Hello Fellow Listers, I have recently returned from the Sight Village
exhibition in Birmingham, England. While there I inspected the new PK machine
and found its performance and potential very impressive; I visualize the
possibility of owning one in the future. However, I was extremely disappointed
with the price to us in Europe. A winge perhaps, but I would ask that those
living elsewhere, especially in the States, should try to put themselves in our
place and endeavour to appreciate how we feel. Before I went to Birmingham, I
had only the price in the States to go by, as revealed by Jonathan on this
list, that being 4995 US dollars. To give myself some idea as to what that
would be in pounds, I telephoned my bank and was told that the current exchange
rate was 1,77 dollars to the pound. Though some have criticized the
calculator on the Braillenote, I trust its conclusion that 4995 divided by 1,77
equals 2822 pounds. Imagine my feelings when I was told that, as I lived in
Europe, it was going to cost me 3595 pounds. In other words we in Europe will
pay an extra 773 pounds; or, expressed in dollars, an extra 1368. Though I do
not expect exact and precise parity in price across international boundaries,
but surely there should be some price relevance. If, for example, you lived in
California, you would not expect to pay more than someone living in Boston; yet
I am probably as near Boston as you are. There may be special circumstances
which affect these prices and I invited a member of PDI Europe to reply. So
far no one has contacted me. I would, even at this date, ask PDI to
re-consider their pricing policy and give us in Europe a fair deal. I suppose
that, while visiting the States I could always purchase a machine, or purchase
through an agent, but surely this would not be desirable for all sorts of
reasons, but 773 pounds is one pile of extra cash to find. as a fellow
braillenote user pointed out: "a sighted person could buy a whole PC for that
sum." I would naturally welcome any comments, especially from PDI, who, I feel,
may have some extenuating reasons for this excessive price difference.
Don Cooper.
