Why do the camera manufacturers we see produce such over-priced junk? By now you'd expect to get a REAL digital camera for the price they're asking for these useless happy-snaps. Talk about milking consumers.

-- Just Curious (curious@net.net), August 04, 2000

Answers

I wouldn't call my Nikon 990 over-priced or junk. The price is set by supply and demand. The first IBM PC clone I bought, a Columbia, cost $5,000 and 64k of memory the price of a Nikon D1.

Me thinks you need to sit on the side lines for a few years.

-- bill (this_old_house@pobox.com), August 05, 2000.

Right now the digital camera industry is in a very rapid growth mode and research and engineering costs are extremely high in the development of new products and technology. The cameras on the market have to be profitable to maintain the high cost of being competitive in todays rapid market. I would expect this growth rate to continue for at least four more years. By then the "point-and-shooters", and advanced amateurs will have a wide choice of very resonable priced cameras. The high priced models ($2000 and up) will then be focused on the pro photographer. Wait if you want, but you'll miss out of a lot of great picture opportunites.

-- Virgil Howarth (vhowarth@aol.com), August 06, 2000.