VisorCentral.com (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/index.php)
- Visor Prism (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=19)
-- case replacement (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/showthread.php?threadid=34053)

case replacement

Hi,
I broke the case for my Prism. Gethightech does not seem to have any replacements right now. Anyone else know of where to get a replacement case besides trying to find a dead unit on Ebay?
Thanks,
Brian

hmmm...

out of curiosity...how much would you consider paying for a new prism housing? I used to do a lot of rapid production work and could probably design a new housing and get it fabricated for maybe $100 to $200 dollars depending on how many orders I could get.

Strange Tanks

Hi,
Gethightech.com was selling them for $40 or so. I can get a repair from handspring for around ~$125. Used "dead" prisms can be found on ebay for ~$40. So I guess about $40-50. From the manufacturer that would be an outrageous price. But if someone had to start from scratch I could see paying that much.

It is very annoying to have a pretty decent piece of technology that is impaired by the most inexpensive part of the device. I use a Clie as my primary PDA but the Prism is my music and GPS machine and I would like to see it "whole" again.

Brian

Re: hmmm...

quote:

---

Originally posted by strangetanks
out of curiosity...how much would you consider paying for a new prism housing? I used to do a lot of rapid production work and could probably design a new housing and get it fabricated for maybe $100 to $200 dollars depending on how many orders I could get.

Strange Tanks

---

hmmm...metal case...

A metal case would be interesting...and there are processes which could make them in small quantities. Unfortunately my experience with rapid prototype or a short run production part metal parts like that is that it would be almost prohibitively expensive. I would say it might cost as around $300 for a 2 piece housing (front and back) and it would have a sandblasted look not that nice chrome plated look. If people are paying $125 for cases from somewhere else I think we could definately have them made for less than that, and in the mean time we could design them to look different than the origanals.

Strange Tanks

Prism Case

I think there is a loyal following of Prism owners out there that might be into the metal case options.

Just my 2 cents....

You can count me as 1 of them...

Yes - make a metal case!

There are very old threads on this forum of people looking for metal prism cases. Definitely a money maker.

Me three

I am looking for a new case (front only) but if a snazzy metal one were available (for LESS than the price of a new mid level PDA) I'd be buying too.

Besides GETHIGHTECH where else can one get a plastic case?

__________________
The cool/smart/intelligent/dumb phrase that usually appears here.

But remember...

If there is more than one possible answer - it isn't a dumb question!

Any electrical engineers out there?

Before you start designing that case, the obvious suggestion would be to consult with an electrical engineer first. Maybe there is some functional reason that they went with a plastic case when they designed the visor prism.

Are there any electrical engineers on the forum that know the prism innards enough to give design advice about a metal case?

If Handspring was smart, THEY would make a metal case, or at least replacement plastic cases. They still could make a lot of money off this. Just making pretty cases saved Apple from financial ruin.