Thane Kennedy
Product Manager
The story behind the introduction of the Zapp budget permanent jewelry welder is one of twists and turns. And here's why:
After PJX 2023 at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas (the Permanent Jewelry Expo) a new industry analysis clearly showed the market needed a safe, PJ-specific budget welder for two reasons:
First, as an industry leader, Sunstone was—and remains so—alarmed by the damage that unsafe, unbranded welders posed to the permanent jewelry image. With every social media post of another attempted zap gone wrong with an unbranded welder, how many potential permanent jewelry customers are turned off to the idea of getting a bracelet? Sunstone had a choice to make. Either the company could continue with its Orion line of professional permanent jewelry welders, pushing and prodding the industry to choose a safe welder, or Sunstone could introduce a safe, budget-friendly permanent jewelry welder to safeguard the industry. Sunstone chose the latter.
Second, Sunstone couldn't ignore the needs of the market. A portion of the market can't afford the Orion PJ and Orion mPulse—they don't have the spending power. The company saw a need and jumped in to fill that need. And the Zapp was born.
The Zapp followed a highly irregular path from product concept to launch. Unlike the Orion PJ that required nearly a year of design and development time, the Zapp went from concept to prototype in less than 10 days. This incredible sprint changed the way our engineering team sourced components. As a result, the first few hundred Zapp units will be slightly different than what most customers will see. Here's what is different:
Orion Stylus vs Budget Stylus
The Zapp's quick sprint to the market put a strain on Sunstone's supply chain. To keep the Zapp under $1,000 USD, Sunstone had to use a different stylus. The Orion stylus would push the retail price over the edge. So, Sunstone identified a stylus that provided the same functionality but at a lower price. But having the lower-priced stylus manufactured in quantity by the launch date would not happen. As a result, Sunstone made a decision to ship the first 200 to 300 Zapp's with the Orion stylus. If you were one of the first to order a Zapp, you received a upgrade in the Orion stylus without charge.
Teal vs Pearl
Again, the quick sprint to market made for some unexpected twists and turns in how the Zapp appears. Including the prototype, the first 15 units sported a teal case. Any customer that received the teal case should hold on to it as its sure to become a collector's item. Of course, I say that in jest, but, you never know. The final Zapp will have a silk screened, pearl top plate with black sides. In between the teal and final version are two other limited-quantity versions that sport a label on the top rather than a silk screened top, or combination of labels and silk screen. As I said, all of those twists and turns are the result of supply chain limitations.
In the end, I'm pleased with pearl on the top. It looks clean—and on your pop-up table the Zapp will be an attractive addition. The pearl is the direct result of a survey on Sunstone's permanent jewelry Instagram account. We asked our customers what color they'd prefer and pearl received the most votes. If you participated in that survey, thank you!
Energy Selection Myths
The Zapp has an energy range of 3 to 10 Joules. It lacks the lower range and precision of the Orion PJ and the higher range of the Orion mPulse. The energy labels on the Zapp leave plenty of space between each other, which may lead you to believe the Zapp has many, many more energy settings than it really does offer. I've seen social media comments claiming the best setting for gold-fill chain is a hair's length just after the "4" energy indicator. That may be true, but it's not due to the Zapp having many energy settings to choose from. The Zapp has eight energy settings, three through ten. As you turn the dial, you'll see the green power light blink. When the light blinks you've moved from one whole Joule of energy to another. You can only choose from eight energy selections; you can choose 4 or 5 but you can't choose 4.5.
Zapp vs Orion PJ vs Orion mPulse
The most frequently asked question about permanent jewelry welders from Sunstone is this: "What's the difference between the Zapp budget-friendly permanent jewelry welder and the Orion PJ and Orion mPulse permanent jewelry welders. This table may help:
|
|
|
|
| Zapp™ | Orion PJ™ | Orion mPulse™ | |
| Quick Description | No frills, beginner friendly | Specifically designed for the PJ artist | A true, bench jeweler's tool |
| Energy Range | 3-10 Joules in 1 Joule increments | 1-15 Joules in 1/2 Joule increments | 3-30 Joules in 1 Joule increments |
| What's in the Box | Ships only with a stylus; no ADL | Ships with stylus and ADL | Ships with stylus and ADL |
| Stylus | Budget stylus | Orion Stylus | Orion Stylus |
| MSRP | $999 USD |
$2,800 USD |
$2,400 USD |