Rumor is that it will be at eurobike. Who has details?

nah, they'll probably do 12 speed first...

Campy developed an electronic group several years before Di2 came out, but they decided not to market it for some reason. I assume they've got it ready to go when they decide to make the jump.

Calling DaveSS!




I am thinking to ride Campy again.

I spoke to Campy USA about it. They confirmed that there will be no electric shifting for 2011, they hinted that in 2012 it could happen. Then they told me that Italy doesn't tell them much of anything until the product is ready to be released.

The reason that I heard that they wanted to wait is one, because of the economy; and two so they could see if it takes off for Shimano. No manufacturer wants to put development and marketing into a product that doesn't sell.

Italy and electronics? Does not compute.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carbon Unit

I spoke to Campy USA about it. They confirmed that there will be no electric shifting for 2011, they hinted that in 2012 it could happen. Then they told me that Italy doesn't tell them much of anything until the product is ready to be released.

Bingo. Campy may have been chastened by their recent experience with Super Record. I seem to remember a certain amount of grumbling and moaning from retailers about the MSRP in the months following its initial release. Moving the super high end stuff is none too easy right now. This is a Sram Rival economy.

This just goes to show you that Campy is perfect fine being in 2nd place behind Shimano... lol

I bet SRAM will have something out before Campy

Even before Campy and Shimano did electric shifting, Mavic had an electric shifting groupset called Mektronic back in the 90s. Campy has reportedly had problems with battery life and size. Maybe they have it figured out now. Shimano had a lot more high-tech expertise in developing their electronic system.

Why doesn't Shimano just license the Di2 tech like Toyota does with the synergy drive for their hybrids?

While I'm sure that Di2 is fine stuff, but the price is outrageous. It would have to come way down for most people to consider it. I've noticed that some major online dealers don't even offer it.

Campy apparently does not care if they sell much product in the US. When the 2009 parts came out in September of '08, Campy (or the US wholesaler) jacked up prices by 50-75% across the board, not just the price of the new SR group. At the same time, the prices from European sources went about about 2%. Many were selling the old Record 10 and new Record 11 for about the same price. When the economy soured and both the Euro and pound dropped in value, relative to the dollar, you could buy Campy parts for far less than any of several years prior. SR 11 groups could be had for around $1600 and Chrous 11 for around $1000. I bought into Campy 11 when it first came out and paid about $1300 for Record groups with Chorus cassettes. After reading up on the exact differences between SR and Record, it was obvious that most of the SR parts offered little value for a lot more money. I haven't purchased a single Campy part from a US source since '08.

If Campy comes out with an electronic group and wants $3,000 for it, I won't be buying.

Incorrect.

Campagnolo was not satisfied with battery life and size so they held off releasing it.

I don't see how Shimano has proven any more adept at electronics than Campy. Campy had ergo brain and Shimano had the flight deck. Neither flew off the shelf.

The Campagnolo development cycle is a lot shorter than Shimano's. IMHO Shimano dropped Di2 on the market because they got caught with their peckers out on 11spd. I don''t believe they thought the market was ready either.

Campagnolo is in the catbird seat here and can let Shimano sort out the market place before they take a risk. If Di2 dies then Campagnolo can shelve their product and come back to it later if need be.

Shimano is number 1 not because of a superior product (both brands make excellent equipment) but because they offer far superior factory support and VERY aggressive OE pricing. Sram has picked up on that model and is buying OE spec to earn the more profitable aftermarket sales.

Campagnolo is, and will continue to be, and aftermarket company. Which is fine because that's where the margins are.

Thank god Campy's not a British company. Their groupsets would leak oil and the electronics would fail at irregular, but very critical intervals. That, and they'd have their own, third standard of fastener sizes based on Druid technology or something...

What do you mean incorrect? I think you are "incorrect".

What I did say was true and you can look it up if you don't believe me. This isn't opinion. This is fact. Mavic DID have an electronic shifting system in the 90s, well before Shimano or Campy. This wasn't just prototype stuff. It was actually on the market and sold to consumers.

True, but Shimamo made the first electronic group that actually worked. They did the same for index shifting in the 80's.

No disagreement there. Mavic had the first commercially available electronic shifting system. Shimano made the 1st that actually worked well.

I don't need to look it up. I sold the stuff.

I then boxed and returned the stuff and used the credit from Mavic to buy Mavic products we could actually sell - rims.

I was referring to your comment about Shimano having more expertise at electronics. Neither Campagnolo nor Shimano have excelled in this area in the past. That was my point.

Well, that was really vague. How was I supposed to know you weren't referring to my initial comment about Mavic having the first commercially available electronic shifting system?

What you can't read my mind?

So maybe it isn't just me after all. I think I'll go mention this to my wife as proof that maybe it isn't so wierd that I can't read hers.

..unless bellweatherman is the wife...you never know with the intrawebs these days..