Official Xbox 360 Twin Sticks ¥30,000 in November from Hori

[Purple-Tamjin]

Maaaaan....I just can't pull the trigger on this. $400? I'm probably gonna regret this...

Don't tell me you're going to buy it at such an insane price.

[Testament/Seven7]

A $100 markup!? Is shipping the thing that much? I doubt it. Sure, shipping may be pricy but...

umm, i smell a lemon here...

[Knoxximus]

Maaaaan....I just can't pull the trigger on this. $400? I'm probably gonna regret this...

Don't tell me you're going to buy it at such an insane price.

Oh no way! I'm happy with my Modded DC sticks. I'm probably gonna use my Saturn sticks and get with my neighbor who woodworks to try to do something like Dreamcazman did.

[MentholMoose]

A $100 markup!? Is shipping the thing that much? I doubt it. Sure, shipping may be pricy but...

umm, i smell a lemon here...

Well, just think about it. The Twin Sticks are only available from the Hori online store, which only ships to Japan. So, for each controller somebody has to pay Hori $306 plus domestic shipping, handling, and bank fees, which could total $20 or more (I will try to find out the exact number). That someone has to spend time to accept the packages from Hori, probably check that they're intact, prepare them for international shipment, and then ship them.

They are apparently shipping with EMS. From Japan to US, EMS shipping is about $12.50/kilogram. Some quick Google action shows that an HRAP alone is 2.6 kg. With two large, heavy duty joysticks, it's safe to say that the Hori Twin Sticks are somewhat heavier; add some for the box and packaging materials, and we are realistically looking at around 3.5 kg, which makes EMS shipping $44 per unit! Even if the shipping weight is only 3.0 kg, EMS would still cost $38.

NCS is a US-based store, so they have to buy from a company in Japan that will handle all this. This is not free, and probably adds at least $20 per unit to their cost (for an individual using Rinkya, it is likely over $40). Also, don't forget to add additional fees for the wire transfer and currency exchange (maybe $5 for a business doing large transactions... for an individual using Paypal it will be around $15).

Based on these estimates, at this point the cost to NCS is about $380!! But, they have additional overhead, such as employees who accept the shipment from Japan at a warehouse they're paying rent/insurance/etc. on, employees who prepare them for shipment (printing shipping labels, etc.), and ship them. Plus they have to operate their online store and provide (excellent) customer support. So, I don't think $398 is unreasonable at all.

[Dreamcazman]

Another way is to wait for some smart Japanese consumer to purchase a few and stick them up on eBay.

I'm pretty sure you'll end up paying more than $400 though.

[neoKEN]

Another way is to wait for some smart Japanese consumer to purchase a few and stick them up on eBay.

I'm pretty sure you'll end up paying more than $400 though.

Yeah, either pay $400 now or the $600+ when it shows up on ebay or yahoo auction.

[Purple-Tamjin]

Maaaaan....I just can't pull the trigger on this. $400? I'm probably gonna regret this...

Don't tell me you're going to buy it at such an insane price.

Oh no way! I'm happy with my Modded DC sticks. I'm probably gonna use my Saturn sticks and get with my neighbor who woodworks to try to do something like Dreamcazman did.

I'm so jealous! Everyone here has Twinsticks already, and I'm like totally struggling to find a cheap pair.

[Testament/Seven7]

Maaaaan....I just can't pull the trigger on this. $400? I'm probably gonna regret this...

Don't tell me you're going to buy it at such an insane price.

Oh no way! I'm happy with my Modded DC sticks. I'm probably gonna use my Saturn sticks and get with my neighbor who woodworks to try to do something like Dreamcazman did.

I'm so jealous! Everyone here has Twinsticks already, and I'm like totally struggling to find a cheap pair.

I'm struggling myself...I built a pair, but i'm not happy with it, i'm convinced a saturn set will do me better...

[Purple-Tamjin]

I'm struggling myself...I built a pair, but i'm not happy with it, i'm convinced a saturn set will do me better...

What/how did you make yours?

[Dreamcazman]

I'm struggling myself...I built a pair, but i'm not happy with it, i'm convinced a saturn set will do me better...

What/how did you make yours?

Let me do the honours

http://www.oratan.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=17

[Purple-Tamjin]

I'm struggling myself...I built a pair, but i'm not happy with it, i'm convinced a saturn set will do me better...

What/how did you make yours?

Let me do the honours

http://www.oratan.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=17

Hahaha, that's crazily amazing.

[MentholMoose]

The domestic shipping is free, which is nice; it is ¥30,000 including shipping and tax. However, I couldn't find the shipping weight.

So, using Rinkya or other re-shippers is an option, since it will probably be slightly cheaper than NCS.

[Testament/Seven7]

I'm struggling myself...I built a pair, but i'm not happy with it, i'm convinced a saturn set will do me better...

What/how did you make yours?

Let me do the honours

http://www.oratan.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=17

Hahaha, that's crazily amazing.

I updated the worklog thread with a video of my current progress. For convenience sake, here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rluB-5KARwY

[MentholMoose]

The official column was updated with a Q&A session with a Hori rep. The Twin Stick EX (TSEX) controller displayed on the Hori website is a prototype, and the final version may be different. This is good since there is a chance the TSEX won't be so extremely ugly! The rep also fielded questions about the stick feel and specifically the grip. They are evaluating whether they can do anything to improve the feel, or to replicate the actual VOOT grip. They say that reproducing the grip would be expensive. The rep said that the only way to guarantee getting the TSEX controller is to pre-order, so they might not be producing any more.

Also, they estimate that the TSEX weight to be around 4kg. This is good for having a stable controller. But, it's not so good for anyone wanting to buy through a reshipping service (versus buying from NCS)... shipping a 4kg package from Japan to the US is $71 by EMS (SAL is only a few dollars cheaper). Add 10% (or more!!!) for service fees, and some extra for Paypal fees, and you will be paying near the NCS price plus shipping. Having a group buy wouldn't reduce the price very much unless everyone was local.

[Knoxximus]

TSEX....haha

Something tells me this isn't going to end well for Hori or the fanbase.

...and WOW, that controller is gonna be damn near 10 LBS!

[MentholMoose]

Something tells me this isn't going to end well for Hori or the fanbase.

If there's one good thing about the long delay before the TSEX is released, it's that Hori have a lot of time to get it right. So if the TSEX totally sucks, Hori has no excuse!