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Modern technology is not expensive
A thought...
Although modern digital technology sometimes feels expensive, by historic standards it is anything but.
When I began writing about computers in the 1980s a business microcomputer cost close to the annual average take home salary. In the 1990s most workers would need to toil for months to buy a basic PC.
According to Statistics New Zealand the average weekly household income in the first half of 2015 was $882.
That means New Zealand household on average income could afford, say, a $2000 i5 Microsoft Surface Pro 4 and a $200 Type Cover in less than three weeks.
The Surface Pro 4 is a swept-up business computer. If you spent that much, you'd expect to be productive and quickly earn enough extra to pay for it.
A better example is the Chromebook. A decent one costs about three days’ take home pay. That's not chicken feed for a typical New Zealand family, but nor is it prohibitive.
This article was first posted at billbennett.co.nz
Bill Bennett
Freelance journalist.
Auckland-based Bill Bennett writes technology and business stories that are directly relevant to New Zealand readers.
His emphasis is on telecommunications, but he also covers other aspects of technology and business. You can find his features in the New Zealand Herald and hear him regularly on RNZ Nine to Noon and the NZ Tech Podcast.
Bennett's The Download Weekly newsletter is published every Friday. You can sign up for it here.
If you want to support his work, you can make a donation to his PressPatron account.
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