Wiz Price Drop


ledro

Still Fresh
Joined
Aug 19, 2006
Messages
76
Hey, just noticed that the price of the wiz has dropped on playasia to app. 100 euro's. Anyone know what's going on? A new version? GP changing the pricing strategy or playasia wants to get rid of its stock of wiz's?
 
A price drop this early in the Wiz's life can mean only one thing. GPH are shitting bricks - the Wiz isn't selling as well as they'd hoped. Hardly surprising really with increased competition (and not just with the A320), a not very convincing difference between the Wiz and F200, and a bad economy; it all adds up.

The Wiz is a nice machine, but it is overpriced IMHO. A price cut may invigorate sales, even if only for a short time.
 
It's quite odd to compare Wiz and Dingoo with each other, both machines are for two completly different markets.

The Wiz has better support and a more robust case and design. The Dingoo is indeed a nice toy, but that's it. The support is awful and mostly only community driven, any attempt from my side to get in touch with the Dingoo guys in China failed so far, they probably even don't know really how much worth hombrew is for them. Without DINGUX the Dingoo would be nothing, but another obscure chinese PMP player with standard functions you can find in any 40US$ PMP device.
 
Kojote said:
It's quite odd to compare Wiz and Dingoo with each other, both machines are for two completly different markets.

The Wiz has better support and a more robust case and design. The Dingoo is indeed a nice toy, but that's it. The support is awful and mostly only community driven, any attempt from my side to get in touch with the Dingoo guys in China failed so far, they probably even don't know really how much worth hombrew is for them. Without DINGUX the Dingoo would be nothing, but another obscure chinese PMP player with standard functions you can find in any 40US$ PMP device.

You can say all that, but when you get down to it both of them do almost exactly the same things and perform in almost exactly the same way.

Wiz's support is awful and mostly community driven too, only the community backing it is less than Dingoo's is. Sure, without Dingux Dingoo would be nothing, but who cares? If Wiz didn't have Linux it'd be nothing too, but it does, so it's moot.

I guess you can't find the Dingoo's functions on any $40 PMP or else you'd have quickly seen one dethrone the Dingoo. They don't have the developer backing the Dingoo does, they don't have the control scheme, and most of them don't even have much distribution outside of China.

Face it, as far as most people are concerned Dingoo is just like the Wiz only with more developing going on and half the price tag. If that's not reason to consider it competition for Wiz then I don't know what is. Wiz does have some advantages, but touchscreen is underutilized, 3D apps are nearly non-existant, and the OLED screen isn't enough of a hard seller to enough people. Meanwhile, Dingoo is easier to develop on thanks to a fast booting Linux and USB gadget and has TV-out, all things that GPH could have had on Wiz if they had a clue what they were doing.
 
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102 € + shipment = 115 €

Twice the Dingoo price.

Wiz is far better machine than Dingoo.
 
Exophase said:
Kojote said:
It's quite odd to compare Wiz and Dingoo with each other, both machines are for two completly different markets.

The Wiz has better support and a more robust case and design. The Dingoo is indeed a nice toy, but that's it. The support is awful and mostly only community driven, any attempt from my side to get in touch with the Dingoo guys in China failed so far, they probably even don't know really how much worth hombrew is for them. Without DINGUX the Dingoo would be nothing, but another obscure chinese PMP player with standard functions you can find in any 40US$ PMP device.

You can say all that, but when you get down to it both of them do almost exactly the same things and perform in almost exactly the same way.

Wiz's support is awful and mostly community driven too, only the community backing it is less than Dingoo's is. Sure, without Dingux Dingoo would be nothing, but who cares? If Wiz didn't have Linux it'd be nothing too, but it does, so it's moot.

I guess you can't find the Dingoo's functions on any $40 PMP or else you'd have quickly seen one dethrone the Dingoo. They don't have the developer backing the Dingoo does, they don't have the control scheme, and most of them don't even have much distribution outside of China.

Face it, as far as most people are concerned Dingoo is just like the Wiz only with more developing going on and half the price tag. If that's not reason to consider it competition for Wiz then I don't know what is. Wiz does have some advantages, but touchscreen is underutilized, 3D apps are nearly non-existant, and the OLED screen isn't enough of a hard seller to enough people. Meanwhile, Dingoo is easier to develop on thanks to a fast booting Linux and USB gadget and has TV-out, all things that GPH could have had on Wiz if they had a clue what they were doing.

I still consider the support from GPH better than from the Dingoo guys - GPH at least try to answer nowadays, while from Dingoo side you will be completly ignored.

My JXD 301 is cheaper than the Dingoo, a lot chaper. It does GBA, Megadrive, GBC, NES and other stuff you'd expect from a "chinese PMP". So you could compare it to the Dingoo. The only main problem is yet to find out how you can run your own software on it. In the beginning the information you got from Dingoo Digital was also pretty low flame.

Well probably it's all a "taste" matter... still the quality of the Wiz is higher and the design is exclusive. It's not cloned from a GBA Micro which has been a bit oversized. You've to keep in mind that a very own design costs money and also speaks for the uniqueness. Of course GPH has to get back their investment. Also GPH has a license for the stuff they use in their machine, I doubt Dingoo Digital ever cares about copyright. They even break GPL by not releasing the sources to the emulators they ship with the device. The professionality is on a completly different level. This is why I said what I said :)
 
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I have found the guys at dingoo to be friendly and enthusiastic about the scene. They do seem to understand it, they know about the linux port, they have said they will make it the default once it is more mature.
 
Kojote said:
I still consider the support from GPH better than from the Dingoo guys - GPH at least try to answer nowadays, while from Dingoo side you will be completly ignored.

While this may be the case, in a way it's a good thing because it means that the community has been forced to rise up and take things into their own hands. And as far as systems software goes they're doing a better job than GPH is with Wiz.

Kojote said:
My JXD 301 is cheaper than the Dingoo, a lot chaper.

How do you figure? JXD 301 cost over $120 and if it went down in price it was only because it was quickly liquidated. It was discontinued very quickly and I doubt you could very easily get one now. Dingoo only costs $80.

Kojote said:
It does GBA, Megadrive, GBC, NES and other stuff you'd expect from a "chinese PMP".

It did GBA and GBC so poorly that they weren't even worth mentioning. Dingoo does them much better and this has some chance of improving further in the future. From what I understand, the other emulators on JXD 301 weren't very good either, and it never got any notable homebrew. It was also lacking in the controls department, especially since it didn't have shoulder buttons.

Kojote said:
So you could compare it to the Dingoo.

Not very favorably.

Kojote said:
The only main problem is yet to find out how you can run your own software on it. In the beginning the information you got from Dingoo Digital as also pretty low flame.

Dingoo doesn't even make the thing, they're just a distributor. JXD 301's hardware was just as well understood and you could in fact run custom software on it, but no one cared to, partially because it wasn't a very appealing architecture (for one thing, GCC output was poor). It doesn't matter how much a company is promoting open development for a platform - in fact, GPH is only barely doing more of that than Dingoo is. The'yre no actually providing an SDK themselves and have only released source code they're legally obligated to after being badgering to do so. The fact remains, so long as the makers aren't actively working to prevent you from getting code on their product (ie Sony) and so long as there is a simple way to do so that anyone can manage w/o spending more money, it doesn't matter how much the company in question is holding your hand. The community can and will take it from there, and all of the results follow from that point onward. Some people put a lot of stock behind the spirit of a device, but let's face facts, this doesn't actually put in demand software in our hands.

Kojote said:
Well probably it's all a "taste" matter... still the quality of the Wiz is higher and the design is exclusive. It's not cloned from a GBA Micro which has been a bit oversized.

Are you kidding? They're both indiscriminate rectangular bricks ala NES controllers, that's all there is to it. The only "exclusive" design decision GPH made is the right hand d-pad like button arrangement, which as far as I'm concerned was not a good idea.

Kojote said:
You've to keep in mind that a very own design costs money and also speaks for the uniqueness. Of course GPH has to get back their investment. Also GPH has a license for the stuff they use in their machine, I doubt Dingoo Digital ever cares about copyright. They even break GPL by not releasing the sources to the emulators they ship with the device. The professionality is on a completly different level. This is why I said what I said :)

What do you think it is that GPH is paying for in designing Wiz that Gemei (the makers of A320, leave Dingoo out of it) has skipped out on? GPH has not put forth massive R&D here, their PCB design is practically a Magic Eyes reference board and I don't see anything special at all about the structural design. Gemei, on the other hand, puts out several different designs, and while they're not exactly breaking any new ground either at least what they do reflects more diversity and production capability. It's not as if GPH purchased licenses for any software they're using, it's just open source GPLed stuff, no different from what's on Dingoo. Speaking of which, GPH hardly shipped the device with the source made available; we only eventually got it because Orkie, who has connections with them, asked for it. But I know for a fact that they were deliberately preventing it from being distributed early on, so this isn't a mere oversight. I believe that if there wasn't someone who was in touch with GPH we probably never would have gotten it. The circumstances are a little different than with Dingoo, but you can't really call them faultless on that count. Especially since GPH has been called on this very issue in the past regarding GP2X and following the rules.

In a way I think that holding back Linux source is worse than breaking GPL on the emulators on Dingoo, because none of those emulator authors came forth to complain about it (I know I didn't give a crap). With Linux it's basically impossible not to piss off a copyright holder since there's an uncountably large number of them; the emulators were mainly few person ordeals at most.
 
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iprice said:
A price drop this early in the Wiz's life can mean only one thing. GPH are shitting bricks - the Wiz isn't selling as well as they'd hoped. Hardly surprising really with increased competition (and not just with the A320), a not very convincing difference between the Wiz and F200, and a bad economy; it all adds up.

The Wiz is a nice machine, but it is overpriced IMHO. A price cut may invigorate sales, even if only for a short time.
It may have been overpriced but it would be unrealistic to see it priced the same as the dingoo. That will never happen.

For one thing Korea is not China, they don't hold a gun to your head while assembling the things there, labor is more. The Wiz has a more expensive screen, OLED is more than ordinary LCDs are. There is a touchscreen on the Wiz and the Wiz has double the RAM. The battery on the Wiz is contained in it's own removeable plastic shell with spring contacts making the connection (higher mold, component, and assembly costs). The Dingoo battery is just glued in and hard wired directly to the PCB. These things all add up so the cost will always be higher. Whether these things are worth the extra cost to some people or not the bottom line is that the Wiz costs more to make. GPH has to make something off of it as do the distributors and shops. GPH isn't Sony or Nintendo who can afford to sell the hardware at a loss and make the money on games. So at the end of the day it is at a disadvantage cost wise and always will be. I like the extra things the Wiz has but I know some won't care. It is good though that the price has come down a bit, hopefully people will find it more reasonable.
 
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DaveC said:
iprice said:
A price drop this early in the Wiz's life can mean only one thing. GPH are shitting bricks - the Wiz isn't selling as well as they'd hoped. Hardly surprising really with increased competition (and not just with the A320), a not very convincing difference between the Wiz and F200, and a bad economy; it all adds up.

The Wiz is a nice machine, but it is overpriced IMHO. A price cut may invigorate sales, even if only for a short time.
It may have been overpriced but it would be unrealistic to see it priced the same as the dingoo. That will never happen.

For one thing Korea is not China, they don't hold a gun to your head while assembling the things there, labor is more. The Wiz has a more expensive screen, OLED is more than ordinary LCDs are. There is a touchscreen on the Wiz and the Wiz has double the RAM. The battery on the Wiz is contained in it's own removeable plastic shell with spring contacts making the connection (higher mold, component, and assembly costs). The Dingoo battery is just glued in and hard wired directly to the PCB. These things all add up so the cost will always be higher. Whether these things are worth the extra cost to some people or not the bottom line is that the Wiz costs more to make. GPH has to make something off of it as do the distributors and shops. GPH isn't Sony or Nintendo who can afford to sell the hardware at a loss and make the money on games. So at the end of the day it is at a disadvantage cost wise and always will be. I like the extra things the Wiz has but I know some won't care. It is good though that the price has come down a bit, hopefully people will find it more reasonable.

i fully agree!!!!
 
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DaveC said:
iprice said:
The Wiz is a nice machine, but it is overpriced IMHO. A price cut may invigorate sales, even if only for a short time.
It may have been overpriced but it would be unrealistic to see it priced the same as the dingoo. That will never happen.

For one thing Korea is not China, they don't hold a gun to your head while assembling the things there, labor is more. The Wiz has a more expensive screen, OLED is more than ordinary LCDs are. There is a touchscreen on the Wiz and the Wiz has double the RAM. The battery on the Wiz is contained in it's own removeable plastic shell with spring contacts making the connection (higher mold, component, and assembly costs). The Dingoo battery is just glued in and hard wired directly to the PCB. These things all add up so the cost will always be higher. Whether these things are worth the extra cost to some people or not the bottom line is that the Wiz costs more to make. GPH has to make something off of it as do the distributors and shops. GPH isn't Sony or Nintendo who can afford to sell the hardware at a loss and make the money on games. So at the end of the day it is at a disadvantage cost wise and always will be. I like the extra things the Wiz has but I know some won't care. It is good though that the price has come down a bit, hopefully people will find it more reasonable.

You make it sound like I stated that the Wiz SHOULD be at the same pricepoint as the Dingoo. This is not what I stated, or what I meant. A lower pricepoint for the Wiz is welcomed, but I wouldn't expect it to reach the Dingoo's pricing level any time soon.
 
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iprice said:
You make it sound like I stated that the Wiz SHOULD be at the same pricepoint as the Dingoo. This is not what I stated, or what I meant. A lower pricepoint for the Wiz is welcomed, but I wouldn't expect it to reach the Dingoo's pricing level any time soon.
I know you didn't state that you think the price should be the same. I replied to your post as you stated that the Wiz is overpriced (which I don't really argue) but this was a general statement. It seems many others think the cost is too much and immediatly bring up that the dingoo is cheap. I was just stating a few reasons why there is a cost difference.
 
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A price drop is good news for those on the fence.

I was very interested in the Wiz before some of its issues came to light.

- screen tearing
- dead pixels & pixel plague
- touchscreen inaccuracy
- less dev support (compared to GP2X)
- lackluster performance improvements over GP2X

The last two were the real show stoppers for me, bummer!

Now, I'm going to stick with my trusty ole' f100 and hope it lasts until something better comes along.
 
Of course I pull the trigger on a WIZ just before this is announced! Oh well. What sites are recognizing this price drop right now anyways?
 
bRIZZAd said:
Of course I pull the trigger on a WIZ just before this is announced! Oh well. What sites are recognizing this price drop right now anyways?


Actually Ive seen other online shops selling the Wiz for the same price over the last couple of months. I really dont think its a price drop per-say. Probably retailers selling it more close to the wholesale level to clear it out as its probably not selling and make there money back.

Dont get me wrong I love my wiz but on the retail level its just about dead. There is a retailer in NY who has been trying to off load his 50 on ebay for a few months now and still cant get rid of them at cost.

Personally I think the Wiz needs to be $99 or $119 to really survive. The dingoo is a force to be reckoned with not because of itself but the hardware thats in it is in so many devices. Heck even this new on online is probably just a rebranded dingoo like the dingoo is a rebranded X760+
http://www.console-hacking.com/neoflash-announce-neo-slim-3000-new-homebrew-console--263095.html#
 
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