Thoughts of automation.

I'm still on that Home Automation kick, it must be the season.

I certianly have the main processor module design figured out, I should be able to sell these for around $300.00 each. that's insanely cheap considering that it will have ethernet connectivity and probably a 2 line LCD on the fact of the unit displaying status information.

I am trying to aim for the $99.00 price tag for the IO modules, maybe $70.00 for the module in kit form. I have not recieved a price back fro mthe board house as to the cost of having the boards made, this is the single highest price, having a circuit board made. It's more than 50% of the cost of the modules!

I am intentionally looking at keeping everything in the "cheap!" price range. it;'s stupid to gougue the hell out of your customers. Make your costs with a little profit to keep the company growing slowly. too many people try and make a living off of an Idea right away, so they charge 3X-4X what they should and then wonder why their product or software does not sell. It blows my mind how many shareware or other apps out there try and get $20.00 for their crummy little program that is worth only $5.00-$10.00. why should I pay for a crummy app that offer's nothing over a comprable open source app that is free. Make your software WORTH the price over the free offerings and then price your software accordingly. if you write an app that is only slightly beter than the free offerings out there, charge only a little.. If you offer significantly better options than the free offerings then charge more.

NO app for home use should cost more than $30.00, sorry but that is a reality. You must be priced lower than the big guys to get people's money. and buying Dave's HTML editor for $79.95 or getting a home/SE edition of Dreamweaver for $99.95... Dave's editor is not going to get bought, Dave needs to be significantly cheaper. Make it up in volume.

Enough of my rant.

The hardware specs of the modules will be Open and free, you can build your own modules if you want, as well as the communication and software will be open and free.

I can not release the Main board's info as it is not my design... anyways, it's a deal I will not be marking it up more than to cover costs, I want this idea to spread and become popular to help shake up the Home automatino world.

it's too closed and expensive. It's time to make it cheap and Open to encourage development so we can get the stuff we have been promised for decades..

I need to assemble and test my initial designs, and then I'll need to build a website and post the eagleCAD files and sourcecode to the modules.


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