I found this info in their site:
http://www.butterflylabs.com/landing/landing-aw.phpThe BitForce SC chip is now in final stage development. Initial product delivery is scheduled for November, 2012.
However, I'm curious about if they will start shipping in the expected date...
Josh said that, barring any unforseen setbacks, they are still on schedule to deliver in early November. He expects some unforseen setbacks though, and thus tells us to expect delivery in late November.
Ship *all* preorders by late November, or just some?
No, just the initial batch. Though he has stated elsewhere that he hopes to have all preorders cleared before the new year.
Is there any info on how they're structuring the batching? Again, I'm trying to figure out what the likely ship date would be if I ordered today.
Thanks!
nym
As far as number of units? Nope, Josh still says that is an unknown. However, they are making the first batch using their hand-assembled process currently used for assembling their FPGA devices, and will switch to the automated, machine-driven production afterward. I wouldn't expect production rates to exceed current production rates of FPGA assembly, and I wouldn't expect them to spend more than a couple of weeks assembling them by hand before their larger batch shipments of parts arrive and they can begin using the machinery.
If you assume 50 units/day hand-assembled, that'd be maybe 500 units shipped (less 25 for each minirig shipped). I'd expect to see a few minirigs, and a couple hundred singles and jalepenos shipped out. But that's just a complete guess, and it depends entirely on when the bulk shipments of all the little parts arrive and are ready for mass production.