Originally Posted by
Bob Dopolina
This needs some 'esplainin'.
Campagnolo is running at capacity and selling everything they can make. What's to blow?
Sram is eating into Shimano's OE and aftermarket sales at an alarming rate. What bad move could they possibley be planning next?
Clean? They were the last to get gear cables out of the way. They failed when they tried to add carbon to their lineup (and wisely went back to their strength - which is alloy) and the first iteration of 7900 was panned across the board. They have been floundering with their flagship product since Campagnolo went 11 spd.
What they have done with Ultegra and 105 is certainly a step in the right direction. Those groups look pretty nice and probably function very well. This is good news for Shimano fans.
If it's a gimmick it is a VERY expensive one!
As I said before, Shimano was backed into a corner and had to make a move. All they had ready was Di2 so that was the move. I'm sure it has been a huge loss for them and I'm equally sure they wish that they had had another option at the time, but they didn't.
Not to worry, it is still Shimano's game to loose but other players are entering the market and everyone is out for a piece of their pie. The next few product cycles should be interesting.
Mr. Dopolina,
Is there not a touch of hyperbole in your assessment of Shimano's current market position and where, even, Di2 sits in the market? Lemme ask you this: do you view Campy 11 as an innovation? Might it be said that the improvement in their 11speed over 10 actually speaks to the substantial room for improvement there was in their 10 speed offering? Also, looking at the past 20 years where have most of the innovations in component group/drivetrain technology come from? Seems to me that Shimano has been at the top in terms of innovations due to superior
engineering (ironic given that they can also be accused of being quite conservative in their approach similar to the Japanese auto makers). Last to the party with shifter cables routed under bar tape? Simple. Form follows function. Thus, a firm philosophy governing engineering (functional, durable) necessarily implies slowness to adopt new materials (carbon). Are Campy's carbon cranks better than Shimano's alloy ones? They certainly look beautiful and adhere to a decidedly Italian aesthetic in terms of design sensibility. Who would say they outperform them though?
I dunno. The talk of Shimano getting their butts kicked by SRAM while Di2 represents a limited response to Campy 11 appears overstated.