INTRODUCTION

The typical economic model used for selling products on the European satellite market is the one that lets Echostar or Levi’s Jeans prove to marketing students there is a lot of money to be made by leaving the customer no choice but to buy your stuff at the highest possible prices.

You could say just a few years ago that "there is nothing cheap in the satellite hobby", and it was true, particularly with digital reception equipment. But over the years, with our piggy banks shut tight, the rules of the market had to change slightly, and soon, luckily for us all, the manufacturers and retailers soon realised they have to find another way to our wallets. The way that lets your local uncle McDonald prove that there is a lot of money to be made on low budget items sold to the masses. The model is good, the model is right, it’s checked and tested, but most of all - it works. But does high price mean high quality? Or rather – does the quality of products deteriorate and suffer as the production budget is lowered?

The Technomate TM 5000CI is made in far-off Korea by the military radio, telephone and advanced weaponry addons manufacturer Techmate Corp, established 12 years ago. The new British Technomate brand is registered to an address near London’s Walthamstow Central Station, identical to that of Myers Satellite.