from 1541 Ultimate homepage:

February is already drawing to the end, so some news about the 1541U-II is needed here. The good news is: the boards have been produced, and the first few have been tested and are working! They are currently back at the assembly house for a missing connector, but I am expecting them back early this week.

The not-so-good news is, that the plastic cases have more delay. The Chinese company sometimes makes some promises that they are breaking afterwards. Yesterday I received a message that the new samples will be shipped on the 10th of March, while they had previously promised to send 100 cases upfront on Feb 25. I pressed them to send at least 100 pieces on, or before that date.

The good news about the cases is, that they will be black and not cream! I noticed that a lot of you have a strong preference for black. They will be produced using the PA material, enforced with glass fiber. :-)

source: 1541ultimate.net