Quote:
Originally Posted by
bigpapa 
There's nothing inherently wrong with that. But, many people such as yourself unwittingly search for the best price, and purchase accordingly. They're likely to purchase from the grey marketeers least likely to help you out, or tell you up front that it's going to take several hours to get it tweaked just right (more for larger systems, less for smaller, etc). I don't think that's the best solution for all people. I merely wish that somebody like you would have to call and talk to a human, so they can give you a quicky speech about what you're likely to go through. If you agree or don't care, then fine. It's just the "BUY NOW" button isn't the best way of selling this type of product, even though many in this forum can do just fine.
That's all good. The only problem I have with this is that the grey marketeer doesn't care, they got their cash and they're done with you. URC cares because they have to field the phone calls. I (and URC) care because I want you to be prepared for this endeavour and enjoy your remote. You're obviously smart enough to accomplish remote programming, but I doubt most people know what they're getting into. Utilizing a good AD, in my view, would help let people know what the configuration process entails before the purchase to properly set expectations.
This just doesn't happen on the commodity exchange called ebay. I'm not against ebay at all, I'm against distro of these products as brand new from ebay without support. I still think people like you should be able to purchase these remotes and program them yourself. The only change will be process and channel, which will address the other problems. The avid DIYers haven't really been the problem, if at all.
Back in 2002 when I was in the market for the 700 I looked at eBay, I found some great deals. A 700 for around $140 from someone I think in Naperville Illinois, so close I figured I might be able to drive down and pick it up. I pulled his eBay info (which then gave a lot more info then now), tried to check him out via all means available, but I was just too leery. That price, less then half retail was just too good to be true. Something was fishy, something had to be wrong. (Looked on eBay for him the other day, no longer an active user and a lot of no product no communication feedback towards his eBay demise.)
So I decided not to go that route and find the best legitimate deal I could. I landed up paying a lot more, almost retail but in light of recent events it looks like it was a wise choice.
I checked out eBay yesterday just for grins, 850 for $189 with a 1 year warranty to boot. Less then half of retail?? Seller had like 6 negatives in the last 6 months so I checked them out. One buyer was complaining that there was no serial number on his 850. The sellers response was not to worry he keeps the serial number on file and supports the 1 year warranty.
Red Flag! Red Flag! Red Flag!
But if you're a naive first time buyer and not aware of all this policy stuff you probably don't realize this to be a
Red Flag.
And I knew exactly what I was getting into way before I bought the remote. I do extensive research on everything I buy that costs more then a buck ninety eight, tax included. I had the MX-700 Editor software downloaded and installed on my PC long before I bought. I was playing around with it and becoming familiar with it so I could see if I could do what I wanted to do with this remote. I did not want to spend $300 to $400 on the 700 and then be disappointed of find out I bought another programmable/learning remote that did not meet my expectations.
So I knew, without talking to anyone what it was all about. Now granted most people aren't as anal as me and probably don't take the time to do what I did, they just assume everything is going to be a cakewalk only to get a rude awakening later and then are forced to seek help.
So as I see it now, URC by making the software more difficult to obtain (without a serial number) has made it harder for someone now to do what I did beforehand so that they can find out what they are getting themselves into before they bite off more then they can chew.
