Did you pre-order the JooJoo? We’re going to go on a limb and say: “We hope not.” It doesn’t look like Fusion Garage is having very good luck, and truth be told, it’s probably not going to get any better for the company. After all, those who have pre-ordered the JooJoo, don’t have them. And yes, we’re talking about all 90 of them. What, that number seems low? We couldn’t agree more.
According to some public documents, it looks like there was only 90 pre-orders made. And yes, if you’re assuming that the majority of sales are made in the initial shipments, you’d probably be right. With only 90 pre-orders, it doesn’t look like the JooJoo is going to really go anywhere. We might even say that the device is Dead On Arrival (DOA). If that’s not bad enough, there was 15 of the devices actually returned. We imagine that may have something to do with the slow release, and delays, and whatever else that may shy people away from the product.
However, that’s not stopping Fusion Garage from preaching that things are going well. According to the company, the number of models that have shipped are sitting in Los Angeles right now, held up by some nonsense in Customs. But, it looks like Fusion Garage is trying to get those devices into people’s hands by April 1st — at the longest, April 2nd. We understand that the company is trying to salvage their name, but it may be too late for that. With only 90 models pre-ordered, it looks like people may not have even cared enough from the first place. Did any of you out there pre-order it? If so, did you cancel, or are you still patiently waiting to get your very own JooJoo?
Remember the Joo Joo? Of course you do; we just covered it, after all. Letting you know that the future tablet from Fusion Garage got a bit of an upgrade in the User Interface department, before it’s ultimate release later this month. But, you know what’s better than knowing your latest gadget won’t have a bland, boring desktop? Getting to look at its insides, thanks to some documents found in the FCC’s databanks. And, believe it or not, the Joo Joo has some good things going for it.
First and foremost, we’ve got the NVIDIA Ion combined with Intel’s Atom N270. Second, despite the fact we’ve heard from Fusion Garage themselves that the Joo Joo won’t be shipping at the end of March with 3G on board, the FCC reveals that there is indeed a 3G card in there, so maybe something is changing. However, while we love the combination of Ion and the Atom N270, we have to admit that we’re not really sure the battery life is going to be anything to write home about. While the Joo Joo’s main competition is primed at a 10 hour battery life, there’s some speculation going around that the Joo Joo will barely make 5.
It’s going to just be a few short weeks before Fusion Garage unleashes their tablet, so before long we’ll be able to give you all the gory details, instead of banking on FCC documentation. Though, after seeing the upgraded User Interface and knowing that an application store of some sort is shipping with the fully HD-capable tablet makes our hearts flutter a bit. Essentially, we just can’t wait to get our hands on a new gadget.
Fusion Garage may have delayed shipping its tablet for another entire month due to issues with its capacitive touchscreen, but the company has apparently made very good use of the extra time. The JooJoo tablet has just been unveiled with a refreshed user interface, as well as fully-implemented Flash support that actually is “fully working”. Oh, and apparently the tablet has also undergone a physical color change, from a basic black to a “champagne-like” hue.
The startup has replaced the formerly-spartan interface with a much more modernized grid look that includes customizable wallpaper and a translucent bar that combines both status and a web address field. Engadget reports “Scroll behavior has been revised as well, with two separate behaviors: a two-finger scroll that works like a scroll wheel, and a single finger “pan” that works like a mouse arrow. That’s so you can move around sites like Google Maps, which have different interface elements mapped to each control — CEO Chandra Rathakrishnan pointed out to us that devices like the iPhone avoid the issue by using dedicated apps, but Fusion Garage wants to deliver the “full web experience.” Interesting thinking here.
The text-input has also been revamped, with a smaller keyboard designed for one-hand usage that can be moved around the screen so it won’t obscure content that might otherwise be blocked out, and a full-screen multitouch keyboard that does “chording so it recognizes more than one key at a time”. Flash now has reportedly become “fully-working” and viewing YouTube videos is supported either through Flash or a dedicated viewer that can play H.264 videos and other formats, and will also do supported range of codecs from a USB flash drive. Apparently, if you really had wanted the black version, Fusion Garage will refund you back your $499 preorder. Champagne or black JooJoo tablet, I for one won’t be complaining, as long as it actually ships next month, fingers crossed.
We had high hopes for the coming availability of the JooJoo tablet when we heard that the Fusion Garage was planning on shipping out at the end of this month, but we’ve just been told that due to a “manufacturing issue” shipping will be unfortunately delayed until March 25th. PR note after the break.
Apparently the issue involved touch sensitivity of the 12.1 inch capacitive touch screen, which Fusion Garage calls an “industry first”, and which the company has been able to identify and resolve, at the expense of another month in delay. The company will be providing a free JooJoo accessory to pre-order customers to take the edge off the situation. Hey, it’s still coming out long before, you know, the other tablet.
FUSION GARAGE TO SHIP JOOJOO INTERNET TABLET ON MARCH 25
SINGAPORE — February 26, 2010 — Earlier this month, Fusion Garage’s JooJoo Internet tablet went into full production with an anticipated on-time delivery to consumers at the end of February. Last week, the company became aware of a manufacturing issue involving JooJoo’s industry-first 12.1 inch capacitive touch screen which Fusion Garage was quickly able to diagnose and rectify. The company now forecasts the JooJoo will be sent to consumers on March 25.
The manufacturing issue centers on fine tuning the touch sensitivity of the capacitive screen. Fusion Garage will be providing all pre-order customers with a free JooJoo accessory to compensate for the delay in the delivery of their JooJoo.
Fusion Garage’s recent agreement with CSL, its manufacturing partner, has eliminated nearly all of the manufacturing costs associated with JooJoo. The company has no other barriers in the way of product delivery in the new timeframe.
The company apologizes for any inconvenience caused by the delay.
The iPad may have taken the media by storm, but the JooJoo, formerly known as the CrunchPad, is back, and hot on Apple’s heels. The JooJoo’s starting off full production, that’s right and maker Fusion Garage has announced that the product is set to start shipping this month.
Fusion Garage CEO Chandra revealed that they’ve teamed up with Malaysia’s largest OEM, CSL Group, to cover the tablet manufacturing costs; in return CSL will get a slice of the revenue pie. And read this, it’s confirmed that the tablet will feature full Flash support at launch, and even HD Flash content once Flash 10.1 is released.
The other thing? A web app store is in the works, Chandra claiming “We have a bigger ‘app store’ than Apple because we have the full Internet,”. Apparently JooJoo means along the lines of “magical” in African – which is how Steve Jobs exactly described the iPad. And they cost the same at $499 each. The JooJoo may have a larger 12-inch screen compared to the iPad’s 9.7-incher, but who knows what Apple may concoct up – something larger, and even more “magical”?
FUSION GARAGE MOVES INTO FULL PRODUCTION OF BREAKTHROUGH JOOJOO Tablet
Innovative Manufacturing Agreement and Investment from CSL Group Helps
Reinvent Consumer Electronics Business Model
SINGAPORE, February 3, 2010 – Fusion Garage today announced that its category-creating JooJoo Internet tablet has moved into full production with initial shipments expected to reach consumers at the end of February. Helping fuel the JooJoo’s arrival and Fusion Garage’s next phase of corporate growth is an innovative manufacturing agreement and strategic investment from mobile device OEM and distribution giant CSL Group of Malaysia.
Fusion Garage is expected to announce a second round of investment within the next two weeks which would augment today’s investment from CSL and the company’s initial round secured in November 2009.
CSL, established in 1998, has rapidly grown to a major conglomerate, with sales of nearly $300M USD, and the organization is one of the largest manufacturers of cell phones, mobile devices, netbook and notebook computers in SE Asia.
The strategic relationship between the companies calls for CSL to absorb all up front manufacturing costs associated with JooJoo production. This agreement virtually eliminates the normal high cost of mass market entry – often in the tens of millions – for any emerging Consumer Electronics (CE) hardware developer. In exchange, CSL will receive a revenue royalty from each JooJoo sold globally. Additionally, CSL has made a strategic venture investment in Fusion Garage which will help the company to move to the next phase of its corporate growth and product development.
“This is landscape changing manufacturing agreement in the CE hardware market in much the same way Dell changed the PC business model with its direct to consumer sales approach back in the 1990s,” said Fusion Garage founder and CEO, Chandrasekar (Chandra) Rathakrishnan. “CSL’s confidence in JooJoo and strategic investment enables us to concentrate on the expansion of our organization, software development and, ultimately, building a world class CE company.”
“We are justifiably bullish – not only on the promise of the JooJoo and the Internet tablet market’s potential but also on Fusion Garage’s forward looking vision,” said Dato Eric Chuah, Chairman of the CSL Group of Companies. “We have an opportunity to expand our business via this relationship, enter a hot market with a trusted partner and turn the traditional CE hardware manufacturing model on its head. We are betting on volume here and firmly believe our bet will be a winner.”
About JooJoo
JooJoo, officially introduced in December 2009, is the category-creating Web tablet that provides near instantaneous Internet access and the best online experience. The African word “joujou” means magical object and Fusion Garage’s JooJoo brings users into an online world where everything on the Internet is just a single touch away. Powered by Fusion Garage’s innovative browser-based operating system, JooJoo enables users to quickly and easily tap into Internet applications, news, music, high definition video, social media and web services. JooJoo has revolutionary hardware, including the largest capacitive touch screen of any device on the market – 12.1 inches –providing full screen content viewing. Its ultra-portable, ultra-thin design offers the best Internet experience anywhere – on the couch or on the go, standing or sitting. JooJoo’s gesture-based user interface allows easy transitions between Websites and turns pages in a digital publication via the movement of a finger. A full-size touch keyboard appears when users need it, and disappears when viewing content or paging through digital content. JooJoo is available directly from Fusion Garage at www.thejoojoo.com.
About Fusion Garage
Fusion Garage enables the best Internet experience through innovative software and hardware devices. Founded in 2008, Fusion Garage’s core browser-based operating system provides near instantaneous Internet access and has spurred the development of an entirely new category of consumer electronics devices dedicated to online usage. Fusion Garage is based in Singapore and is privately funded.
The TechCrunch/Fusion Garage saga continues, and as predicted the lawsuit Michael Arrington brought against his former partners over the CrunchPad/JooJoo tablet is only the start of the mud-slinging. Fusion Garage have released a public rebuttal to Arrington’s comments, suggesting that they do, in fact, own the IP involved, that they have already received $3m in funding with another round imminent, and that the TechCrunch founder’s complaints are naught but “the sad rants of a person championing a losing cause”.
As for the speculation regarding the manufacturing deal with Pegatron, Fusion Garage claim that relationship was a failure not helped by the fact that “Arrington’s promises of hardware development support proved to be hollow”. They’ve now moved to a different ODM and a different design, they claim, and one to which Pegatron hold no IP rights.
The full statements are in the gallery below, but one thing is clear – neither side of this battle seem likely to back down. Preorders for the JooJoo are being taken already, priced at $499, and the device is expected – according to Fusion Garage – to begin shipping early in the new year.
As expected, Michael Arrington and TechCrunch have filed a federal lawsuit against Fusion Garage, over the hotly contested CrunchPad/JooJoo web-tablet project. The lawsuit – which you can see here – accuses Fusion Garage of “violation of the Lanham Act, breach of fiduciary duty, misappropriation of business ideas, fraud and deceit, and unfair competition” and cites not only correspondence between the two organizations but content from Fusion Garage’s now-deleted blog. Arrington also runs through eight other points, including a passing spank to other blogs that “link to the [JooJoo] pre-sale site without disclosing [Fusion Garage's financial situation] to readers”.
He also addresses some of Fusion Garage CEO Chandrasekar Rathakrishnan’s statements during the JooJoo webcast earlier this week, in which his former friend claimed TechCrunch has no IP claim for the touchscreen tablet. In actual fact, Arrington counters, he personally created “the entire blueprint” of the CrunchPad, while Pegatron own “much of the key intellectual property, including the board and much of the mechanicals”.
“The entire blueprint of the device was created by me. And we also have hired direct resources, including the former head of hardware at Vudu, as well as very high level software engineers, who have worked directly on the project here and in Singapore with the Fusion Garage team. Their direct work on the project was crucial to its success, and the device would not be finished without their work” Michael Arrington, TechCrunch
Arrington believes Fusion Garage may have given Pegatron’s IP to a new ODM manufacturing partner – the two companies are not collaborating on manufacturing of the JooJoo. The likelihood of the JooJoo – which is meant to go up for pre-sales today, priced at $499 and with initial deliveries in 4-8 weeks – reaching customers’ hands seems ever more unlikely.
TechCrunch’s erstwhile partners Fusion Garage are showing off what they say is their own hardware and software design, and rather than CrunchPad they’re naming it JooJoo. JooJoo has a 12.1-inch capacitive touchscreen – the first of its type in the world, Chandra Rathakrishnan claims – and a web-centric OS.
JooJoo weighs in at 1.1kg and will go sale on Friday December 11th. Contrary to the original $300 tipped price tag, Fusion Garage say it will come in at $499. Initial deliveries will begin in 8-10 weeks.
Full hardware details are not known; however going by the image on the JooJoo site the slate will have a microphone, headphone and power port, together with a memory card slot. As for the threat of litigation from TechCrunch, Rathakrishnan says his company is not worried, and that so far there has been no legal action taken.
