Hi,
I have updated the list of overall changes to the Box itself (only) below. Changes listed do not include calibration changes, slight modifications to the fit and finish affecting measure only, build process changes and optimizations, etc. Also not listed are recalibration shifts to match different battery vendors (since the beginning, we have had 6 different battery vendors) or different chargers/accessories (we have had at least 10 different part numbers for chargers shipped). Naturally, managing all of these production shifts internally has been more than a little complex (and expensive!), even though they were all necessary for one reason or another.
Also in the list, changes to the Box which were actually distinct events have been separated. Things which are really only of expert interest or which are not otherwise user visible have been designated with a "a" suffix. We don't tend to think of them as being different versions, so much as being 'updates' on the existing design. (The lifetime warranty applies to all Launch Boxes regardless, and modulo battery tension, they are functionally interchangeable.) Furthermore, each of these changes was not made all at once -- they are phased into production over a period of weeks, and thus there is no actual single 'date' at which it gets implemented.
In regards to the absence of an announcement of changes, we find that in addition to the softness of the date, we are actually finding it necessary to try to
reduce the level of hype associated with the Box. The Box works so well that when people describe it online, others think that they are just 'shills' for the company, even though we only ever actually post on FC (We posted once by explicit invitation on Reddit, but that was a long time ago). Outside of own website, our presence on the internet is entirely customer contributed -- including all the Vids on YouTube.
It is our knowing that Love Enables Choice -- in particular, conscious personal choice. Therefore, we have no interest in creating any kind of marketing hype. To create "hype" has the effect and intention of trying
drive someone to do something
unconsciously -- reactively. Furthermore, while a typical "marketing department" would love hype, the engineering department hates it as it sets up impossible expectations on the part of the future prospective customer that cannot be met by any practical design. Where there is hype, disappointment is somewhere inevitable -- it is not sustainable, and it does not promote evolution. Fortunately, Magic-Flight is an engineering lab and manufacturing firm -- we do not actually have a marketing department!
Therefore, if you like something (anything or someone) and want to post or talk about, it is best you to say in detail exactly what, why and how. This gives people reading your post a chance to make an
informed choice and lets them know that it is a real person communicating with a real and valid value behind that feeling of Love. We would rather have people be really and truly informed as to the Box can and cannot do. This is so that when they choose to use it for the right reasons, the experience is an ultimately positive one.
What sense does it make to say that you love someone (or something) when you do not truly know them (or it)?
Love is ultimately personal -- just like choice -- and it therefore requires personal first hand knowledge (knowing of love!) to have any ultimate meaning, value, or purpose. We know this to be Truth, and is therefore the way we elect move in this world.
-- Magic-Flight
How many versions are there, and what is the latest?
Magic-Flight doesn't identify specific models, nor do they announce design changes, therefore the exact date of a change is not known. In chronological order, the versions are:
1. The original release. The earliest boxes had a small pinhole on the bottom.
2. The pinhole, which was not intended to be a functional part of the design, was removed.
3. A small light was added to indicate whether a good battery connection has been made, and to act as a basic battery power level indicator.
3a. The size and rating of the light was changed to allow for light longevity.
4. The air intake channel was redesigned to be broader and shallower.
5. An O-ring was added around the trench opening.
5a. Shelf blocks were removed.
6. A pushback ring was added in the battery chamber to prevent accidental prolonged battery contact.
7. Maple replaced Birch.
8. New stainless steel contact rods replaced the original copper-clad stainless steel.
8a. The hardness on the trench O-ring was changed to allow for future accessory development.
9. A steel ball catch was added to prevent accidental opening of the cover.