Very cool...I think we all hope that you can do something great with this. Its always nice when someone can, from a 'garage shop' approach.  You've been given some good advice.  Think who you want to market this to, what your costs are, and how much you really want to make.  It could very well be a flash in the pan....make a bunch of money and get out before the thing gets cloned.  But depending on how big your market is, could be room for more than one supplier.
 
I think your biggest cost will be if you go custom with injection molding.  Can't say how many times a client has backed off from a project due to the costs involved...essentially they had no clue that tooling can be thousands of dollars.  There are dozens of vendors making blank keyfob type cases...some can do a little customization on them for not alot of cost but if it was me, I would get samples of several and see if your device can be designed to fit inside it. If you can, your costs have just come down dramatically.  If not, you really need to think about the packaging.  Short of doing a steel tool, you can do rubber but then your limited to maybe 10 shots, but the cost is less.  Aluminum molds are cheaper than steel, but again your shots are limited.  Doing a steel mold really commits you.
 
For getting boards built, there really are alot of smaller overhead shops stateside if your doing a few hundred a month, that are competive with overseas, especially if your doing full surface mount.  Might also think about having the PIC's pre-programmed not only to save time on the build, but also space on the board for a programming header or pads.  Again, there are alot of places that will mass program the chips, including microchip.  Arrow used to provide this, but since they dropped them...no longer an option.
 
So manufacturing is half the issue...including the regulatory stuff.  Of course as mentioned if this is marketed as a teen/adult gag item, I think you could get away with warnings on the labels, etc.  I have several customers that do not even do UL or others, and do not have an issue with it.  Typically, getting something approved just means in court, you have something to back you up with.  So create an LLC corp, not that it protects you but limits the liablity and make sure you seperate your personal assets with the LLC...but thats another discussion all together.
 
Marketing is your issue.  You really need to hook up with someone in the business, and thats not easy to do of course.  But if you can get just one contact, that is sometimes all you need.
 
Sell on ebay as well....that might get it noticed. You might even give some away to toy sellers.
 
Oh..patent it?  I wouldnt, unless its so unique and new, why bother?  Honestly with something like this, you ought to consider it a springboard to bigger and better and more things.  IF by chance, this really goes BIG, you might make some serious coin for a year or so, and then it either wears off or the maket gets flooded with knock offs.  But what it does for you, is perhaps opens doors to some of the novelty and toy companies to have you begin developing things for them.  You just never know where things can go.
 
Good luck, and I hope it brings you great and wonderful sucess.


      
-- 
http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive
View/change your membership options at
http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist