Dear Trev,

Re this message to you:

 => > That's interesting. Where did you get the quote  ($5,000 per
 => > approval)?

Your reply was:
 => One of the AUSTEL testing laboratories; I understand there are
 => cheaper, especially where an already approved plugpack is used for
 => powering the modem.

The best Test House I have found, after checking with all accredited Test
¨Houses in the world, was ICT in Sydney.  The all up cost for a internal
¨fax/modem, or an external with already approved power pack, is around
$8,500

Wakefield labs in New Zealand do quote a bit less but by the time you have
¨added the long distance 'phone calls and couriers etc. (plus the fact that
¨Wakefield will not stop testing and make minor changes for free and then
¨continue testing, thereby causing tests to be made and paid for several
times) ¨- their costs end up to be much higher.  In fact one Wakefield set
of AUSTEL ¨tests on one product ran to A$15,000 from a starting point of
$7,500 !!!!!!

Did you include the EMI testing costs in your estimate?  That adds about
¨$1350 to $1500.

Granted that if one can sell enough modems the AUSTEL costs are not too
bad. ¨The problem was in the early days when things ere moving too fast -
2400, ¨then 9600 - then 14400 - by the time you had one model Austel
approved it was ¨too late to sell it (to recover your costs) as the next
model was out.

Regards,

John (The Diamond Group)

@NOTE: IceEdit 1.60 N20013
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