> I would like to find a headset that costs retail > around 150 or so, I'm desperatly trying to figure out > why the high cost of current ones on the market. I'm > 100% positive that they can manufacture the head sets > alot cheaper so the current models must have a pretty > high margin. Check out this very simple pricing equation: Amortized R&D and tooling costs + Cost of Goods + Overhead + Profit = Price 2 key areas to note: 1) Currently R&D and tooling costs are very high. Especially when amortized over the relatively low volume of units being sold in the marketplace. 2) COGS are high because the market cannot support the volumes required (about 10k units/month) to get input pricing down. And no, it is not a "chicken or the egg" type scenario either. HMDs are making great inroads in certain market segments where barriers have been overcome. Pricing is not an issue in these markets because the intrinsic value of using an HMD outweighs its current cost. It is the customers in these markets that are driving HMD innovation today. Unfortunately, the hacker / hobbyist community just doesn't do the kind of volume to have any input on HMD innovations just yet. If you keep hacking old CRTs you are going to relegate yourself into following technology innovation instead of influencing it. > I believe that if they could start producing HMD's > alot cheaper then the current going price, people > would be going after them in a hurry, after all you > could hook it into a laptop and save half the laptops > battery by switching the laptops display off. Hence > longer lasting computing. Not to mention what it could > do for the limited screens of PDA's as well as thier > battery life. You are assuming a fairly normal market demand curve. In fact, the market's current demand curve is pretty inelastic. This means that quantity sold in the market really doesn't change that much by a change in price - up or down. Currently the market's demand is finite, the product selection is limited and the consumers in the market are buying because they need it, not because they want it. Price is really not the issue. At $3,500, we can't keep M2's in stock yet at $649 we still have to convince people that the i-glasses SVGA is a great product and is worth every cent. Go figure. > I like building things my self to be honest, but to > comeout with a mainstream product takes more then > fiddling with old camcorder components. > > It's nice to hear someone else's input on the matter. > I'm a systems analyst by trade and would love to put > HMD's to more mainstream use. Though at current prices > they are but a more then many will want to chew. What about user resistance to wearing something on their head? What about alternative display devices? What about advancement in battery or fuel cell technology? I really don't think it is a matter of price - there are many other things "holding back" the adoption of HMDs into the mainstream market. That day will come - some day. We are still in an emerging phase - trying to figure out what works and what doesn't. What's the hurry anyway? -Tony -- Subscription/unsubscription/info requests: send e-mail with subject of "subscribe", "unsubscribe", or "info" toWear-Hard Mailing List Archive (searchable): http://wearables.blu.org Please, *PLEASE* don't subscribe through a forward/expander/false domain
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