bfl could gain a bit credibility (if is still possible
) only if they have blades ready to ship (impossible)
i would like to know how many ppl trust them at this point and still submit preorders
Lots of people are upgrading out of desperation cause they know their gen1 units will take a long time to get so why not try for gen2 and that way they'll get a double in speed and lower electricity bill.
So a lot of mini rig and singles customers will upgrade. That helps BFL Cause they get a fat cash infusion and also cause it will help clear the backlog.
More like the customers are breaking down their doors with PayPal and CC's.
They are probably getting mad cash flowing out the door and the only way to stop the mad dash of customers taking their money from the piggy bank is to entice them into yet another pipe dream.
All Speculation, of course.
A) To get them to commit to a different product.
B) To remove PayPal and CC's from the equation.
C) To provide PayPal and CC's a valid reason why the money should not be removed from their hands so they start winning Chargeback cases rather than getting screwed each time. (Customer will provide the means to do this by "Transferring their order")
The 10% fee to "Transfer" their order is probably just their current projected losses. In effect the customers are giving them that freebie through a transfer...and not a straight forward purchase. So word to the wise, rip the money from their hands first to prevent losing 10% of that cash in your hand.
D) It's basically an admittance (IMO) that they won't meet their target date of Sep 30th. 2013. They need to seriously reduce their exposure to lawsuits and liability. This is a way of doing so (IMO).
E) All of the above.