2017 was truly an amazing year for the RoadTest Program. A record of 58 RoadTests, spanning hundreds of applicants and just as many reviews!
The element14 Roadtesters received top quality products from our suppliers in exchange for their expert opinions. Their opinions provide valuable insights to users and suppliers alike. And what an array of products they tested! There were the development boards for makers, dc power supplies, oscilloscopes, the Raspberry Pi and accessories, debugging tools, STEM lab kits andm believe it or not, even a fume extractor.
Given this compelling year of performance, I wanted to recognize the best RoadTesters and their reviews. 
Most of our RoadTesters have fulltime jobs (or consulting gigs). There are researchers, professors, and STEM teachers. There are full time students spanning the bachelor, masters and the PhD degree levels. They all conduct their RoadTests in addition to their normal responsibilities. I am impressed by the level of commitment they provide the element14 community.
To recognize our RoadTesters, I need your help
While our designers are busy creating unique badges to give the winners a a sign of their achievements, I need your help in nominating the best Roadtesters of 2017. I've gathered a complete list of 2017 roadtest in this document (click here to see them). Or, you can go here to see a list of RoadTest Reviews for 2017.
I invite you (at your leisure) to go through your favorite roadtests and reviews. Take some time and read the reviews. Then post a link to the review in the comments section below. The links should represent the best of the best RoadTest Reviews for any RoadTest launched in 2017.
Here's what I will do with them:
1. I will aggregate them and my team will go through them and prune them down to the top 20 nominations.
2. I will then create a poll where you can vote for your single and most favorite review.
3. After the poll closes, we will tabulate the results and announce the 2017 RoadTesters of the Year.
The Awards
We will offer the following awards:
- The RoadTester of the Year
- Second Place/Runner Up
- Third Place/Runner Up
- Honorable Mention (Reserved for the Best "New" Roadtester of 2017)
The Announcement
After the winners are chosen, we will make an announcement, award the badges, and offer a secret prize to the winners.
How To Nominate
I don't have any hard and fast rules or benchmarks on how to nominate a RoadTester of the Year, so I'd begin with what you consider a great RoadTest.
But you could also take the following into account:
1. Thoroughness
2. How Informative the Review Is
3. How Well It is Produced
4. The Insight The Review Provides
5. How Compelling It Is
6. How Useful It is to a Customer or the Supplier
7. If the Review Influenced Your Decision to Buy the Reviewed Product
So, let the nominations begin.
(Paste your nominating links below in the Comments Section)
Sincerely,
Randall Scasny
RoadTest Program Manager
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