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Comment by testmasterflex | Hacker News Reader

Do you work 9-5?

It’s actually not about time but about energy levels.

To be able to accomplish this, you setup your life to have maximal energy level balance throughout the day.

For me that meant to unfortunately leave my girlfriend at home almost every evening the past year to get a few hours in almost everyday until I was done.

This also included eating the same food (ready made from Lidl) everyday and just saying no to everything and everyone all the time.

I also recommend that you try to take as little responsibility you can at work and perhaps working from home if possible, where you then use half the day for your own stuff.

One of the few benefits of this lifestyle/endeavour is that you have an income while trying your startup idea.

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Oh and this is what I worked on: https://Loodio.com

wow, this looks hard to build(any hardware product does to me). how long have you spent overall on this?

Took us about 14 months with me having no hardware experience so I hired a friend and some consultants.

Spent around $50k of my own money to seed fund it.

Demo video: https://youtu.be/SOPZ8-Ptk2E

This is really cool! It has a lot of potential in the market. Wish you the best of luck!

Thank you! I hope so but it doesn’t matter because me and my dad REALLY need it (shy poopers) :P

How is it powered?

Rechargeable Li-ion batteries through MicroUSB port. Check the demo video in my other comment for more info!

This is really cool! But, I think the clock needs to be bigger and brighter, and maybe graphical. Or be a VFD -- OR -- what would be really cool, is combine it with a pico projector, and shine the clock/UI onto a wall. Good luck!

You’re right and we are looking for alternatives already but need to launch Kickstarter first because cash is run out!

Actually, I just had another idea. It may be just me, but I already have an Alexa echo, and Smart Home controlled lights and fan in the bathroom. All you really need is an WIFI-enabled motion sensor - and then, an easy way for it to start playing music on my alexa - bonus if it would automatically turn on the lights and fan when I enter, and turn fan of 15 minutes after I leave. Maybe even just an integration with IFTTT or Home Assistant.

Looks cool. Nice motion graphic on the site!

Have you considered launching on Kickstarter or another crowdfunding site?

Thanks! Yes we are doing a Kickstarter in February!

Demo video: https://youtu.be/SOPZ8-Ptk2E

Nice!

As a side note, maybe you already know it but that name in Spanish can be separated as "Lo Odio" which means "I Hate It" At first I though it was some kind of web where people put things they hate, so... Just FYI

Yeah we found out later (but before we took final decision). We thought it was funny because everyone hates bathroom noises so we went with it!

Cool, I'm curious about the manufacturing part. Would you mind sharing that process?

How did you find a manufacturer willing to build your product? Did you negotiate the price per unit?

Do they require a minimum purchase amount (ie, like 1000 units)?

If you do not have enough backers, are you planning on using your own money to buy up to the minimum purchase number, or cancel the entire project?

How do you plan on validating the build quality before settling on a specific manufacturer to build your product?

Thanks! Sure. Circuit boards are easy. Many suppliers. The tricky part is the casing. Currently we are using Toolless that mill the units with CNC. That’s pricy per unit but we can order lower number of units. If we reach enough funding we go for injection moulding. This is the way to go. Start small and expensive, worry about cutting costs and scaling later.

We have already built a final prototype that looks and works like final product together with our plastics manufacturer. Circuit boards from Pcbway currently but larger order will come from other company most likely. Again there are many. And same with injection moulding; lots of companies do it.

I think we will reach crowdfunding goals but if not we may get external funding.

Yeah, doing things like neglecting my girlfriend for my side project isn't something that I want to do, I personally think that isn't healthy for our relationship. Of course, everyone has a different kind of relationship so it can work for some people.

Was it worth it in the end for you?

It’s harder to found a startup than finding a new girlfriend... (YMMV) Yes I learned a lot. And she respected my commitment but we fought a lot from the stress. All good now.

Someone's been watching too many videos of Kevin O'Leary.

Do what I did with my wife: work on the couch while you watch TV together. She eventually saw how important it was to me and it was easier to step away for some productive alone time more often. I will say that it’s much harder now that I have a daughter, and that’s one of the reasons I am now full-time on my business instead of staying part-time. :)

This sounds very similar to my experience doing a PhD while working full time.

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