Monday, December 28, 2015

Project: Preview | Interview with Jim Smith

Hey everyone! Here's SL's first Project: Preview!

...While it's not a product review, (one coming soon, thought!) we have a great interview that we did with Jim Smith, the creator of Hologram Pyramid!



Hologram Pyramid, a holographic projector for smartphones, is currently on Kickstarter. It's 19% funded as of this article's writing, with 16 days to go. Check it out here!

Hologram Pyramid

Well, without further ado, here's the interview. Enjoy!

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Carter Schaap: Great to be here talking to you tonight. How are you?
Jim Smith: I'm doing good, thanks.

CS: So when did you think up the concept for Hologram Pyramid?
JS: I started the project about 3 months ago. I was searching around on the internet; Reddit, actually, and came upon instructions to make your own holographic projector out of a CD case. So, I went into my garage and got this built. It was a pretty rough prototype.

CS: Have you come across any other products on the market similar to what you've created here?
JS: Yeah, I think I found maybe three other models out there... But none have the suction cup feature.

CS: Is this your full time job now?
JS: No, no, this is a side project I work on in the wee hours of the night.

CS: So I'm assuming then that it's just a one-man team working here.
JS: Yeah, It's just me.

CS: What goes into the creation of these pyramids? You mentioned using injection molding in the future for mass-production... is this how the prototypes are created?
JS: Right now, the prototype is machined out of a solid piece of clear plastic. The process starts with a 3" by 3" block of plastic that's cut down into the pyramid shape.

CS: It sounded from the Kickstarter video like you taught yourself most of the science behind the project using simple online resources like YouTube.
JS: Yes, I had to teach myself all about how the physics worked.

CS: How many prototypes or iterations of the pyramid did you go through to reach the current design?
JS: This is about the third prototype.

CS: This is your first Kickstarter, I presume. Have you found it exciting? Stressful?
JS: A little bit of both!

CS: You already have a fair amount of backers pledging to the Kickstarter. I think partially the allure of your project is that's it's much more unique than some of the other crowdfunding campaigns out there.

CS: Finally, do you have any other concepts or ideas you'd like to work on in the future?
JS: I'd probably try and make it even better. I have a ton of concepts I'm always throwing around. I'd like to make a tablet version, something larger to project images off of bigger screens.

CS: It's been great having you on today. Where can readers find you besides, obviously, the Kickstarter?
JS: Sure thing! My website is www.sprybird.com. From there you can find all the links to my LinkedIn, etc.

CS: Thanks for your time!

JS: Take care, man.

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Well, I hope ya'll enjoyed the first-ever issue of Project: Preview. If you're interested in the Hologram Pyramid, hop over to Kickstarter and donate $25, which'll get you a pyramid of your own!

And if you do, make sure and tell them Carter sent ya!

..Carter..

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