baineschile
2600
Premium
join:2008-05-10
Sterling Heights, MI
 ·Comcast
 ·magicjack.com
 ·Verizon Wireless B..
1 edit | reply to grydlok
Re: For what
Situation A: We can buy cable boxes.
A DVR box will cost $300-400 bucks; which, over time, is of less cost than paying the $15/month (or whatever operators charge). But, if the technology changes (IE smart-card boxes, tru-2 way, maybe new whole home DVR box functions), then it will be up to the consumer to have to buy new equipment? I dont see anyone putting up that type of investment for a changing technology.
Also, lets say we can buy boxes, and a house has one box for one TV. And that box breaks down. Is it the responsibilty of the cable operator to credit the time without TV, or the manufacturer of the equipment? When the cable controls it, yes its a bit more expensive, but you can now just call your cable company with any problems; not have to slice and dice responsiblilty.
Remember, cable OPs buy their equipment in bulk. The price per box would go up if sold individually; and may lead to contracts with cable operators.
I dont think any major operator would mind losing the box expense; i cant even imagine how many boxes they rent out that never get returned, that are a direct loss for them.
Situation B: We can only rent boxes.
We will always have the most up to date, compatible equipment, supplied and troubleshot by one company.
The bad news is that this is more expensive over time. The all mighty dollar. Pay a few bucks more fot that convenience? Or just sue any major cable operator for as much money as you can. |
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ender7074
join:2006-11-21
Saint Louis, MO
 ·AT&T Southeast
| DVR boxes cost a lot more than 300-400 bucks. More like 1200 bucks. If someone wants to buy one they should be free to. They should also be free to pay to have the thing repaired if it breaks... I went through 3 DVR boxes in as many years. Had I not been renting that box, that would have been a ton of cash.
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Does Microsoft mean small and squishy? |
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chemaupr
join:2005-06-06
Alexandria, VA
| $1200 are you insaine? That will make the rental of one at least $33 buck a month assuming a breakeven in the hardware at 36 month. Not even the cable companies will buy something like that to lease...
Look at the average HD playback hardware *they have similar if not superior components* out there... then add 50 bucks for an 80 gigs hd or so... That is what it should be priced at retail which means it porbably cost less to make.... |
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Jack Valenti
@ameritech.net
thumbs down from:
Moonspell 
| reply to baineschile
Situation C: Cut the cable. It is about time to move on from this dead technology. |
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sonicmerlin
join:2009-05-24
Cleveland, OH | reply to ender7074
$1200? Are you nuts? More like sub $100. |
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baineschile
2600
Premium
join:2008-05-10
Sterling Heights, MI
·Comcast
·magicjack.com
·Verizon Wireless B..
| reply to chemaupr
said by chemaupr :$1200 are you insaine? That will make the rental of one at least $33 buck a month assuming a breakeven in the hardware at 36 month. Not even the cable companies will buy something like that to lease... Look at the average HD playback hardware *they have similar if not superior components* out there... then add 50 bucks for an 80 gigs hd or so... That is what it should be priced at retail which means it porbably cost less to make.... Thats how much it may cost the consumer. Remember, cable buys in bulk |
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baineschile
2600
Premium
join:2008-05-10
Sterling Heights, MI
·Comcast
·magicjack.com
·Verizon Wireless B..
| reply to sonicmerlin
said by sonicmerlin :$1200? Are you nuts? More like sub $100. A Tivo series 3 is $300-400, and thats with no tuner. |
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jmn1207
Premium
join:2000-07-19
Reston, VA | reply to baineschile
A top of the line Tivo or Moxi multi-tuner HD DVR's costs far less than $1200. |
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Youngjm
join:2002-04-01
Ada, MI | reply to baineschile
With competition, the price will come down! |
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avd706
insert annoying animated gif here
Premium
join:2003-02-06
Union, NJ
| reply to baineschile
said by baineschile :said by sonicmerlin :$1200? Are you nuts? More like sub $100. A Tivo series 3 is $300-400, and thats with no tuner. How much do dual cable cards and switching adapters cost?
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Team JON. |
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Cthen
join:2004-08-01
Ypsilanti, MI
·Comcast
1 edit | reply to baineschile
said by baineschile :said by chemaupr :$1200 are you insaine? That will make the rental of one at least $33 buck a month assuming a breakeven in the hardware at 36 month. Not even the cable companies will buy something like that to lease... Look at the average HD playback hardware *they have similar if not superior components* out there... then add 50 bucks for an 80 gigs hd or so... That is what it should be priced at retail which means it porbably cost less to make.... Thats how much it may cost the consumer. Remember, cable buys in bulk What makes you think retailers don't buy in bulk? 
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"I like to refer to myself as an Adult Film Efficienato." - Stuart Bondek |
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dcdeadbeat
join:2008-10-07
Washington, DC
·Covad Communications
| reply to sonicmerlin
said by sonicmerlin :$1200? Are you nuts? More like sub $100. When you were able to buy DVRs from Dish Network they were in the $800-$1000 range. The price was so high that Dish Network switched over to a lease structure. It is no surprise that the cable companies do the same thing. Most people have no idea how much these things actually cost.
The problem is that the American consumer has gotten used to cheap, subsidized equipment. We can blame the cell phone companies for that. So now that everyone is clamoring for "I want to own my own equipment". Well you can....just open up your wallet. |
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fiberguy
My views are my own.
Premium
join:2005-05-20
| reply to baineschile
When a TON of customers buy boxes, they too are "buying in bulk" .. that is IF there is this flood of customers rushing out to buy a "consumer owned box".. which has still yet to happen even though the law changed a while back.
Seems there just isn't a market for this..
I think it's funny how we're now back to.. what was it again...? .. oh yea, "Legislating from the bench".. the Republican battle-cry from the past few years. |
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fiberguy
My views are my own.
Premium
join:2005-05-20 | reply to Jack Valenti
.."dead technology.." ?! Really? What's so "dead" about it? |
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majortom1029
join:2006-10-19
Lindenhurst, NY | reply to baineschile
You are not keeping in mind if your dvr dies . so then you would have to buy a second one at $400 which would then kill your savings over renting one. |
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majortom1029
join:2006-10-19
Lindenhurst, NY | reply to jmn1207
Yeah but then tivo also charges you monthly for the service. |
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jmn1207
Premium
join:2000-07-19
Reston, VA
 ·Verizon FIOS
| said by majortom1029 :Yeah but then tivo also charges you monthly for the service. It's an option to pay monthly or purchase a lifetime subscription. The consumer has a choice based their needs. Moxi includes this in the overall price of the DVR, which makes it a bit more expensive than an equivalent Tivo.
Your cable company has to pay for their guide to be updated as well, it's just that they pass along this cost in the bill, and more than likely as part of the rental fee for the cable box. It really just depends on how the invoice is broken out. |
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Frank
is chilling
Premium
join:2000-11-03
somewhere
·Verizon FIOS
1 edit | reply to baineschile
said by baineschile :Situation A: We can buy cable boxes. A DVR box will cost $300-400 bucks; which, over time, is of less cost than paying the $15/month (or whatever operators charge). But, if the technology changes (IE smart-card boxes, tru-2 way, maybe new whole home DVR box functions), then it will be up to the consumer to have to buy new equipment? I dont see anyone putting up that type of investment for a changing technology. Also, lets say we can buy boxes, and a house has one box for one TV. And that box breaks down. Is it the responsibilty of the cable operator to credit the time without TV, or the manufacturer of the equipment? When the cable controls it, yes its a bit more expensive, but you can now just call your cable company with any problems; not have to slice and dice responsiblilty. Remember, cable OPs buy their equipment in bulk. The price per box would go up if sold individually; and may lead to contracts with cable operators. I dont think any major operator would mind losing the box expense; i cant even imagine how many boxes they rent out that never get returned, that are a direct loss for them. Situation B: We can only rent boxes. We will always have the most up to date, compatible equipment, supplied and troubleshot by one company. The bad news is that this is more expensive over time. The all mighty dollar. Pay a few bucks more fot that convenience? Or just sue any major cable operator for as much money as you can. 1) the same argument of obsolescence can be said of any technology. unless you rent all the electronic equipment in your house from a rent-a-center then the 'ZOMG! this stuff can go obsolete if i pay for it versus renting' isnt much of a point.
2) if it breaks then that's what warranty is for, if you're paranoid get an extended warranty. as far as outage is concerned, think of it being on par with your tv/phone/or computer breaking.
3) why would the price of cable boxes go up if sold individually? you think that the best buys and other retail outlets of the world wouldnt order them in bulk and at a discount? With the exception of bleeding edge technology, history has shown that the trend with all consumer electronics is for the price to go down over time due to cost of the manufactoring process going down and competition. This is why my first router and cable modem cost about $300 each (1997 dollars) versus about $80 each (2009 dollars) today.
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At first I thought everyone on the highway was drunk but then I realized I was driving in Florida |
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fiberguy
My views are my own.
Premium
join:2005-05-20
| reply to ender7074
said by ender7074 :DVR boxes cost a lot more than 300-400 bucks. More like 1200 bucks. They are not $1,200 bucks.. they have been shown to sell for about $500-ish.. even the cable company pays about $350 to $400 for them.
»www.bestbuy.ca/search/searchresu···arch=KWS
This is the closest model you're going to get to establish consumer cost.
It's STILL way up there though and those wanting to purchase them are plain silly... on top of the fee to purchase, retailers are going to make a big killing by "raping customers" with their "extended warranty" programs by adding another $100 for the 3 year "protection" plan.
So, in about 3 years, a consumer would just about break even with their then/now outdated converter box.
As for the SD boxes.. sure, the consumer will save a butt-load of money on rental fees.. probably break even in under a year or about and still get to worry about upgrading technology and repairing the box when it malfunctions... but there's nothing to worry about becuase we ALL know they are incredibly dependable, right? 
The other reason I'm against consumer owned boxes.. the CHEAPEST of the cheapskates will ULTIMATELY be the ones that slow progress down. When the providers decide it's time to upgrade to a new delivery model or technology, doing so will be a pain in the ass when all the people that purchased boxes cry foul that their customer owned equipment will no longer work.
It wouldn't be the first time that a system has swapped out all CPE converters for new stuff..
Customer owned boxes will most likely come - in time, but not when there is a major transition curve coming ahead with MPEG 4, SDV, and other technologies that MAY invalidate the equipment already in the home... just ask all those happy Tivo users in Hawaii. |
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fiberguy
My views are my own.
Premium
join:2005-05-20
| reply to Frank
... don't say "all consumer electronics".. Last I looked, cell phone prices, in a whole, have no come down.. and many good flat screen televisions are still up there in price.
Sure, you say that the item itself comes down in price, however, the movement forward keeps the average price at the selling point they want.. so even if a specific item comes down in price, it does so when the item is out of cycle / dead stock being moved to clear.. its replacement generally comes in at the same price, if not higher sometimes.
It's all how you want to look at it.. and then apply general applications to it. |
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