Square off Pro?

Got my Pro this morning - a little hiccup getting the firmware updated, but after that it worked flawlessly in a couple of quick games against the AI. Will have a chance tomorrow to try out the Lichess integration.

Had my Square Off PRO for a few days now and have played 12 or so games online. There were some initial problems updating the firmware but after trying on a few different devices it managed to install via the iPhone app. My router also needed to be reconfigured to broadcast on 2.4GHz which was easy enough to do. 

I've only been using the PRO for online games as I prefer my DGT Centaur for playing the computer. I do have some minor gripes with the PRO (like the annoying sound effects in the app and the board being a bit of a dust magnet) but so far I’ve not encountered any major issues and it is working as intended. I also like that I can run the app on my Macbook. Overall I'm satisfied with my purchase.

@mad4black - glad you got the board and had some success. 

The sound effects can be turned off in the App Settings. 

In Case THIS SOLUTION Helps Anyone : )  I just REALLY am impressed by my new Square Off Pro...had it a few days...excellent quality...today it simply WOULD NOT accept any starting moves, beeped a few time and the lights indicated I needed to put the piece back where it came from.... no matter the move or color....just by accident I noticed an APP UPDATE was available: 5.3.6 (13) and updated and NOW all is working fine......I do wish there were a manual that suggested things like that to look out for.....am grateful for this forum for advice and opportunity to ask specifics when necessary : )

Hey, thanks @chatxs - appreciate it. 

Mind if I ask what firmware version your app is reporting. 

BTW, come on over to the Square Off Owners club. 

@chatxs Updated and thank you for the heads up!

Looks like maybe the battery meter got updated to read properly?

Before it always read full and never changed. Now it shows something less than that. A percentage would be nice but I question it's accuracy still because I just fully charged my battery to a green light and now it's not showing full. More like 75%. Will be interesting to see what happens now going forward.

If you touch the battery (on iOS) it shows a message at the bottom of the screen. Not great design ...

Finally got my SO pro. Not crazy about a few things. 

1) You can not switch sides easily. You either need to change seats or move the board which is awkward. 

2) Several times, the app would lose connection and light will be red. Connectivity seems spotty. 

3) Couple times, I didn’t lift the pieces completely and king of sliced, it registered a move at the wrong square. I know it is a user error but kind of annoying. I lost a rook and lost both games. Kind of a mouse slip...

Will try a few games on chess.com and see how it goes. 

Ah didn't notice that thanks!

I agree on point 1. You really need a turntable for this board as you can't pick it up without the pieces falling down and it doesn't rotate easily either on any surface. It's a very grabby material.

For point 2, make sure your battery is fully charged. I've noticed when the battery starts to get low, I get random disconnects on my ipad. I also close out of all other apps running on my device before I start.

For point 3. This is my biggest complaint with the board. If you goof up, try to take something back or clumsily knock over pieces whilst performing a move the board can sometimes go into a confused state and start lighting up squares where there are no pieces or get stuck "thinking". Usually a forced app shutdown and restart clears this up after reconnecting but not always. As long as you can play a clean game it's fine but the app clearly needs to give more feedback about what it wants you do first if the board gets messes up.

There is an update for the app since I received my board. I'm hoping some of these issues go away.

@Dobrm4n - Here is what I do. I have been using a board off to the side to make moves (so I stay in tune with the "touch move" rule most of all) for a number of years. The SOP board fits nicely on a larger wooden board I have and I use a turntable from an old lazy susan.

That little ^^^^ black piece is a little wedge to keep the board still when playing. 

Thanks for the tip @Rsava.

Lol I do something similar but with one of those big felt jigsaw puzzle boards (20x30"). Just makes it easier to rotate around.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PP1P327

Even with some software update I can't think of an easier way (other than physically moving the board or your seat). This and kinda light-weighted pieces are my small criticisms so far

RASAVA:

1--my Square Off app updated to version 5.3.6 (13) as of this morning : )

2--where do I find the Square Off Owners club?  That will be great!

Thanks so much!

@chatxs  https://www.chess.com/club/square-off-owners

TundraMike (and Rasava).....perfect!  Thanks and I've joined!  The things we don't know till we know : )

So I'm super frustrated with this board. I got it for Christmas.

First, it was a huge pain just getting the firmware update done. But, even with the firmware update and the latest Android app, the board doesn't always register it's own moves. The move showed in the app but never registered on the board. I had the same problem in the one game I managed to play on chess.com. In that game at least 4 of my opponent's moves didn't register on the board. I shouldn't have to stare at the app when the intent is to play on an actual board. 

I have been in contact with their customer support for the last two days. At this point I'm kinda hoping it's just defective and I'll get a new one. I can't imagine it was meant to function like this.

Is there a manual for this board anywhere? There wasn't one in the box. There was just a very basic 2 page quick start type guide. I can't find anything like a users manual in the app or on the website.  

Sorry you're having the issues. 

No, there is no manual. There really isn't all that much to know about it that isn't covered in the little folder type thing in the box. 

I had a game like that yesterday where it would not register my moves, but it also did not register them in the app. 

It was only my second game with it here at chess.com, I have used it for about 20 games at the other site (the "L" word) and against the SquareOff computer. It worked flawlessly those games. 

I finally played a game with someone here but we used the SquareOff server. No issues with moves at all for that game. Any idea what the board battery level was? One user said he had issues because the battery was not charged enough. 

Do you mind me asking - a) where did you purchase it from; and b) what firmware you were on and what it went to?