Hi all, I've received several e-mails regarding this subject and the FSOBO ad. I'd like to make an attempt in order to clarify some aspects: (please remove if you cansider this is not appropriate for the forum. 123456)
By one hand my FSBO ad was not intended to produce confussion. There are hundreds of such ads, and they seem reasonable for most users, (me included.)
On the other hand, the "real price" shouldn't be affordable (nor even reasonable) by most of the 41'ers enthusiast community (again, me included!).
As some you have pointed out, this "real" price is composed of:
Components cost: (PCB's, PIC, Xtal and resistor) wich are not very expensive indeed.
Module Housing: Extremely variable cost, in some cases including several hours of searching at e-Bay, writing e-mails to contact a seller, time to go to the Post office to pick up the parcels, car/cab/bus, etc. Even a mean value is difficult to calculate as the next few modules can shift the overall price considerably up or down. Further more, some modules do not allow opennig-resealing surgery, this can also increment the mean cost.
Manufacturing/testing/programming time: Mostly the same for every module once the shell is opened and ready.
Up to this point the overall cost can anyhow be calculated within a reasonable range of accuracy, and not too much effort, in some 50 - 70 Euro.
The last point is, by far, the most uncountable, namely, R&D time. There had been necessary literally over one thousand hours. Even considering them as for my regular "salary" they can easily turn into the 30.000 - 40.000 Euro range. No, this is not an overkill. These are real figures and turns the rest of cost items into almost irrelevant.
It has been stated, and it seems quite reasonable for me too, that the world wide 41 enthusiast community groups about one hundred people. So considering all of the above and a fairly moderate business profit of a 30%, the "real" price should easily rise above 500 Euro, provided the whole 100 comunnity buy one of them!, an optimistic proyection of 75% market saturation will lead us to a 33% price increment to keep the business profit range, and the "shelf" price will become something around 630Euro. Which is *absolutelly unacceptable*!!.
The first consequence of that "calculated" price should be that most of users should decided to keep on living without a Clonix in their lives... As has always been... But, this is just the opposite of what this project was intended for: Offer *every* user the opportunity of getting rid of e-Bay collector's price tyranny.
So, FOBO (quite similar to any other Auction method) is, to my eyes, a good method to let *this* very community, to determine what "value" a Clonix is worth, according to what it *does*, instead of setting its "price" by business standard procedures and only looking at what it *cost*.
Should I was really seeking for money:
1- I would *never* even started this project.
2- I would never let the related info to be publicly available. (Remember that it's there where the R&D time is *enclosed*). So anyone can build his/her own Clonix, without having to pay me a single cent.
3- I would try to pick-up a really ugly, old and nasty full of $$$ widow..., er... well may I change the last option for kinda top model ;-)
Best wishes and Merry Xmas for all of you.
Diego.