Spikejnz-
I was in the same boat as everyone else with being unhappy with the factory car dock so I started testing other mounts and adding magnets to see what worked best for me. I have much experience in product development as my company also does offshore manufacturing, so like you, I am also looking at building a special Droid dock. However, I did this before for iPods and we made an awesome kit that had a case with a detachable beltclip that then used the beltclip mount area to attach to the carholder so the iPod never needed removal from its case, but unfortunately it wasn't cheap. The Apple Store loved it, but we couldn't make it meet their profit margin at a reasonable price point so it ultimately died a long slow death. Actually it's still dying (and in inventory) so if anyone needs a cool case/car mount for a 4th or 5th Generation iPod let me know. Lol
Although many of us "early adopters" love our Droids and might pay a few extra bucks for a very cool product, the mainstream people often go the cheapest route so undertakings like this seldom are rewarded. Hopefully the Droid will bring out a different class of user that might be more open to this kind of project. Until then, I'll be using a more cost effective solution based on a universal holder.
No matter what you decide, I wish you the best of luck as it is tough being an entrepreneur.
Well before I decide to move forward with this, I'm going to have to do considerable cost analysis. Obviously, the point of this project is to provide a better option at a reasonable price point while watching my margins closely. I spoke to the wife about it last night, and she told me this morning she wants to talk about it again. If this is going to be done right, it's not going to be done overnight! Unfortunately, that means I also risk having a company with more time/resources swooping in and stealing my thunder. However, that might just be a risk I'll have to take!
this is a great idea and I will definitely buy it.
two suggestions:
1. can you right away leave a hole where the speaker is so I don't have to cut it out? it makes conversing in the car that much easier if you're not plugged into the audio system
2. can you NOT attach a cable directly to the mount? This is very limiting as far as placing it in different spots. For example, I am routing my usb cable inside the dashboard and out of an air vent so it comes out right next to the mount and is practically invisible - it has to be long and is already inside the car. Just have your mount have a micro-usb cable port where we can plug in a cable of any length. This way you can save on the cost of the cable too
Any way of adding something to help guide an audio cable into the headphone slot? Something like a plastic/metal strip that attaches to the back but positions the audio-cable it holds right next to the slot... so you would snap the droid in (bottom first), then just press on that strip on the left side and boom - both cables in. I know this is unlikely, but perhaps you have better ideas.
Regarding your first point: absolutely! It would make no sense to not have that slot incorporated in the design.
The first thing that came to mind with your second point is to leave a microUSB port on the mount itself. If you want to plug the device in, you can. If not, you don't have to, and you won't have a 4' cord flopping on your dash. I can look into providing the USB cord as an optional accessory or as a package deal.
Another thing I was thinking about doing is having a 3.5mm jack on the back of the mount next to the microUSB port. This would allow you to connect the device to your stereo (assuming you have that capability) and listen to your music collection/pandora while on the road. There would simply be a small 90º 3.5mm jack that you would have to plug in to the side of the phone should you want to utilize this feature. Of course, this cable could be made removable for those that don't want to use it.
To make this mount with reasonable cost, every mount would be made with the audio/usb port. I likely have enough to cover initial costs, but not for running two/three different products!
Thanks for the input!
cool ! go for it! BTW how do you go about finding such a local company to manufacture the products for you ?
Google is your friend. I also had to make some phone calls.
sounds like a great idea, especially the hardwired power cord. I have an idea that would make use of my existing Body Glove case. I like that it feels sturdy and has a rubbery/matte finish as well as openings for everything. Add in the fact that the belt clip is removable and you basically have a car mount w/o the the mount.
I'd like to see an adapter that would fit the existing BG stud, this way I can easily go from belt to car mount. Of course you wouldn't have magnets to automatically go into car mode, but that's a non issue for me . I imagine that it could be designed/built to have a small ledge that would include a powered usb plug.
any thoughts?
Hmm...The only problem with designing a mount that allows use of the Body Glove case is that it wouldn't fit a non-cased Droid properly. This would force me to design at least two different mounts. It's something I can look into eventually, but I think for the moment I'm going to stick with the plain-jane Droid.
The other thing I'll have to contend with here is that there'll likely be a Droid² coming out in the near future. Will it's dimensions be similar? Will the Droid² fit in the Droid mount? If Motorola does the same thing to the Droid that they did to the Q....the answer is 'no'.
