The radios from previous years have been manufactured by
EWave for IFI. IFI is actually giving you a deal on the replacement antenna. EWave charges $10. Next time you are in Radio Shack look and see how much a
replacement antenna for a radio or cordless phone costs. Also look at the price for replacement wall-wart power supplies are while you are there. Now consider that Radio Shack markets to a much larger customer base than IFI does. Now consider how much IFI stuff you get (OI, RC, 4x Spikes, 4x Victors, the CMU Camera, the Compiler, all the cables and servos, the KitBot Chassis, etc.) for the $1000 of your registration fee. IFI is giving you a hell of a deal even if they charge you $7 for a replacement antenna or $20 for a lost wall-wart. IFI doesn't make much if any profit from it's robotics parts.