Not so much incompetence with engineering and design because the Hopper is indeed a great idea. Rather their quality control is not where it needs to be. It's that plain and simple - from the original orders several years ago to the state of RMA backlog and percentage of those being sent in again or not working at all or working the same as before the RMA. Way too many issues with quality if their backlog is so prominent and pronounced. I won't even go into customer service and marketing, the former being pathetic and the latter scarce as of late.
Must not be too dangerous. No hopper explosions in the 4ish years they've been around.I'd not use any electronics that has open sparks/shorts when using lithium ion batteries. You have a bomb in your hand and next to your face.
I admit it. I’m always happy to hear from happy hopper owners.
Irrelevant. Hopper reliability has absolutely 0 to do with usage.
I guess dangers about lithium ion explosions are overrated. I also appear to have missed where visibly arcing/sparking/potential short-circuiting was defined as "normal grasshopper" behavior. If using an obviously malfunctioning Grasshopper is worth more than your teeth or eyes...
There has been at least one fire though!
Yeah, usage plays a part. But also, some Grasshoppers have had faulty components - so in that case, there'd normally be a product recall, the amount of usage is irrelevant.
Just because you had a similar experience doesn't mean it's the norm. There's people with hoppers who have been ripping them through water every day for more than a year and their hoppers continue to work fine. Then there's people who receive them broken before they even use them. Then there's people that receive a working unit only for if to break after a week or 2 of light usage. I stick by what I said that usage plays 0 part in how long your hopper will last. Unless your usage is letting it sit in a drawer. Heck even then there's no guarantee it's gonna fire up and work perfectly the next time you want to use it.
kaboom!
Honestly, me too. They are few and far between on this thread as of late. As much as I like to knock HL and self-deprecate my current situation (currently in RMA - what else is new?), I'm secretly rooting for them to succeed. Or at least right the ship the next couple of years and perhaps, PERHAPS, come out with a new version similar to the original. Oh, and to get my RMA'd unit back ASAP. That would be icing on the vape cake.
I don't really agree. Reliability is built into the design, it needs to be baked in with function, which they failed to do. Their design is far too critical in form factor, apparently heater and temp sensor reliability, and using the body as the return path for the electrical connections (the wireless connections, right).Not so much incompetence with engineering and design because the Hopper is indeed a great idea. Rather their quality control is not where it needs to be. It's that plain and simple - from the original orders several years ago to the state of RMA backlog and percentage of those being sent in again or not working at all or working the same as before the RMA. Way too many issues with quality if their backlog is so prominent and pronounced. I won't even go into customer service and marketing, the former being pathetic and the latter scarce as of late.
The fact that batteries may take 2-4 months to fulfill is mind-numbing. That's like cutting off your nose to spite your face. Really!?!
If they turn things around, it'll likely be a few more years. That's a big IF. And then let's hope there's a verion 2.0 - though I'll wait a couple of years for it being on the market before I buy another product from them again.
