Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Kevin. W
$1300 to $1500. You got too be kidding. Count me out.
|
Wow...did you guys say the same thing when DVD first hit the shelves almost 10 years ago?
Blu-ray are at early adopter prices. As I see it, the reason why there seems to be so much rejection of these units because of the price is because Toshiba, at their $500 price point, skipped a generation of adopters and went right to consumer #3 (a bigger population)...since #3 found a product at their price point you tend to be more vocal against BD pricing.
Imagine if Toshiba had retailed the HD-A1 at $1000 too instead of subsidizing it. The tables would be a lot different right now.
I'm not saying this to look arrogant, but after spending only 10 years in sales that's just how it is...that's how people are.
I see it all in this well-known business point of view (much like a pyramid in # of people). Manufacturers rely on this for their new products. Here is the breakdown:
1. The first-time buyer. This guy has some money to spend. He will pay full price for a new item and is most interested in the newest gadgets, regardless of price. The are a small number of early adopters.
2. This guy can wait longer for the newest technology. He doesn't want to wait too long to feel left behind so will probably buy the second or third generation product. He won't pay full price as customer #1 but he also won't wait for basement prices. He will never pay full price, he can afford to wait.
3. If you think cutomer #2 is tough on price, you’ve never met #3. They aren’t even remotely interested in paying full (early adopter) price. They will wait for the technology to drop and there are many more people in this group than in the first two. They want to get into new technology (some know about it - some don't) but can wait it out.
4. The uneducated mass market. They don't know about the technology, but when shown the benefits and with a cheap price they will buy.
Mike