After waiting quite some time, Project Killswitch from dbrand for the Steam Deck is finally coming but there's been a few changes and it seems not everyone is happy with it.
This is the special case and solid protection for the Steam Deck that dbrand has been teasing for months now, with a reservation fee that was about $3. Now they've announced that it launches on September 25th but it has been split across two packages. Shipping is free for USA + Canada but everywhere else the cost will depend on what exactly you order and dbrand said in their usual marketing speak "If you don't like it, move.".
The "Essential Kit" will cost $59.95 and includes:
For an extra $15.00, the Travel Kit adds:
- 1x Travel Cover
- 2x Stick Grips
What's different is not just that it's been split in two, but their announcement didn't even mention the screen protector that was supposed to come with it. In a Reddit comment, they attempted to clear that up by saying:
Screen protectors are indeed a part of the project and have been in-market for about 6 months. Our data indicates the majority of Project Killswitch reservations holders have already purchased a screen protector from us.
As a result, there was no unique kit created which bundled this component in. Rather than creating a kit which would be redundant for the majority of reservation-holders that already own a screen protector, we opted to simply make the screen protector an optional add-on to the Project Killswitch UI.
In other words: if you're among the minority of reservation holders that hasn't purchased a screen protector yet, you will still be able to on the Project Killswitch UI. It just won't be built into a "Kit" option.
The announcement also didn't mention that reservations are supposed to get free Stick Grips but they later cleared that up in a Reddit comment to confirm reservations do still get those.
They've had a surprising amount of backlash on Reddit about the changes they've made to it, with the Steam Deck Reddit seeing quite a lot of unhappy comments about it. dbrand at least seem to offer refunds of the $3 reservation fee if you're unhappy.
With dbrand coming out pretty late on this, with multiple options already out there like the Deckmate stand or the Standing Case from JSAUX, I do have to wonder how their sales of this will go down.
I replied to some very angry guy that it's just about another case, so there is no need to get emotional.
He replied so angry that his post was deleted by some mods without me asking for it, yet my post was downvoted like crazy. Don't really care for the downvotes, it's reddit. Just wanted to illustrate how mobbish the mob has become.
I want real community forums back, reddit is cancer.
Last edited by const on 2 September 2022 at 12:28 pm UTC
Quoting: constGosh, reddit is really at it's worst about it.
I replied to some very angry guy that it's just about another case, so there is no need to get emotional.
He replied so angry that his post was deleted by some mods without me asking for it, yet my post was downvoted like crazy. Don't really care for the downvotes, it's reddit. Just wanted to illustrate how mobbish the mob has become.
I want real community forums back, reddit is cancer.
Is it only reddit though? Maybe reddit is a reflection of society. It's rather polarized IMHO. Try to post something with some humor in a thread like that and watch them bite your head off.
Quoting: constGosh, reddit is really at it's worst about it.It's really a speciality of Reddit because of the design of the upvote system IMO. People go nuts over the smallest of things and for some people, Reddit is their personality...
I replied to some very angry guy that it's just about another case, so there is no need to get emotional.
He replied so angry that his post was deleted by some mods without me asking for it, yet my post was downvoted like crazy. Don't really care for the downvotes, it's reddit. Just wanted to illustrate how mobbish the mob has become.
I want real community forums back, reddit is cancer.
Quoting: tfkQuoting: constGosh, reddit is really at it's worst about it.
I replied to some very angry guy that it's just about another case, so there is no need to get emotional.
He replied so angry that his post was deleted by some mods without me asking for it, yet my post was downvoted like crazy. Don't really care for the downvotes, it's reddit. Just wanted to illustrate how mobbish the mob has become.
I want real community forums back, reddit is cancer.
Is it only reddit though? Maybe reddit is a reflection of society. It's rather polarized IMHO. Try to post something with some humor in a thread like that and watch them bite your head off.
I don't think it's a reflection of society as a whole. Go to different places on reddit and you will see different grades of the shitshow, yet it will always be worse then dedicated forums used to be. It's a reflection of the general communication model of reddit, the low entry point to jump a sub overwhelming mods, the part of society contributing to the sub and what communication culture those are used to. I also think the fact there are no subsubs is raising the tension a lot. Filtering with flairs is just damn bad.
Last edited by const on 2 September 2022 at 12:58 pm UTC
Quoting: constIs it only reddit though? Maybe reddit is a reflection of society. It's rather polarized IMHO. Try to post something with some humor in a thread like that and watch them bite your head off.
It's a good thing that not all online conversations are as caustic as they are on reddit. This thread, at least so far, has healthy and even-keeled discussion on the matter. Love to see it! :D
But anyway, dbrand's humour is generally funny, but "If you don't like it, move." doesn't come across very well and makes them seem rather up their own arse to be honest.
Quoting: constGosh, reddit is really at it's worst about it.Lashing out isn't appropriate, but like it was said above that seems a reddit specialty. On the other hand it sounds like you tried to dismiss a seemingly valid complaint by someone who spent money on a product only to have a sketchy company play shenanigans. That is rude and infuriating. It doesn't matter what the product is, someone spent money and to have random people come in and white knight for a janky company only escalates the frustration. Getting screwed over by businesses not fulfilling their promises, while having little to no recourse, is maddening. It makes people feel helpless so of course they're going to get emotional. Why would you not empathize instead and then come to this forum for validation? Did you maybe consider you were part of the emotional escalation issue as well and that's why people down-voted you? I probably would have too if I had seen that thread and comment. What we need is more empathy in this world not people telling others to suck it up and deal with it. But then maybe I'm reading too much into all this. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I replied to some very angry guy that it's just about another case, so there is no need to get emotional.
He replied so angry that his post was deleted by some mods without me asking for it, yet my post was downvoted like crazy. Don't really care for the downvotes, it's reddit. Just wanted to illustrate how mobbish the mob has become.
I want real community forums back, reddit is cancer.
Regarding the company, this sounds horrible and they strike me as incredibly unprofessional. Don't think I'd want to do business with them at all unless maybe they sold packages through a reputable retailer.
Last edited by randyl on 2 September 2022 at 4:23 pm UTC
I myself just recently ordered a nifty large size map of Middle Earth, the classic one done by Pauline Baynes back in the day. Well, it's coming from Oxford and I'm in Canada. Price of the map, £62. Shipping, £57!
Last edited by Purple Library Guy on 2 September 2022 at 4:32 pm UTC
Quoting: tfkQuoting: constIs it only reddit though? Maybe reddit is a reflection of society. It's rather polarized IMHO. Try to post something with some humor in a thread like that and watch them bite your head off.
It's a good thing that not all online conversations are as caustic as they are on reddit. This thread, at least so far, has healthy and even-keeled discussion on the matter. Love to see it! :D
Yeah. That's true. (hugs)
Quoting: constGosh, reddit is really at it's worst about it.
I replied to some very angry guy that it's just about another case, so there is no need to get emotional.
He replied so angry that his post was deleted by some mods without me asking for it, yet my post was downvoted like crazy. Don't really care for the downvotes, it's reddit. Just wanted to illustrate how mobbish the mob has become.
I want real community forums back, reddit is cancer.
no it is not just reddit imho it is all social media
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