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-- Hidden mold flaw (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/showthread.php?threadid=626)

I have noticed(at least on the Graphite models) that if you look closely at the area next to the stylus slot, you can see the pattern, in the plastic case, is slightly raised. It looks like at one time they experimented with putting the stylus in that location and then had second thoughts and moved it back to the bevel area instead.

I don't have my visor yet but i know that some computer makers have a special bump in the case to make it harder to copy and sell off as athentic

I don't know what you are talking about. I don't see any area raised.

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James Hromadka
VisorCentral.com
Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/jehromadka

Sometimes when the plastic is being poured into the mold some spots are colder than others and it cools and hardens faster this is why you have the discoloration

The area I am referring to runs parallel to the open portion of the stylus slot on the left side. On the smooth portion of the plastic. It's not really raised, but if you look very closely you can see a variation in the texture of the plastic. You can even see a tiny hairline that runs along the bottom from left to right. I stated earlier that it looked like that area had been tooled by hand. It's the exact dimensions of the open area of the stylus slot. Which leads me to believe that at one point in the design process, the designers might have had the stylus in that location, and later decided to move it back farther. It can't be my imagination, or just my Visor, because several people I know have Graphite Visor's and they have identical patterns in the case. That means it was cast that way.

I have absolutely NO CLUE how you noticed that. I couldn't find this when you first mentioned it, and only now see it after you better described it. It almost looks like I inadvertently scratched the case, but didn't. My guess is it's either a throwback to a previous design which placed the stylus there, or some mold problem. Doesn't affect performance or look at all, but interesting to theorize about.

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JakeBlues2
"the BAND!"

I see precisely what you're talking about. If you hold the Visor so that you're looking edge on at the stylus side, and the screen is facing to your left, you can see an open slot at the top - this is where the "grip" on the stylus fits. Now, if you rotate the Visor a little to the right, so that the screen is starting to point away from you, and you look at the case immediately to the left of the "grip" slot, you'll see that the texture on the surface is smooth and shiny, whereas the texture on the rest of the case is more frosted looking. This isn't a defect. If you look edge on again, you'll see that the shiny portion is where the case has been cut away ever so slightly to make room for the grip. It is just slightly indented there. If it wasn't the slot would be too narrow for the "grip" to fit in there.

ChrisB

No! your still not looking in the right area!

I have a web page up to show the area I am referring to:
http://www.palmfactory.com/mold_flaw.html

Foo,
Unless you actually get a look at the molds, you'll never know for sure. It doesn't look like a repair from a previous cutout, as the mold mark does not extend to the top of the case. It looks more like a difference in the mold piece that would need to be inserted to form the void for the stylus grip. If you look at what you call a "flaw" under high magnification, you will see that this is actually a mold line that extends from the edge of the case, down to inside the stylus grip void. If this is indeed a mold line, (and there is no indications that it is anything but that) the supposed "defect" in the case is nothing more than a difference in texture between the major body of the mold and the mold insert. This type of marking is typical of those left by multi-piece molds.
Although your theory is more interesting, the actual reason that mark is there is normal.

[This message has been edited by staad (edited 11-16-1999).]

no offence guys BUT.......
ROFLMAO.....
funny thread......

Hey, now that we've got 'em, we need SOMETHING to do!

I just talked with Peter Skillman, a senior product designer at Handspring who basically designed the Visor, and I asked him about the slight case anomaly by the stylus holder. It turns out that it is a function of the manufacuring process, and not a past design flaw. The presence of the holes for the stylus holder make that part tricky to manufacture without breaking the plastic, so through the process(I'm not going to go through it and I don't remember it all) a slight difference is noticable. Granted it's so minimal that you practically don't even notice it, but the story is interesting.