Magination - A magnetic toolkit for hands-on learning and creativity!

Production and Easter Holiday
over 8 years ago – Wed, Mar 23, 2016 at 01:57:59 PM

Hey everyone!

Here’s a quick update about what’s going on and current status before the Easter Holiday kicks in. 95% have responded to their surveys, so we’re close to completion! If you’re reading this and haven’t received/noticed a mail from us, get in touch now, because we have tried to reach out to you many times already! Either here on Kickstarter, in the comments, or directly to us on [email protected]. We expect that you are not using the mail address we have or that our mails end up in your junk folder, just get in touch and we'll work it out together :) 

The magnets have arrived and are safely stored, ready to be unpacked and put into the pieces. The total weight of the shipment was 865 kg (1907 pounds) and it had to be placed on two pallets! It feels great to finally have the magnets in our possession.

The Norwegian manufacturer of the plastic parts of the pieces have been quite busy, but last Friday we took a trip to their factory and had a very interesting tour and learned even more about the process and how they work. We brought our GoPro and will create a small video (when we have time) of the trip, so you also can experience what we’re doing! We got to pick up a lot of sample pieces and the full production starts immediately after the Easter Holiday.

The bags look and feel absolutely gorgeous and we’re really happy with the way they turned out. They got the ‘M’ on one side and the full logo on the other side, and can neatly fit two Magneato sets - while still having room for more pieces. 

The YouTube-channel SmarterEveryDay showcased some highly interesting advances in permanent magnet design that we wanted to share with you all. The company Polymagnet has created a way to print magnetic pixels (maxels) on a magnet – and it looks incredible! We should totally try to find a way to apply this technology to Magination-pieces. Have a look:

Any ideas? We'd love to hear them!

Happy Easter! 

The Magination Team

Making progress
almost 9 years ago – Sat, Mar 05, 2016 at 03:23:44 PM

Hi folks! 

Well done with answering your surveys so far - 91% have completed it already! Big thumbs up to all of you, so we’ve added some statistics at the bottom of this update, because statistics are always fun… Right? It’s still 9% who have yet to complete their survey, so we have kept it open for another month to let you choose colors yourself and make sure that you get your reward at the same time as everyone else. It would be great to have as many surveys as possible answered, because it makes everything from planning to shipping a lot easier. If you need help to complete the survey, or don’t know what we are talking about at all, you should definitely click here and follow the instructions. Much appreciated!

Our magnet manufacturer is currently producing all the magnets that are going into the pieces, and they have been great to work with so far! Here’s a picture of the magnets during production before they have been magnetized:

As you can see, these are not “magnets” just yet. They are not even attracted to each other, because they have to be exposed to a really strong magnetic field for a short moment. After this step, they are inspected, packed and ready for shipping.

Getting the colors right is something we have used a lot of time on, and now we got something we really like. We have tried and tested, discussed and tried some more. A nice color can (and usually will) look different once it is used in plastic compared to what it looks like on a piece of paper or on a screen. Here is a picture of parts of the process and some different tests we have done, both for current and future colors.

Of course, the colors you now see on your screen is different from how it actually looks in real life on the final pieces… Go figure! The first important test was to get plastic-samples of the colors, which are the largest rectangles in the middle of the image. These were really helpful and have made it a lot easier to get the correct colors. Together with some great designers, we have chosen the colors and are soon ready to make the first new pieces! We got some more samples and cool stuff being shipped to us as we write this. Because we got delayed, we have spent extra time to make the rewards even better. More info later! The estimated shipping for Kickstarter-backers is in May. 

If you are in Trondheim this weekend and want to do something fun, you should totally drop by “Vitensenteret” here in Trondheim! They are hosting the first ever “Trigger oppfinnerfestival” (Trigger inventor-festival), and you can try Magination there! Go to this event on Facebook for more information.

As we have opened pre-orders, we hope to get help from you to spread the word further and let more people know about Magination. The more the merrier! Our BackerKit pre-order store has some easy ways to share the project. Keep your eyes open for some Magination-competitions in the not so distant future! If you have a close friend who wants a Magination-set, you should join forces and add the set he/she wants as an add-on to the pledge you already have. Then you both save on shipping :) Finally, a BIG WELCOME to our new pre-order backers! We’re happy to have you with us, and look forward to an exciting future with all of you!

The Magination Team

IMPORTANT - Surveys have been sent
almost 9 years ago – Mon, Feb 01, 2016 at 01:05:39 PM

We have just sent you an email with a link to your personal BackerKit survey! It is important to us and the project that you fill out this survey, as this is the only way for us to know what kind of colors you want your set to come in and where to ship it (in an organized fashion). Just fill it out soon, or even better, TODAY! :) 

You don’t need to create an account to fill out the survey, as BackerKit uses the magic of technology to know what you pledged for and which set. You just have to find the mail in your inbox (it might be in the junk-folder), choose the colors for your set, provide shipping information, and pledge for more add-ons if you’d like. A detailed step-by-step instruction on how to fill out the survey can be found in this update, just scroll down.

1. Double-check your inbox and junk folder, the mail subject is “Response Needed -- Get your reward for Magination - a magnetic, experimental and creative game” and it’s sent from “Magination”. 

2. If you still can’t find it, recover your survey here. If you use your Facebook login for your Kickstarter account, the BackerKit survey will be sent to the email you used for your Facebook account. If you can’t access this email-account, click “Contact Us” on this page and we’ll get you sorted out.

If you decide later that you want to edit your survey response, you can go back to your survey and change it any time before we lock down the surveys for processing. The surveys will close March 1st, but you’ll be able to change your shipping address until a week or two before we ship. 

We’ve been looking forward to show you the different add-ons you can pledge for! When you have selected the colors for your set, you’ll be able to pledge for extra add-ons on BackerKit. Here they are! 

You can choose between modules, multipacks, selected Kickstarter-sets and even extra bags and manuals! Rather than adding multiple shipping fees that vary for every pledge level based on the previous weight for the original set and the weight of the pledged set (complicated, right?), we decided to NOT add shipping fees for the add-ons. We have increased the price for the sets a little, but in total we pay a little extra for your shipping if you get some add-ons, and we are happy to do so. Your card will not be charged immediately. 

Take a look at the cost of the different add-ons when deciding what you’d like to pledge extra for. If you want 4 or more “Player Modules”, you should choose “Multipack: Single” + “Multipack: Triple” instead. That’s cheaper, unless you do not want the pre-defined colors in those packs, of course. 

If you are a backer who pledged for a set on Kickstarter, this information is not relevant and you can skip it. If you are a backer who changed your mind and want some pieces, this section is for you! Everything is explained in your survey, but remember to add this special add-on as you haven’t paid the shipping fee like the other Kickstarter backers have done already. That’s fair, and you only have to add one of this :) 

This section is for those of you who are not familiar with Kickstarter and/or BackerKit and could use some guidance when completing the survey. First of all, the survey is our tool to collect important information about your reward/set, and it’s necessary to complete it to get your Magination-set. It’s therefore important that you fill this out in time, so we have all the information ready and available to start shipping! We are using BackerKit to make the surveys and collect information in a much better fashion, and we have sent you an email that should be in your inbox right now. If you can’t find this email, scroll up to the “Can’t find the mail”-section. 

Open the mail, and click the big button. This will open your survey on BackerKit’s webpage, and it knows which set you pledged for, how much you pledged, and the country you come from. If the country is not correct, select your country where you want the set shipped. Click on the big green button to get started! 

It’s time to choose colors! Your pledge-level will determine the amount of Player Modules you can choose a color for. The smallest set, the Magnifier, can choose a color for one module, while the Magneato x 2 can choose a color for eight modules. In the example-picture above is the Magtastic reward used and it's possible to choose a color for three modules. You can have all in the same color, or all different. The choice is 100% yours!

Notice that your bag, manual and Double-modules are added automatically to your pledge. Now it’s time to pledge for some add-ons, if you’d like that. You can also skip this step it you feel you’ve got enough pieces. The add-ons can come in different colors and sizes. Some colors are pre-defined, like in the multipacks and sets. 

Here you’ll put in your address where your set should be sent. This is pretty standard stuff, and when you click “Next”, BackerKit will check the address and you can submit it and move to the next step. You can change your address until one or two weeks before we start shipping. 

You’re almost there, just one final thing to do! Look at the summary and make sure that everything looks good. It’s important to check that you have the correct colors and add-ons that you want. This will not be possible to change after we lock the surveys by the end of February, but you’ll be able to change your address later. If you pledged for add-ons, you’ll put in your payment information here. Click “Confirm” to complete the survey! 

YAY, that’s it! We got your info and now know what colors you’d like for your set and where to ship it. If you want to increase your attractiveness even more, you can spread the love right on BackerKit’s webpage. Just click on your preferred social platform and let people know. We’re soon taking pre-orders for those who missed the campaign, so the more buzz we’re able to make, the more people will join us in the development of Magination. 

The Magination Team

Production and development update
almost 9 years ago – Thu, Jan 21, 2016 at 12:45:31 PM

As a brand new company and setting up production for the first time, we prepared for most of the hurdles we had to overcome. One of the hurdles we didn’t prepare enough for was all the paperwork that had to be completed to simply get Magination as a working company up and running. It’s important to us to keep you up to date on everything that’s going on, even when it’s not always happy news. In short, we realize that we’re going to be delayed with the production for at least a month :( 

Due to some Norwegian bureaucracy, we just got access to the bank account to pay the magnet manufacturer today, which unfortunately results in the magnet production crashing with the Chinese New Year. We’re REALLY sorry for this, as we know all of you are looking forward to receive your Magination-set. We are working hard to make sure that everything else is ready and set up here in Norway, where the production of the pieces and finalizing of the sets will happen. The other parts of production are on schedule, so we look forward to get the magnets and start putting everything together, using the delay to make Magination even better!

These are actually finished! We are just going to test them a little more to make sure that everything looks nice and then finally let the BackerKit team review the surveys. You’ll receive a mail with a link to your personal BackerKit survey by the end of this month, and it would be awesome if you took your time to complete it soon. This will let us know what kind of colors you want your set to come in and where to ship it. The sooner you get it completed, the better! We’re going to post an update here on Kickstarter that will explain (hopefully) everything you need to know when filling it out, whether you are a Kickstarter pro or never have backed a Kickstarter project before!

Happy news! We’ve been in touch with three magnificent students who are going to write and code their bachelor degree in computer science this semester, and guess what, they want to work with us! They are going to focus their degree on the part of the community where you can upload, rate and find new games. This is great news, because we can get a way better community up and running with more functionality in place than we initially planned!

Say hi to Petter, Simen and Steffen! You’ll be hearing more about them in the future, and be one of the first to try what they are making!

The Magination Team

Happy 2016! Getting started.
almost 9 years ago – Mon, Jan 11, 2016 at 02:53:35 PM

We’re back after a magnetic holiday with our respective family and friends, and can’t wait to get started on this new and exciting year! So, what’s happening on our end?

We have started to prepare the surveys and will do our best to make them simple and easy to fill out. As you’re going to be able to freely choose the colors for your set, things can appear to be a little confusing for some. We’ll post a new update exclusively for the surveys when they have been sent out, explaining the different steps. We’re currently working on the add-ons, trying to find a pricing that works for all of us, as the shipping cost might increase together with the weight of additional add-ons, depending on the weight of your pledged set. We’ll sure find a great solution in time :)

The injection molds that will produce the pieces are going to be production-ready in February, and we are currently waiting for samples for the new and fresh colors we wish to use (and that you made possible)! We’re soon receiving the final samples for the magnets that will go into the pieces. These are both the most expensive and important part of Magination, and we want them to be perfect.

Paperwork and logistic-planning starts to line up, where the next months are going to be beyond exciting and we’re hyped to move into full production of Magination! 

The Magination Team