Initial commit — 2026-07-15

optisigns-comparison.md

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+# OptiSigns Feature Replication — Build Plan
+
+## What OptiSigns Costs You
+| Plan | Price | Per |
+|---|---|---|
+| **Standard** | $10/mo | Unlimited screens |
+| **Pro** | $15/mo | Unlimited screens |
+| **Pro Plus** | $30/mo | Unlimited screens |
+| Add-on: Video Wall | $25/mo extra | |
+| Add-on: Background Music | $15/mo extra | |
+
+## Feature Comparison — OptiSigns vs Our Build
+
+### Tier 1 — MVP (Phase 1, ~2 weeks)
+| Feature | OptiSigns | Our Build |
+|---|---|---|
+| Upload images + videos | ✅ | ✅ |
+| Playlist (ordered sequence) | ✅ | ✅ |
+| Playlist (shuffle mode) | ✅ | ✅ |
+| Multi-tenant customers | ✅ | ✅ |
+| Unlimited devices per customer | ✅ | ✅ |
+| Pi registration via code | ❌ (Fire TV/Android) | ✅ (custom) |
+| Fullscreen kiosk playback | ✅ | ✅ |
+| Device identification overlay | ❌ | ✅ (planned) |
+| **Monthly cost** | **$10-$30** | **$0 (on your infra)** |
+
+### Tier 2 — Parity (Phase 2, ~1 week)
+| Feature | OptiSigns | Our Build |
+|---|---|---|
+| Content scheduling (time-based) | ✅ | ⬜ |
+| Multi-user per tenant | ✅ | ⬜ |
+| Thumbnail preview in CMS | ✅ | ⬜ |
+| Drag-drop reorder playlist | ✅ | ⬜ |
+| Device auto-update on content change | ✅ | ⬜ |
+| **Monthly cost** | **$15** | **$0** |
+
+### Tier 3 — Surpass (Phase 3, ~1 week)
+| Feature | OptiSigns | Our Build |
+|---|---|---|
+| API for remote control | ✅ | ✅ (built-in) |
+| Custom branding (no OptiSigns logo) | ❌ ($30 plan) | ✅ (ours) |
+| Device identification (Ctrl+I) | ❌ | ✅ |
+| Sho'Nuff integration (text-to-broadcast) | ❌ | ✅ |
+| Dark ops-portal theme | ❌ | ✅ |
+| **Monthly cost** | **$30** | **$0** |
+
+## Phase 1 — Feature Descriptions (MVP)
+
+### Content Management
+- Upload images (.jpg, .png, .webp) and videos (.mp4, .mov, .webm)
+- View in grid with thumbnails
+- Delete content
+- per-tenant content library (customers only see their own)
+
+### Playlist Builder
+- Create playlist → name it → drag items into order
+- Toggle shuffle mode (ordered vs random loop)
+- Assign playlist to one or multiple devices
+- Auto-play from first item when assigned
+
+### Device Management
+- See all devices per customer with status (Online/Offline)
+- View device details: name, serial, IP, model, last seen, current playlist
+- Assign playlist to device
+- Remote identify (triggers overlay on screen)
+- Registration code generator
+
+### Pi Player
+- Chromium fullscreen kiosk mode
+- Polls API every 60s for playlist
+- Preloads next media while current plays
+- Loops playlist (ordered or shuffled)
+- Hidden identify overlay (Ctrl+I × 3)
+- Auto-updates when playlist changes (no reboot needed)
+
+### Registration Flow
+1. Customer portal generates registration code → displays as QR + text
+2. Pi boots → runs registration script
+3. Script calls API with code + serial
+4. Server registers device under customer tenant
+5. Pi receives token + device ID
+6. Pi starts polling immediately
+
+## What OptiSigns Does That We WON'T Build (save $30/mo)
+
+| Feature | Why Skip |
+|---|---|
+| Microsoft 365/Google Workspace integration | Not relevant for signage |
+| Power BI / Salesforce dashboard display | Overkill for restaurant menus |
+| Interactive experiences (touch) | Not needed for basic signage |
+| Video wall (multi-screen sync) | Rare use case, future |
+| Background music licensing | Legal/complex, separate project |
+| Wireless presentation (AeriCast) | Different product entirely |
+| Enterprise SSO/SAML | Not needed yet |
+
+## Savings
+| Service | Cost | After Cancel |
+|---|---|---|
+| **OptiSigns** | ~$15-30/mo | **$0** 🎉 |
+| **Your infra** | $0 (already running) | $0 |
+| **Net savings** | **~$180-360/yr** | |
+
+## What You're Really Paying For
+OptiSigns is $10-30/mo for something you can run on a $5/mo netcup VPS with Pis you already have. The only value they add is the player app and the CMS UI — both of which we build once and own forever.
+
+Cancel OptiSigns as soon as Phase 1 is live. Want me to start building Phase 1 after Cartagena?