>That's exactly the point. A monitor, especially an expensive monitor,
>does still have an expectation of being "repairable", hence the fact
>that a service manual is available.
>
>But you ARE talking about an $80 scanner.
>
>> You could argue that there is a lot more IP in those
>> schematics than there is in the schematics of a $80 scanner, as there is
a
>> lot more non-trivial electronics.
>
>Remember, it doesn't MATTER how much "IP" there is in the schematics,
>it's the fact that there MIGHT be something "good" in those schematics
>that a competitor might be able to use that scares companies.

I think you guys are forgetting another factor in making something
repairable. The cost of stocking spares, and the cost of technical labour to
do the repair. This is another reason why so much repair is done by board
jockeys these days. A school kid could replace the PCB in the scanner, and
the cost of the spare is probably about $10 to the company, but to have a
technical person repair it plus stocking a range of spares for it is dearer
than a complete scanner - so they sell you a complete scanner as a
replacement, and have the schoolboys wages.

This is irrespective of any IP in the product.

The monitor has enough built in price to make the cost of individual spare
parts worth while, especially as many of the items will not necessarily be
on the PCB. it is also an item where there is a reasonable chance of an
observable rate of infant mortality failure, which the service organisation
will have to deal with to keep the company name. The scanner is cheap enough
and of a construction where the infant mortality will be negligible, and
complete unit swap for any that do fail.

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