had already started on month back.

The main challenge for this production is going through another round of EVT, DVT, and PVT. Even though it’s essentially the same keyboard  as the Wooting two LE, we still need to treat it as a new product and go through the checks.

We made a few minor changes to the PCBA that have no impact on performance and help us save cost. One of them being the same Hall effect sensor but then with a mirrored orientation.

The main issue we’re facing now came out of nowhere. Our top/switch plate vendor decided to call quits and recommended us to move the mold to a different vendor. The vendor was aware of our tight schedule and due to private circumstances recommended us to move the mold for the integrity of the product.

There is a plan in motion and I do not know what the impact on the schedule will be at this time. We are trying to simultaneous move the mold and make an improvement to it (flusher fit).

It is safe to say that we can’t reach the April deadline anymore and need to move the shipment date to May. Once I have more information, I will write out a larger update and update the schedule.