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Batteries… the irresistible cash crop for large companies

During the past few decades, battery manufacturing has reached a level of sophistication that has opened the door to enormous profiteering by large companies that take advantage of the latest advances in metallurgy and alloy assimilation.

For example, ever notice how a 48 month car battery invariably conks out at somewhere around 47 months? Auto battery manufacturers can predict within two weeks of when your auto battery should fail and of course, its always just within the warranty period… but since the warranty compensation is pro-rated, your $60 battery warranty will pay only a pittance and ONLY IF you buy a new battery of the same brand. But auto battery manufacturers aren't the only ones cashing in on the battery waterfall.

Most companies are always busy trying to figure ways to expand their revenue from fixed or predictable sources and the battery cash crop has become the new oasis for many international companies including Sony. Sony has always produced decent to above average grade electronics and everyone needs batteries to operate cameras, cam corders, and DAT machines. Until the introduction of Lithium batteries, Sony produced Nickel Cadmium (NiCd) batteries which were cheaper to make.

I bought the first commercially available portable DAT machine that Sony produced and without fail no matter how I maintained the battery in a cool place, kept it charged and recharged it when specified... EVERY YEAR I would have to spend $100.00 to replace the battery I bought just a year ago. After a few years of annual replacement of these NiCd batteries I began referring to them as "Sony's bio-degradable batteries." Just like automobile battery manufacturers, Sony took full advantage of technology and knew within a few weeks when a particular battery was going to fail. And they cleverly adjusted their guarantees to accommodate that knowledge.

To demonstrate the level of dedication to quality and consumer satisfaction that other companies were capable of at the time, I compared the Sony NiCd batteries for their DAT recorder to the NiCd batteries for the Denon DAT. The Denon batteries were never maintained properly. To this day over ten years after manufacture and with poor maintenance the original Denon NiCd batteries pop back with full charges within two charges and operate like new.

The battery cash crop didn't go unnoticed by yet other manufacturers as well. For example, Ryobi, a product sold at Home Depot made a portable drill with a reasonably good battery. But they made certain batteries wouldn't last by providing a handicapped charger that was guaranteed to overcharge the battery. When I went to replace the battery it was $80 and I only paid $100 for the drill. Ryobi was not alone in this deceptive practice. Skil and other manufacturers deliberately handicapped chargers for profit. They knew the overcharging errors would occur.

After a barrage of criticism from the construction industry and lost market share, these companies were forced to lower replacement battery prices and provide chargers that weren't designed to destroy the batteries.

Today, Sony offers Lithium batteries after years of heavy criticism of their poor quality batteries. It's all part of Calculated Risk, a term originated fifteen years ago by this author. More about Calculated Risk and how it works coming up.

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