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I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #1 Posted by j beede on 26 Sept 2011, 8:28 p.m. Does anyone know of any evidence that the HP 15C Limited Edition is actually a limited production calculator? I am talking about evidence other than anecdotal evidence based on numbering or rumors, etc. Maybe I missed the memo or the press release. When do we start petitioning for the HP-16C Limited Edition :)

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #2 Posted by robertoataulfo on 26 Sept 2011, 8:34 p.m., in response to message #1 by j beede I agree. The China plant should be producing the number 102333652252 I think she is going to save HP I believe that the production of 15 LE is greater than the Iphone. And there are people who are keeping many HP-15LE at home . Is putting out his wife, children and the dog to save the hp-15LE Edited: 26 Sept 2011, 8:36 p.m.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #3 Posted by Steve Fennell on 26 Sept 2011, 10:23 p.m., in response to message #1 by j beede The earliest mention I could find on this site was in March. The number 10000 was mentioned but I have not seen anything official to back that up. If the 15C is successful it may become less limited, but given HP's corporate gyrations there is every reason to believe this may be the only chance to get one.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #4 Posted by Lincoln R. on 27 Sept 2011, 1:21 a.m., in response to message #3 by Steve Fennell Honestly, HP not admitting how many they made/will make may be a good thing for us. Not announcing the limit of the 'Limited' Edition may very well mean "We reserve the right to produce as many as we want." This means more 15Cs for everyone, and if enough of the things flood the market the TAS insanity should start cooling off.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #5 Posted by From Hong Kong on 27 Sept 2011, 2:10 a.m., in response to message #1 by j beede As people can earn much money by selling their HP-15C LE on major auction sites, "Limited Edition" should be renamed to "Lucrative Edition"! :P Edited: 27 Sept 2011, 2:12 a.m.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #6 Posted by Bill (Smithville, NJ) on 27 Sept 2011, 7:06 a.m., in response to message #1 by j beede "Limited Edition" can mean a lot of things. Here in the United States, we have many "collectable" items offered on late night TV. These are all described as "only a limited quanty produced", or "the mold will be destroyed". What they usually mean is "We will produce them until no one else wants to buy them". Limited to the amount that can be sold. We can only hope that HP will limit it to the amount that can be sold. Bill

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #7 Posted by j beede on 27 Sept 2011, 3:27 p.m., in response to message #6 by Bill (Smithville, NJ) The reason I ask is that on their web site, HP says: "HP 15c Scientific Calculator 4.0 out of 5 stars (6 reviews) • Limited collector's edition • Perfect gift for scientists and engineers on the go • Up to 100x faster than original edition • 120+ built-in functions with RPN" I see people here claiming to have bought multiples of these calculators... speculating on RPN calculators? Imagine that! I believe in a free economy but claiming that a product has limited availability when the truth is that the item is not limited at all seems unethical, or at least more typical of fast food marketeers--"at participating stores for a limited time only". That said, I was pleased to buy a new HP-15C LE for way less than I paid for my "real" HP-15C ~30 years ago! Using the coupon I got a 15C LE from HP's on-line store for $85 with free shipping. Nice.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #8 Posted by sylvandb on 27 Sept 2011, 5:53 p.m., in response to message #7 by j beede Quote: I believe in a free economy but claiming that a product has limited availability when the truth is that the item is not limited at all seems unethical There is always a limit. If by some violation of the laws of physics an infinite quantity of new 15C's were to be planned, if nothing else the LE markings could be removed for all future production.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #9 Posted by Glenn Dowdy on 27 Sept 2011, 5:24 p.m., in response to message #6 by Bill (Smithville, NJ) For any definitions of "Limited Edition", I can only admit to Tim and Cyrille being "Limited Editions". The molds were definitely broken after those two were born.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #10 Posted by C.Ret on 27 Sept 2011, 5:58 p.m., in response to message #9 by Glenn Dowdy How to remove it ? In the case of an infinite production of it, better add an "Un", to get the HP-15c "UnLimited Edition" label.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #11 Posted by Howard Owen on 27 Sept 2011, 10:29 p.m., in response to message #10 by C.Ret Quote: In the case of an infinite production of it, better add an "Un", to get the HP-15c "UnLimited Edition" label. Perhaps the 15C LE production is "finite but unbounded."

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #12 Posted by Eric Smith on 27 Sept 2011, 5:43 p.m., in response to message #1 by j beede It means absolutely nothing whatsoever. At HHC 2011, someone asked the HP marketing people how many will be made, and they said that they were not willing to provide that information. Normally when a company sells a numbered limited edition of something, they tell the public how many there are, so that the public can decide what value they place on "limited". Since HP has failed to conform to this standard practice for limited editions, in my opinion it is effectively not limited at all, since they can just keep making them and marking them "Limited Edition" as long as they like. I think this is an example of a "marketing breakthrough". :-(

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #13 Posted by Katie Wasserman on 27 Sept 2011, 6:07 p.m., in response to message #12 by Eric Smith I agree that calling something a "limited edition" without saying how many will be made is meaningless. While the number of digits in the limited edition number seems to imply a maximum or 100,000 units even this does not have to be the limit -- letters in place of numbers could be used or numbers could be repeated. Calling this the "15C LE" without saying what the "LE" means seems like the way to go.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #14 Posted by Martin Pinckney on 27 Sept 2011, 6:11 p.m., in response to message #12 by Eric Smith Quote: It means absolutely nothing whatsoever. ... Normally when a company sells a numbered limited edition of something, they tell the public how many there are, so that the public can decide what value they place on "limited". Since HP has failed to conform to this standard practice for limited editions, in my opinion it is effectively not limited at all, since they can just keep making them and marking them "Limited Edition" as long as they like. The only thing we know for sure, is that "Limited Edition" means that a) it says that on the front, and 2) it has a "Limited Edition Number" on the back, separate from the normal serial number. The 12c Platinum "25th Anniversary Edition" became the re-styled Platinum, sans any special edition marking, after a few months of marketing.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #15 Posted by Howard Owen on 27 Sept 2011, 10:32 p.m., in response to message #14 by Martin Pinckney Quote: The only thing we know for sure, is that "Limited Edition" means that a) it says that on the front, and 2) it has a "Limited Edition Number" on the back, separate from the normal serial number. And a/3) we know that the packaging on this thing is more expensive than the fiendish razor proof sealed plastic that they usually use. If they are going to continue production, they'd likely change that, at least.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #16 Posted by bill platt on 28 Sept 2011, 9:51 a.m., in response to message #15 by Howard Owen The only reason for the razor-proof is for retail stores. If they continue without any intention of stores, then they won't bother with that. This 15C LE is a direct marketing initiative from a massively bloated Multinational Corporation. In a way, it is rather remarkable!

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #17 Posted by Bill (Smithville, NJ) on 27 Sept 2011, 6:58 p.m., in response to message #12 by Eric Smith Quote: Normally when a company sells a numbered limited edition of something, they tell the public how many there are and they number the items in sequence (i.e., 5 of 100) and give a letter of Authenticity. I have several items that meet this criteria. My favorite is: A hand colored water color of the World Trade Center as seen from the Statue of Liberty. It was done by a well know artist that specializes in Architectural Etchings of Historic Buildings in New York. Signed by the Artist, Numbered and has a letter from the Artist. I bought it many years ago. Since I used to work on the 92nd floor of Tower Two, I wouldn't take any amount of money for it and it proudly hangs in our living room and srvers as a rememberance of all the brave souls that were lost on that tragic day. Bill Edited: 27 Sept 2011, 8:21 p.m.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #18 Posted by Reth on 28 Sept 2011, 3:12 a.m., in response to message #1 by j beede As Jerry Seinfeld once said: "...they are limited by the number they can sell"... ;)

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #19 Posted by Martin Pinckney on 28 Sept 2011, 8:24 a.m., in response to message #1 by j beede One wonders why HP wants to keep the production number a secret, since, at least HP in their own sales sites doesn't seem to be taking advantage of the buying frenzy by jacking up prices. Perhaps the real reason HP won't divulge is that at this time there is no specified limit. Or it could just be corporate policy not to divulge any production figures.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #20 Posted by Ethan Conner on 28 Sept 2011, 12:56 p.m., in response to message #19 by Martin Pinckney HP is not completely stupid. If their first run sells quickly they leave the door open to crank out some more. Now whether they come in fancy boxes with printed manuals remains to be seen. As tough as the customers in this forum are i don't blame them for not saying the amount produced.

Re: I wonder what "Limited Edition" means Message #21 Posted by sylvandb on 28 Sept 2011, 11:54 p.m., in response to message #19 by Martin Pinckney Quote: at least HP in their own sales sites doesn't seem to be taking advantage of the buying frenzy by jacking up prices. The old HP (ca. 15 years ago, yet maybe the practice continues still) would often price products at intro based upon expected but not yet realized component cost reductions. In other words, if the first 100,000 cost $300/ea but the next 1,000,000 only cost $200/ea then the intro price would be based on the $200/ea cost. If costs dropped below the $200/ea the price might be reduced after intro.

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