Show HN: WhitePad - iPhone-sized whiteboard - our first physical product | Hacker News Reader

Show HN: WhitePad - iPhone-sized whiteboard - our first physical product

indiegogo.com

35 pointsdusker23 comments

My fiancee came up with this idea looking at me and my co-founders sketching app UI's on a whiteboard. Now she needs to raise $6k usd to take it from a prototype to a real product. I'm using one and loving it!

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Why not just make an actual app that does this + allows for you to snapshot the drawing? It may already exist (not an iOS dev)

I like the idea, but I think I'd find more use for pads printed with an iPhone outline. It'd save having to photograph and then clean each time with WhitePad?

iPhone-shaped paper notepads were C&D'd by Apple years ago. Is this produced under license from Apple? If not, isn't it awfully risky for anyone to contribute to the campaign when Apple could C&D you at any time?

http://ask.metafilter.com/165665/Is-there-anything-I-can-do-...

You can't patent a 3x5 rectangular piece of plastic. Worst case they have to remove the design from the front and make it a little less specific.

I thought in Apple vs. Samsung, one of Apple's patents that was upheld was rounded corners -_-

http://asia.cnet.com/apple-wins-patent-on-a-rectangle-with-r...

Yeah, but rounded corners in phones :) not whiteboards. Anyways the whole patent-thing is getting ridiculous.

I agree that some of the patents are absurd when I hear the generalization of some of them, but seeing as I have no experience in patents (another headache), I'll keep my mouth shut :x

That's a good one, haven't heard of this before. Personally i think apple relaxed a bit from what they've been doing 3 years a go and have other things to worry about. Besides the design of WhitePad matches a number of other products on the market not only an iPhone.

> iPhone-shaped paper notepads were C&D'd by Apple years ago.

Was that because you could draw tiny little apps on them without paying $99?

I can see the usefulness of being able to hold your mock-up in your hand, but doesn't the WhitePad rotate when you try to draw on it? Would be nice to have a very thin non-slip pad on the back of it. It also would be very nice to be able to draw, but that has nothing to do with your product.

Nice idea, re: pad on the back.

I always find it very hard to draw, and erase, tiny details on whiteboards. It's like the pen has to be drawn in a certain direction and you can't overlap lines without smudging them. Also the pens are always very thick. I can't imagine drawing with a whiteboard pen on something so small.

Get a fine point whiteboard marker, I bought a pack for interviews and loved them.

Useless. It's not actually iphone sized. I also love to have your logo and useless markings on my whiteboards. Thanks but no thanks.

Also similar: http://www.thenoteboard.com/

Cool! At first I thought it was a joke until I saw the intended purpose for devs/designers....I'd buy one, just imagine I would really need a fine tip whiteboard marker.

The regular ones work well enough for me. I know my fiancee's already talking to some companies about producing a thin-tip marker especially for this.

Just placed my order :) please let me know if you guys do get the fine tip markers in, I could really see me needing it.

My fiancee will be posting up updates on IndieGoGo site about that definitely :)

i dont get it - its a square peice of plastic? why couldnt you just cut one for yourself at home? why fund a campaign and wait weeks?...im totally confused.

This is the type of thing that totally confuses you? People pay to offload a little work all the time. Do you whittle your own toothpicks? That's just a piece of wood. Do you make your own floss? That's just waxed thread. I thought it was a little silly at first but by the end of the video I'd figure for a couple bucks it might be cool. One thing I wasn't however was left totally confused.

Well I´m glad you weren´t confused - now ignoring your ad hominem comments - all I´m trying to understand is a) why one needs a kickstarter campaign for this and b)if I had to wait a while to get a square piece of plastic - I´d rather go to a local CNC place and have it cut for me (or even a local home depot kinda place). No i dont make my own floss or toothpicks - but theres a whole lot more work that goes into them & I dont need to fund them online via a kickstarter to get them - I can go to the neighbourhood shop and pick em up - just like I could with the pieces of plastic I´d prototype my apps on ;). Now go learn how to argue properly rather than getting personal!

Backed it immediately (grabbed the second one). Hope you guys reach your goal, this looks totally awesome.

Thanks dude!

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