eBox 3350MX Compact PC Teardown & Review

[PedroR]

Hi Liya08

Just as a side note, there is now an official Power Adaptor for eBox available here http://robosavvy.com/store/product_info ... ts_id/1904

I believe it can also be used to recharge most of the USB battery packs that other customers have reported to work well the eBox.

Regards
Pedro.

[marcus_d]

Hi,

Hopefully roboard / PedroR can address this?

eBox 3350MX does not at present seem to carry the FCC/CE approval markings? What is the regulatory status on 3350MX, and when will it be getting FCC/CE approvals/markings?

Thanks!

[PedroR]

Hi Marcus

As far as I know there is CE certification for the whole 33xx line.

We have a copy of the CE certificate for 3300MX-* and 3310MX-* which we can happily send if you need it.
For 3350MX I believe the certification has also been completed although the manufacturer did not send us a copy (we only received information it had been done and we didn't request a copy of it).
However I trust it is complete as well.

As for FCC I do not have information about this. As far as I understand FCC applies to the US not EU.

In any case FCC requirements seem to have been relaxed in recent years: Please refer to the Wikipedia article about Product certification where you can read "In recent years, this [FCC certification] has been weakened to "type notification", which means that manufacturers are allowed to "approve" their own products, without the oversight of independent testing."

Please post back if you need further information.

Regards
Pedro.

[marcus_d]

Hi Pedro,

My understanding is that EU countries absolutely require the CE marking to be visibly affixed to the product, otherwise the product cannot legally be imported.

Having the CE/FCC markings means the manufacturer has done what is necessary to ensure the product complies with the relevant safety/EMI/etc regulation (whether by self-certification or otherwise).

As far as I know, 3300MX-* etc have the CE marking (and FCC marking also) clearly visible on the rear of the product.

3350MX does not appear to have the CE/FCC marking anywhere on the product itself, nor on the packaging -- which (according to my understanding) means that in fact legally 3350MX may not be imported into many countries at all.

This suggests to me the manufacturer has not yet completed e.g. EMI testing and is therefore not yet ready to put the CE/FCC markings onto 3350MX (otherwise, surely, CE/FCC markings would have been visible).

Unfortunately this seems to create a problem in that 3350MX (in my understanding) appears not be legally importable to many places (including the EU) until this is resolved.

I am really curious to know what the situation is here, and what the timeline is to get this resolved.

Thanks!

[PedroR]

With regards to UK, as far as I know, Product Certification is optional. You can find this mentioned if you Google for it on many different resources - including the Wikipedia link above.

From DMP's experience and time on the market I trust all necessary manufacturing rules were followed for CE. It would not make too much sense otherwise, especially since the 3310MX and 3350MX are based off the same platform.

As I said, according to the indication we have from the manufacturer it should have been completed already.

The manufacturer's offices are closed until the 29th so I am unable to obtain more information and copies of official documentation for the particular case of 3350MX until then but I will post back as soon as I have more information.


[EDIT]The manufacturer has sent us the Documentation you were inquiring about.
For all future reference the CE certifications for the 33xxMX line can be downloaded bellow:
- 3350MX: http://robosavvy.com/RoboSavvyPages/DMP ... cation.pdf
- 3300MX / 3310MX: http://robosavvy.com/RoboSavvyPages/DMP ... cation.pdf
[/EDIT]

Regards.

[marcus_d]

Hi Pedro,

I really look forward to hearing back on this matter after the 29th.

I do not follow the UK being optional -- many resources suggest all 27 member states of the EU (including the UK) require the CE marking on all electronics equipment.

See e.g.
http://www.cemarking.net/do-your-produc ... e-marking/

I do not doubt DMP's competence -- its just odd their established products all carry CE/FCC marks, while 3350MX does not -- which suggests they have not yet completed the relevant process.

Thanks

[marcus_d]

Hi Pedro,

Anxious to hear if you have received more information on this?

Thanks!

[marcus_d]

Hi,

I am sorry if this comes over as a rant (which is not my intention), but I find it difficult to express how disappointed I am by the present state of affairs.

CE/FCC regulatory is a serious matter, and I find it very disconcerting that there is as yet no further clarity on the regulatory status of the 3350MX.

So far no distributor I have enquired from has been able to produce any regulatory statement for the 3350MX. Approvals for the rest of the 33xx line are not relevant, since enclosure/connector changes (as introduced by 3350MX) typically invalidate those.

The 3350MX seems to be a great product, but all the evidence currently to hand (or the lack thereof) suggests no other interpretation than that 3350MX cannot legally be imported into the USA, the UK, Europe, etc.

Since CE/FCC compliance seems to be claimed in the 3350MX's marketing material, I am really puzzled that no-one seems able to produce documentation to back up this claim.

[marcus_d]

Ironically, to underline the importance of this issue, just today there is news about the Raspberry Pi being delayed by distributors until the CE marking is applied.

http://www.electronicsweekly.com/Articl ... ential.htm

[gordonjcp]

As the subject says, I'd rather donate it to someone than bin it. I'll even chuck in a 16GB SDHC card.

Reply off-forum, please.

[Devonian]

As the subject says, I'd rather donate it to someone than bin it. I'll even chuck in a 16GB SDHC card.

Reply off-forum, please.

You have a PM.

Regds,

Nigel.