Stop Using The Cup of Coffee vs. $0.99 Cent App Analogy

Post by tptacek » Thu, Aug 16, 2012, 11:32 PM UTC

andrewfelix wrote: post #59

tptacek wrote: post #47

Horrifying. The point about the coffee cup comparison isn't that cups of coffee are the benchmark experience for product pricing; if that were the case, my next root canal would cost $0.20. The point of the coffee cup comparison is marginal utility : the money you spend on an expensive cup of coffee almost certainly has very little utility at the margin, because you are happy to chuck it away for a bad cup of coffee.…

Well said. "Starbucks Craftsmanship" ? Please. Not sure what artisans you have running Starbucks cafes in the US, but in Australia the barristers are largely low paid teenagers using un-cleaned machines and second rate beans. To top it off most of the drinks have dollop of cream or some other sugary ingredient to mask the awful quality of the coffee. I would gladly 'gamble' 99c with an iPhone developer over a Starbuc…

Post by gergles » Thu, Aug 16, 2012, 11:35 PM UTC

Tichy wrote: post #40

nickzoic wrote: post #38

I'd like an App Store with a "if you delete it within X days you get an automatic refund" model. That would make buying apps risk free and refunding them hassle free, without the annoyance of having "Lite" vs "Full" versions.

Doesn't Google Play work like that? The rebate period might be a lot shorter though, perhaps even minutes. I think they started out with a day but it was exploited too much.

Post by yaakov34 » Thu, Aug 16, 2012, 11:43 PM UTC

tptacek wrote: post #47

Horrifying. The point about the coffee cup comparison isn't that cups of coffee are the benchmark experience for product pricing; if that were the case, my next root canal would cost $0.20. The point of the coffee cup comparison is marginal utility : the money you spend on an expensive cup of coffee almost certainly has very little utility at the margin, because you are happy to chuck it away for a bad cup of coffee.…

Post by robryan » Thu, Aug 16, 2012, 11:46 PM UTC

tptacek wrote: post #47

Horrifying. The point about the coffee cup comparison isn't that cups of coffee are the benchmark experience for product pricing; if that were the case, my next root canal would cost $0.20. The point of the coffee cup comparison is marginal utility : the money you spend on an expensive cup of coffee almost certainly has very little utility at the margin, because you are happy to chuck it away for a bad cup of coffee.…

Post by mmahemoff » Thu, Aug 16, 2012, 11:51 PM UTC

CKKim wrote: post #50

CKKim wrote: post #12

Hi Josh, interesting read. I noticed the following typos: "Great software masks it’s complexity" "Package it such that it shows off it’s craftsmanship" "I don’t expect it to even last beyond it’s last drop" "Its like an infant child in that regard"

I've been downvoted, so could someone set me straight on the etiquette for pointing out errors here please? The original article gives only a Twitter account for contact info, the submitter of this HN post is the same as the author of the original piece, and my comment above is 251 characters.