Please don't take this the wrong way... I am a super duper huge fan of Parallax and try to buy from them whenever possible... I am curious though how these new 433 products (http://www.parallax.com/detail.asp?product_id=27980) compare and contrast from the products sold at Rentron, Sparkfun, and others (http://www.rentron.com/remote_control/TWS-434.htm). The Parallax products for receiver and transmitter are $70 compared to the TWS receiver and transmitter that is about $15... again, I am not knocking Parallax, I would just like to understand what you get for the extra $55
I really don't get into the RF stuff much, but a simple comparison tells me that the Parallax module is plug-and-play, others offer great prices on RF modules that require you to locate and attach a proper antenna (antenna mismatching can create a problem). You'll have to decide if that's worth you hard-earned dollars or not, and I have sent a note expressing your concern to our Marketing department.
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Our prior 433 MHz modules sold at $59 and $39 ($~100 a pair), as they were made by RF Digital. Now that we are making our own, they sell at $39 and $29 (~$70 a pair). They now cost 30% less than they used to, and when we develop a pair price it will be $49 or $59, about 40-50% less than the prior cost of a pair.
Our modules use the Lynx transmitter and receivers, and a newer module than our old version. You'll get up to 500 feet of serial communication. There is no transceiver planned a the moment, unless a customer request is made. Are you making a request for a transceiver?
We warrant ours are well-designed, properly supported, easy to use, and based on a quality RF chipset.
Comments
Do you have any performance data you would like to share on these new products?
For example, the distance at which the signal is still reliable, power consumed when broadcasting, projects you have used the modules in, etc.
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Jon Williams
Applications Engineer, Parallax
Our prior 433 MHz modules sold at $59 and $39 ($~100 a pair), as they were made by RF Digital. Now that we are making our own, they sell at $39 and $29 (~$70 a pair). They now cost 30% less than they used to, and when we develop a pair price it will be $49 or $59, about 40-50% less than the prior cost of a pair.
Our modules use the Lynx transmitter and receivers, and a newer module than our old version. You'll get up to 500 feet of serial communication. There is no transceiver planned a the moment, unless a customer request is made. Are you making a request for a transceiver?
We warrant ours are well-designed, properly supported, easy to use, and based on a quality RF chipset.
Ken Gracey
Parallax, Inc.
· May I ask where you found the info about new RF modules being developed?· I'd love to read about it.
Thanks,
Tim
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·1+1=10
Post Edited (Paul Baker) : 2/5/2006 3:38:41 AM GMT
Tim