Panic halts development of Playdate Stereo Dock amid challenges
An update on the dock's product page highlights the numerous challenges the team has faced during development, which started by assuming their manufacturing partner
Recap: It's been more than three years since Playdate maker Panic first teased a multi-purpose docking station for the quirky handheld. The aptly-named Playdate Stereo Dock was meant to serve as a charging station for the console, and double as a Bluetooth speaker (and a pen holder), but now it's unclear if the accessory will ever see the light of day.
An update on the dock's product page highlights the numerous challenges the team has faced during development, which started by assuming their manufacturing partner – with plenty of experience making Bluetooth speakers – could easily design the electronic on their behalf. Had it worked, it would have saved Panic lots of time and money.
Things went smoothly at first, but the factory ended up outsourcing the Bluetooth chipset and software to another company in a different country. Unsurprisingly, quality suffered.
Panic said the dock would crash often, especially when rapidly adjusting the volume. Pairing and unpairing was also a pain point and when music was played through the speaker, it flat out sounded bad.
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