HN Explorer

Ask HN: How advisable is it to hire freelance hardware talent for a startup?

1 points by laserduck ↗ HN
I am looking to build out a proper MVP for a consumer product I've been working on. I have enough experience with Arduinos/microcontroller programming that I was able to build a low fidelity prototype and test successfully with several users. However, I want something more robust now to test with a larger audience, which would likely require creating a PCB.

Is it advisable to hire freelance hardware support to build this or do I need a hardware-minded cofounder? (For further context, this is not a particularly complicated device). Wanted to learn what your experiences were with hiring freelance and if you had any recommendations for platforms to use/engineers to hire.

5 comments

[ 3.1 ms ] story [ 17.3 ms ] thread
dlcarrier
I've worked with this guy and can recommend him: https://www.icbreakout.com/pages/services

For me the best way to judge a freelancer is to look at previous projects, but that only works because I'm experienced designing electronics, so I know what to look for. If you end up looking into any other potential contractors, I don't mind helping you evaluate their portfolios.

laserduck
Thank you so much! Do you know they would be willing to work with people who are still early in the prototyping process? Will they only help with PCB design or can they also help with casing, etc?

Really appreciate your response!