Stern Insider Connected Setup - Getting Pinball Online (SDTM & Flip N Out Pinball)

Straight Down the Middle·video·10m 35s·analyzed·Oct 21, 2021

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.022

TL;DR

Stern's Insider Connected setup walkthrough for online machine registration and achievement tracking.

Summary

Zach Sharp demonstrates Stern Pinball's Insider Connected platform, a new online connectivity system that allows players to register machines, track scores, earn achievements, and access exclusive content. The video walks through the complete setup process: scanning QR codes, creating an account (free or $39.99/year All Access), connecting to Wi-Fi via the machine's menu, and tracking gameplay statistics and achievements through the mobile app.

Key Claims

Insider Connected enables Stern machines to go online to earn achievements, promotions, and exclusive content
high confidence · Zach Sharp opening statement about Insider Connected's core functionality
All Access membership costs $39.99 per year and includes sneak peeks, behind-the-scenes content, and exclusive merchandise
high confidence · Displayed on-screen during account creation process
Machines with factory-installed Insider Connected aprons come with code already updated for Wi-Fi capability; machines requiring added aprons need one final code update
high confidence · Sharp's explanation of setup requirements based on factory configuration
Verified points can only be earned when playing at public locations, not private showrooms
high confidence · Sharp notes 'verified zero' on his showroom Godzilla machine and explains location requirement
Godzilla on Stern has 39 total achievements available in the Insider Connected system
high confidence · Sharp viewing achievement list in app showing achievement count

Notable Quotes

“This is no longer your grandparents' pinball machine. This is the 21st century, and pinball machines are now online.”
Zach Sharp@ 9:08 — Summarizes the transformational impact of Insider Connected on pinball machines as connected gaming platforms
“I'm super eager to get online, get connected with Stern Pinball, and start opening up a can of whoop-ass to all of my friends out there.”
Zach Sharp@ 1:30 — Demonstrates enthusiasm for competitive/social aspects of Insider Connected
“The only way to get verified points is on location. So I'm playing here at the showroom, not a public location per se.”
Zach Sharp@ 8:36 — Clarifies distinction between home/showroom play and location-verified scoring
“And that's just the tip of the iceberg as to what Stern Pinball's Insider Connected will bring in the next month, the next six months, the next year, and beyond.”
Zach Sharp@ 9:17 — Suggests Insider Connected is an evolving platform with major features still to come

Entities

Stern PinballcompanyInsider ConnectedproductZach SharppersonGodzillagameFlippin' Out PinballcompanyStraight Down the Middlemedia Pinball NetworkorganizationJames Cameron's Avatar (Limited Edition)game

Signals

?
business_signal: Stern implementing freemium model for Insider Connected with free basic access and $39.99/year All Access tier offering exclusive content and merchandise, monetizing player base engagement
high · Pricing structure displayed in setup: free basic account vs. $39.99 All Access with sneak peeks, behind-the-scenes content, and exclusive merchandise benefits
?
community_signal: Stern Pinball implementing comprehensive Insider Connected system with QR code registration, mobile app integration, achievement tracking, and verified location-based scoring to enhance player engagement and social competition
high · Video demonstrates full Insider Connected feature set including 39 achievements on Godzilla, XP progression system, location-verified points distinction, and planned future features
?
product_strategy: Insider Connected described as evolving platform with additional features planned for coming months, six months, and beyond current launch capabilities
medium · Sharp states 'that's just the tip of the iceberg as to what Stern Pinball's Insider Connected will bring in the next month, the next six months, the next year, and beyond'
?
technology_signal: Stern Pinball transitioning pinball machines from standalone entertainment devices to connected online gaming platforms with cloud-based player profiles, cross-machine progression, and social/competitive features
high · Insider Connected enables Wi-Fi connectivity, centralized player profiles, achievement tracking across machines, and mobile app integration; positioned as transformation of pinball into '21st century' connected gaming

Topics

Insider Connected platform functionalityprimaryQR code-based machine registrationprimaryAchievement and progression systemprimaryWi-Fi connectivity setup for pinball machinesprimaryMembership tiers and pricing ($39.99/year All Access vs. free basic)primaryLocation-verified scoring mechanicssecondaryMobile app integration for score trackingsecondary

Sentiment

positive(0.85)— Zach Sharp is enthusiastic and excited about Insider Connected throughout, using energetic language ('super pumped,' 'way cool,' 'opening up a can of whoop-ass'). No critical commentary about the platform; presentation is demonstrative and promotional. Mild moments of confusion during setup are framed as simple/easy to resolve rather than problematic.

Transcript

youtube_auto_sub · $0.000

hello everybody i'm zach minnie with flipping out pinball street down the middle and the pinball network i'm super happy you guys joined me today because stern pinball recently announced what they're calling insider connected and i want to go through it with you today and what that means essentially insider connected is going to enable your stern games to go online to earn achievements win promotions and much much more throughout this year next and so on but first we got to figure out how to do it i did notice i'm super pumped to open up this godzilla by stern pinball oh i want to play it so bad and i want to get it online the only thing i noticed about this that's another video if you guys want to watch an unboxing so if you guys can see this decal here this is new i've never seen this on a stern game before but on the box it says insider connected scan this code to join don't scan my code i don't know about you but i am super eager to get online get connected with stern pinball and start opening up a can of webass to all of my friends out there and foes pink here we go so i got my phone out go to your phone's camera feature and then we should be able to scan that qr and then the link comes up at top as John Youssi the browser will then link you to stern pinball's insider connected homepage from there we can open up our own account looking uh look at the all forums track scores team stern get started sign me up now you can sign up for free using basic access you can sign up for 39.99 a year bye bye bye bye using the all access this will this will enable you to uh get sneak peeks into the world stern access to behind the scenes content access to exclusive le merchandise so on and so forth right now i'm just going to sign up for free it asks you the country that you're living in your birthday you'll go next and Ed Boon i'm connected check it out Ed Boon flip and out zach go ahead and follow me if you want to i'm also under the handle z mini but once we get this wonderful godzilla unboxed on the apron uh or the arch as they call it there's gonna be a qr reader all we have to do to get this game linked up and online in our database is scan that qr code right on the game now before we jump into insider connected and start battling fools first we need to jump online with this pinball machine as a reminder if your game came factory with the apron and the qr reader already in it then your code should be up to date where you can jump in hook up that wi-fi however if you had to add this insider connected accessory apron you'll still need to do one final code update to qualify and enable wi-fi updating in the future this one came from the factory with this insider connected apron so we're going to go into the menu settings using the coin door buttons and set it up to our local wi-fi here at uh here at the showroom we'll go to stern insider connected setup and press enter we have setup connection test connection stern insider connected and software update let's go to setup connection wi-fi or wired we are going to establish a wi-fi connection we can find a wi-fi network scan the wi-fi qr code or reset our usb wi-fi adapter we're going to go ahead and find our wi-fi network scanning for networks there's me the minis i'll press enter and i will enter my password now that my password has been entered it's trying to hook up to okay so it did it hooked up already that was simple enough it's showing signal strength at a 73 i guess that's good i don't know but the status is running and it shows that we are connected it also shows a qr code that says use this code to set up any other games on this wi-fi network we can test the connection if we'd like let's see how long it takes for a server ping and what speed we are we're running here now after i tested my connection go down here press enter for stern insider connected it says connected now now you can exit the system and you're ready to scan your qr code i went to sternpinball.com went to login and ask for your login done done we are in flipping out zach i'll press this qr code scan your qr code at the bottom of the machine to track your gameplay i don't know if you all can see but up here it now says new machine registration pending complete registration okay everything is filled out now i will agree to the terms of use and of course i sent them off to my lawyer and they read all of them she said it looks good i will complete my registration we're good to go now that i've registered the game i open up my stern insider profile find the qr code and scan it into the system now you'll see me up there zlm and my username flipping out zach i press start to start the game [Music] godzilla multiball [Music] okay so i put a couple games on went back onto my phone into the insider connected profile and you'll see here it shows my last score when i played it last my user profile showing my player experience points achievements that i've gained how many times i've played it where i've played it and then shows the latest achievements i can go to view all this is really neat so it shows how many achievements are on this game 39 using the pro i've got eight of those 55 xp out of 900 xp points i've got a long way to go and then it highlights and gives me points for what i have achieved how cool is that yeah it didn't do very well you don't have to rub it in and you'll see up here it says verified zero the only way to get verified points is on location so i'm playing here at the showroom not a public location per se how cool is that now i'm going to want to go back and try to capture each of these each of these achievements way cool well there you have it that's just a little taste of stern pinball's insider connected online this is no longer your grandparents pinball machine this is the 21st century and pinball machines are now online and that's just the tip of the iceberg as to what stern pinball's insider connected will bring in the next month the next six months the next year and beyond just wait just just wait he's still there you thought i was going to close this video down without reminding you that if you're ready for a brand new stern pinball machine there's one place that you should go it's flipping out pinball.com that's flip the lettering out pinball dot com eight one two four five seven nine seven one one we would love to earn your business and to help you out for years to come what's next where you going for the godzilla call me let's do it [Music] stern pinball recently announced that they're calling insider connected insider connected is an online program that gets your stern machines okay the first thing we're going to do is get out your phone put it to the camera feature we're going to scan that qr code and by doing so it's going to do nothing the hell oh no dude