[Achmedisdead]

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The Fiio amps are discounted rather substantially. That is why I think the X3 will probably drop to $150 or less once production is geared up, and the initial demand met. If they can get it down to $99 sales volumes would be HUGE. There are many stubborn people like me who refuse to pay over $100 for an mp3 player.

 
There's about a zero percent chance of the X3 going for $99.  FiiO is quite good at providing good quality products at a reasonable price.....their profit margin on the X3 is sure to be much smaller than some of the boutique players out there. To ask for an X3 at half price would be to ask them to sell it at a loss, and that's just not fair.
 
If you won't spend more than $100, then you're limited to the Sansa line in perpetuity.....unless you can live with an iPod Shuffle or a 4GB Sony, neither of which offers the card slots you love.

 

[JK1]

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There's about a zero percent chance of the X3 going for $99.  FiiO is quite good at providing good quality products at a reasonable price.....their profit margin on the X3 is sure to be much smaller than some of the boutique players out there. To ask for an X3 at half price would be to ask them to sell it at a loss, and that's just not fair.
 
If you won't spend more than $100, then you're limited to the Sansa line in perpetuity.....unless you can live with an iPod Shuffle or a 4GB Sony, neither of which offers the card slots you love.

It depends on the sales volumes. A year or two from now they might be able to have the X3 sell at a discounted retail price of $99 and still be profitable. What counts is the marginal cost, how much extra each extra unit costs to produce. Perhaps a year from now the marginal cost to make an X3 might be under $50. As the number of units sold gets very high, the average design cost per unit approaches zero.