10 Gadgets That Will Be Cheaper in 2011

stralya on 08/03/2011 - 10:22

I found this article online recently and looks at 10 gadgets that will come down in pricing in 2011.

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2011/pf/1102/gallery.10_cheap…

However, what struck me most wasn't the categories, but the sheer pricing differential between the US and here. Given that a) we are at parity with the USD, and
b) 99% of these are made in China and the shipping cost from China to the US or Australia is nearly the same,

the price differences are astounding. Blu Ray players for $50 and what not!

General Discussion

Comments

  • zhenjie on 08/03/2011 - 11:53
    +2

    Economies of scale. We don't nearly buy as much as Americans do. We are super super minuscule market in the grand scheme of things.

    • StewBalls on 08/03/2011 - 12:24

      Whilst I agree that is a factor to some extent, I personally do not believe it entirely accounts for the sheer disparity in pricing between Oz & larger markets like the US/UK.

      Aussies are being rorted, this much we already know. The recent scramble by the likes of Gerry Harvey & Myer to try to head off online shopping OS is evidence enough that they don't want to give up a slice of a very lucrative pie. ;)

      • qazwsx on 08/03/2011 - 20:14
        +6

        Economies of scale is only one factor.
        Exchange rate is always a touchy issue - most companies with large FX trading will hedge their risks, hence there is always a delay to realise FX gains. Then there is a common perception by consumers to deal with the most favourable rate. Companies have to be confident that this isn't a blip in the FX markets - these companies are trying to avoid prices going up and down regularly like a yo-yo. Remember that FX goes up and down all the time - if it goes down, most companies will absorb the hit (at least initially), whislt ifi t goes up they'll take it. It's a bit of give and take. There is certainly more to it than some simple folk will have you believe.
        Then there are labour costs in Australia. Aust retail labour is quite expensive - adult retail casuals at the lowest employment level are paid over $20 per hour. Then you add all the loadings and penalty rates as well. Compared to Hong Kong or the US, where equivalent labour costs are around AUD7/hr (HK) or AUD10/hr (US). On top of that, Australia has some of the most overvalued property prices in the world. And there are still quite tight labour restrctions around the country, such as Sunday trading in WA.

        Then there are smaller things like population density, expensive distribution systems and strong legislated consumer rights (TPA, Fair Trading Acts).

        It all adds up, every little bit - at least when you have a discussion on retail pricing in Australia, consider some of these points instead of relying on some really basic, simplistic one-dimensional comparison to the US (which these days seem to be limited to being able to use a calculator to punch out the FX conversion rates).

        That doesn't stop me however from feeling that prices in Australia are too high anyway - I just don't think that I think they're as high as most people whingeing think they are. But they are high, even after all these other factors.

  • retiredfeline on 08/03/2011 - 12:16
    +5

    It would be a more interesting article if it were "10 gadgets that will be more expensive in 2011". That would be some news that I didn't know.

  • scrimshaw on 08/03/2011 - 12:44

    It's funny because all the cheap, soon-to-be-obsolete gadgets will probably be bought up by resellers like COTD and Zazz…

    The article is about as pointless as saying things will get cheaper as they become older. Of course gadgets will always become cheaper as newer ones come out. In saying that Australia is always behind the curve in terms of tech, we get stuff much later than the US and Asia market, and at the same time pay a lot more for the same products.

    At least we have nice beaches.

  • alebox on 08/03/2011 - 13:38

    ooo kindles will go down. looking forward to that :D

    • bleech on 09/03/2011 - 22:12

      yea, believe kindles will down down soon :)

  • sparkles on 08/03/2011 - 19:25
    -1

    Jeebus, they are quoting some seriously cheap prices. $49 for an iPhone? $39 for a blu ray player? $50 for 2TB hard drive? Yeah right. At those prices the tech companies might as well not bother.

    • issh on 08/03/2011 - 19:29
      +1

      $50 for 2TB hard drive?
      $39 for a blu ray player?

      very possible

      • Hintswen on 08/03/2011 - 20:41

        Maybe I should hold out a bit longer on my NAS then.

        • Ashlea on 08/03/2011 - 20:44

          That's the thing though, with HDDs, I always say "yeah, I'll hold out a little longer" because every week they get cheaper and cheaper. Just have to bite the bullet eventually.

        • Hintswen on 10/03/2011 - 17:02

          haha so true. I've been holding out on a 2TB drive for as long as I can remember, but I've decided to just go for a NAS and I'm back to holding off again.

      • Michaelz101 on 14/03/2011 - 08:15

        Agreed with Issh, DVD will phase out like VHS eventually and bluray players for under $50 by mid year sale.( it is already at $99)

    • Ashlea on 08/03/2011 - 20:43

      $50 for a 2TB HDD isn't that crazy at all. Once 3tb is standard and 4tb is released, 2tb will come down drastically. It wasn't that long ago we were spending over $100 on a 500gb (i'm talking a couple of years at most)

      Also keep in mind this is showing US prices, not ours, well I'd assume based on the $170 Wii and $76 blu-ray in 09.

    • altomic on 13/03/2011 - 11:36

      cost price?

  • issh on 08/03/2011 - 19:36
    +1

    lol @ GPS price rise

    2009: $42
    to
    2010: $45

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