The Hey abby Team - March 20, 2024

A Letter From the Hey abby Team

Dear Hey abby fam,

This is OG, the founder of Hey abby. I'm reaching out to express my deep gratitude for your support during the leap year error incident. Together, we've navigated through this challenge, and I want to share a brief report with you.

What is Leap Year Error?

The leap year error occurred because February had an extra day, leading to a date error. Our grow boxes adjust time continuously, and during this process, a small chance of EEPROM miswriting caused some boxes to malfunction. The symptom was the grow box displaying the white LED indicator, internally referred to as the "White Walker."

In early March, some growers reported this issue prommptly, and worked closely with us for troubleshooting. Among these growers were engineers who offered highly professional insights. On March 7th, we released new firmware that resolved the issue. The community's swift response was remarkable, with the majority updating their firmware within the next 48 hours. If you haven't performed this firmware update yet, we strongly urge you to do so as soon as possible.

Impact of the Leap Year Error

The issue is now decelerating. In total, 86 units of the 420 Edition and 81 units of the OG edition were affected. We've arranged replacement motherboards for all affected units, with about 120 boards already delivered. For the remaining boards, our supplier is expediting the order, expected to ship by the end of this week.

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Our Plans for Affected Growers

Though only a small percentage of our growing base was affected, this incident caused significant inconvenience. On behalf of the team, I extend our sincerest apologies for the trouble and assure you that we are committed to assisting you throughout the board replacement process.

To support affected growers, we will provide 3 months of 1-on-1 grower support, offering dedicated service to ensure your plants thrive. The activation code for this service will be emailed before April 1, 2024. Additionally, you will receive an exclusive "White Walker Survivor" badge in your app.

Furthermore, to show our appreciation for our community, all current growers will receive a $50 coupon for the upcoming 420 sales event. This discount will be in addition to the 420 deal, allowing you to expand your grow room.

Should I worry about the new purchases?

For those unboxing new grow boxes, the app will prompt a firmware update to the latest version as the first step, safeguarding against the leap year error. All upcoming black edition boxes have been updated with the latest firmware and are ready for use.

What's Next?

Our team has been working on the clock on the leap year incident and our regular projects. We're now back on track and excited to celebrate the upcoming 420. We will introduce a new grow box model, the soil edition, in the coming days. The community will also host a large 420 event, and the data chart function will be available in the next app update. Please stay tuned.

Final Words

Creating an innovative product like Hey abby is no easy feat. Everything we've accomplished is a first, without any precedents to follow. Over the last two years, our team and products have made significant progress with our community's support, with 70% of new ideas coming directly from you. Hey abby will always remain a community-based organization, believing in our community's power and establishing our presence within it has been one of our greatest achievements.

Hey abby team