Filming Credible Hardware Evidence: A Range-Demo Shot List for Campaign Creators

Prepared by the ChatField Editorial Team. Evidence reviewed August 18, 2026.

A polished crowdfunding video can explain why an off-grid communication product matters, but buyers also need to know whether the shown hardware actually performs the claimed workflow. Dramatic music, mountain footage and animated radio waves are not a field test.

Kickstarter requires hardware and product-design creators to show working prototypes and says photorealistic renderings are not allowed in those categories. The strongest campaign video goes further by making the evidence understandable and repeatable.

Short answer

Show the exact prototype, phone, application, terminal, regional configuration and route. Keep enough visual continuity to connect the sender, radio path and recipient. Display timestamps and repeat trials. State the tested conditions and the functions that are not being demonstrated.

Separate current product evidence from future goals. Never attach J25 FCC, distance or relay evidence to another model without model-specific proof.

Open with the operating problem

Use a real buyer situation: a team leaves dependable cellular coverage and still needs selected PTT, short-text or location communication among equipped members. Name the user, route and decision.

Do not imply that local mesh creates internet access, carrier SMS or a connection to 911. One clear sentence about the boundary builds more trust than a vague promise of connectivity anywhere.

The ChatField off-grid communication overview provides buyer-readable language for the local role.

Identify the prototype on camera

Show the front, back, label and physical condition of the exact prototype. State whether it is proof-of-concept, working prototype, design-for-manufacturing sample or production unit.

Kickstarter's Plan framework distinguishes idea, proof of concept, working prototype, design-for-manufacturing prototype, pre-production and production. Do not collapse those stages into ready.

If the enclosure, battery, antenna or electronics may change, say so on screen.

Show the complete signal path

For a phone-paired device, show the phone application connecting by Bluetooth to the carried terminal. Show the recipient phone and recipient terminal. State which part provides the LoRa radio path.

A phone alone does not become a LoRa transmitter. A screen recording without visible hardware continuity can leave buyers unable to tell whether cellular or Wi-Fi carried the message.

The ChatField How It Works page provides a four-stage path that can be reproduced in a video.

Prove the no-cell condition honestly

Show the test preparation and network state without relying on a single status icon. Explain whether the phones are in airplane mode and which connections remain enabled for the paired terminal. Avoid editing that hides a network change.

Do not claim that one disabled cellular icon proves the entire route lacked every infrastructure path. Provide the route, map, devices and procedure so an independent reviewer can understand the test.

Label any offline map or cached data clearly.

Show both ends and a unique message

Use a uniquely numbered or timestamped message that cannot be confused with an earlier take. Show send, receive and acknowledgement at both ends.

For PTT, record intelligible audio at the recipient and identify any external microphone or speaker. For text, show exact content. For location, show position timestamp and age.

A successful text does not prove PTT, and a location dot does not prove that the current position was transmitted.

Preserve continuity

Use a wide establishing shot, device close-ups and synchronized clocks. If the route cannot fit in one camera view, explain the cut and preserve unique message numbering.

Include an unedited representative segment or make a longer evidence video available separately. A short campaign edit can tell the story; the evidence segment should allow scrutiny.

Do not use stock footage as if it records the actual field trial.

State distance and environment

Measure the route using a reproducible mapping method and distinguish straight-line distance from traveled distance. Describe terrain, buildings, foliage, elevation, device height, weather, carrying position and antenna configuration.

Current J25 evidence includes 5 km in urban-obstructed testing and up to 10 km in ideal open terrain. Those facts should appear only when the shown model, configuration and test correspond to the evidence.

Link viewers to the current J25 specifications for model-specific review.

Show direct and relay tests separately

Begin with a direct sender-to-recipient path. If participating relay nodes are used, show each node, placement, power state and responsibility. Display which run uses which topology.

For current J25 planning, use no more than two participating relay nodes where the tested layout and configuration permit. Do not add direct-range figures to advertise a guaranteed total.

Power off or move one relay in a controlled failure demonstration and show what users observe.

Repeat the result

One successful packet can be real and still be unrepresentative. Run several numbered trials in both directions. Show success, delay, retry and any failure.

Report the tested message mix and number of active users. Do not convert a two-person quiet test into a claim about unlimited team capacity.

The ChatField technology page explains the architecture but does not replace route and load evidence.

Show ordinary-user operation

After the technical operator prepares the devices, let an intended user pair, carry, send, acknowledge and recover from a simple problem. Record training time and instructions used.

The current J25 terminal is carried while the phone provides the interface. Do not stage it like a conventional walkie-talkie if that is not the designed workflow.

The J25 product page shows the buyer-facing form of the current model.

Show power evidence

Record starting and ending phone and terminal battery states, test duration, message activity, temperature and screen use. A short range shot cannot prove a full workday.

Show the approved charging method and identify whether the video uses an external battery or prototype power arrangement. State if endurance testing is incomplete.

Keep shipping and battery-compliance documents separate from runtime claims.

Show failure and fallback

Demonstrate pairing loss, powered-off terminal, failed checkpoint or missed acknowledgement in a controlled setting. Show the recovery steps and the approved fallback.

Do not describe a local app as an emergency dispatch system. If the use case involves hazards, state that required alarms, 911, public-safety radios and organizational procedures remain separate.

Honest failure behavior helps buyers decide whether the product fits their work.

Show manufacturing status

Explain which parts are final, which require design-for-manufacturing work, who will manufacture them, what tooling exists, what compliance work is complete and what remains.

Kickstarter asks hardware creators to explain how they plan to produce the product and whether they have produced anything similar. Footage of a prototype bench is not a production line.

Use dated images and quantities without implying mass production that has not occurred.

Make the short video and evidence video work together

Kickstarter says the main project video is not mandatory but recommends it, and it also recommends a short mobile-friendly Discovery Mode video. The platform currently suggests 60 to 90 seconds, real people, clear audio and captions for that vertical format.

Use the short video to explain the problem, people and core proof. Link or embed a longer test record for route, conditions and repeated results.

Keep important text away from mobile-interface edges.

Publish a verification table

Below the video, list claim, model, hardware revision, firmware, region, test date, location type, route, topology, messages, trials, result and limitation. Link supporting reports where public.

Invite technical questions and correct errors publicly. The FTC has acted against deceptive crowdfunding conduct; creators should avoid claims that footage cannot substantiate.

Use the ChatField contact page to request current product evidence rather than infer a claim from campaign editing.

Demo video checklist

• Exact prototype and development stage
• Complete phone, Bluetooth, terminal and mesh path
• Explained no-cell test condition
• Unique numbered messages at both ends
• Route, distance, terrain and carrying position
• Direct and relay trials shown separately
• Repeated results and visible failures
• Ordinary-user operation and recovery
• Phone and terminal power conditions
• Safety, emergency and interoperability boundaries
• Manufacturing and compliance status
• Public verification table and supporting documents

Sources reviewed

• Kickstarter: hardware and product-design project rules
• Kickstarter: product-development Plan milestones
• Kickstarter: project and Discovery Mode video guidance
• Kickstarter: information to share on a project page
• FTC: enforcement action involving deceptive crowdfunding claims

Kickstarter and the FTC do not endorse ChatField or J25. Platform rules and government enforcement material are used as transparency context, not as campaign approval or legal advice.