Haha, prev poster was right, I'm a bit inflated in my electronics data - guess you can a plasma one for 1-1.5k now, but I do remember sets being five figures about 10 years ago. Using Dell as a proxy, according its public filings, average desktops were around $850 in the latest quarter and $2K in 1997. Laptops were $1,200 average in the last quarter, and $3,910 in 1997. 10 years really isn't a huge amount of time at the beginnings of a technology, especially when viewing pricing - the first mass-produced, commercial PCs such as the Apple II and IBM PC came out in the early 80s and were priced around $3,000 (this time I checked this stat!) - 17 years later they were around $2,000 (see above stat from Dell). Model T took 6 years to drop enough in price to go below the median income level.
Do admit comparison with computer industry is a bit weak - there's more of a chicken and the egg problem with hybrids, since as the author points out they present no short term economic benefit to the end user. Battery and electric drivetrain technology needs to get much better in terms of energy density before it will make economic sense. Or gas prices can go back above $5 a gallon.
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Efficiency vs. Economics
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Buyers are feeling too squeezed by the economy and just are no longer willing to pay a premium for cars like the Prius, says Jon Kinkov, managing editor of autos for Consumer Reports. Americans are fickle and "there won't be a wholesale rush" on hybrids unless their prices come down and gas prices go back up.
Detroit says it's taking sticker shock into account. Sue Cischke, Ford Motor Co.'s group vice president of sustainability, environment and safety engineering, acknowledges that hybrids and electric vehicles need to be made more affordable. As technology evolves, she insists, and more of these cars roll out of showrooms and are produced on a bigger scale, prices will begin to come down. Exactly when that will happen is unclear.
Michael Simon, a 52-year-old professor in Ann Arbor, Mich., is waiting for hybrids to become more mainstream before he trades in his 2001 Honda Accord, which has racked up 195,000 miles during Simon's 92-mile roundtrip commute. An environmentalist who composts vegetables in his backyard, he would prefer a hybrid—but not yet. "I'm holding out," he says. "As long as my Honda is safe, I'll continue to drive it."
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