Darwin, Keith wrote:
I see many similarities, but one major difference. Elecraft has managed
to thrive against the market forces that caused Heath to sink. The
Japanese rigs dominate the field and offer lots of features for a low
price. Well, wait, now, TenTec seems to be doing well tool. Maybe it
isn't the same market.
The Japanese moved in by producing an as-good or better product at a low
price. They stayed in by taking advantage of automated manufacturing to
add features and a level of polish that the US manufacturers couldn't
come close to at the price.
Elecraft slid in alongside the Japanese by way of the QRP kit niche,
which the Japanese didn't serve. The original K2 was revolutionary: a
QRP rig that didn't compromise performance and features too much just
because it was QRP. There used to be (maybe still are) QRP-ers who get
their fun out of making contacts with minimal -- in every sense, not
just power -- equipment, and there was a lot of it around. Elecraft
realized that there were also hams who wanted relatively
high-performance QRP equipment.
But along the way people noticed that a single-conversion radio whose
major goal was something other than low parts count could provide
performance as good or better in some ways than the big boys. So the K2,
with the KPA100, became competition for them, although still pretty
unimportant competition in terms of numbers.
Elecraft made another innovation, which is the ability of the developers
to talk directly to their customers. The two-way dialog that they have
created is unique in the industry, and the Japanese manufacturers cannot
duplicate it. Possibly Tentec could, but so far they haven't.
This is not just a side issue. Think about the amount of time that Eric
and Wayne spend reading and writing on this reflector -- they wouldn't
do it if it were not essential for both development, marketing, and support.
To get back to the comparison, the K2 -- although a good performer -- is
still a "QRP rig on steroids". Because of the requirements of small size
and kit buildability (i.e., no SMT), it cannot provide the level of
features (and in some areas, performance) of the top-of-the-line radios.
The K2's basic design has been expanded, with the addition of the
KPA100, the DSP, etc. as far as it can be practically taken. Maybe a
little too far!
Now with the K3 Elecraft has leveraged its two-way communication and the
exceptional ability of its developers to take direct aim at the big
boys. I suspect that they have been more or less taken by surprise. They
will be hurt.
The Japanese manufacturers are big players in the handheld market and in
non-amateur areas. They may react by scaling down in the HF ham market,
as Kenwood did. It's unfortunate that Tentec, which as far as I know
does not have a big non-ham business, will take a hit. But that's biz biz.
--
73,
Vic, K2VCO
Fresno CA
http://www.qsl.net/k2vco
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