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Creating a New Electronic Hardware Product Just Got Easier…

Get the expert guidance and training you need to develop, manufacture and sell your new electronic product.

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Does any of this sound familiar to you?

You’ve come to realize you can’t do this all by yourself. You know you need help!

Introducing the Hardware Academy

Get the expert guidance and training you need to successfully bring your new electronic hardware product to market.

Bringing a new product to market is similar to traversing a minefield. Your chances of making it across successfully are slim if you try it alone.

The saying “you don’t know what you don’t know” is especially true when bringing a new product into the world. You need a guide who has done it before, or better yet an entire team of experienced guides.

If you’ve never brought a new product to market before there are so many unknowns you don’t even know exist.

Let the Hardware Academy be your guide through this unknown territory. It’s never too early or too late in your journey for the Academy to help you.

MEET SOME OF THE EXPERTS WAITING TO HELP YOU IN THE HARDWARE ACADEMY:

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YOU GET SUPPORT FROM A TEAM OF EXPERTS PLUS:

COURSES AND WORKSHOPS

Get access to in-depth video courses and workshops that will teach you all of the skills you need to succeed with your new electronic product.

Course topics include both technical and entrepreneurial topics. A new course or workshop is released every month while you also get access to the full course library.

Some of the currently available courses include:

PRIVATE CONSULTING

With the Standard and Premium plans you get private consulting with John Teel. You also get access to John in the Starter plan but it’s not private one-to-one.

Private consulting includes both email consulting and access to a private communication area inside the community. It does not include phone calls.

John is in the community every day with all of the other experts answering questions and providing advice, but he is also available for private consulting at any time.

Any confidential information you share privately is protected by an NDA so you can feel safe sharing all of the details about your product.

TRUSTED REFERRALS

You’ll get access to a qualified list of over 200 developers, suppliers, and manufacturers. These are all companies that either I’ve used personally, or that have been recommended by other members.

This alone is worth the cost of the Academy! No longer do you have to guess who is best, or risk being ripped off. Now you get referrals for trusted developers, manufacturers, and suppliers.

With the Standard and Premium plans you can also discuss your project privately with John Teel for his help selecting the best developer and manufacturer.

RESOURCES

Members have full access to a library of resources for hardware entrepreneurs and startups.

This includes design review checklists, legal templates, in-depth guides, product teardown videos, and much more.

New content is added on a monthly basis, and members always have access to the full library of resources.

THRIVING COMMUNITY

At the heart of the Hardware Academy is a thriving community with hundreds of hardware entrepreneurs!Whether you need feedback, support, or just want to connect with other hardware people the community is there for you. It’s a friendly place where all questions are welcome regardless of your experience level.

The Hardware Academy community isn’t at all like free forums you can find online. John Teel is in there every day answering questions, along with all of the other trusted experts that he has invited to participate.

DISCOUNTS

All members receive discounts on related products and services from a variety of vendors. Discounts include product design, design reviews, PCB boards, 3D printed prototypes, injection molds, and PCB design software. These discounts alone can be more than the cost of the Hardware Academy.

GET HELP FROM EXPERTS IN THESE AREAS:

Electronics Design

Programming

Mechanical Design

Prototyping

Certifications

Manufacturing

Marketing

Startups

Fundraising

Logistics

Patents

Sales

Get Unbiased Advice You Can Trust

To bring a new electronic product to market you will need to work with engineers, designers, programmers, consultants, freelancers, attorneys, marketers, suppliers, and many others. The more money you spend, the more these people or businesses benefit financially. 

For instance, if you hire an engineer at an hourly rate, they will make more money if they design a complicated product rather than a simplified version. Their financial interests don’t align with yours, and aren’t tied to your product’s ultimate success.

For example, when you hire a patent attorney or an engineer they get paid whether your product succeeds or fails. They basically have one shot to get as much from you as possible.

The problem is most of these business relationships are short-term. They do something for you, you pay them, then you both move on. If you later discover their work is low quality, it’s usually too late because you have already paid them in full. Your business relationship is over.

The Hardware Academy is very different and is all about the long-term relationship.

With a starting price of only $49 per month, I don’t make any profit on Academy members that only stick around for a month or two. I want (and need) you to stick around for the long-term. This business model depends on honesty and ongoing quality, otherwise members will just leave.

I have no financial interest outside of the small monthly membership fee, so my advice is unbiased and honest. For example, I don’t make more money by convincing you to develop an unnecessarily complex product.

I also don’t make commissions on any products or services I recommend.

My only interest is helping you succeed. I represent you, and you alone!

Some of the ways the Academy can save you money and time:

Behind the Scenes of the Hardware Academy

Click below for a LIVE look inside the Hardware Academy!

Community

Courses

Resources

The links above will give you limited access to the Academy. You will be able to see the various forums and the community discussion topics, but you cannot access the actual content or forum posts.

Hey there, I’m John Teel, a product design engineer, serial entrepreneur, and the founder Predictable Designs and the Hardware Academy.

As a senior design engineer at Texas Instruments I designed dozens of successful electronic microchips. My designs can be found in all kinds of popular electronic devices including some from Apple and Intel. You likely own a product or two with one of my chip designs inside.

Before starting Predictable Designs, I founded a hardware startup named MicroLite Tech that developed and manufactured consumer lighting devices. My product was sold in hundreds of retail locations across multiple countries.

In addition to developing the product I also oversaw manufacturing in China, marketing, trade shows, logistics, financing, and sales. I had a team of over 20 sales representatives across the U.S. selling my product at one point.

For the past 5 years my full time passion has been helping entrepreneurs like you to develop and bring new electronic products to market. Over 42,000 hardware entrepreneurs just like you have subscribed to my Predictable Designs blog.

I received my Master’s in Electrical Engineering (MSEE) degree from the University of Texas with a focus in Microelectronics.

As a member of the Hardware Academy you will always have priority access to me for help and advice. There is even a private consulting area inside the Academy if you need to discuss anything confidential with only me.

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NOT SURE IF THE HARDWARE ACADEMY IS RIGHT FOR YOU?

The Hardware Academy is NOT for everyone, and truth be told I’d prefer to help you figure out if it’s not right for you BEFORE you join rather than waste your time. So, let’s cut to the chase…

WHO THE ACADEMY IS FOR

WHO THE ACADEMY IS NOT FOR

What current members have to say…

The Hardware Academy has been by far one of the biggest bangs for my buck when it comes to business and manufacturing advice. John Teel has managed to pool together subject matter experts of all kinds that provide meaningful answers through a simple yet effective online interface. There’s no hassle. Just ask your question and let the answers pour in.

Lucas Schulte

Hardware Academy Member

I was hesitant on joining the Academy, but immediately first day in there all of those worries were gone. It was completely worth the value to get that knowledge from people that aren’t trying to sell you something, and that’s very valuable. That monthly fee, it’s worth every penny. I already feel like I saved myself tons of headache.

Listen to this testimonial

Erik Hunter

Founder, InD Creation

For the first time ever, I have access to a dedicated online community highly knowledgeable in many different areas of hardware development. I can ask questions, see what others are asking which in many ways also applies to my own situations. The answers are always very illuminating. Additionally the platform itself provides technical resources critical to get started and improve on my hardware design and development skills. A dedicated online community highly knowledgeable in many different areas of hardware development, so that you do not get stuck during hardware development.

Tshoganyetso Mangadi

Hardware Academy Member

It would cost me more to get a single answer from pretty much any expert on any topic, than what it costs me to join the Hardware Academy for a year.   

Wayne Frick

Founder, Chirpsounds

As a founder of a tech product who doesn’t have a background in engineering, John and the other members of the community were really helpful. Their expertise is invaluable. The Hardware Academy is a great source of efficient and informative resources when creating an electronic product. I had a top-notch experience joining the Academy. John is truly an expert in his field and helps a lot of members from solving tough and impactful problems to aid in the creation of our projects. The Hardware Academy has provided me a professional, prompt and outstanding experience in my journey to create my tech device.

Margaret Cezar

Hardware Academy Member

Anyone that needs to get a hardware project done needs to be in the Hardware Academy. lnput from lots of great contributors. I use it as a knowledge base – I probably will not be the most active contributor but I find great value in the discussions. It has already answered questions for me that others have asked.

Michael O’Gorman

Hardware Academy Member

I would highly recommend the Hardware Academy as a place where the support of any kind, related to hardware design and product prototyping can be found. The Academy contains very useful courses, and the community is very active, there are a lot of actual questions with great, detailed and concise responses and all that is related to hardware design, the issues which everyone who deals with electronics design and development meets. I would especially mention the option of direct communication with John as the leading person of this great community. Not just that, a lot of experienced people who can also help with ideas, evaluation, guides and other things in order to make the reasonable choices in product design, development and marketing.

Nikola Pavlicevic

Hardware Academy Member

The Hardware Academy is the place to be if you are really committed to your transformation in order to become a hardware entrepreneur. 

Dan Botezatu

Hardware Academy Member

You can ask just about anything and get an answer pretty quickly. You may not know what questions you are going to have, but you will have questions. It gives me a sense of comfort knowing I have experts I can look to when I have a question. I know that if I get stuck there are people in the Academy I can ask for help. This is the place to get answers. 

Jesse McLaughlin

Hardware Academy Member

The Hardware Academy has expanded my knowledge and understanding of the hardware product development process. A unique on-line community of well-intentioned people who are helpful, polite and knowledgeable. It is a valuable resource for hardware developers and entrepreneurs with very little, to quite a lot, of technical knowledge, and provides opportunity for both broad learning, through following the discussions, as well as gaining help with specific questions or problems you might face during an individual project. Worth the price of admission.  

Brian Wilson

Hardware Academy Member

The Hardware Academy provides a group of highly trained engineers to provide mentoring and an environment to thrive. If you’re like me you’ve already spent endless hours scouring the internet for answers. Its tough to know where to even start. Now I’m surrounded by talented ambitious individuals who love to help others. They help motivate you and hold you accountable. It’s so refreshing!     

Kris Christopher

Founder, Grow-Nanny

I decided to give the Hardware Academy a shot and was very glad I did. I’ve spent the past couple years working on my IoT side project, spending countless hours researching every aspect of how to bring my boot-strapped product to market, but ran into roadblocks with technical and business issues I just couldn’t find the answers to and I wasn’t in a position to hire one-on-one consulting services. I was instantly connected to like-minded individuals with complimentary skillsets and was able to quickly get solutions to my lingering questions, including from John.

Nick S.

Hardware Academy Member

An excellent resource of supportive, experienced people willing and able to give lots of constructive criticism about hardware and business development.   

Loring Robbins

Hardware Academy Member

If you are developing a product, it is strongly recommended you join the Hardware Academy to get access to the material and experts for guidance which may save you time and money in the long run.   

Qandeel Sheikh

Hardware Academy Member

The people John has brought in to the Hardware Academy to help answer member’s questions are fantastic. They are very knowledgeable and responsive; better than I could have expected. I have learned a lot about some of the details often overlooked when you think about starting a business. Things like certifications, serial and part version numbers and tracking, and how to achieve effective customer support. The members are very helpful as well; the experience of many members is vast, and deep, and they are willing to help. This seems to have been by design. This is community is as advertised from the beginning.   

Matt Fasano

Hardware Academy Member

The Hardware Academy has put me in touch with people that I never would have been able to communicate with that have the experience of designing a product or knowledge of the legal issues involved in the process. Being in the Hardware Academy has helped in the fact that you can talk to others who have gone through the process and made mistakes and you can gain the knowledge not to make the same mistakes. It gives you a route to take if you are going to bring a product to market, being able to talk to many people in different fields has been a godsend to get their opinions, expertise and guidance.   

Trevor Martynook

Hardware Academy Member

There is very little that you will find available on the net that matches the breadth and depth of what the Academy can offer and all in one place. I have been able to find answers to questions that I have not been able to find anywhere else as there are many experts in the Academy from diverse backgrounds. It’s getting that ‘needle in the haystack’ answer to a question that for me makes the Academy worth it even if I don’t ask many questions. Sometimes all I want is not a specific answer but more of a reality check on what I am planning to do. Being pointed in the right direction can make all the difference in the world.

Lee Taylor

Hardware Academy Member

Frequently Asked Questions

So, you have some questions? Let me now answer those for you…

Does it matter where I’m located? I’m not in the U.S. so will I still benefit from the Hardware Academy?

The Hardware Academy is a global platform with members from around the world. You will benefit from joining regardless of where you are located.

In addition to the U.S. we also have members from Europe, Canada, Asia, Australia, Africa, and South America. To my knowledge we don’t have any members yet from Antarctica, but otherwise we have members from every region of the world active in the Academy.

Most discussions, courses, and resources are completely independent of your location. Some topics like regulatory certifications are location dependent, but even then the requirements are very similar regardless of the country.

Can I get private one-on-one help with my project?

Yes! Not only can you ask questions and get advice, support and feedback any time from within our community; but we also have a private coaching section in the community. Here, you can get private support and feedback from John. This alone is worth more than the price of the membership!

How far along do I need to be with my product? If I only have an idea will I benefit from the Academy? What if I’m much farther along, will I still benefit?

Regardless of where you are on your journey with your product the Hardware Academy is a hugely beneficial resource. If you don’t yet have a definite product idea you wish to pursue, then the academy will help you select the best idea to pursue.

If you instead have a definite product idea then you’ll learn what steps come next. If you have a proof-of-concept (POC) prototype already, then you’ll learn how to migrate it to a manufacturable product.

If you already have a manufacturable prototype, then you’ll learn how to partner with manufacturers, do online marketing, find customers, connect with investors, etc.

The Hardware Academy is focused on every aspect of launching a new physical electronic hardware product, regardless of where you are in the process. You will learn about everything from product design to marketing to manufacturing.

What type of products are right for the Hardware Academy? Is it only for electronic products or any physical product?

The Hardware Academy was created primarily for electronic hardware products. However, outside of the electronics design, the other steps and challenges are pretty much the same for any physical product, so the Academy can be a good fit for non-electronic products too.

Obviously the content and discussions on electronics design won’t apply, but everything else applies almost equally well for any physical product.

How do you handle confidential information when questions are asked? Can other members view my questions?

You can safely share confidential information with me, and anything confidential that you share with me is protected by an NDA. There is a private area in the community forum where you can directly ask me questions without any other members being able to view your confidential question.

However, by posting in the open community area you get support and feedback from lots of other engineers, experts, and members. Also all members benefit from seeing the answers to questions asked by other members.

I understand that some members don’t want to openly share their product details, so the private forum provides a way to safely pass the confidential details directly to me when needed.

How is the Academy community area different than any of the many available free forums on design and entrepreneurship?

Anyone can post in a free forum so how do you know you can ever trust any of the advice? A lot of the information in a free forum is garbage. Everyone thinks they are an expert, but very few really are. Public forums can also be very unfriendly places where you may get verbally attacked for asking the wrong questions.

That is not the case at all with the Academy community! First of all, it’s a private forum so only Academy members can access it. This alone filters out a lot of the bad stuff because only more serious people are allowed access. It also means that the general public can never see your questions or any details about your product.

Secondly, I’m in the community every day personally answering questions and sharing advice. I also heavily moderate the community so the quality remains very high.

Finally, I’ve hand selected over a dozen experts to help answer your questions in the community. So you know you can trust the advice you are given in the Academy. It really is much more than just a community, and it’s a place for you to get low-cost, low-risk access to me and lots of other trusted experts.

How are courses structured? Are courses live or recorded, text or video format? What topics are covered?

The courses mostly consist of recorded video content. Each course is broken down into multiple lessons which you can watch at your own pace. A new course is released each month, but members have access to all of the previous courses. Total course length is usually between 1-4 hours.

We also sometimes host live workshops. You are welcome to attend any workshop live or the recording will be available to you afterwards in the course library.

The course topics vary considerably between technical and entrepreneurial subjects. Take a live peek inside the Academy to see the courses currently available.

Can I get a design review of my product in the Academy?

Yes, and there are two options for getting a design review.

Option #1: If you share your design in the community area of the Academy you will get a high-level review by at least one engineer, likely by multiple engineers. Keep in mind this will require you to share your design so other members can see it, and private design reviews are not included in the subscription. This level of design review will only typically highlight any major design issues.

Option #2: For a more thorough design review (including checking all of the potential minor issues) we offer paid design reviews starting at $399 on the Predictable Designs website. However, members of the Academy Standard tier get a 10% discount on all design reviews, and members of the Premium tier get a 50% discount.

I’m an engineer that wants to learn more about product development, but I don’t have my own product. Is the Hardware Academy right for me?

The Academy was created for those wishing to learn about product development in order to bring their own product to market. Inside the Academy we cover two broad topics: product development and entrepreneurship.

If you are only looking for technical courses without any interest in the entrepreneurial side of things then the Academy is likely not a good fit for you. But if you are also interested in the entrepreneurial aspects then it can be a good fit.

I have no technical background or experience with anything related to product development. Is the Hardware Academy right for me?

The simple answer is maybe, but only if you are open to learning new technical skills. If you have absolutely no technical background, and you have no interest in learning new technical skills, then it will be extremely challenging for you to manage the development of a complex new product.

I don’t yet have a product idea, or I have multiple product ideas. Should I join now or wait until I have selected the product idea I wish to pursue?

You definitely should join now, because the more you know and the earlier you know it, the better. Understanding the steps it takes to get a product developed and on the market gives you the knowledge to select the best idea to pursue.

Do not wait until you have your idea finalized before you begin the learning process. The earlier you begin the learning process the more likely you are to succeed.

How do I cancel my subscription if I no longer wish to remain a member? Can I rejoin later?

Obviously I’d love it if all our members stuck around forever – but I know that is not realistic and things change! So, if you do decide to cancel obviously I’ll be very sad, but if you’re intent on leaving then you’ll be able to do so with just 2 clicks of a mouse.

I don’t hide the cancel button, nor do I require that you get my permission to cancel your subscription. You can cancel at any time. In fact, here’s a video showing you how to cancel your subscription.

Yes, you can rejoin at any time. However, if the membership fee has increased you will have to pay the new higher price. You also have the option to pause your subscription for up to 6 months which guarantees your current pricing.

I’m in secretive stealth mode, can I be anonymous and still gain benefit from the Academy?

Yes, absolutely. Whether you want to keep your product a secret, or keep your identity a secret (from perhaps your employer), you’ll still gain a ton from the Academy.

You can remain totally anonymous inside the Academy if desired, so no one except myself (and any employees) will know your true identity. We will be as secretive with your idea and identity as you wish.

However, we always encourage members to not be overly secretive (especially with their identity) so they can receive the maximum benefit possible from the Academy.

Is all of the content available straight away or is it time-released (drip fed)?

You get access to everything already inside the Academy straight away. We don’t artificially delay anything just to hook you into staying longer. Instead, we hook you into staying longer by giving you tremendous value!

Each month a new course or workshop is added to the database, so over time the amount of content you can access increases.

Can I upgrade and downgrade between plans (Starter, Standard, Premium)?

Yes. You are allowed to upgrade and downgrade between the three plans as needed. Although, we do ask that you plan to stay on the new plan for at least 3 months. You can switch plans by going to ACCOUNT->SUBSCRIPTIONS and then clicking the “Change Plan” link. If you are a member already here is the link.

If you upgrade to a higher level plan you will still be able to downgrade back to your original plan at the same cost regardless of the current cost for new members. 

My startup consists of several people, do we each need to have a separate membership, or can we all share the same account?

You can all share all the same account as long as you are all a part of the same startup/project.

Does the Hardware Academy make any claims to my intellectual property?

Absolutely not! All of your intellectual property remains 100% your property. We claim absolutely no rights to your intellectual property.

For more details see the section titled “INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS TO YOUR MATERIALS” in the terms and conditions for the Academy.

Once I join will the price ever increase?

Absolutely not! As long as you stay an active member your price is guaranteed to never increase. Any price increases will only impact new members, not existing ones. 

However, your current pricing is only guaranteed if you stay on your current plan or downgrade. If you wish to upgrade you are subject to the same price increases as new members. 

Also, if you cancel your subscription you are subject to all of the price increases and you will need to join at the current rate.

The price for the Hardware Academy is constantly increasing so the sooner you join the more you save.

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