General > General Technical Chat
Crazy Radio Shack price
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jrmymllr:
I know there's many examples of this, but I couldn't keep this one to myself even if perhaps not that interesting to some.

This fan, catalog number 273-244, was USD $16.95 when introduced in 1989. I remember seeing this back then and thinking it was expensive but adjusted for inflation it's, as of February 2024, *gulp* over $42!

It was reduced to $14.99 in 1994 which is over $31 now. Were BLDC fans really that expensive then or was Radio Shack just crazy? It appears to be very good quality but yikes.
themadhippy:

--- Quote ---was Radio Shack just crazy
--- End quote ---
In the uk   yes there prices on many  things was  a joke,although they were known as tandys over here. .Our other high street retailer ,maplins, initially was ok,but towards the end got silly,the price of 1 resistor was the same as buying 100 from a reputable online seller.
Veteran68:
Yes they were grossly overpriced when it came to individual electronics components. But many of us hobbyists back in the day before online really had nowhere else to turn for a local source. At best we might know of some specialty mail order shops. But as a teenager getting into electronics in Small Town, USA, Radio Shack was my electronics parts mecca. So my frame of reference was "this electronics hobby is expensive" LOL.

Little did I know...
floobydust:
Not a lot of BLDC fan offerings in the 80's. At the time, it was such a cute tiny fan I hadn't seen anywhere else for sale. I would say that was the main driver in the high price. I got one, used it for cooling a HeNe laser, still have it.

Although, do not forget Radio Shack's business model going back to the 1970's - import electronics from (then developing) Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and markup the price, resell for huge profit.
Today, it is still a core business model to outsource, import, markup the price and sit back on your laurels enjoying the profits and your nation's decline.
DonKu:
Rumor sadly says sometimes the Shack sold "seconds" - rejected components. It's a plausible cause for the failure of a few Forrest Mims projects back in the day.
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