Author Topic: Stern has a new partner  (Read 665 times)

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Offline markc

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #15 on: December 05, 2009, 02:05:20 AM »
Aaahh a few beers and i feel i have to have an input...




didnt get past this line....  think I had a few too LOL


Offline Strangeways

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #16 on: December 05, 2009, 11:40:07 PM »

With more funding - this SHOULD equate to more Research and Development AND Marketing.

Gavin is right - Pins have not developed with the times - But Pinball has also been on a bit of a Hiatus. New titles are just "going through the motions"

Promising times ahead.
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Offline beaky

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #17 on: December 20, 2009, 01:06:27 AM »
one of the things that need to happen with new pins is the price needs to drop a hell of a lot for the general public to think of buying a new pin to be viable.
But in saying that we know that this is not possible.

I know that when buying a new pin the customer is not geting ripped off, it does cost a lot of money to make small quantities of anything.
There are wages to pay, the electricity bill, research and development and all the other costs involved to manufacture these pins.

when it comes to the customer who now mainly is the private buyer wanting one for his or her entertainment, because of the cost it is the last thing on his or her list.
You can set up a really good home theater for around half the price, or you can buy a pool table at a fraction of the cost.

its a vicious circle, not many people buy new pins because of the cost but one of the reasons why the cost is so high is because a lot of people arn't buying new pins so the price has to be higher to make it viable to manufacture them.

so not only do stern need to come up with new pinball technology they need to be able to some how bring the manufacturing costs down so they can sell their pins for less so more people will find them to be value for money.

it's a hard thing to acheive but I really hope they can do it to keep the industry alive.



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Offline Homepin

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #18 on: December 20, 2009, 01:10:37 AM »
one of the things that need to happen with new pins is the price needs to drop a hell of a lot for the general public to think of buying a new pin to be viable.
But in saying that we know that this is not possible.

I know that when buying a new pin the customer is not geting ripped off, it does cost a lot of money to make small quantities of anything.
There are wages to pay, the electricity bill, research and development and all the other costs involved to manufacture these pins.

when it comes to the customer who now mainly is the private buyer wanting one for his or her entertainment, because of the cost it is the last thing on his or her list.
You can set up a really good home theater for around half the price, or you can buy a pool table at a fraction of the cost.

its a vicious circle, not many people buy new pins because of the cost but one of the reasons why the cost is so high is because a lot of people arn't buying new pins so the price has to be higher to make it viable to manufacture them.

so not only do stern need to come up with new pinball technology they need to be able to some how bring the manufacturing costs down so they can sell their pins for less so more people will find them to be value for money.

it's a hard thing to acheive but I really hope they can do it to keep the industry alive.

They need to ditch coin mechs and doors and that will save $500 straight away....

« Last Edit: December 20, 2009, 08:33:50 AM by pinnies4me »
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Offline elkor-alish

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #19 on: December 20, 2009, 09:44:52 AM »

They need to ditch coin mechs and doors and that will save $500 straight away....



Exactly!

It would be cool to see a couple of versions for each machine.
For example:
The stock standard pin for the operators, a basic home use only pin like you mentioned with out the coin mechs etc to save a few dollars and maybe a deluxe model for those collectors that want a little something extra.
Stern sells more 'cause the basic model is slightly cheaper and they can make a few more dollars on the deluxe editions made to order.
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Offline ajlaird

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #20 on: December 20, 2009, 10:16:34 AM »
We were talking about the possibility of having different models of each pin last night at the meet, although I am not sure we thought of a cheaper home use version.

Offline Retropin

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #21 on: December 20, 2009, 10:47:31 AM »
All good points...

 But what is pinball? Well the answer to that so far is an ever evolving game where you have to keep a ball in play whilst hitting various targets. Remember this game that we have now is the off spring of bagatelle.. it has seen SO many evolutions that its easy to forget its roots.

So whats my point?? My point is that Stern still churn out the same machine over and over again.. its not working.. the state of Stern now is a testament to this. Pinball is stagnant and IF it is to survive then a radical rethink of what is pinball is required.
I had a guy in my shop the other day saying that his mate wanted an electronic model not a clunker.... guy i was talking to said he would have the old bell type any day - thats what pinball is to him.
 Pinball is different for everyone.. we know that, thats why i have mainly EM.. its my favourite era of machine.
So pinball for the future is whatever the Stern think tank deem it to be.
I can get an ipod thingy that has video.. its bloody cheap and has more memory on it than we would have deemed possible 15 years ago. I can buy RGB LED's that will be ANY colour i want them to be - perfect for pinball
 I can get flat interactive screens.
My phone is more advanced that a Stern pinball.. and trust me... i get the phone that has the least on it.

So what do we have from Stern?? Wobbly  copyright toys that would probably cost more that the technology due to its licensing.
BIG and i mean BIG heavy cabinets with a backbox that still does not disconnect for easy moving.
Crappy quality decal printing - the quality on the World Poker Tour i had in the shop was just crap - absolute crap
Another licensed theme - what happened to the non licensed games that just had cool artwork and game play?? Less money on licensing means cheaper pins - still could be great to play.
Technology made circuits smaller yet pinballs got bigger - i just dont get that!

I think ive made my point..... pinball could be SO much more, unfortunately it is SO much less and the Stern recipe has been to not rock the boat and just stick to what they know.
Well, the market is now rocking that boat and Stern will be playing catch up.. its not a good position to be in.
I hope that what they come up with is good.
The idea of having home models and commercial is a good one - same cabinet, but home could have a panel instead of door.

Id love to see Stern survive.. but sadly a reluctance to move with the times and licensed titles like CSI will see Stern write its own demise

Offline pinmadd

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #22 on: December 20, 2009, 11:14:36 AM »
I guess there ain't much more you can do with a 1"1/8 steel ball and 2x 3"flipper bat's, !!!




Offline Homepin

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #23 on: December 20, 2009, 11:24:55 AM »
I guess there ain't much more you can do with a 1"1/8 steel ball and 2x 3"flipper bat's, !!!





What is the size of a pinball?

1 1/16" diameter, weight 80 grams for a regular steel ball.
1 1/16" diameter, weight 65 grams for the Powerball.

A "normal" pure ceramic Powerball would only weigh 40 grams. However, there
are apparently several different types of ceramic, and the Powerball is one
of these.
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Offline Extra Ball

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #24 on: December 20, 2009, 11:49:39 AM »
Video BG's would be a cool innovation.

Offline pinmadd

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Re: Stern has a new partner
« Reply #25 on: December 20, 2009, 01:24:27 PM »
I guess there ain't much more you can do with a 1"1/8 steel ball and 2x 3"flipper bat's, !!!





What is the size of a pinball?

1 1/16" diameter, weight 80 grams for a regular steel ball.
1 1/16" diameter, weight 65 grams for the Powerball.

A "normal" pure ceramic Powerball would only weigh 40 grams. However, there
are apparently several different types of ceramic, and the Powerball is one
of these.
LOL I was never good with imperial  <.>