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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Zeiss Conquest 8x30T* rising prices? (2 Viewers)

James Bean

Well-known member
Note that the prices of new Zeiss Conquest 8x30T* on eBay UK are going up, compared with the first half of 2011, eg. from Munich, Germany, the price is still £535 (about $855) which is quite expensive, whereas bought from Hong Kong it's £820 ($1,310) which is very expensive.This is the opposite of what has been the 'usual' situation, where Far East prices have been much lower than those in Europe.
Does this reflect a trend of substantially rising prices generally, with Hong Kong going up first because their previous stocks have sold more quickly, so new price rises reach their market earlier? If so, it can't be long before the German prices also follow suit and go even higher. Or is there a simpler and more reassuring reason for these prices, like a temporary 'blip' in the market? I have a nasty feeling these increases are "the thin end of the wedge"...
 
More examples of increases, comparing recent prices from German (Munich) dealers with newly listed same models from Hong Kong:
Conquest compact 10x25, up from £378 to £529.
Conquest 10x30, up from £600 to £899.
Conquest 15x45, up from £729 to £1,150 !
Broadly speaking, these represent 50% increases, which doesn't bode well for the future.
Does this mean the used market will accordingly become more buoyant?
 
Could it be that they have moved the price of the 8 x 30 Conquest up to compete with the new Swarovski 8 x 30 CL?

Bob:h?:
 
Could it be that they have moved the price of the 8 x 30 Conquest up to compete with the new Swarovski 8 x 30 CL?

Bob:h?:

That's what I had wondered. I asked on the Swarovski thread what the difference in quality was between the 2
 
Exactly what I was wondering too.
More price rise examples, this time for Zeiss Victory: 10x25 T* compact, up to £735, and
8x42 T* FL, up to £2,050 (that's over $3,250)! Is this a portent of "things to come"? It seems we've reached the £2,000/$3,000 binocular...
(Above are latest UK eBay prices for new Zeiss, with free airmail from Hong Kong).
 
Could it be a response to inflation?

Eagle Optics here in the USA has the 8 x 30 Conquest B T* on sale for $569.00. The Victory 10 x 25 T* is on sale for $629.00 and the 8 x 42 T*FL LT is $1879.00.

Cameraland's prices are in the same range.

Maybe they will have to bring back the Diafun to keep prices down?

Bob
 
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Could be an early sign of Mega-Inflation, as Stargazer warned. Or as suggested above, Zeiss trying to keep pace with the price of the CLs.

After all, if the Conquest cost less than CL, the perception would be that it must not be as good, right? I couldn't say, not having compared them, but the Conquests should cost less due to the cheaper labor in Hungary. If Zeiss raises the price to match the CL, they will look they are price gouging.

The solution: Zeiss makes some incremental changes to the Conquest to justify the price hike. Perception changes that Conquests are as good or even better now than the CLs, and no-one accuses Zeiss of price gouging.

Mr. Jensen (Zeiss VP of Sales & Marketing), if you use my strategy, please send my usual consulting fee. :)

Brock
 
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Bob, I'm with you on the 'dire fun' comment...
What concerns me is the extent of increases. Not just a few percent reflecting inflation, but many hundreds of pounds (and even more dollars!) in one jump. Is this the beginning of the end for 'alpha' binocular makers? Will they become a niche market accessible only to the rich, who are able and willing to pay a premium for their 'famous name jewellery' (jewelry) while the rest of us 'make do' with Chinese EDs priced relatively inexpensively at circa £600 ($950) with nearly as good (better?) optics but without the cachet of the top marques? Perhaps this is where we are already and it's about to get worse?
If so, I'll hang on to my 'classics' (eg. Zeiss, Nikon) and maybe appreciate them more...
 
I presume most of you already possess bins so what is the worry about increased prices. Your present Nikon, Zeiss, Swaros etc. are not falling to bits already are they?:-C
 
Bob, I'm with you on the 'dire fun' comment...
What concerns me is the extent of increases. Not just a few percent reflecting inflation, but many hundreds of pounds (and even more dollars!) in one jump. Is this the beginning of the end for 'alpha' binocular makers? Will they become a niche market accessible only to the rich, who are able and willing to pay a premium for their 'famous name jewellery' (jewelry) while the rest of us 'make do' with Chinese EDs priced relatively inexpensively at circa £600 ($950) with nearly as good (better?) optics but without the cachet of the top marques? Perhaps this is where we are already and it's about to get worse?
If so, I'll hang on to my 'classics' (eg. Zeiss, Nikon) and maybe appreciate them more...

James,

Your post echoes what I wrote on BF a couple years ago about "Incremental Change$ for Diminishing Return$."

This is supposed to be, according to the video, the chief reason for Swaro bringing out the CL, so "first timers" could enter the "Swaro family of optics". But you need to a fairly thick wallet even at the alpha entry level.

As far as if we are already there, that depends on if the reports of SV ELs "selling like hotcakes" is true or not.

Given that wages aren't go up in proportion to inflation, the alphas could eventually become a specialty optics makers for the rich and professionals (ornithologists, hunting guides, etc.). If Minox joins suit, the Porsche division designers will be designing the HG APOs!

One thing seems clear, the gap between the alpha haves and the alpha have nots will continue to widen.

http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/31/the-haves-and-the-have-nots/

Fortunately, as a porro lover, that's not too disconcerting for me, at least in the near term. But as the last of the quality, CF Japanese porrosauruses become extinct, and Nikon no longer has parts to repair them should they break down, even some "better dead than red" alpha have nots might have to embrace a mixed socialist-capitalist culture and buy ChinBins.

Of course, by that time, there will be a "Chinese Spring" as workers and students rise up and force the "Old Guard" to complete China's transition to capitalism. Real labor unions will follow and prices for ChinBins will rise with each incremental change.

Those near the bottom of the socio-economic ladder will then be buying their bins from Russia, Brazil, or India, the other "BRIC" countries. Russia has the drop since they already make optics.

Well, I can't worry about all that now, I'm buying up non-perishable food for the 2012 Apocalypse for when the apes take over the world!

http://www.youtube.com/apeswillrise

Branko
 
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It's all relative; I'm by no means what one would call a rich man, but if I gave up smoking I could buy a Swarovision each year. If I gave up drinking I could probably add a decent scope each year, too.
I have no intention of doing so, because I like smoking and drinking beer.
If I wanted to buy a top of the line binocular, I could save up for a pair, and with prices going up it would take just a little longer. If you'd really want something you'd get there some way or another.

Best regards,

Ronald
 
It's all relative; I'm by no means what one would call a rich man, but if I gave up smoking I could buy a Swarovision each year. If I gave up drinking I could probably add a decent scope each year, too.
I have no intention of doing so, because I like smoking and drinking beer.
If I wanted to buy a top of the line binocular, I could save up for a pair, and with prices going up it would take just a little longer. If you'd really want something you'd get there some way or another.

Best regards,

Ronald

Ron,

Right now, I'm thinking embezzlement or insider trading might be some way or another. :) Yeah, they caught Ivan Boesky, Gordon Gekko, and Bernie Madoff, but look at how much money too-big-to-fail banking, brokerage, and AIG execs got away with legally, and those who got canned, landed with their multimillion dollar golden parachutes in Acapulco (I'm writing about banking reform this week, it's the first year anniversary of Dodd-Frank).

I asked my publisher for a golden parachute, but he said I was so full of hot air, that I could float on my own and didn't need a parachute. (drum crash smilie would go here if we had one - a Henny Youngman photo would also work)

Well, today it's going to be 103* in Bedford Falls, so if I went outside and breathed the air, I might float away!

If I wanted to be ethical, I could do the Dennis and sell all my binoculars and use the proceeds to buy the latest and greatest $2K right now if I wanted. Forget the pickle jars. But note that even Dennis, who proudly displays his "Just One" bin in his signature, recently bought a Leica BN to supplement his SV EL.

"Variety is the spice of life" is a philosophy to which I subscribe. I'd rather have a few lesser god bins to play around with than worship a "Holy One".

But to each his own.

However, if saving up for a SV EL will get you to stop smoking, I recommend that you do it! The worst side effect you can get from an SV EL is "rolling ball" but those ciggies will kill you, and we'd miss you and your cartoons!

Brock
 
Hey Brock,

I can't quit smoking, now that excise on cigarettes is going up again I have to help the national government to find a way out of the financial crisis. Us smokers have a positive effect on the balance of 1.5 billion Euro's in the Netherlands alone ( and that is of course with health care costs included!).
In a way you could say I'm helping the Greeks too. This loan of 110 billion Euro's that the EU provides, has to be coughed up by all and the more I smoke, the happier the Greeks will be! See, I'm putting in as much effort as I can! I'm thinking about my health, though... I drink as much beer as is needed to neutralise the ill effect that smoking has on my arteries and veins, and I excercise as little as possible so my heart won't wear out before old age. I sometimes don't move at all for a day or two! All for the benefit of the European Community, who messed up big time. But I don't hold a grudge, I smoke and watch, I watch and drink, I'm still happy with my only binlet, and tomorrow we could all be pushing up daisies, as Nostradamus would say...

Best regards,

Ronald
 
Hey Brock,

I can't quit smoking, now that excise on cigarettes is going up again I have to help the national government to find a way out of the financial crisis. Us smokers have a positive effect on the balance of 1.5 billion Euro's in the Netherlands alone ( and that is of course with health care costs included!).
In a way you could say I'm helping the Greeks too. This loan of 110 billion Euro's that the EU provides, has to be coughed up by all and the more I smoke, the happier the Greeks will be! See, I'm putting in as much effort as I can! I'm thinking about my health, though... I drink as much beer as is needed to neutralise the ill effect that smoking has on my arteries and veins, and I excercise as little as possible so my heart won't wear out before old age. I sometimes don't move at all for a day or two! All for the benefit of the European Community, who messed up big time. But I don't hold a grudge, I smoke and watch, I watch and drink, I'm still happy with my only binlet, and tomorrow we could all be pushing up daisies, as Nostradamus would say...

Best regards,

Ronald

Ronald:

Back to OP, I am wondering about the Zeiss Conquest, it has not been mentioned
much here, and now only when the price seems to be going up.

I do think you owe it to some here to post some more of your cartoons, I do know
I did compliment you on one recently.;) I suppose they should be optics related, so
now you have some more work to do. Oh Well.

Also your Avatar is clever, and I like it.;)

Jerry
 
Hey Jerry,

Here's my latest:

http://ronaldsinoo.web-ruimte.nl/KorHaan57.htm

I'm obviously spending too much time on the binocular forum, but as you can see my alter ego Kor Haan is worse in this respect, not bothering to take his optics with him when he goes birdwatching ... ehrm... screenwatching, that is...

Best regards,

Ronald

Ronald:

Good one ! :t: I am sure some others can relate.

Keep up the good work.

Jerry
 
Hey Brock,
.... I'm still happy with my only binlet, and tomorrow we could all be pusqhing up daisies, as Nostradamus would say...

Best regards,

Ronald

Not tomorrow, we have more than a year left, according to the Web-bots:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/6227357/Web-bot-project-makes-prophecy-of-2012-apocalypse.html

The sad part is that's how long it will take me to save up for a CL! */*

This reminds me of a guy I used to know named Earl Loomis, who was in charge of the Scranton, PA operations for the large conglomerate I used to work for as communications supervisor. I worked at the HQ in New Jersey, but part of my job entailed visiting the 30 something satellite offices in the Northeast. Earl had a wooden leg from getting run over by a train when he was a boy.

During a visit to the Scranton terminal, I saw old Earl shaking the cigarette machine that just ate his $1.75 (that about dates it). Finally, after swift kick with his peg leg, and the machine spat out a pack of Kents.

I said to Earl, "Man, those things are going to kill ya."
And Earl said, "Well, we all gotta die of something, might as well be something I enjoy."

I'd like to die of binoculitis.

I enjoyed the bino cartoon! I could almost follow it even w/out the translation.

You are fortunate to write about something you enjoy, that would be reason enough for me to want to quit (although I'm sure that's easier said than done).

I'm writing about the one-year anniversary of the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and its impact on community and regional banks. Can I bum a smoke off you? :smoke:

Brock
 
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