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>First, you bought that over-complicated appliance for the same reason everyone else does: it has more features, and you like features. Everyone wants features.

>First, you bought that over-complicated appliance for the same reason everyone else does: it has more features, and you like features. Everyone wants features. If you want to sell an appliance today, you have to cram in more features, and do it more cheaply than the competition. I'm in retail (e-commerce, selling retro video games), and this is 100% my experience. There is a certain type of customer who is prepared to pay extra for quality and durability, but they are swamped by the overwhelming majority of the market who try to optimise for features and price. It's reached the stage now where we no longer even bother bundling official accessories with many consoles we sell, as the overwhelming majority of people will not just prefer but pay extra to get bigger bundles containing multiple third-party controllers, ludicrously large Alibaba memory cards and "free" copies of FIFA/Assassin's Creed (which are otherwise so low-value we actually gut them to re-use the case). The same market will also pay an extra $40 or so to get a 1TB HDD installed in their PS3s, even though the average person probably only uses 10-20GB (it reached the point where we always upgrade anything smaller than 500GB as it doesn't make economic sense to do otherwise). It really is understated how badly people want features, even ones they'll never use or get in the way of their enjoyment of the product.

benj111 4y ago
There's a few things going on here though. If you're buying a PS3 bundle you probably don't already own a PS3. So you probably don't know what storage you will actually need. The games may be worthless to you, but if you wanted to actually buy it, it's going to cost something even if it's to cover the postage. 3rd party controllers. If you know they're going to be used regularly then 1st party is the way to go, but a second controller for me has always been a little used just in case thing. And this is all assuming it isn't a parent buying it for child, that has no idea what they're after, and a buying a bundle so they know it will all work together. I think you're also underestimating the value add. If I buy an AliExpress memory card, I have to work out if it's going to work as advertised etc, if it doesn't I then have the pain of getting my money back and waiting for a replacement. If I buy from you as part of a bigger purchase I have an expectation that you've found a card that works, and presumably don't want to torpedo a $100+ sale over a $2 memory card. If I were to buy a PS3 now, I would need at least a subset of these things, I would have to work out compatibility, wait for everything to arrive, and if it doesn't all work, I have to work out what the issue is an sort a replacement. All in all, if you sell me all the elements, if it doesn't work, I get some come back, even that copy of assassin's creed. I may never play it, but if it doesn't work, it stops me being in a situation where game seller says the games are ok, you need to clean the optical drive, and the console seller saying the games are scratched.

benj111 4y ago

There's a few things going on here though. If you're buying a PS3 bundle you probably don't already own a PS3. So you probably don't know what storage you will actually need. The games may be worthless to you, but if you wanted to actually buy it, it's going to cost something even if it's to cover the postage. 3rd party controllers. If you know they're going to be used regularly then 1st party is the way to go, but a second controller for me has always been a little used just in case thing. And this is all assuming it isn't a parent buying it for child, that has no idea what they're after, and a buying a bundle so they know it will all work together. I think you're also underestimating the value add. If I buy an AliExpress memory card, I have to work out if it's going to work as advertised etc, if it doesn't I then have the pain of getting my money back and waiting for a replacement. If I buy from you as part of a bigger purchase I have an expectation that you've found a card that works, and presumably don't want to torpedo a $100+ sale over a $2 memory card. If I were to buy a PS3 now, I would need at least a subset of these things, I would have to work out compatibility, wait for everything to arrive, and if it doesn't all work, I have to work out what the issue is an sort a replacement. All in all, if you sell me all the elements, if it doesn't work, I get some come back, even that copy of assassin's creed. I may never play it, but if it doesn't work, it stops me being in a situation where game seller says the games are ok, you need to clean the optical drive, and the console seller saying the games are scratched.