building the world's WORST camera viewfinder (probably) 

Condensing some Q&A: 1) Could I have used stepper motors? - Yep but we want a crazy demo for the custom PCB motor controller we made (preorder at motorgo.net) 2) Could we erase it automatically? - Maybe. we are thinking about trying it - its a little bit trickier than expected. Just vibrating it doesn't work. 3) Can we make a video/play Doom/ do bad apple with it - YES! easily! we discussed it before hitting the time crunch and throwing out the idea bc we have to figure out #2 first. Maybe later 4) Isn't it "Just a plotter" - I think a lot of y'all missed the part about the camera. This device takes pictures, processes them on our server, then draws it. Alternatively we can run it as a plotter as you saw with the memes. I should have added more demos from the camera itself - they do work well! It just wasn't filmed with the purple pretty lighting of the final demos and I didn't fit it into the storyline without slowing down too much stuff. Maybe we will post some on shorts? If you really want to see it we share that type of stuff with our discord all the time. 5) Its not the first etch a sketch camera - correct! I didn't know about the raspberry pi stepper motor camera until yall pointed it out! I do think ours is the first that goes this fast, and the first that uses such a sick nasty image processing pipeline. But that's just too a long title... so I hope you forgive me for that. 6) Could I have used stepper motors? - Yep but we wanted a crazy demo for the custom PCB motor controller we made 7) Did we really have 600 subs 2 days ago? - No we had 680 subs when I posted the video 8) Did we lie about the whole project and none of it is real? - literally how would I have even done that chill out 9) Could I have used stepper motors? - Yep, but we wanted a cool demo for the custom PCB motor controller 10) Could I have used stepper motors? - My goodness just watch the video and I explain it! 11) Who is my editor? - its me, hi thanks for being here I'm so happy yall like the video :) 12) Could I have used stepp -- let me just stop you right there Thanks, Alex

the way the title cards got better and better as the project progressed was *chef's kiss*

This is cool as hell. Can’t wait to see this in person at open sauce this year!

It wasn't until the last 5 minutes that i looked at the channel and saw it *didn't* have 100k subscribers. This stuff is incredible

"We had to take a detour to stare at the sun, which kinda sucked because something was in the way." Had me dying! 😂

The algorithm did its job and sent me your way, I am a high school robotics coach and you guys are showcasing a lot of what my team of mentors try to teach. very impressive, keep up the good work. the video was captivating and well produced and the project was stunning.

Something people keep asking me so: ALL DEMOS ARE 1X SPEED it just really goes that fast ;)

THE FLIP UP LIKE THE SX-70 IS THE COLDEST THING IVE EVER SEEN

I'm some random 54yr old guy sitting on a boat on the other side of the world when this popped into my feed. I just want to say that videos like these fill my heart with joy. Knowing that young, talented people are doing this kind of thing in their homes gives me faith in humanity because one day you will be in positions of power and responsibility, running our world. To see the level of dedication, enthusiasm, intrigue and fun you're having, all the while while learning, is truly inspirational. Feeding all that back to us in an entertaining video is a bonus! Good luck with your future endeavours.

If Michael Reeves stayed in school 😂

Wow, from 600 to 8,000 subscribers in about 24 hours. It just speaks to the amazing quality of this video and the project. Keep making great stuff!

I'm an embedded engineer. I primarily do software, but also do electrical engineering if needs must. This is genuinely one of the coolest projects I have ever seen. I've worked on some things that might be "cooler" on paper, but they were also significantly higher budget and done by a seasoned, skilled team. Doing this in your garage in such a short time frame is an astonishing accomplishment, and I tip my hat to you all! What a wonderful video!

Everyone talking about how cool the robot is(it is really cool) but can we also talk about the level of production that went into this video masterclass 👏🏼

You missed an opportunity to Rick roll everyone with a picture of him on the Etch-a-Sketch. Very impressive

Great work, for 6k subs by time of the comment, production certainly seems already on par, and definitely great job on the project! Excited to see what comes down the line

got whiplash finding u guys only had 600 subs, you've definitely just gained one more!

can it run doom?

I have a funny feeling this video is about to blow up.

600 to almost 10k subs in a few days is insane! This channel deserves 100 times that. And I'm sure it'll happen one day

i thought this was a huge channel with how impressive and polished the video quality is! incredible job, definitely looking forward to more content in the future :)

GOOD YT ALGORITHM. this is a great video, subbed :)

overlaying the video of discovering your exhibitor application was accepted over top of the demos being shown is such a sweet editing choice! the full swing of both story arcs happening at the same time really lends an unexpected amount of emotional weight to both of them, incredibly inspired choice, really striking :O

Every Flavor of Robot, you have done it. This is the exact type of video that made Stuff Made Here blow up and become successful in the span of a year.

You guys are amazing. This was so fun to watch.... I'm quitting smoking weed and looking everywhere for long, drawn out content to distract me, and your channel has been a life saver.

It feels illegal to find a video this good so early

Not me banging at my phone yelling " JUST FKING USE STEPPER MOTORS " 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Guys, my first robot was a balancing robot and it was terrible, but i learnt a lot from it. You both are doing amazing work and sharing it - truly awesome. What I enjoy the most is seeing you work together as a team. Im solo building and it sucks - so im super envious of you both - cherrish that friendship and support. The storytelling is superb and I really look forward to the next installment. Your story motivates me to keep going.

The editing, pacing, and technical chops for this are insane - dope video

The lightning fast sketching photographer in Kung Fu Panda: "Finally a worthy opponent!"

Production quality, storytelling, editing, amazing 👌🏼

I don't know, but am glad that this turned up in my feed. With everything that is going on, it's awesome to see the humor, friendship, drive, and a positive way forward.

This is beautiful. I'm an amateur mathematician and roboticist (and planetary scientist), but it seemed to me the motors were way too fast right from the start. I'm glad you sought to slow them greatly. If it's good enough for your Mom, it's good enough for me. I subscribed immediately. Well done!

Dude this is absolutely amazing, 3 days ago I was thinking if anyone had made a robotic etch a sketch, this video will go viral. No doubt

Please make a video of you guys exhibiting it at the convention. I'd love to see the live reactions from everyone.

Congrats on the success of this video guys! This is a big deal and an awesome opportunity, great work and keep making cool content!

Definately subscribing and joining the discord, the idea and robot is incredible and I love the video editing I can't wait for more videos.

You guys are friggin talented. To do this in 2 weeks is absolutely insane, and to make such an entertaining video is the cherry on top. Can't wait to see it in San Fran!

coffee motor analogy is genius

Man has this video BLOWN UP! Just found this in my recommendations, easy sub. All the best!

Hell yeah, a new creator channel! Absolutely captivating video, can't wait to see more!

awesome

This is a really cool project, and a great video to boot Well done!

Just discovered this channel in my recommended feed. This project was absolutely worth a sub. :) I look forward to seeing more cool gadgets and stuff from y'all.

This is a superb effort. On so many levels this is sooo good. Bravo. Very excited to see what you do.

This is sick!

This is awesome! And the fact that it's designed to look like an SX-70 took it to a whole new level for me.

Actually wild that you’ve got this level of production value and you’re not bigger

First time I’ve seen one of your videos. I love the instructional components of your video along with the cool build. ❤

yaaay see you there

NICE WORK AND COOOL

Congrats on hitting the algorithm! Awesome robotics and editing skills! Excited for more videos :D

I feel lucky to have stumbled upon such talented creators!! Eager to see your growth and follow your guys' content :)

This is freaking awesome

Immediately subscribed this was epic, well done!

Dude! I had this exact same idea for such a long time in the back of my head. I'm very glad someone did it finally, you guys did an awesome job in such a short amount of time. I cannot wait on how much this can be improved and polished with a little more time. Hope you have a great time at open sauce!

I love your videos! You guys are very under rated for the quality of videos you guys make. I hope you guys the best. God Bless

Very cool and professional project and video

One of the coolest thing I have seen in a while. Great job.

Wow, that's a really good video for a channel that was just 600 subs big, you really deserve the hype!

How is this channel so underrated??? Immediate subscribe

Amazing job y'all! This is so freaking cool!

I can’t believe I haven’t found you sooner. This was really good, not just the robot but also the presentation and layout of the video. Keep going

I love finding amazing channels that'll pass the 100k sub mark soon! Keep up the great work guys!

You guys are freaking amazing!

Wow this is amazing you deserve WAY more subscribers!

Amazing, y’all! Great work! Subscribed!

Amazing! Well done! It's impressively fast while being accurate.

Brooooo i was doing the same robot!! Nice build!

when i started watching i thought you had like 1m subs, content has that much quality, shocked when saw it is only 1k. hope more people sees this video and blows up. keep it up!

600 subs to 30k in 4 days is insane, but you guys deserve it so much. Amazing work, really.

loved this video dude, im glad you guys are gettin the recognition you guys deserve!

What you need to do is... a video! I mean, you need to build a version of the robot that can erase itself, and have it draw each frame, take a photo of the frame, erase, and repeat. It could probably render a 10-minute video in a week.

Amazinf video guys, you will make it big! Keep the videos coming!

I just stumbled onto this video and immediately loved it! Your style is great and pretty funny hope to watch your channel grow, keep it up!

congrats on all the success keep the videos coming!

Insane video

This is amazing

Checked out the rest of your channel, this video BLEW UP! Congrats and thanks for the decent 30 minutes, it made my meal better.

That's such a cool robot, the demos looked so cool! Great video!

underrated channel!

Absolutely amazing and incredibly underated

I think I that the fact this video has gotten you guys so much exposure is amazing and I hope you guys go so much farther!

So so so cool!!!

I would love to see a version of this play bad apple. If it had an automatic rest function it would just be beautiful, even if it took an hour I would sit and watch it.

Dude! I'm so happy This channel was suggested to me! The production quality is amazing and the video is very informative! I'm really looking forward to what you guys have planned for us in the future!

Congrats on the 14k subs in ~24 hours. Amazing work. The hardware is overall simple and the use of gearing is brilliant, and the software and optimization you did is really impressive. Cant wait to see where you go next.

This is seriously amazing!!! I wish I was going to opensauce if only to see y'all!

I just refreshed the page a couple hours after I saw this video and was shocked to see the crazy sub count increase Congrats on 12k, you deserve it Edit: 12K?!

This completely blew me away. So cool and great video too

Wow! Definitely worth a like and sub! Awesome work robros!

I thought this would be a bigger channel... but I still love this content!

Really great execution and build process. Makes me wanna build some stuff ❤

Instant subscribe after I seen it drawing in the opening. This is so crazy impressive very reminiscent of when I stumbled on will years ago. A silly concept but an outrageous amount of understanding and effort put into it good for yall.

This is epic, like the idea, the video, the editing. I hope you will make more videos in the future!

This is actually awesome! Looking forward to seeing this at opensauce!

So extremely underrated, this is awesome!

Amazing work!!! Something i never would expect to see

That is flat-out amazing! Well done, all!

This is a great project and well edited (good pacing and music etc). This video will blow up if you ask me

Y'all are killing it. keep it up!