PC Nameplates

PC Nameplates are a way to customise, personalise, and theme your desktop computer.

I built a desktop in early 2021 using a LianLi O11D - it’s a great case and also one of the more popular ones thanks to it’s aesthetics, flexibility, functionality, build quality, and ease to build in.

One thing that sticks out is the LianLi logo ‘plaque’ inside the case - it’s quite large relative to other typical logos. And although it’s nice, I decided I wanted something more bespoke to replace it.

I started designing and planning what I wanted. The same brushed aluminium finish, with an engraved image.

A long time was spent talking to suppliers of aluminium to get the right dimensions and finish. I also spoke to a few engraving companies and also companies that would do all of the work - sourcing the material, cutting, and engraving.

Unfortunately engraving semi-bespoke pieces isn’t cost effective for engraving companies, meaning that it would also be cost-prohibitive to create as a product.

It turned out that sublimation was more cost effective (since it’s possible to do one-off pieces) and as a bonus you can have colour.

The prototypes that I created found some interest from the custom PC crowd and resulted in my first sale a few days later.

Etsy fees and the amount of time it took to message back and forth with customers to get their design created (and relying on a supplier for sublimation prints) made this a time consuming,

In the end, selling the plates wasn’t worth doing. Endless Etsy fees chipped away at any margin (raising prices didn’t help all that much). Messaging back and forth with potential customers for designs took a long time. And relying on a supplier for sublimation prints made the turnaround time too long.

Status: 💀