Chief Delphi

Chief Delphi (http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/index.php)
-   General Forum (http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=16)
-   -   Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack (http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?t=46638)

Brandon Martus 17-04-2006 12:28

Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
IFI sent this press release for us to post.

Quote:


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

GREENVILLE, Texas (April 17, 2006) – Innovation First, a leading provider of robotics products for the consumer and education markets, today announced it’s acquisition of the Vex® Robotics Design System brand name and trademark registrations from RadioShack Corporation. Innovation First, developer and licensor of the technology powering Vex, partnered with RadioShack in 2005 to develop the award-winning product platform.

“Gaining ownership of the Vex Robotics brand positions Innovation First to take the product platform to the next level,” said Tony Norman, president and CEO of Innovation First. “We plan to stock the full line of Vex products and accessories and will seek additional distribution partners to fully serve the consumer and education markets in the US and abroad. We’ll also be stepping up efforts to drive innovation into the product assortment and will offer even more unique parts through the www.vexlabs.com website.”

The Vex Robotics Design System includes a starter kit with over 500 individual parts and offers more than twenty accessory products including an autonomous programming kit, distance sensors, line following sensors and tank treads. Winner of the Best of Innovation award at the 2006 International Consumer Electronics Show, Vex promotes creativity and allows builders to design an infinite variety of robots to solve any task. FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), creator of the nation’s leading robotics competitions for students, is utilizing Vex to pilot a new level of competition called the FIRST Vex Challenge which culminates in a national championship later this month at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. More information is available at www.usfirst.org/vex/.

“Teachers are looking for easier, fun ways to deliver practical lessons in math, physics and computer programming,” said Joel Carter, vice president of marketing for Innovation First. To this end, educational curriculum mapping to national standards has been developed for the Vex platform by intelitek and Carnegie Mellon University. “Ironically, the US is facing a shortage of qualified applicants for high-paying technical jobs. Vex is a low cost way for schools to introduce kids to these vocations through hands-on courses in robotics.”

To learn more about the award-winning Vex Robotics Design System, please visit www.vexlabs.com or call 903-453-0801.

About Innovation First
Innovation First incorporated in 1996 and is a privately held S corporation. Co-owners Tony Norman and Bob Mimlitch founded the company on the belief that innovation very early in the design process is necessary to produce simple and elegant product designs. Innovation First began producing electronics for unmanned mobile ground robots, and is an industry leader in the hobby, competition and education markets. The RackSolutions division was formed in 1999 with the goal of becoming the "Rack Mount Problem Solvers." RackSolutions works closely with all major computer OEMs to provide custom mounting solutions and industry-wide rack compatibility for data installations of all sizes.

Contact
Joel Carter
Innovation First, Incorporated
(903) 453-0880
joel_carter@innovationfirst.com

Joe Matt 17-04-2006 12:30

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Not too surprising considering that RadioShack dropped the ball on this one, but still surprising that IFI picked up the ball afterwards! Very nice!

Lets hope we see VEX in more stores now...

Josh Hambright 17-04-2006 12:33

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Not a surprising move, but definately a welcomed one. My biggest fear when i heard radioshack was getting doubts about Vex was that it would cease to exist. Vex is definately an innovative and amazing resource, tool, and toy! I hope that IFI keeps up the great work and keeps inspiring us with their Vex products.

gdo 17-04-2006 12:40

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
happy to see someone is there to pick the Vex up after radioshack dropped the ball. hoping it still in stores, but if not can always get it off there site :D

Andrew Blair 17-04-2006 12:42

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Wow. I didn't realize IFI would have the capital to buy the rights. Good for them though; it really expands their company a great deal in the general consumer sector.

Rich Kressly 17-04-2006 13:25

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Nice. Very, very nice. Having participated in FVC Game Design, I had the distinct pleasure of spending a little time with Tony Norman and even more with JVN in the past nine months or so. The amount of effort, care, and thoughtfulness Innovation First has put into this platform and program is nothing short of immense, dating all the way back to the "Edu-Bot". The way I see it, even though a large distributor in Radio Shack is lost, the real vision and passion behind the product now has the control and power to really help VEX grow in meaningful and lasting ways. The distribution hurdle is a very temporary thing. Congratulations to Innovation First. I look forward to the future with great anticipation.

Alex Cormier 17-04-2006 14:02

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
It's all great news to hear, but the broke college students and others around the world want to know one thing. Will the pricing go down/up?

Billfred 17-04-2006 14:04

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
I, too, am glad to see IFI pick this one up. They did great with the Edubot, then came the Vex line, which was a great improvement in both cost and user-friendliness. (After all, when everyone has the same controller, life gets so much easier...and besides, the Mini RC alone is $250. Fifty bucks more for a radio and a bunch of hardware is a steal.)

I can't wait to see what all those crazy Texans will do next--but whatever it is, I bet it'll be awesome.

Ryan Dognaux 17-04-2006 14:09

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Seeing as how the state of things were with VEX and Radioshack, I think this is one of the best outcomes of the whole situation. I am curious to know how much the prices will fluctuate, if at all, but regardless I'm glad there will still be a supplier after Radioshack sells out their stock of VEX stuff.

CmptrGk 17-04-2006 14:11

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
i am very happy that the vex line is not going to disappear. this will help out my grandfather's/friend's robotics class at their school, now that they have a reliable dealer for parts.

wsansewjs 17-04-2006 14:16

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
I am relieved to see IFI taking the VEX up because VEX is an unique concept and cool idea, but we all know that products from RadioShack is not so great in quality. Therefore IFI is a small corporation that shows that the quality is superior, therefore the Vex BY IFI will be greatly improved. Price is not a concern if your sponsors can support you. This is another great news for everyone in FIRST community. Hope all goes well by IFI. *crosses fingers*

-WJS

Richard Wallace 17-04-2006 14:17

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

GREENVILLE, Texas (April 17, 2006) – Innovation First, a leading provider of robotics products for the consumer and education markets, today announced it’s acquisition of the Vex® Robotics Design System brand name and trademark registrations from RadioShack Corporation. Innovation First, developer and licensor of the technology powering Vex, partnered with RadioShack in 2005 to develop the award-winning product platform.

“Gaining ownership of the Vex Robotics brand ...
RadioShack sold the VEX brand. IFI already owned the design/technology, which they developed. I guess if IFI had wanted to sell the same stuff under a new name, they might have avoided paying RS for the brand? Anyway, I hope the right to call the stuff "VEX" instead of something else didn't cost IFI too much.

There are probably many customers (e.g., my team) who will be very glad that these kits are going to be available from IFI. I'd buy one regardless of how they were branded.

lukevanoort 17-04-2006 14:29

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
It'd be nice if IFI started selling Vex controllers by themselves too... (goes back to scheming)

JVN 17-04-2006 14:36

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by lukevanoort
It'd be nice if IFI started selling Vex controllers by themselves too... (goes back to scheming)

Way ahead of you!
http://www.vexlabs.com/vex-robotics-...it-parts.shtml

KathieK 17-04-2006 14:42

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Yeah! :D

Steve S. 17-04-2006 15:39

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
(just to put this out there, IFI does not have the Vex name now, Innovation First does. IFI is the supplier of FRC which is owned by Innovation First. The Vex name belongs to Innovation First and Vex Labs.)

Well, im glad that vex no longer belongs to radio shack......maybe now ill buy a vex kit :)

artdutra04 17-04-2006 16:13

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by JVN

OMG, having the ability to buy every single piece in the Vex kits a la carte is awesome! Now, if you want to get an "autonomous-only" Vex kit, or if you are an educator and want to stock up on a lot of controllers, this is amazing! If this is any sign of future things to come, I think Vex has an amazing future ahead. Congrats IFI!

And in the ultimate sign of irony for RadioShack, I think the Vex product line will finally take off now.

Michael Leicht 17-04-2006 16:24

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
does this mean we will see more amazing vex robots by IFI?

JVN 17-04-2006 17:00

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
All,
Let me try to answer a few questions. If I miss anything, feel free to post; we will try to get everything answered as quickly as possible. We are happy to share this good news with the FIRST community.

Pricing:
The current pricing listed on VexLABS.com will not change in the near future (i.e. $299 for a starter kit).

Availability:
All Vex product will be available through VexLABS.com web sales.
Those items that are currently out-of-stock will become available ASAP.

As mentioned in the above announcement, other options of distribution are being considered. No matter what, you can count on VexLABS.com to remain a source of Vex products.

Development:
With this announcement comes the green-light to start development on the MANY new ideas we have for the future of Vex. I don't know exactly what is coming, but I'm excited about the potential. (Yes, hopefully they'll let me spend some time on new super-robots).

Web Presence:
Some have noticed that vexrobotics.com is now a link to a RadioShack.com product page. This will change in the future; the entire web layout for Vex is going to be revamped. We now own the URL vexrobotics.com, and intend to expand ASAP. There is a lot of potential there, and we intend to include as much as possible. (Open community forums, advanced tech support, published designs, revamped vexcad.com, all are ideas on the table.)

Personally, I think this is great news. I'm glad we've gotten the chance to share it with all of you. I think this is an exciting time for the Vex program, and we'll hopefully see a very bright future.

-JV

jeffmorris 17-04-2006 17:20

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
I am very happy that Vexlabs continues to sell Vex Robotics products.

GlennGraham 17-04-2006 17:21

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
I've been a LEGO robotics coach for a few years and have really been bitten by the robotics bug. I've been working with the Vex hardware/software for a few months (have to do research for our future Vex team) and have been really pleased.

This news about Innovation First acquiring Vex sounds great (puts the vision in the hands of someone close to the robotics hobbyist community). I also like what I have heard on this forum. One thing I haven't heard discussed is how this is likely to effect Intelitek and EasyC.

dhitchco 17-04-2006 17:31

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
In order to get a bona fide robotics curriculum into every high school in the world, it will take a partnership between some school book publishing company (tbd?) and the "new" makers of VEX, Innovation First.....

Maybe all of us in the FIRST community can brainstorm such a curriculum and then the folks at IFI can develop the actual course content. I'd love to go into the schools and teach a course curriculum built-up around the VEX technology! Think of it as college-level mechanical and electrical engineering taught at the high-school level.....

Then, lastly, ala Apple Computer Corp., the folks at IFI will have to flood the school systems with VEX hardware at discounted prices.

VEX must become the backbone of a solid robotics curriculum to get science back into the forefronts of our high school programs......GO....

Vince lau 17-04-2006 17:46

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
i hope they come up with a Canadian source to sell the products. I have about $400 worth of vex stuff coming up this weekend via my sister (to save on shipping and taxes). Maybe I can start my own business and start selling kits and accessories here :P

Rich Kressly 17-04-2006 18:08

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Curriculum.....

There is some of that "stuff" in the Inventor's Guide and more of it at CMU's Robotics Institute website. I was also a part of a group that plugged Vex into a new course being taught at the two high schools in the Lower Merion, PA district next year. The course comes directly from "TEAP" and is called Innovation & Invention. This is structured for PA, but it's applicable to any state with a little work.

Basic framework of the course we are using is found here:
http://www.teap-online.org/publicati...innovation.htm

I've been involved in several curriculum/standards/robotics projects in the last year and I'd be more than happy to work with anyone interested in developing a course. Given the curriculum cycle in most places, it's more than likely any full-blown new courses would have to be approved next year for inclusion in 2007-2008. We began the process for next year's course approval back in the fall. Our district process includes a two-step written proposal, presentation to the school board, and final board approval. By the time our group advanced to the presentation phase, we had kids demonstrating actual Vex robots while our Technology Ed staff did the presentation. It's unlikely you could squeeze that whole process in for next year at this point, however there are plenty of ways to encorporate the Vex system into existing courses as well.

Please email or PM me if you have further interest.

JoeXIII'007 17-04-2006 18:41

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
VEX is an excellent platform to tinker and experiment with, and I am very pleased that IFI bought up the VEX brand, platform, etc. Great news!

jeffmorris 17-04-2006 18:43

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
I found out that the new Lego Mindstorms NXT set has only three output ports and four input ports. The Vex Micro Controller has 8 output ports and 12 input ports.

fish 17-04-2006 18:45

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
"We’ll also be stepping up efforts to drive innovation into the product assortment and will offer even more unique parts through the www.vexlabs.com website.”

I am psyched about the new parts. Maybe they'll improve the VEX chain so it can handle a bit more strain(many unfortunate breaks happened in competition:(). What products do you think they'll unveill???

GlennGraham 17-04-2006 21:13

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by jeffmorris
I found out that the new Lego Mindstorms NXT set has only three output ports and four input ports. The Vex Micro Controller has 8 output ports and 12 input ports.

Kind of off topic but I believe you are right. The old RCX had 3 inputs, 3 outputs but you could hook some combinations of sensors together to utilize the same input. This is definitely an area of strength for Vex.

On the programming side, though, I really like the power of event driven programming and multiple threads that Robolab (or nqc) and the LEGO RCX supports.

Qbranch 17-04-2006 21:29

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by GlennGraham
Kind of off topic but I believe you are right. The old RCX had 3 inputs, 3 outputs but you could hook some combinations of sensors together to utilize the same input. This is definitely an area of strength for Vex.

On the programming side, though, I really like the power of event driven programming and multiple threads that Robolab (or nqc) and the LEGO RCX supports.

Remember that you can program the Vex controller in MCC18. (Check this link for the MCP, workspace, and header files). I have used MCC18 with the VEX controller to find a way to interface the CMUcam with the VEX controller.

-Q

Donut 17-04-2006 21:31

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
This is great news for alot of teams. After building a mini-game robot in under 2 weeks, and seeing what team 40 has done, I'm glad to know Vex will still be around and be an option for testing and training next year.

Gdeaver 17-04-2006 22:02

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Now that vexlabs has control of the vex line. Maybe vexlabs and inteliteck can get the software part together. Easy-c that is in the programing kit is kind of lame. Easy-c 2.0 is usable. ( our easy-c programed bot made it to the finals). First order is to get a updated easy- c 2.0 in the programming kit. Ideally I'd like to see vex and FRC easy-c kept as close as possible. That way teams could start newbies out on vex then move their code efforts over to the FRC and the big bot. After they're up to speed there they could take on mplab. In my opinion the original RS price for the vex hardware was a little to expensive.

Rick TYler 17-04-2006 22:47

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
I'm glad to hear that IFI is picking up VEX distribution.

I am very disappointed to hear RadioShack being criticized on this forum. They have been a significant sponsor of FIRST, a regular source of electrical bits for lots of teams, and they took the chance on a national distribution deal for an expensive, techie product. I didn't see Circuit City or Best Buy stepping up to the plate on this. They deserve our thanks as a supporter of FIRST, and I would like to suggest that a lot of you need to think about "gracious professionalism" and how it applies to more than just robot tournaments.

I've been trying to think of a polite way of saying this, but most comments on these threads show a harsh, critical attitude that far outstrips the business knowledge demonstrated in those same posts. I can't recall anyone asking why RadioShack would have done this, but I do remember lots of people sounding like experts.

Here's what probably happened. RadioShack picked up the VEX line the way they test-market lots of new things. They pioneered little metal stereo speakers like this by ordering 10,000 pairs of speakers. They did the same thing with the original TRS-80 Model I (which outsold the Apple II by a large margin). When building the TRS-80 in their own factories no longer made sense, they got rid of them and purchased computers made by others. They were the leading provider in the CB boom of the 70s, and got out (mostly) while nearly 20 other CB makers were going out of business.

Right now, they are making a lot of money selling cell phones and related technology. If the VEX kits had sold, they would have kept them. They didn't sell well, so they are getting out of the business. It's no big deal -- there just isn't a mass retail market for high-end robotics kits. RadioShack isn't stupid (although their last CEO might have been), they don't make crappy equipment (it comes from the same factories in China that everyone else uses, or did you think that those stereos in the shops were really made by the companies on the front panel? nearly all consumer electronics equipment is manufactured by a handful of companies which then resell it through the familiar brand names you know), and they don't hate the robotics world. Relax.

nuggetsyl 17-04-2006 22:59

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick TYler
I'm glad to hear that IFI is picking up VEX distribution.

I am very disappointed to hear RadioShack being criticized on this forum. They have been a significant sponsor of FIRST, a regular source of electrical bits for lots of teams, and they took the chance on a national distribution deal for an expensive, techie product. I didn't see Circuit City or Best Buy stepping up to the plate on this. They deserve our thanks as a supporter of FIRST, and I would like to suggest that a lot of you need to think about "gracious professionalism" and how it applies to more than just robot tournaments.

I've been trying to think of a polite way of saying this, but most comments on these threads show a harsh, critical attitude that far outstrips the business knowledge demonstrated in those same posts. I can't recall anyone asking why RadioShack would have done this, but I do remember lots of people sounding like experts.

Here's what probably happened. RadioShack picked up the VEX line the way they test-market lots of new things. They pioneered little metal stereo speakers like this by ordering 10,000 pairs of speakers. They did the same thing with the original TRS-80 Model I (which outsold the Apple II by a large margin). When building the TRS-80 in their own factories no longer made sense, they got rid of them and purchased computers made by others. They were the leading provider in the CB boom of the 70s, and got out (mostly) while nearly 20 other CB makers were going out of business.

Right now, they are making a lot of money selling cell phones and related technology. If the VEX kits had sold, they would have kept them. They didn't sell well, so they are getting out of the business. It's no big deal -- there just isn't a mass retail market for high-end robotics kits. RadioShack isn't stupid (although their last CEO might have been), they don't make crappy equipment (it comes from the same factories in China that everyone else uses, or did you think that those stereos in the shops were really made by the companies on the front panel? nearly all consumer electronics equipment is manufactured by a handful of companies which then resell it through the familiar brand names you know), and they don't hate the robotics world. Relax.

Actually they started selling when the prices werent so high in fact because of how cheap they are now i am going to buy a vex kit. They priced themselves out of the market. I figured to get everthing you needed to build a robot was about 1000 dollars to start out. Now you can do it for 500. I am sure now that i will have a vex kit i will spend a ton more on the extra parts to do more cool things as i mess around.

shaun

John Gutmann 17-04-2006 23:05

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
On the topic of the VEX being used for curriculum, does anybody besides me think it would be awesome to have VEX be a part of PLTW instead of the Fischer techniks?

Richard Wallace 18-04-2006 09:09

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by sparksandtabs
On the topic of the VEX being used for curriculum, does anybody besides me think it would be awesome to have VEX be a part of PLTW instead of the Fischer techniks?

Yes, except I'd say "as an alternative to", not "instead of". I understand there are good PLTW programs that use Fischertechniks.

GlennGraham 18-04-2006 12:52

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Qbranch
Remember that you can program the Vex controller in MCC18. (Check this link for the MCP, workspace, and header files). I have used MCC18 with the VEX controller to find a way to interface the CMUcam with the VEX controller.

-Q

Thanks for the pointer! I'll spend some time with it this week.

lupjohn 18-04-2006 13:58

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick TYler
I'm glad to hear that IFI is picking up VEX distribution.

I am very disappointed to hear RadioShack being criticized on this forum. They have been a significant sponsor of FIRST, a regular source of electrical bits for lots of teams, and they took the chance on a national distribution deal for an expensive, techie product. I didn't see Circuit City or Best Buy stepping up to the plate on this. They deserve our thanks as a supporter of FIRST, and I would like to suggest that a lot of you need to think about "gracious professionalism" and how it applies to more than just robot tournaments.

I've been trying to think of a polite way of saying this, but most comments on these threads show a harsh, critical attitude that far outstrips the business knowledge demonstrated in those same posts. I can't recall anyone asking why RadioShack would have done this, but I do remember lots of people sounding like experts.

Here's what probably happened. RadioShack picked up the VEX line the way they test-market lots of new things. They pioneered little metal stereo speakers like this by ordering 10,000 pairs of speakers. They did the same thing with the original TRS-80 Model I (which outsold the Apple II by a large margin). When building the TRS-80 in their own factories no longer made sense, they got rid of them and purchased computers made by others. They were the leading provider in the CB boom of the 70s, and got out (mostly) while nearly 20 other CB makers were going out of business.

Right now, they are making a lot of money selling cell phones and related technology. If the VEX kits had sold, they would have kept them. They didn't sell well, so they are getting out of the business. It's no big deal -- there just isn't a mass retail market for high-end robotics kits. RadioShack isn't stupid (although their last CEO might have been), they don't make crappy equipment (it comes from the same factories in China that everyone else uses, or did you think that those stereos in the shops were really made by the companies on the front panel? nearly all consumer electronics equipment is manufactured by a handful of companies which then resell it through the familiar brand names you know), and they don't hate the robotics world. Relax.

Rick;
I agree with you 100%. RadioShack in fact may provide from their 1/2 price sale a much broader user base that will save VEX. I was sort of ignoring VEX until the sale and now I can justify an exploratory purchase. I have found that the VEX is the same quality as the old EDUBOT kit with much more potential and support and at a lower cost. The quality of the component wheels, accessories and sensors is a great improvement over the EDUBOT. The controller is of course equivalent to the EDUBOT but has a cleaner design with universal interface to the outside. It too may go the way of the FRC controller and be upgraded with more memory and speed. We as a user community should recognize that RS is there to supply an lot of incedental electronic components that you can't find off the shelf most other retail settings. I have prototyped many circuits supplied with parts from RS and purchased late Saturday afternoon when no other sources were available. Let's go out and grow as a robotics community and utilize this gift from RS. They could have scrapped the VEX inventory afterall. Larry Upjohn, Mentor FRC team 692.

nuggetsyl 18-04-2006 14:02

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by lupjohn
Rick;
I agree with you 100%. RadioShack in fact may provide from their 1/2 price sale a much broader user base that will save VEX. I was sort of ignoring VEX until the sale and now I can justify an exploratory purchase. I have found that the VEX is the same quality as the old EDUBOT kit with much more potential and support and at a lower cost. The quality of the component wheels, accessories and sensors is a great improvement over the EDUBOT. The controller is of course equivalent to the EDUBOT but has a cleaner design with universal interface to the outside. It too may go the way of the FRC controller and be upgraded with more memory and speed. We as a user community should recognize that RS is there to supply an lot of incedental electronic components that you can't find off the shelf most other retail settings. I have prototyped many circuits supplied with parts from RS and purchased late Saturday afternoon when no other sources were available. Let's go out and grow as a robotics community and utilize this gift from RS. They could have scrapped the VEX inventory afterall. Larry Upjohn, Mentor FRC team 692.

because of rs 1/2 price sale i also just today bought a vex kit. I spent about 400 dollars but now have enough stuff to build a robot with ease. I am happy ifi bought out vex.

shaun

Joe Matt 18-04-2006 14:13

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick TYler
They did the same thing with the original TRS-80 Model I (which outsold the Apple II by a large margin).

Hate to nit pick, but a google search returns these numbers....

TRS-80: 250,000
Apple II: 2+ million

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRS-80
http://oldcomputers.net/appleii.html
http://oldcomputers.net/trs80i.html

Intrestingly enough, the Model 1 of the TRS-80 stoped production in the US due to FCC communication interferance problems, not RadioShack streamlinging production.

Anyway, back to the normal conversation. I agree, RadioShack did good here, but as always, they could have done better, but of course, FIRST can always do better too.

santosh 18-04-2006 19:29

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Yeah, I am glad this happened. I was starting to get kinda worried. It seems to me that Radio Shack did a very poor job of promoting the VEX robotics kits.

joshsmithers 18-04-2006 19:30

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
score one for FIRST!!!

i am very happy for FIRST for buying the vex line. i guess it was time for FIRST to "cash in their chips" and make investments. i really hope the price goes down on everything, now. i never even considered this as a reason for the vex 1/2price sale.

overall, i just think this is great for innovation FIRST.

Jon K. 18-04-2006 23:29

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by joshsmithers
score one for FIRST!!!

i am very happy for FIRST for buying the vex line. i guess it was time for FIRST to "cash in their chips" and make investments. i really hope the price goes down on everything, now. i never even considered this as a reason for the vex 1/2price sale.

overall, i just think this is great for innovation FIRST.

You realize that Innovation First, Incorporated is a different entity then the FIRST organization correct?

Anyways, Congrats to IFI for this great move. I wish them all the best in this transition phase, and I hope that they are successful in this new venture as I am sure they will be.

Rick TYler 19-04-2006 01:01

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Joe Matt
Hate to nit pick, but a google search returns these numbers....
TRS-80: 250,000
Apple II: 2+ million

Intrestingly enough, the Model 1 of the TRS-80 stoped production in the US due to FCC communication interferance problems, not RadioShack streamlinging production.

I was being brief, but sloppy. During the pre-PC days, TRS-80 sales in the original family were higher than Apple II sales. There were lots of other Apple II models, but the equivalent to the Model 1 was the original Apple II. Your links (if I'm reading them correctly) show that Apple sold about 125,000 Apple IIs between 1977 and 1980, while Tandy sold about 200,000 TRS-80 Model 1s in the same approximate period. Total Apple 6502-based computer sales kept growing while Radio Shack abandoned making its own Z80-based machines in favor of 8088 and 8086-based PC compatibles.

The Model I had FCC compliance problems, but Radio Shack replaced it with the Model 3 and 4 which didn't. They stopped making PCs when it became cheaper to buy them than build them (1984?). Radio Shack has always done some manufacturing (TV antennas, CB radios, cable), but always gets out of building when buying is cheaper. Their mission has always been to be a distributor of consumer electronics, not a manufacturer.

petek 19-04-2006 13:13

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
I'm also real glad to see IFI keep Vex alive, but have to wonder if they will be able to market it beyond FIRST and the educational channels spawned by educators already involved in FIRST?

Maybe it was different in other areas, but while Radio Shack was "selling" Vex, and I use the term very loosely, I never saw them prominently displayed any store - mostly they were deep in the back corners. I would've been surprised if they had sold many!

Vex is a really neat product, but its not going to sell itself. I hope IFI can find ways to make Vex visible to the world outside of FIRST. Besides spreading a good thing around, this would give IFI the revenue needed to add features and maybe even reduce the cost of entry. Maybe even bring in enough competitors for FIRST Vex to have FVC stand alone! That would be something IFI (and FIRST Vex supporters) could really be proud of.

Joe Matt 19-04-2006 13:16

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick TYler
I was being brief, but sloppy. During the pre-PC days, TRS-80 sales in the original family were higher than Apple II sales. There were lots of other Apple II models, but the equivalent to the Model 1 was the original Apple II. Your links (if I'm reading them correctly) show that Apple sold about 125,000 Apple IIs between 1977 and 1980, while Tandy sold about 200,000 TRS-80 Model 1s in the same approximate period. Total Apple 6502-based computer sales kept growing while Radio Shack abandoned making its own Z80-based machines in favor of 8088 and 8086-based PC compatibles.

The Model I had FCC compliance problems, but Radio Shack replaced it with the Model 3 and 4 which didn't. They stopped making PCs when it became cheaper to buy them than build them (1984?). Radio Shack has always done some manufacturing (TV antennas, CB radios, cable), but always gets out of building when buying is cheaper. Their mission has always been to be a distributor of consumer electronics, not a manufacturer.

Thanks for the clarification Rick, I was confused and Apple history is a personal past time for me, so I just wanted to check it out. Thanks again.

Rick TYler 19-04-2006 13:21

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by petek
Maybe it was different in other areas, but while Radio Shack was "selling" Vex, and I use the term very loosely, I never saw them prominently displayed any store - mostly they were deep in the back corners. I would've been surprised if they had sold many!

At the Redmond Radio Shack, the staff had built a VEX robot and had the products displayed right inside the door with the robot sitting on top. They said they still had trouble selling the kits: "Why would I pay $300 for a radio-controlled Erector Set?" Probably the biggest problem is that sales reps make a $40-60 spiff for selling each cell phone contract, but only get a commission of a few bucks for each VEX sale. If I were working at Radio Shack, I know which product I'd be excited about.

Ryan Dognaux 19-04-2006 13:28

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by petek
Maybe it was different in other areas, but while Radio Shack was "selling" Vex, and I use the term very loosely, I never saw them prominently displayed any store - mostly they were deep in the back corners. I would've been surprised if they had sold many!

As would I. At every single Radioshack I've been to, the VEX kits appears to be nonexistant. And the employees didn't have answers to my questions about the kits. Nothing against Radioshack for trying, but I could have predicted that the kits would not sell very well there.

Tyler M. 19-04-2006 16:05

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
This is very good news!

Donut 19-04-2006 20:35

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by petek
Maybe it was different in other areas, but while Radio Shack was "selling" Vex, and I use the term very loosely, I never saw them prominently displayed any store - mostly they were deep in the back corners. I would've been surprised if they had sold many!

We went to 4 different RadioShacks looking for Vex pieces; of those only one had the Vex kit displayed somewhere other than on a few shelfs in the back of the store, and the only reason that happened even was because it was a smaller store in a mall that had no back area to put things.

Unfortunately after RadioShack has dropped it, I don't see many other retailers selling the Vex kit nationally either. It's all fine for us since IFI will sell it, but I wouldn't count on seeing Vex anwhere on shelves again for along time.

firstrocks06 20-04-2006 00:54

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
yay for IFI!! honestly, i will never buy another thing from radio shack but after i said that, i still bought a vex kit from there, i guess they arent that bad

petek 20-04-2006 08:46

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick TYler
At the Redmond Radio Shack, the staff had built a VEX robot and had the products displayed right inside the door with the robot sitting on top. They said they still had trouble selling the kits: "Why would I pay $300 for a radio-controlled Erector Set?"

Apparently enough people are willing to spend $100 to $300 for several companies to make a business out of it. I think the Vex started kit is priced right for the value you get, but to sell it you have to market it to the people who can and will spend that money.
Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick TYler
Probably the biggest problem is that sales reps make a $40-60 spiff for selling each cell phone contract, but only get a commission of a few bucks for each VEX sale. If I were working at Radio Shack, I know which product I'd be excited about.

I think you hit the nail on the head!

GeorgeTheEng 20-04-2006 08:56

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by petek
Apparently enough people are willing to spend $100 to $300 for several companies to make a business out of it. I think the Vex started kit is priced right for the value you get, but to sell it you have to market it to the people who can and will spend that money.

Compared to all those on that Link, I think VEX provide much more versatility. I still think the programming kit needs to be included but it's still a good value for what you can do with it.

Qbranch 20-04-2006 10:27

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
are any of the prices for vex stuff going to change now that Dean's empire includes VEX? :confused:

Joe Matt 20-04-2006 10:30

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Qbranch
are any of the prices for vex stuff going to change now that Dean's empire includes VEX? :confused:

IFI is an independent company of FIRST, DEKA, Segway, etc. Dean does not own or control it anyway. IFI is a supplier and a sponsor of FIRST, not in anyway connected beyond that.

Barry Bonzack 20-04-2006 11:10

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
I would not mind seeing figures of profit made when the price dropped. I went out and spent some scholarship money on a kit and many other of the accessories (275 dollars worth) but I can not afford on my budget anything at the set price. I can see how competition teams, both FRC and FVC, can afford this with sponsorships, and also schools for curriculum. I wonder, however, if this is targeted to high school students as a shelf product if it sold better at a lower price. Which would the majority of high school students buy if given the choice for a $300 Christmas present, an Xbox360 or a Vex kit?

That being said, I am very happy with my kit, and am looking forward to projects in the future. I shall be putting my ps2 controller down for a while during the summer. Go IFI, turn this thing into something BIG!

jeffmorris 20-04-2006 15:45

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
People would rather spend money on TV sets, music players, cell phones, game consoles, etc, than on building sets. They would rather watch TV, listen to music, play games, waste time talking to other people, etc, than to try to invent anything.

skimoose 20-04-2006 17:00

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
I only hope that IFI will find a way to keep Vex in the non-FIRST retail arena. Best Buy or Circuit City, or some other retailer(s). Vex is still the best tool for recruiting new schools and students into FIRST. I don't want to see Vex revert to another niche market.

JVN 20-04-2006 17:23

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by skimoose
I only hope that IFI will find a way to keep Vex in the non-FIRST retail arena. Best Buy or Circuit City, or some other retailer(s). Vex is still the best tool for recruiting new schools and students into FIRST. I don't want to see Vex revert to another niche market.

There are lots of options on the table for other distribution partners. I believe we are also going to be pushing the potential of this program in the educational marketplace.

-JV

DonRotolo 20-04-2006 17:32

Re: Innovation First acquires Vex from Radio Shack
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by JVN
There are lots of options on the table for other distribution partners.

I see many stores that cater to the educational 'toys', like Learning Express or the late Noodle Kidoodle stores. IFI Marketing would be well advised to find the entry points for those kind of stores for the retail end.

I am also advising all FIRST teams to get a kit plus a programming kit. If you can program the Vex kit, the FIRST RC will be very familiar, just more capable. An excellent tool to educate your new team members...

Oh, yes: Am having loads of fun with my Vex kit.

Don


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 19:12.

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2017, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright © Chief Delphi