Capsule lights - the light unit in podpoi and many other flowtoys props - have been available since 2012. There have been several versions, as we continually improve them.
Many people offer tips/tricks on the internet about reviving capsules - not all of them work and some may damage your light! We recommend coming directly to the elves at flowtoys to get the latest troubleshooting tips, and to avoid inaccurate information.
Earliest capsule lights (2012-2013): Despite rounds of beta testing, it wasn’t until podpoi were released that we discovered standard lithium ion batteries were not designed to hold up to the impacts and intense use that flow props frequently experience. Over a 2-year period, we improved the durability and worked with a few battery suppliers to create a custom battery that could handle our use.
Shortened battery life: Following new battery design, we had a batch of batteries that sometimes over-discharged in storage :( This showed similar symptoms as the previous issue, but was a different problem. This issue has since been fixed with a new protection circuit.
Faulty wire (early 2015): After fixing the over-discharge issue, we discovered that a portion of our new batch of batteries had lower-quality wires and were breaking off the board after extended/heavy use. This also showed similar symptoms to the other battery issues, with the addition of the capsule resetting itself into its boot-mode and glowing dim-white when bumped or knocked. We immediately had all new capsules switch to higher quality wire and also added reinforcing glue to the connection on ALL capsules we could get our hands on.
Internal battery defect - can't hold a charge (early 2016): We had yet another batch with a percentage of battery defects, where the battery would lose it's ability to hold a charge within a few months.
We are continually pushing the limits of what normal batteries can take, and working with battery manufacturers to improve the design of batteries to be able to handle the impacts of poi spinning and other flow arts. If you have issues with your capsule lights, please don't hesitate to contact us.
Please contact us, and we will take care of you.