$70 for a charger is asking a lot, but when Palm announced the pricing for the Touchstone, we all acquiesced because it was such a cool little device. And of course if you’re getting a Pre, you really should have the thing. But it turns out that, while the Pre itself costs nearly as much to make as you’re going to pay for it, the Touchstone charger is made of bargain-bin electronics that probably cost only a handful of ducats to manufacture. Highway robbery? Not really, since Apple (among others) has been doing this kind of thing for a decade.
The $70 is a value proposition which most of us agreed to, though somewhat grudgingly. Palm certainly did some market research and found that was a price they could push, just as any company might do with a unique product. And since they’re positioning the Pre in the rather precarious “bargain luxury” market, it makes sense to imbue the Touchstone, made as it is from common pieces, with the same cachet found in the Pre.
[via Engadget]
Maybe this is where they hope to profit from
So is there another cheaper device that can be used instead?
It might be a little bit pricey but besides the cost of the raw material, there was some brainstorming + design work involved. Either way, I think it could be a little bit cheaper but I guess that’s the price for having a nice pre ;)
$5 for the hardware, $65 for the premium of being able to carry around a Palm-branded product.
It’s called R&D. Even small devices like needs R&D. The more they’ll sell, the cheaper it’ll get.
I said it before and I will say it again. Palm is smoking dope, the TS should have been included in the box, they need every bit of extra incentive and cool factor to hook early adopters or they will die.
It’s worth point out (though at a higher cost point) that apple used to include their docks with the iphone.
buy on ebay from reputed hong kong sellers very soon! ten dollar!
Hey I found this in a internet seller for 49.oo. Its not bad at all. Come on. If you can’t afford it don’t buy it.