SamSpade
Well-Known Member
If U.S. regulations would EVER ALLOW it - easily a foreign manufacturer should have cashed in on that.
There's always been a market for low-cost, no-frills versions of products.
Breezeline Bill
- Thread starter SamSpade
- Start date
If U.S. regulations would EVER ALLOW it - easily a foreign manufacturer should have cashed in on that.
There's always been a market for low-cost, no-frills versions of products.
Clem72
Well-Known Member
It did massively drop the price. But our cars have 10x the crap stuffed in them.
My '82 Grand Am didn't have 9 airbags, crumple zones, 16 speaker surround, automatic suspension, heated seats, chilled steering wheel, an entertainment center that can play movies and make phone calls, a navigation system, tires that tell me their air pressure, 11 cup holders.
It did have an ashtray though. And it got about 15 miles to the gallon and had half the horsepower of a mini-cooper.
SamSpade
Well-Known Member
(shrug) Ok. I do think that the appeal of the Volkswagen Beetles throughout even the 80's was their low-cost, no-frills design.
But my Dad once made an interesting observation. He asked me do you know what I paid for our first color TV? It was typical 60's style - wooden case, four feet, stood on the floor - vacuum tubes. "Yes I do - 600 dollars". He was actually a little surprised I knew, since I was six years old at the time and said "that's right. How much do you think a comparable TV sells for today?".
KIND of a trick question but he was leading to something. "TVs today are VASTLY better. They're huge, flat screens, deliver superior sound and picture - there's like zero comparison. THAT old TV had color, but it was grainy, you had to turn it on and off and change channels manually - and the mechanical parts broke just as often as anything else".
It wasn't for nothing that the 60's coined the phrase "planned obsolescence".
He asked "what does that tell you?". "That advances in technology makes products cheaper".
"Usually. How about how much the dollar was worth, in 1966, compared to today?" "A lot less --" not knowing precisely.
"So today's TVs are basically - CHEAPER than they were then, and better".
I miss our conversations - I'd give anything to have one more.
ANYWAY - I have of course, noticed that NEW technologies - TVs and computers, obviously - are expensive when they come out, but get cheaper with time. I remember the first calculator our family got, around 1973. It was a four function calculator. I think it ran about 40 bucks. Even as little as 15 years later, in the mid 80's, simple four function calculators were SO CHEAP, sometimes they were GIVEN AWAY as promotional items.
So how come so many things NEVER got cheaper?
I had a doz different VW's from 1985 until the 2002 .... fantastic cars dead simple and maintenance was breeze
Gov Regulations ..
LightRoasted
If I may ...
For your consideration ...
11 years after the 1913 Federal Reserve Act was passed, 1924 began planned obsolescence with the light bulb.
TV's of yesterday are in no way comparable to the flat screen monitors of today. Also, it's not just that technology improved, though helpful, it is the ever increasing use, and search, of the cheapest materials with which to manufacture something, for the highest possible profit and return to shareholders, and using cheaper foreign labor. Nearly all things are now made to fail within a couple of years needing replacement, aka purchasing the latest. Because without the continued sales, manufacturing companies would fail financially because of the always becoming worth less everyday US dollar.
11 years after the 1913 Federal Reserve Act was passed, 1924 began planned obsolescence with the light bulb.
ginwoman
Well-Known Member
An old boyfriend of mine had a Bug. It was fun fun fun. It could go anywhere and do anything. Good memories
Sorry, but the chance of an alternative is somewhere between slim and none.
As far back as I can recall, there has never been another bidder.
The franchise has only changed names as the current franchise holder is bought up by another company.
How many people have equipment with the Metrocast label on it?
TPD
the poor dad
I will see your '82 Grand Am and raise you an '86 Grand Am SE with the 3.0 V6. I bought it new when I was a senior in high school - $13,000. It had power everything it could back then. I remember one of the cool features was it telling me my door was a jar! Who knew this would be a standard feature in the future?!?
Camankowski
New Member
The Fee referred to at the beginnings by Breezeline is a cost they are supposed to pay the FCC but choose instead to pass the costs along to us, the customers. More info on the Federal collection is found here:
www.fcc.gov
V/r,
Alex
Universal Service
Universal service is the principle that all Americans should have access to communications services. Universal service is also the name of a fund and the category of FCC programs and policies to implement this principle. Universal service is a cornerstone of the law that established the FCC...
V/r,
Alex
Don't forget about ESPN.
Extortion
Sports
Programing
Network
The contract ESPN makes cable companies sign dictates which tier package their channels are offered in, often forcing CATV providers to inject ESPN where you don't want it.
The contract price ESPN charges would make your head spin.
CATV companies are forced to do it because of all the sport freaks out there. If a cable company refuses to do what ESPN says, then a satellite carrier will gladly pick up the slack. There's too much money with the football nerds at stake, so CATV providers do it.
Passing the costs to the customers. Huh. What a concept.
It's almost like raising min wage then magically the cost of everything goes up. What a coincidence.
Extortion
Sports
Programing
Network
The contract ESPN makes cable companies sign dictates which tier package their channels are offered in, often forcing CATV providers to inject ESPN where you don't want it.
The contract price ESPN charges would make your head spin.
CATV companies are forced to do it because of all the sport freaks out there. If a cable company refuses to do what ESPN says, then a satellite carrier will gladly pick up the slack. There's too much money with the football nerds at stake, so CATV providers do it.
Passing the costs to the customers. Huh. What a concept.
It's almost like raising min wage then magically the cost of everything goes up. What a coincidence.
One of the founders of ESPN, Scott Rasmussen, was a high school classmate of my wife's.
She remembers him as being a DI*K.
Scott's dad, Bill, the main co-founder, was also. He got himself fired by the Whalers hockey team.
For the several years, Scott had headed the Rasmussen polling organization.
LightRoasted
If I may ...
For your consideration ...
Internet access related content.
With all the hubbub going on with Musk, Ukraine, and Starlink, I found it interesting that there are Starlink terminals capable of speeds up to 100X greater than what is provided to current household customers. 100X faster! I wonder why higher tiered speeds aren't offered than what is currently available to the regular consumer? This means that if a regular Starlink customer can achieve speeds up to 200Mbps, those terminals being used in Ukraine could see speeds up to 20000Mbps, or 20Gbps!
Which also makes me think that there is way more to SpaceX's Starlink than meets the eye.
You can glimpse the meat of the information in this article.
www.stationgossip.com
Internet access related content.
With all the hubbub going on with Musk, Ukraine, and Starlink, I found it interesting that there are Starlink terminals capable of speeds up to 100X greater than what is provided to current household customers. 100X faster! I wonder why higher tiered speeds aren't offered than what is currently available to the regular consumer? This means that if a regular Starlink customer can achieve speeds up to 200Mbps, those terminals being used in Ukraine could see speeds up to 20000Mbps, or 20Gbps!
Which also makes me think that there is way more to SpaceX's Starlink than meets the eye.
You can glimpse the meat of the information in this article.
“We’re Just Following His Recommendation”: Elon Musk Confirms Report Pentagon Asked to Fund Starlink for Ukraine; Cites Ambassador Who Told Him to “F*** Off” Over Peace Plan
Your Daily Station of Entertainment !!
glhs837
Power with Control
Maybe because your Onmi was about as safe as a cardboard box in a crash?
SamSpade
Well-Known Member
Dunno. In ‘89 I DID crash it and stepped out without a bruise.
Businesses never pay taxes or fees, the customer ALWAYS pays, so get over it!The Fee referred to at the beginnings by Breezeline is a cost they are supposed to pay the FCC but choose instead to pass the costs along to us, the customers. More info on the Federal collection is found here:
Universal Service
Universal service is the principle that all Americans should have access to communications services. Universal service is also the name of a fund and the category of FCC programs and policies to implement this principle. Universal service is a cornerstone of the law that established the FCC...
V/r,
Alex
glhs837
Power with Control
Each crash is different. I dismounted my motorcycle at 25 mph and managed to not even fall down, but that's not the way to bet.
Crashes that in a Corolla today you would walk away from would not be survivable in the Omni. Whole lot of a science and data and materials have gone into making modern cars better able to keep you alive. High strength steels, crumple structures, airbags. It all adds cost and weight. But people live when they would have died.
There are the good old days… When a 1970 Buick estate wagon, weighing in at 6200 pounds, could plow through 15 cars, three houses and a public park and the worst you’d come out with would be a sprained ankle.Each crash is different. I dismounted my motorcycle at 25 mph and managed to not even fall down, but that's not the way to bet.
Of course… It also got about 8 miles to the gallon.
Highway of course.
glhs837
Power with Control
and a good morning to you too Mr. Nader.