it might just be me, but does anyone see the fact that you can get this (rc) stuff substantially cheaper otherwise point to a problem in itself? supporting regional economy = good, mark-ups through non-competitive exclusive distribution agreements = bad (from a consumer standpoint).
i also find it amusing, if not ironic, that people who promote/resell foreign based products in direct competition with US manufactured products are bashing on hkrc. so let me get this straight... let's protect the retail sector from comparitive disadvantage, and 'stick it' to manufacturing? it doesn't work both ways.
jack rimer (don't know who he is, but sounds like he is associated with jaco) made the following post in the jaco tire thread regarding selling US made/exported products cheaper overseas than they do domestically:
"In order to compete and sell any tires overseas we must sell to our distributor at very little profit. He, in turn, is content to make next to nothing in order to move product. All of this is fine until you have his customers selling back into the US at unfairly low prices. "
while i agree 100% with his post, i think this goes back to the initial problem of jacking up the price in the US 'because we can'.
this will all fix itself eventually. for example, the xbox 360 will come out in november for 399usd and euros respectively. that equates to substantially more for europe when you factor in the exchange rate. conversely, the product will open at 346usd equivelant in japan. as soon as the east asian markets unify (like europe), the markets will be more even.