By silicon.com, 16 March 2004 09:20
Yesterday we ran a short piece with the headline High-tech shopping basket ditches the minidisc. It was about the UK Office of National Statistics' latest changes to the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) and Retail Prices Index (RPI). Stick with us.
The essence of the story was that the minidisc player is out, items such as digital cameras - and manicures, though we won't go there - are in. This seems like a humdrum, annual overhaul. It's not.
For one thing, it shows the civil service in the UK trying its best to stay on top of technological developments. That's not easy but the fact that minidiscs are out shouldn't go unnoticed. Sure, MP3 players are the item du jour but MDs are hardly 78s.
Second, it could be argued that items such as digital cameras are good for government statistics as they tend to decrease in price rapidly, on a like for like basis. In an age of surging prices for some goods and services - especially those provided by local councils it seems but, again, let's not go there - measurement of such categories help keep down inflation figures.
But perhaps the bottom line for readers of this publication is that it is all too often easy to forget the price-performance gains this sector delivers. To anyone making a case to an FD or CFO for IT investment right now, a quick comparison of what your pound buys compared to one year, two years or five years ago (just how long ago was that budget frozen?) can be extremely useful.
Let's keep suppliers on their toes and get good deals. But let's also not forget an industry that puts many others to shame in its advances.
Comments
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1. anonymous
A word for the Minidisc - really good for recording - where else can you record 320 minutes of first class sound in such a small package. Very much underrated by some pro sound recordists, I notice more & more events (festivals) being recorded on minidisc.
2. Richard Ash
DAT survived in professional use for years after it disapeared from consumer use - it was good but not user friendly, so lost out to CD. The same is true of MD vs MP3 players - ease of use wins over sound quality with consumers.
Also, don't forget that MD technology dates from the early 1990s - it just took a while to catch on with consumers.