storage media

From: John Foust <jfoust_at_threedee.com>
Date: Sat Dec 16 09:41:30 2000

At 06:09 PM 12/15/00 -0800, you wrote:
>On Fri, 15 Dec 2000, John Foust wrote:
>> Digital cameras are getting so incredibly inexpensive,
>> I'd guess we're about seven years from them being included
>> in cereal boxes.
>
>That'd be cool but by the same economical logic we'd be getting free
>radios in cereal boxes today :)

I can be as economical or even as downright frugal as
the next guy, but even by economic logic, it's possible.
At the high-end of cereal give-aways, they simply jack
the price of the cereal to cover the big toy. Or they
put it in the box and cover the cost in the shipping and
handling charge. That's my favorite. I make it a point
of covering the cost of goods in the S/H charge.

What's easier to make, a radio or a voice recorder/playback
chip? More importantly, what do kids want? They probably
don't want a radio. They do, however, want chicken nuggets
and a hunk of plastic that talks. A Happy Meal costs less
than a box of cereal, no? Perhaps you're right. They'll
be giving away digital cameras at McDonalds. I would guess
the most expensive part inside them will be the battery, as
is the situation today.

Back in 1986 or so, I was ridiculed for a column in an
Amiga mag that speculated that one day soon there would
be free C compilers, assemblers and development systems.

- John
Received on Sat Dec 16 2000 - 09:41:30 GMT