ACFlow Snap, the modular 360 camera that looked similar to the Insta360 X3, has canceled its crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter.
ACFlow launched a 360 camera called the Snap, which featured a modular design, a replaceable lens, and even a VR180 lens module (long promised by Insta360 but which hasn’t been released). On paper, the camera looked promising, but I was very concerned about the fact that it was being crowdfunded by a company with no track record. I suggested waiting for the released product instead.
ACFlow did meet their crowdfunding target of $50,000 but today they announced that they were canceling their Kickstarter campaign. Here’s the message from the company:
“An Important Update on ACFLOW Snap: Campaign Cancellation
Dear Backers,
This is Orgmar, the founder of ACFLOW. Today, I come to you with a heavy heart to share a difficult decision we’ve had to make regarding our Kickstarter campaign for the ACFLOW Snap camera.
First and foremost, I want to express my deepest gratitude for your support and belief in our vision. Through your contributions, we were able to reach a significant milestone of $50,000. However, despite achieving this goal, it has become clear that the amount raised falls short of our expectations and the substantial funds required to move into mass production.
After many intense discussions and careful considerations within our team, we have made the tough decision to cancel the Snap project. It’s a decision that fills us with sadness, but as a company, we are committed to creating products that resonate with our customers, and now is the time for us to make strategic adjustments.
We understand the disappointment this may cause, and we want to reassure you that we are not giving up on our mission to innovate and deliver quality products. While we are not yet 100% certain of what our next product will be, I can promise you that we will put our utmost effort into creating something exceptional.
In light of this, we sincerely invite you to spend a few minutes to complete our survey. Your feedback is invaluable and will guide us toward developing products that you will love even more. As a token of our appreciation, we will be offering a $30 voucher to each participant, redeemable for any of our future products.
ACFLOW Cancel Survey
The journey of creation is filled with challenges, and while this chapter might be closing, we are optimistic about the future. We hope that you will continue to be a part of our community as we evolve and grow.
The refunds for all pledges will be processed promptly, and you can expect to receive them according to Kickstarter’s policies.
Thank you once again for being with us on this journey. Your support means the world to us, and we look forward to bringing you along on our next adventure. To stay updated and continue the conversation, please join us on our Discord group:
Discord Group Link
Warmest regards,
Orgmar
Founder of ACFLOW”
What’s next?
The letter from the founder said that the backers will get refunds, thankfully. Hopefully it’s a full refund.
But why do companies cancel their crowdfunding campaign even after meeting goals? Sometimes, the company just fails for a variety of reasons including changes in cost of production. Other times, companies that meet their crowdfunding goals cancel their crowdfunding campaign because it means they don’t have to give Kickstarter or Indiegogo a percentage of the amount of money they raised. These companies only want the marketing buzz from crowdfunding and they can get that even if they cancel their campaign.
In this case, ACFlow offered a $30 voucher to people who fill out their survey. This implies that they plan to continue production, which sounds like the latter of the two situations I described above. To be fair, I’m just speculating. But I have a feeling this is not the last we’ll hear from ACFlow.
I was f***ed only once, by Kickstarter, a cancelled campaign with no refund. I will never use it again (or similar sites). That is a business model that will disappear, soon or later. I hope.
I don’t know if it’s true, but ACFlow stated this in the Kickstart comments:
“Don’t worry about the goal displayed on Kickstarter. We have our own target of $300K. If we do not reach this amount, we will not be able to meet the minimum order quantity and will consequently have to cancel our campaign.”
Also, there really should be no refund per-se since backers would have been charged at the end of the campaign. I received this email from Kickstarter
“We’re writing to let you know that ACFLOW canceled ACFLOW Snap – All-in-One 360 Action Camera. Refund Guarantee (Canceled), so we’ve canceled your $XXX.00 pledge and your card won’t be charged.”
That’s a relief. Thanks, Dean!