Peter Chamberlain wrote:I understand Scotts panel was able to load the new firmware with Dwaine's assistance.
Unluckily My panel experienced the same thing.
The different thing was that I had my speed editor and control panel connected at the same time.
Resolve's message showed me that my speed editor needed firmware update, while i already updated it two days ago when only connecting the speed editor to my setup.
Once I opened the panel setup app following the message telling me to update speed editor (but actually it's the mini panel needing firmware upgrade), I clicked right to switch from speed editor menu to mini panel menu. Then I click the button and it shows me to update the firmware, I clicked update, and with an instant flash, it quickly turns to "Unable to connect due to connection issue BLABLABLA"(don't remember that exact message but it says something like this). But on my mini panel it actually got in the updating sequence, and I waited, it showed me it's done, tells me to reconnect power, I did then the same thing as above, no image shown on the two screens as usual, instead they were completely black, with the Home button flashing.
I think there might be two problems, one being the program logic problem that the firmware update message only shows the first device's name in the control panel app, and the second being the updating procedure might not be very secure from all the connection issues on windows(WIN11 21H2 22000.282).
Fortunately, once it's bricked, I didn't really panic as I was a bit prepared knowing this thread. I re-entered the Control Panel app, gladly it still detects my mini panel, I reperformed a firmware update, it worked, the Home button was no longer flashing halfway, then once it's done, the screens came back. Gladly this problem didn't give me too much headache. I guess if anyone else got into the same shoes, you guys can tell him to reperform firmware update if their setup still recognized the panel. Hope my story helps.
Honestly, I know it's a bit contradictory, on the one hand, we might buy big expensive professional setups hoping to get the best experience and good service, on the other hand, so few people are using these products that when you get caught in a problem not often encountered by the user base, you would really panic, fearing that you might have done some permanent damage to your devices and you have to go through the long repair process (especially if you're on set, I think you guys all know what I mean, which would be extremely embarrassing) or maybe it's just a very small problem that can be easily solved given the proper tools, but it happens you don't have the tools or knowledge need to solve it quickly on spot, and then you have to go through the entire repair process just for that one thing.
I live in China, and from what I've heard from basically all the local filmmaking-related communities, everyone has a rather bad impression with you guys or officially speaking BMD and your dealer in China OxygenTec's Repair service, the overall opinion would be that if your devices really got into a problem, it has to be sent back to Australia, then wait in line, hoping for the best that your devices can get into the right hands and that the engineers on the other side of the ocean are skilled enough to solve the problem. (While Local repair stores just across the street in Shenzhen can literally switch and resolder every single chip in all the latest iPhones.)
(Above is the worst situation I can think of. I personally never got into the state where I really need to tap into the customer service phase with my BMD devices, but I heard a new BMD repair center is in the construction phase quite a while ago, maybe that will change this opinion over time.)
I'm not trying to complain about everything, I just want to tell you guys there can be a good balance, between user-friendly repairability and open-source device tuning (that although the community might come up with some good custom solutions, in the end might make the experience feeling really chaotic), to complete closed loops like Apple. I personally think the best balance sits in a solution similar to Emergency Download Mode on android smartphones (a deeper layer system that can wipe and reinstall everything even if the normal OS completely bricks), for professional devices, we don't really have to time to tune how things should work, we want devices that work at it best from the get-go, it's best that you guys take the design part. But we must admit that accidents can happen, maybe in the worst case, so when it comes to problems still on the software level, it would be best to have something like an Emergency Download Mode solution on all of your hardware lineups, it should be invisible when your device functions normally, but once something goes wrong, it should work in the worst-case scenario, allowing you to fully wipe away the previous settings and firmware on the device and reinstall a new system from the files we download from your servers or from backup files we can download on your official site(we all work in various timezones, and even sometimes off the internet, so honestly the whole process of trying to contact your technical service department from local dealers, having to explain everything to the technicians, back and forth waiting for work hours and relies is definitely an outdated emergency repair service system that should have been a thing of the past long ago.).
Okay, I think that's it. Hope my humble suggestion can be of some help when it comes to designing products in the future.
Have a nice day!