What Is Your Spending Limit in Payware

[Guest rsmith6621ab]

Taking under consideration with the present MSFS FS9/2004 platform and its limitatations WHAT IS THE MOST YOU WILL SPEND ON A THIRD PARTY Model and panel as well as scenery.With the recent offering that being Dreamfleet 727 and ATR which is comanding a $34.95 price.....Wilco is asking $39.95 for the ERJ and $29.95 for the CRJ, I remember just a year ago $24.95 was a standard price. Scenery is now creeping into the +++$25.00 area and is frame rate intensive.Is there a limit to what you will spend on Flightsim extras.Anyone want to hedge a virtual bet that the PIC 767v2 and the PMDG 747 will command a mid $40.00 price.

[Guest bigun]

I don't really have a limit. As the price goes up, I tend to look a little harder before deciding. One thing I try to keep in mind is the fact that the packages are getting more and more complex and the develpment time ins also getting longer. That means, overall, more and more recources ($$$$$$) are being spent from conception to release. With the FS market being as limited as it is, the price will naturally go up. Up to this point, I can say that I have been amazed at the level of complexity and quality the top development houses are producing. (The recent ATR, ERJ and 727 come to mind) Heck, I spend more than the cost of one of these packages just to take my wife out to a movie and dinner and I get many, many more hours of enjoyment frome the add-on packages.

[Sonar5 3]

Hi,Let's just say I can have a very nice night out for about a 1/3 of what some of these places are TRYING to charge for an add-on.Some of these developers price it pretty fairly.Some, I feel are just out to make a buck, buyer beware, and PLEASE beware of perceived false claims of things like value given etc....It is getting outrageous.My Price Point is somewhere around $20 or so, depending on the product, and whether what I would consider to be a REPUTABLE Developer that has met my expectations and has integrity as well.When any payware Product costs MORE THAN THE ORIGINAL program, I think a Line has been crossed, and I won't pay it, period.You can buy the entire program for $29.95, and some are charging quite a bit more than that for one small add-on. That is very sad indeed, and I just won't participate in any pricing scheme that prices above the program.Now maybe, and I mean Maybe, if they guaranteed that a release so late in the cycle of MSFS2004 that they will upgrade to future versions, that Might, and I mean might be a justification for a higher price than the current price of the main program, MSFS2004.But I doubt any will do that.Me, I'll stick to Freeware, and some high quality, good value aircraft I have purchased from some developers.Regards,Joe

[Guest jaapverduijn]

It fully depends on what's offered, but if that's enough, I would be prepared to pay quite a lot. Firstly: it would have to be a big four-engined propper, either a liner or a bomber.Secondly: it would need to have all systems modelled that would be possible to model within the limits of FS9.Thirdly: flight dynamics should be absolute tops.Fourthly (and that's the most important issue for me): EVERY working switch, button, rotary, axis or whatever (and they should ALL be working), should be mappable to yoke, throttle quadrant, and the various (lots of!) GoFlight hardware. In many add-ons this is already the case for many switches, but I want it for ALL.For such an aircraft, let's say SuperConnie, Shackleton Mr3, or B-29, I would pay up to 500 euro's, that's about 550 US bucks. Yep, that's a lot of money, but it would buy me a lot of fun!Jaap Verduijn.

[kerosene31 349]

I don't have a fixed limit, but with rising prices, I really limit the number of add-ons I purchase. Lately I have passed on a number of the popular addons. I just wait for the ones I am most interested in. For example I didn't buy the Flight1 ATR. Now, I hear it is excellent, however I just don't have a lot of interest in that particular plane. (I tend to fly what I see out of my local airport). I also held off knowing that the DF727 was coming. (I'll probably get that soon)I limit my purchases to those planes that I have a definite interest in (and of course they need to be high quality). I really have no issue with most prices. I have no problem paying for quality. Personally I'd rather have a small number of quality addons rather than a large number of mediocre ones. Also, I will very rarely ever buy any addon immediately when it is released. I always try to wait a few days to see some opinions on it first, no matter who the developer is. I have saved myself quite a lot of money on purchases I might have made prematurely.

[michal 44]

>WHAT IS THE MOST YOU WILL SPEND>ON A THIRD PARTY Model and panel as well as scenery.For me it is purely a function of the quality of the product being offered. I rather buy fewer expensive products but of highest quality than large number of mediocre creations. The more impressive final result, the more I will be willing to spend. PMD747 for mid $40 ? I very much doubt it, assuming they meet their lofty goals you can expect the price not less than $60-70. Those that expect to pay $24.95 for an aircraft either have modest expectations for the quality/realism or think in terms of 2002 technology.Michael J.WinXP-Home SP2,AMD64 3500+,Abit AV8,Radeon X800Pro,36GB Raptor,1GB PC3200,Audigy 2

[Sonar5 3]

Hmmm..FS2002 came with two versions, professional and Standard, yes?Wasn't The professional version more expensive than the current version of MSFS2004 when it came out?And if so, with the technological advancements of MSFS2004, isn't that a Price cut for newer technology.Sorry, but I don't see the connection here.These developers also get Free SDK's, they also can obtain software that makes their designing easier than in the past too.Oh yeah, one more little caviat,Isn't it true that as technology advances and more people use that technology that the price actually goes down?Regards,Joe

[Guest Anthony_D]

For me there really isn't any limit (so long as I'm able to pay the rent, bills, food and tax I don't mind). The question for me is how much value for money do I get out of the product?I want complexity and realism. I want to be able to spend hours just reading the manuals to figure out how to get thing working. I want to discover nice surprises in an aircrafts functionality many months after buying it.I don't want half measures. I don't want a CTRL-E kind of operation! I don't want switches that don't do anything. I don't want engines that keep the same performance when you open the bleed air valves!I want systems integration. I want cause and effect. I want damages and failures when you don't look after the plane. I want something to happen when the left main DC bus comes offline. I want braking and nose wheel steering to fail when hydraulics come offline. I want every payware tuboprop model to be at least as good as the fanda dash 8!I've got the PMDG 737 (including the upgrade) and it goes a long way to making me happy. I've also got the F1 Piper Meridian which has very nice avionics, but the turboprop model is a bit naff compared with the Fanda Dash 8 (it's also a CTRL-E aircraft which isn't good!). By all expectations only a disaster will prevent me buying the F1 ATR. None reach the holy grail of flight simming yet, but we're getting closer each year.No folks, if the price of the same product (e.g. a loaf of bread) goes up, then that's inflation. If prices are going up with increasing complexity, functionality and realism, then that's the price of progress! Anthony

[michal 44]

>>Sorry, but I don't see the connection here.The connection is that now VC is very demanding, full functionaly, folks demand much more out of VC not to mention the rest of the aircraft. Display technology also changed, etc. However I don't see connection between how many people use the "technology" - the number of buyers of some of those add-ons remain most likely the same but the number of hours to make the product went up in the last years. And, btw, you can still get aircraft for $24.95 (just look at Eaglesoft) but they are not all-equipped, super-complex, etc.Michael J.WinXP-Home SP2,AMD64 3500+,Abit AV8,Radeon X800Pro,36GB Raptor,1GB PC3200,Audigy 2

[Guest Zevious Zoquis]

On a bit of a mission there eh Joe? I base my buying decisions on my interest in the product, my impressions of its quality based on reading forums like this, and my available free cash. If some folks would rather spend their money on a hockey game, more power to them. I choose to spend my fun money on flightsim add-ons (amongst other things). I'd much rather spend 35 dollars on a plane I'm going to get 20, 30, 50 or more hours of enjoyment out of than the same amount on a night out at a crummy movie. In the end, its a free market and if enough people chose not to buy based on price, then the price either goes down or the developer stops developing...

[Sonar5 3]

You said:"On a bit of a mission there eh Joe?"I like those supporting certain points of view I disagree with are simply offering my opinions.Do you ask the same question of those that trump out the same arguments of cost, benefit comparison everytime, or just certain points of view you may disagree with?Are you on a mission with your question?Nice of you to add something about the original question after your little comment to me.

[Guest Zevious Zoquis]

yes

[Guest DLM9000]

I wouldn't tell my wife that. I know how you meant that, but d*mn it was funny.Good response though. I agree with your comments and feel the same. I know what it is like to stay up all night fighting with a compiler or debugging some code that looks fine, but has a hidden problem. Those hours are worth something. Another point is they are not selling 1.2 million copies like game developers. There is a limited market for these products. I know they do it because they love it (right guys?) But there has to be something in it for them. If there were not, they may go away and program something else.In summary, I review each purchase to determine value. If someone came out with a simulator that guaranteed me a type cert in Dash-8 and wanted $300 dollars for it, I might pay it. If I were looking to do some desktop flying with the aircraft only, then I wouldn't pay it. There is also the dear to the heart issue. If something is dear to you, then you may pay more for it. I will pay more for scenery in the areas I tend to frequent, than ones I do not. I will pay more for certain aircraft than others. It is impossible to do a market study on something like this, where individual passion is the motivator.Setting an artificial ceiling is fiscally sound if you are on a budget (and even if you aren't). Hobbies should have a place in your budget and not consume it. However setting one ceiling for everything is like saying I will not pay over $12,000 for a new car. If you set the limit, then you either have to break it or do without a new car, because the prices are going up.Dennis Mitchell

[Guest tango_d]

Have to agree with Anthony and others here - I'm quite willing to pay for complexity and detail at whatever price that maybe. If I were to break down the hours of enjoyment I've had out of my PMDG 737 it would work out a fractions of pence. I even get a great manual that is like a book in to the bargain.Heck - price does matter to some extent to contradict myself a little....It just means I gotta save up for longer.The future of this fascinating hobby looks great to me if the complexity and attention to detail carries on in this vain, and we the buyers, are willing to pay too. Best Wishes Eddy :)

[Guest]

This is going to a long thread