Re: Esprit 728 keypads

[tourman <robercampbell@xxxxxxxxx>]

On Feb 24, 1:44=A0pm, Jim <alarmi...@xxxxxxx> wrote:
> On Feb 24, 9:13 am, tourman <robercampb...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
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> > RHC: I actually wrote the president of Paradox about this issue of non
> > compatibility. Needless to say, I didn't even get the courtesy of a
> > reply.
>
> > In speaking with others within the company, the whole idea of backward
> > compatibility was "poo pooed" as a non issue, and not even practical
> > if they plan to be innovative in their development of new products for
> > the market.This is classic big company "bullshit" thinking -sell like
> > hell and forget support.!!!! Who the hell do they think thieir
> > customers are??? Piss dealers off and they doom themselves in the long
> > run
>
> > One thing I have noticed in this industry, most alarm people are quite
> > "reactionary" and somewhat unforgiving of companies that mess with
> > their business. All it takes is one bad experience with a comany's
> > products and they remember forever - even after the original problem
> > has been resolved.
>
> > Frankly, if they didn't make such good products, I would consider
> > going back to DSC for my installations. As it is, I do more DSC
> > installs now than I had ever planned to do......
>
> > Paradox, I hope you're listening (but then you have to care as
> > well.....)-
>
> I'm sure that everyone is aware that this is not a new "problem" that
> every manufacturer has to deal with.
>
> There's a point that every manufacturer has to decide upon where they
> break the line. They can't keep making product backward compatable
> forever. It becomes increasingly more expensive to design in backward
> compatability as time moves on. It doesn't make sense to make a new
> product more expensive for that diminishing quantity of product in the
> field and the fewer and fewer installers that want to support them.
> There seems to be something in some installers book of rules that says
> that a manufacturer has an obligation to produce a =A0product that has
> an eternal life expectancy and period of support. In reality they
> don't. And it's actually a marketing decision as well as bottom line.
> Their dilemma is ..... How many installers are we going to lose or
> piss off or please by the increased cost of new design that includes
> backward compatability .... versus the number of installers we're
> going tolose or piss off by cutting off backward compatability? =A0Also
> in consideration of pricing new product and adding features to meet
> compitition, do we eliminate new inovations in new products in favor
> of providing backward compatability?
>
> Every manufacturer will draw a different line.
>
> As for me, I think about 10 years back is good enough. To off-set
> that, I keep a few of each of old equipment that I've pulled out, that
> I think I might be able to use in the future. I keep programing chips
> and used keypads mostly and some panels. =A0And, if it so happens that I
> don't have the item that's needed, =A0then the client will just have to
> bite the bullet and get something new. Could I lose an account over
> it? Yeah, sometimes. But if it's a real hardship case, there are
> panels out now that are inexpensive enough that will take the place of
> some of this old equipment very easily. In most of these instances, if
> I don't have the necessary part, I''ll just switch out the equipment
> for cost, just to help out. These are usually retired folks or widowed
> singles that are on limited income.
>
> To me, this is not a big issue but I can appriciate that it could be
> for larger companys.

RHC: Jim, I understand the the rational  behind what both you and Mark
are saying, and I don't disagree in those cases. You are talking
compatibility for some ten years here; however, with Paradox, we are
talking only a couple of years at most. For example, they brought out
the Spectra line 1728/1738 panels and they were latest and greatest
for only about two years. Then they announced the newer Magellan
5000/6000/7000 series, which looked identical to the older line, but
were not in any way compatible. Even the memory key being used for the
new line is different from the old. The keypads are not compatible,
nor are the expander boards....nothing. AND they stopped production
totally of the older equipment totally, so nothing is now available to
buy to replace boards or keypads that are defective.

Two years is not an acceptable time for this kind of thing to happen
in my opinion.There are a number of other products they have done this
with as well