On Aug 3, 2011, at 10:52 AM, Arno Hautala wrote: > On Wed, Aug 3, 2011 at 12:34, objectwerks inc <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> I am betting that thumb drives SW distribution is in the same order of >> magnitude as optical media distribution. When you consider how many free >> thumb drives I have received (even as junk mail by snail mail) as marketing >> devices (Nissan sent me a 1GB one not long ago to show off some new vehicle) >> they cannot be that expensive and I bet the equipment necessary to "produce" >> the recorded device is cheaper than the stamping of optical media. > > There is no chance that thumb drives are cheaper to produce and > distribute than it is to burn and distribute a DVD. > > Even the bulk prices that I've seen for a 4GB drive are around $7. > Let's say Apple can get a ridiculous discount and drop that to $2. I > can buy a 100 pack of DVDs for $30. That is going to go down further > for bulk orders, but it's already at $0.3 > > And I seriously doubt it's cheaper to assemble USB media than it is to > press a disc. > > Sure, a 1GB drive might be around $0.5 for a large bulk order, but > there's no way they've got anything on optical. Any company that > decides to follow Apple and ditch optical media is not going to > consider USB distribution when they can offer network as a primary > avenue.
Arno: You did not read what I said ;-) As a WPI alum, you should recognize the phrase "same order of magnitude". :-) $2-3 say for the cheap thumb drive (SW distribution drives are usually a simple flat piece of plastic with a little flash embedded, not teh fancy ones you see at retail) is in the same order of magnitude as a $0.75 DVD or whatever the price is. It is more but in the same magnitude. Also, your comparisons are incorrect. Apple (or whoever) buys the thumb drives already assembled. They just need to put the software on. Their price they pay already includes the assembly. The DVDs on the other hand need expensive equipment to press once the blanks are manufactured. That is what I was referring to. The data dumping to flash device is probably a cheaper device than the burning the DVD device. The DVDs you buy are not the same as the ones they use to professionally make DVDs and the cost of pressing needs to be included. I am also not advocating replacing all DVD distribution of SW with thumb drives. It is however an option that is not significantly more expensive than the DVD route and has its advantages. _______________________________________________ MacOSX-talk mailing list [email protected] http://www.omnigroup.com/mailman/listinfo/macosx-talk
