We truly appreciate your support and patience, and sincerely apologize for the radio silence in the last several weeks. Since our last update, the team has been entirely focused on addressing and completing all regulatory compliance and certifications requirements in order to continue with production and be cleared to ship Solos. This process took a lot longer than we anticipated due to the set of additional testing required to ensure our smart glasses met safety and electronic emissions’ regulations for USA and selected international markets. Unfortunately, this longer process strongly impacted our project and initial delivery milestones. We worked intensely to minimize a lot of these risks up-front, but as with any innovation in new product categories, we encountered some unknowns that added delays to our original schedule.
Great News – We are thrilled to communicate that we have completed, passed and filed with the US Federal Communication Commission (FCC) as well as with Industry Canada. Solos smart glasses have now met all of FCC’s and IC’s emissions and documentation requirements. With FCC and IC filings now in place, we have re-started Solos’ production and plan to commence the shipping to our backers in the next couple of weeks. We want to make sure we get them in your hands for the start of cycling season.
We understand and share the sentiments on this longer than anticipated process and our lack of communication throughout it. Please be reassured that we are committed to delivering Solos and to working together with you to improve and serve you better.
Some of our backers have asked us to share a bit more about what major obstacles there were during the regulatory compliance phase. One of these obstacles was the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) testing required by the FCC. Their reason for requiring this additional testing was that Solos’ system uses multiple radio transmission formats that can simultaneously support ANT+ /BT-BLE protocols and can be used in iOS and Android mobile phone platforms, communicating sensor data, audio and head-up display information with the smart glasses. This unique architecture technology required a new set of checks, documentation and reviews for final approval—none of which we or our certification agency had anticipated.
Made for iPhone [MFi] Certification -- In parallel to the regulatory compliance processes, Solos successfully went through the very elaborate MFi Certification. This process was quite involved, taking nearly six months to complete. It encompassed a review of all aspects of the product, from the actual hardware and packaging to the mobile application. We are very proud to be officially authorized by Apple as an MFI certified product.
Mobile App now available – In conjunction with the the transition from engineering to full production of the smart glasses, the team finalized and deployed our companion mobile for Android and iOS. You can now download our Solos cycling app, create your account and start setting up your profile. This will be a great way to start getting familiar with our mobile interface.
Shipping and Contact information -- Most of our backers have completed their BackerKit survey with their contact information. However, if you have recently changed address or would like to update your shipping info, please check and update the survey this week, as we’ll be locking down the database in preparation for shipments.
Let us reassure you of our commitment to making and delivering Solos and redoubling our efforts to serve you better. We sincerely appreciate your support, and we count on your feedback throughout this journey to help us improve. Please don’t hesitate to contact us at [email protected] with any comment or suggestion.
Sincerely,
Solos Team
