Hornby and global warming

Sorting through old clippings, I came across an ad for a "cheap PC". Date: 1987. IBM compatible. 8088 chip. 256K RAM, 360KB floppy drive, keyboard, 8 expansion slots, no monitor, no video card, no sound card. No operating system. $449. In today's money, about $1000.

For about $1000 you can get a PC with: Dual-core Intel chip, 512MB RAM, 160GB hard disk, dual layer CD-DVD reader/writer, 17" LCD monitor, Ethernet LAN port, USB ports, mouse port, built-in video, built-in sound, keyboard, mouse, and printer. Oh yeah, you get speakers, too.

Reply to
Wolf
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And some people buy little decals of graffiti to apply to their rolling stock and scenery to make it more true-to-life.

Reply to
MartinS

Aha! How did we ever manage without such basics, as well as colour TV, mobile phones, decimal currency, microwaves, etc., etc.?

Reply to
MartinS

Isn't that just the electronic stuff with the toxic metals?

Reply to
MartinS

How about this from Staples.ca, $899.95 (plus $134.39 tax) after rebate:

DESKTOP PC BUNDLE Price: $899.95 Save: $139.61 Rebate Info: Instant -79.61 & Mail-in -$60 Rebates Product Number: 674723/674399/658586/660622 Bundle includes Cisnet PC, Xplio 19" LCD Monitor and Canon All-In-One Printer · Intel® Pentium D 820 Processor · 1024 MB DDR-2 SDRAM · 320 GB hard drive · 16X DVD+/-RW/CD-RW combo drive · Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator · Windows Vista Home Premium

Obsolete HPs with similar specs but Win XP being cleared even cheaper.

Also: HP colour laser $300 Brother B&W laser $90

1GB SD card $30 (was $120 18 months ago) 4GB USB flash drive $100. 50 DVD-Rs $13 6MP digital camera $200
Reply to
MartinS

Here in New Zealand prices for mid-range PCs have almost halved in the last 10-15 years.

Reply to
Greg Procter

In Canada too, and that's without accounting for inflation.

Costs for blank media have dropped far more, and things we take for granted like flash drives didn't even exist - we were using ZIP drives.

Reply to
MartinS

Over the last year or so I've been tinkering with G garden railways, using LGB etc models as the basis for New Zealand models: Prices: LGB 2-6-0 loco NZ$1000+ (I didn't buy that one) LGB Carriage NZ$250/500- LGB Wagon NZ$120/250- Bachmann 4-6-0 NZ$200- (US$100- plus post) Bachmann boxcar $120- (provides bogies) Chinese 2-6-0 + tender +3 wagons +plastic track +R/C = NZ $45- on special (normally NZ$60-) One of the wagons is very easily converted to an NZR standard HSO so I figure the rest of the set is free!

Regards, Greg.P.

Reply to
Greg Procter

Martin,

colour TVs, microwaves and mobile phones are luxuries that we can do perfectly well without!

Reply to
Paul Stevenson

Shareholders - are they the people that own the company ?

Cheers, Simon

Reply to
simon

Well yes, but I was answering the question.

Cheers, Simon

Reply to
simon

Sorry, I said they went to the conference to discuss the crisis. That is only partly true, the crisis is an excuse for a conference and the associated goodies. It would only be by accident that something useful for the rest of us was achieved.

Cheers, Simon

Reply to
simon

er no, that would be by setting a lower price. The cost of manufacturing gives the minimum selling price that an item must reach (ignoring loss leader/increase market share type things). the actual price is dependant on other factors.

'Buy one get one free' they said. 'I'll just have the free one then' I replied. 'No you must buy one first' they said. 'Its not free then' I answered. 'you know what we mean' they snarled. 'i know what you said' I smiled.

Cheers, Simon

cheers, Simon

Reply to
simon

Mulitiply the US$ price by 2 and you have an idea what the same items from the same chainstore cost here.

(kim)

Reply to
kim

"simon" wrote

No, they're the people who are given the impression that they own the company. In reality the board of directors are likely to have an unrestricted free reign to do what they like providing the company is reasonably profitable.

John.

Reply to
John Turner

"MartinS" wrote

LOL - I could happily manage without ANY of those, but my camera & pc are indispensible these days, although I *think* I could manage without the internet.

John.

Reply to
John Turner

"Greg Procter" wrote

Yes I'd suggest the same is true here. The Dell I purchased in 2000 cost me around £1.5k but the present Athlon powered, twin HDD machine I use now cost half that.

John.

Reply to
John Turner

Um, I dunno.

Colour TV: Um, maybe. But they're cheaper now than plain B/W were in the

1950s. In real money, they are dirt cheap. The 13" B/W TV my house mate bought in 1956 cost $300 -- at least $4500 in today's money. Maybe you should argue we don't need TVs, period. Might even agree with you on that one.

Microwave ovens: essential for warming up the leftovers. Use less electricity, too. Cheaper to buy than electric stoves. Not a luxury.

Mobile phones: up here in Nor Ont, mobile phones are essential. I've had a couple breakdowns in the middle of nowhere, and I never want to be without a phone again. I don't leave home without one.

Reply to
Wolf

Get along without your daily dose of twits, nincompoops, and bozos like us? And we're your friends... :-)

Reply to
Wolf

MBQ wrote :-

' Are any of the savings made from using cheaper manufacturing costs really passed onto the customers ! '

' Why on earth would a company do that. '

" Simple, to gain a competitive advantage. Companies do it all the time.

Why do you think PCs are so cheap nowadays ? "

It is only in recent years that people like DELL have had any sales impact against say IBM. That fact that IBM is, on paper, more expensive that it's rivals business has still stuck with them, why ? because of their name and the old belief that the most expensive must mean the best !

PC's prices are misleading, for example, you can buy a 'up to date' PC for about =A3799 from DELL but the standard guarantee is only 1 year and if say the motherboard goes after this time you can't just get an 'off the shelf' board from your local PC shop as the boards are unique to DELL and can only be fitted by a DELL engineer. A MEDION PC is also a 'up to date' PC purchased through an outlet like ALDI but they provide a 3 year guarantee as standard. Don't get me wrong, both manufacturers offer got quality PC's and service.

On another thread people are discussing profit margins on model's. If you look at the cost difference between almost identical PC's in the USA & UK the figures are the same but one is in $'s the other in =A3's i=2Ee. about 50% cheaper in the USA !

Cheaper manufacturing costs CAN be passed onto the customer but in the UK it appears someone else gets the cream !

Chris

Reply to
Dragon Heart

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