[davidspitzer]

I think this deserves to be talked about in the main news forum - $860 is a $110 price increase on a already peak priced item in the field.

I'm sorry - I bought one at $750 and I thought that was really above a realistic price point. I have a very specialized need going to law school and being able to read large law texts while traveling.

$860 seems like an impossible price point to sell such a specialized product. I think people will end up turning to other solutions at that price point like tablet pc's or netbooks

I am not sure I understand Irex's strategy here. It may be costly to produce, but there is really very little profit to be had with hardware only now-a-days.

They should have sold the product at a loss if they had to, to get market penetration and worked out an attractive content distribution arrangement themselves or even with a partner - they have mobi support yes but it is weak and not nearly as integrated as the Sony or Amazon offering. The real profit is in the content. I fear Irex may be doing themselves in with these kind of moves and that just makes me a little sad, as I believe this technology has a lot of potential

Take Apple, whether you hate them or love them, IREX should to take a few pages from the Apple handbook on how to market to the masses. I hope they get their act together