I think I hate this thing already...

[Ampera]

No one has noticed, no puns needed! 

Gary Underwood
CEO

Ty Underwood
Designer

Dale Woodard
Engineer

 

Hooooooly shit. That is the best thing I have ever seen.

[wraper]

I had to..... 

https://youtu.be/d3ci2tsxk_A

Honest opinion. That video doesn't contain anything that would not fit in 5-8 minutes. You should not repeat the same rambling 10 times in the row.

[imidis]

Honest opinion. That video doesn't contain anything that would not fit in 5-8 minutes. You should not repeat the same rambling 10 times in the row.

Fair observation. Have not done that style before. Will keep that in mind if I do another one of that type.

On topic, with the wood names, if it wasn't january I would think this was a joke. =/

[gnif]

I had to..... 

https://youtu.be/d3ci2tsxk_A

Wow, a few hours literally and this video is now private? What was it?

[Cerebus]

Depends how much the wood, the making and so on costs, and how many to sell before breaking even. If it's hand made expect there to be a premium. Subjectively you find it expensive, others may not. If you don't like it, why care?

Speaking as someone who's wallet knows to its cost, that looks like expensive timber. However, the joints look like they were made by a monkey with no conception of what carpentry is about. Further, that's solid timber and it doesn't look like the grain direction is particularly well controlled - it's clear from some of those photos that at least some of the parts are flat sawn. Apply a bit of heat (like 200W odd dissipation inside the case) and watch that warp and twist as it dries out. It's the kind of product that calls for very careful timber selection (like using quartersawn timber in some, possibly all, places) and if you want pretty too, that's going to cost. If I was making this I'd use engineered timber (e.g. birch plywood) and veneer it to get the desired finish - it would still not be cheap.

Also, wood case with no metal shielding inside it? I wonder what an EMC compliance report on that would look like?

[imidis]

Wow, a few hours literally and this video is now private? What was it?

It was just way too long, I don't think I could edit enough out of it so I pulled it. But basic rundown (for base model) $620 off the shelf computer components and $1379 for a wooden box! 

[CatalinaWOW]

This hill has killed many already.  I remember a computer I purchased in the late eighties or early nineties that was "obsolescence proof".  The CPU (I think this was 386 vintage) came in a little module that plugged in, to allow replacement with newer/faster CPUs as they were released.  Of course as the newer CPUs were developed they used different voltages and sockets and had different cooling requirements.  For an earlier example look at the Ohio Scientific products which existed through the 70s into the early 80s.  Nice looking wood case.  Modular design.  Totally unable to keep up with the future.

And then for the icing on the cake.  Look at any movie made 15 or more years ago.  Forget the actors and the plot and look at the costumes and set designs.  The cabinets, finishes and design concepts that were the height of style then are barely palatable today.  So even if technological obsolescence is avoided, the significant other of the future will not allow that ugly thing in the house.

[T3sl4co1l]

Not to mention the EMC nightmare!

Tim

[janekm]

Wireless graphics card?

They'd obviously use a riser or ribbon cable, which are becoming common and with fewer issues.

As for the case, I don't think it looks good with the way they're showing: wood with modern plastic/metallic frames of the monitor.

But as a home theatre PC it would look pretty good if the furniture matches. And because they don't expect to sell too many, the price isn't too bad.

Not sure how a 100% markup is not too bad.

Depends how much the wood, the making and so on costs, and how many to sell before breaking even. If it's hand made expect there to be a premium. Subjectively you find it expensive, others may not. If you don't like it, why care?

Simple Answer: I have nothing better to do and I thought that people would like to collectively bicker with me. You wanted an answer, didn't you?

And yea, boutique crap like this can be expensive, but 1000 dollars markup on the base unit? I don't care who you are, but 1000 USD for a case I'd expect more than just a cheap wood box. It's a large markup than even Apple does.  That's the fact I can't get over. I could see if they sold the base system for 1500 or even 1600 USD, that would be a bit more justified for what you get, but I mean the i7 version is literally a 1500 USD markup. That's money you could use to not only buy the materials to make that case, but to also buy a year of top dog membership for your local makerspace. (Mine charges 90$ a month, 60 for students).

100% is not at all an unusually high markup in most industries. The PC industry is quite special in that component pricing has been well known to consumers, and modularity has driven down the margin of most vendors. Apple is pretty much the only company left with healthy margins since they don't play in the same sand-box.

This company isn't likely to sell a whole lot of units of this PC since it's ultimately the same old PC in a (to some eyes) slightly nicer box. So it doesn't make any sense to compare their margin to Apple's, they are a boutique business. And their markup is tiny compared to most boutique businesses. You'd get a shock comparing the price of silver to the price of a boutique silver ring The "upgradeability" argument is funny since it's literally just as upgradeable if not less than every grey-box PC

[Ampera]

Lol, anybody remember E-Machines?

[jh15]

I'll have to test my Ohio Scientific c4p I got in 1978 or so. It worked a year or so ago.

Still looks good to me, more like metal test equipment case. I did not get the wood sides.

Better EMI shielding than the woody we've been discussing.

[Red Squirrel]

Neat, would make a fun project.  Not something I'd buy though but could be fun to make.

[Corporate666]

At the volume they would be selling at, yes, that mark up is reasonable. Even with a $500 mark up, how many do you think they'd sell? Would have to be more than double to equalise the difference.

This is a specific case (sorry), but when it comes to boutique products, from chocolate to clothing, there will be "extortionate" pricing models. But when it comes to this product there will be so few sold that recouping investment, paying for wood that has to be almost perfect and the labour cost will mean that it's going to be expensive.

Having said that, this product could well last for hundreds of years if looked after, so you'd never have to buy another ever again.

Late to this party and while I largely agree with you, the problem here is that they are marking up the cost of everything they are delivering, despite the fact that the only thing they are actually making is the case, and their only value-add is assembling it.  That's what makes the price unreasonable.  If you look at the cost of a bespoke wooden enclosure and the cost of design/specification/assembly services, they are out in left field on their pricing.  I'm certainly firmly in favor of people charging what the market will bear for their work - and if people will pay $3k for these machines, then they should absolutely charge that, but I personally think their whole premise is flawed.  They are trying to sell themselves as something they are not.  The pitch of being a modular computer that prevents e-waste is an outright lie.  I don't believe for a second these folks believe any of the bullshit they've written about preventing e-waste.  I don't even believe they believe they are a boutique computer manufacturer.  I think they realize they're just a case manufacturer like so many others, but they are attempting to sell their cases in a novel way, and by selling the whole system, they can capture markups on the case as well as the hardware, and essentially sell their cases for $1,000 instead of $150.

My .02.