If Dave says it is impossible for him to make sure he buys real FTDI chips, then how should I make sure that I buy a product containing a real FTDI chip?
Ignorance is no defense. The fact that someone else cannot do something, or can do something, is no valid defense for your not doing it, or doing it.
Do you know if you Satellite receivers RS232 debug interface is powered by a FTDI chip and if it is actually genuine? Have you done your research on that right?
I don't. But I also don't buy from unproven vendors either.
Also, not by any means do they have the right to destroy or manipulate users products even if they know they use a fake chip.
If you don't think they do, sue them.
If I buy chips on DigiKey, I expect them to be real. However, they have ended up with counterfeit stock on various occasions, as have all the other big sellers (Mouser, E-4, etc.)
So, this is how the handling chain now looks:
Chip Maker -> Distribution Channel -> Parts Supplier -> Product Designer -> Product Manufacturer -> Retailer -> End User
Now, as the Product Designer, I wholly intend to use legitimate parts. However, the Parts Supplier could have been sold counterfeits, which gets passed onto me and up the chain. Or, I could send the real parts to my Manufacturer who swaps them out with fakes and sells the real ones.
At any rate, the real problem is this: The unknowledgeable end user plugs his shiny new widget into his PC and FTDI's driver bricks it, without so much as a message. He thinks my product is crap and returns it to the Retailer. Or he contacts me and I have to send him a replacement and recall all my products to replace the fake chips with real ones. I lose money either way. (My Parts Supplier might replace the chips, but they won't cover the cost to have the boards fixed; if my Chinese Manufacturer was to blame, I'll be out of pocket for the chips and fixing the board.)
So, in the end, FTDI is punishing designers and end users for problems in the supply chain, beyond their control. It's especially evil as FTDI's answer to this is simply, "Buy the chips direct from us." Which is not feasible in a lot of cases, especially as factory orders from them are regularly out of stock and have 3+ month waits.
They don't even provide a software tool to verify the authenticity of chips, so you can check before you ship. Not even a PDF with tips on spotting fakes. Nothing.
Pushing a driver through Windows Update that intentionally bricks working devices is beyond devious. I could totally live with it popping up a message saying: "This driver has detected a potentially counterfeit FTDI USB to Serial chip on this device. Please contact the device manufacturer for information." That would be fine.
If I were FTDI, here's what I'd do: I'd show a message like that and refuse to work with the device. I'd then offer to sell a version of the driver that worked with the counterfeit chip to the product designers affected, who would then pass it on to their end users. This way, I still make money for the time I put into the driver and the designer doesn't have to lose money recalling or replacing all the boards with counterfeit chips on them. (I'd sell the driver for perhaps 1/4 of what the chip sells for.)
Or, as an alternative, and I'm just throwing this out there: They could not alienate their user base by simply not being complete and utter dickheads. You know, try educating their customer base about the problem and provide tools and solutions to combat it. You know, do that instead of spending time and money making another shitty fucking Arduino clone, which is literally their current high profile project, complete with crowdfunding.
Instead of the educating and the tools, they went all out heavy metal thermonuclear scorched earth. It's like they went full retard. They used a Varon-T Disrupter when they should have started with a Taser.
Furthermore, I
Home
Help
Search
Login
Register
