On 4/17/08, Dieter <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I'm not lobbying one way or the other on this, just pointing out that > some customers may be unhappy if a connector is left off a $1500 board. > Leaving out something very expensive, like if there were a 3rd big FPGA > chip, makes sense, but leaving out a connector seems cheap, and > "penny wise pound foolish".
Well, $30 is $30. But keep in mind that it will also add manufacturing costs, so it's more than $30. Plus, it's not so much being cheap as it is trying to cater to users who want to stick push-pins into the holes. The IDC connector is not so friendly to hobby projects unless you have the equally expensive mating connector, a ribbon cable, another board, etc. Plus, not all IDC connectors are the same. This isn't rows of pins or holes. It's rows of contacts surrounding an inner island. The connector doesn't stay in place by friction with the pins but by snapping into place with a latch, IIRC. > If the connector is included, it should be soldered on at the factory > with everything else. Some users will not be experienced in soldering, > and could lift a pad or something. > > The gender of the connector isn't critical. IDC connectors are > available in both genders, and the user can easily make a custom ribbon > cable using a common vise. If they do manage to screw it up, they can > just cut off a cm of cable and try again, and they've only ruined a cheap > connector, not the expensive board. > > I don't know what percentage of user will have a use for the connector, > especially with the hirose connector available. It just feels wrong > to leave it off. The hirose will be included on the board from the factory. -- Timothy Normand Miller http://www.cse.ohio-state.edu/~millerti Open Graphics Project _______________________________________________ Open-graphics mailing list [email protected] http://lists.duskglow.com/mailman/listinfo/open-graphics List service provided by Duskglow Consulting, LLC (www.duskglow.com)
