Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

scmp.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

111–120 of 314 posts

Re: Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

#111

Post by wolfgke »

cptskippy wrote: post #72
ce4 wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even if they succeed (edit: with that fake-vs-natural campaign), what if the next step introduced artificial flaws and impurities?

Probably but I doubt they'll be successful. For decades they've talked about the flawlessness and purity of diamonds, now faced with a superior product they have to change everyone's minds. They could go the granola from the earth natural route but unlike organic farming, which evokes images of the stoic farmer, their image is of conflict diamonds and exploited children in dangerous mines. Couple that with the fact t…

> Probably but I doubt they'll be successful. For decades they've talked about the flawlessness and purity of diamonds, now faced with a superior product they have to change everyone's minds.

I believe that with really good marketing (which De Beers can easily afford) this should not be a problem. For example the fact that Persian rug makers traditionally include deliberate small imperfections into their carpets

> https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/32361/did-persi...

might be a good starting point for how one might create such a campaign.

Re: Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

#112

Post by struppi »

SomeHacker44 wrote: post #97

I just don't get it. Who cares what the source of a diamond is? Isn't the point of a diamond its beauty in the eye of the beholder? If I had a big diamond I would definitely want the cheapest one possible with a visual aesthetic I like. Fortunately, my wife and I don't like diamonds and we have purple sapphires in our wedding bands.

Yes, I also don't understand that "it must be a natural diamond" craze.

With all the problems of natural diamonds, I would prefer a lab-grown diamond...

Re: Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

#113

Post by ameister14 »

kalcode wrote: post #108
vanderZwan wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you ever want a proof that the market can be utterly irrational, look no further than: > The arrival of lab-grown diamonds has challenged the widely-held assumption that diamond prices could only go up

Feel like diamonds are such a great example for the 'a free-market' people. They typically argue that in a truly free-market everything is better. Well diamond trade exists largely in a free market until it hits some of the countries they sell in but before that we basically have blood being spilt over them and companies existing outside of strong regulated countries to funnel the diamonds into and control the price.…

A truly free market requires complete transparency, something the diamond market has historically lacked.

Re: Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

#114

Post by ce4 »

cptskippy wrote: post #72
ce4 wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even if they succeed (edit: with that fake-vs-natural campaign), what if the next step introduced artificial flaws and impurities?

Probably but I doubt they'll be successful. For decades they've talked about the flawlessness and purity of diamonds, now faced with a superior product they have to change everyone's minds. They could go the granola from the earth natural route but unlike organic farming, which evokes images of the stoic farmer, their image is of conflict diamonds and exploited children in dangerous mines. Couple that with the fact t…

I wouldn't be so quick to say that they won't succeed - their marketing has been managing the public opinion about diamonds for 7 decades. Neither blood diamonds, environmental issues nor the (false) perception of scarcity has brought them down yet.

Re: Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

#116

Post by Antimachides »

userbinator wrote: post #15

As the price of diamond continues dropping, I wonder if people will find more interesting applications of the material and it'll eventually become as mundane as things like steel and aluminium. Besides its hardness, it also has very high thermal conductivity. Diamond is still too expensive to be a bulk material, but I look forward to when things like this become cheap and commonplace: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fi…

Diamond chef knives.

Re: Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

#117

Post by gruez »

washadjeffmad wrote: post #94
gruez wrote: post #46

>Indeed, even the most experienced diamantaire’s in the world can’t tell the fakes from those extracted from mines when using their naked eye, which is where technology comes in if they look identical to the naked eye, how can jewelers and debeers justify buying the naturals? are you now buying the diamond for its "history" or "story"? is it like buying "organic" food? or is it purely because it was never about the d…

I bought a "real" diamond after protracted negotiations (with my SO, not the diamond seller), and I still don't really understand it. She cried more during the process than when her grandmother was dying, and she still wanted one particular diamond even though I'd explicitly given a significantly larger budget for either lab grown or moissanite. And although she understood why there was no real difference outside of…

>And although she understood why there was no real difference outside of price, I think she was very worried she would be judged by other women for not having (or being worth) a "real" diamond.

get fake diamond, claim it's real to everyone else. it's not like they can tell the difference, or they will take her ring to get tested.

Re: Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

#118

Post by sizzzzlerz »

washadjeffmad wrote: post #94
gruez wrote: post #46

>Indeed, even the most experienced diamantaire’s in the world can’t tell the fakes from those extracted from mines when using their naked eye, which is where technology comes in if they look identical to the naked eye, how can jewelers and debeers justify buying the naturals? are you now buying the diamond for its "history" or "story"? is it like buying "organic" food? or is it purely because it was never about the d…

I bought a "real" diamond after protracted negotiations (with my SO, not the diamond seller), and I still don't really understand it. She cried more during the process than when her grandmother was dying, and she still wanted one particular diamond even though I'd explicitly given a significantly larger budget for either lab grown or moissanite. And although she understood why there was no real difference outside of…

Will she carry around the certificate of authenticity to show her girlfriends as she's showing off the ring? Better carry the price tag around as well. That'll make them even more jealous, which, after all, is really the purpose of this whole kabuki dance.

Re: Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

#119

Post by sizzzzlerz »

struppi wrote: post #112
SomeHacker44 wrote: post #97

I just don't get it. Who cares what the source of a diamond is? Isn't the point of a diamond its beauty in the eye of the beholder? If I had a big diamond I would definitely want the cheapest one possible with a visual aesthetic I like. Fortunately, my wife and I don't like diamonds and we have purple sapphires in our wedding bands.

Yes, I also don't understand that "it must be a natural diamond" craze. With all the problems of natural diamonds, I would prefer a lab-grown diamond...

100% marketing. When two competing products have an intrinsic difference of nearly zero, the marketing boys have to start making up campaigns that focus on anything that can drive a wedge between the products.

Re: Lab-grown diamonds threaten viability of the real gems

#120

Post by pythonaut_16 »

kbutler wrote: post #39
notahacker wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In that respect it's the same as any other collectible or antique that can be reliably replicated in slightly better condition and with slightly less irregularity than the highly prized "mint condition" originals made by the most skilled artisans... (Less so for industrial uses, or for inserts into the average person's engagement rings where it's the thought and style rather than the provenance that counts)

Photorealism was the ultimate goal of artists, until that became easy.

That's true but I think part of it is also that once we achieved photorealism, we began to realize that photorealism isn't everything.
Post reply on HN