Shouldn't the Micro be available at a discount?

[hearttimes]

Shouldn't the Mbox 2 Micro be available at a discounted rate to registered mbox, and mbox2 pro owners, who already have, and use, the software.

Myself, for example, would rather not have to hook up my mbox 2 pro to my laptop when i just want to do some editing to previously recorded tracks.

The 250 price is too high for me to pay for this convenience however. If it was half that, I would likely go for it.

Kind regards.

[elicious]

remember, digi is in the hardware biz.
in the meantime try alto music.
e
e.p.s. since i have a hd system, should mine have been free?
just sayin'

[RobbaDobba]

Yes. It's a glorified dongle.

[Sounds Expensive]

I couldn't agree more. It's absolutely insane that Digidesign would do this. Why they couldn't offer the micro at a reduced cost without the software is beyond me.

I did send them an email not too long ago complaining about this. In a nutshell, I told them that if I wanted to sell my mini and buy a micro, I would lose money. That's ridiculous! Considering what the micro does, which is really nothing, Digi. really needs to re-think this marketing idea.

[RussUK]

I thought about this long and hard and bought a used Mbox 1 for £70 from Ebay. It has tons more features but does what I wanted a Micro for, which was portability. :)

[RobbaDobba]

But a Micro is a stick, like a flash drive...the MBox is like the size of an external HD, and not a portable one. Much more portable.

[Ziko]

I think an issue for Digi is that their whole approach to the software right now is that you essentially get it for free with the hardware. That way they can be fairly relaxed with software registering, upgrades etc.
If suddenly there was an interface to purchase that included no software it would no longer be the "dongle" that proves you own the software. Now suddenly they have to work out how to ensure you really do own the software already, so they need to turn on some forced activation of the software as you install it. Things like being able to install the software on sa many machines as you like would disappear.
I guess they could make PT itself an ilok licensed piece of software, then if you already owned an interface you could buy another one at a reduced "hardware only" price as you've already got the software on your ilok.
That's a major change in the way they sell their product though so I can understand why the micro is the way it is right now.

[The Dougfather]

Over here in the UK the upgrade to Pro Tools 8 is almost 100GBP whilst a mini which now guarantees Pro Tools 8 is 150GBP.

Seems like a good time to buy if you ask me?

[RussUK]

Originally Posted by RobbaDobba

But a Micro is a stick, like a flash drive...the MBox is like the size of an external HD, and not a portable one. Much more portable.

Either your a midget or you need to take some exercise, the Mbox fits in all of my bags with my Macbook with minimal effort, plus, as I said it gives me all the additional features at half the price.

[sunburst79]

Like it or not the LE line is priced as hardware bundled with complimentary software. Example Mbox Micro at 249.00+free software=249.00.

If you would like to buy a interface sans software then your looking at MPowered. Example MAudio Transit 79.00+Mpowered software at 249.00 and you end up with 328.00.

Keep in mind that the Micro required 7.3 to run which was included for FREE so you could knock of 79.00 if the 7.3 upgrade was something you were interested in. Since 7.3 included HFS+ support this was a no brainer for anyone working with both PCs and Macs.

The other point was that a VERY LARGE percentage of initial Micro buyers were HD owners that didn't own a licensed copy of LE it. The Micro is a niche market. It was made more to placate a vocal group of existing users than open new markets therefore its not subject to quite the same marketing forces as normal.

The point of buying a Micro now and getting a free upgrade to 8.0 is a good point. If it was only 99.00 sans software you probably would find the price attractive. Your obviously interested in one. The purchase deal with a free upgrade is a no brainer.

Do I think that 250.00 is a bit much for a dongle....Yes! but at the same point I don't want to see the existing licensing model change. I simply waited and bought on off a DUC brother used and saved around 75.00. I'm happy enough with it at that price.

I subscribe to various Digi newsletters and I do think that a email to all registered LE users pointing out that if you bought a Micro now that you would get the equivalent of a free 159.00 dollar up grade to 8.0 might sell a few Micros for Xmas. I also think a email offer to existing registered 7.3/7.4 LE users offering a one time purchase of a Micro with a non transferable ownership for 99.00 dollars would move a few. Except that it probably wouldn't be worth the money to repackage the product sans software.

As it sits the Micro is not a compelling value for exsisting LE owners unless you count the value of the upgrade.

It should also be pointed out that at 249.00 the Micro is half the price of Logic Studio. While not offering all the features its also half the price. given all thats coming with 8.0 that may be a good deal for some one who was only working with MIDI and didn't need any inputs.