A new way of talking about equipment costs Semi serious

[Moondog55]

I propose a new definition of costs.
Not in man [ or woman] hours worked or in absolute dollar terms.
No I think the new way should be related to nights in cheap motels
One of J&Hs best selling sleeping bags was called just that and way back J&H reckoned that 4 to 6 nites not staying in a cheap hotel and it was paid for. If it was brought back to the market it might now be called the "Couch Surfer"
With even the cheapest hotel room hitting the magic $100- a nite in many cases how many nites would it take to pay off your particular selection of gear?

[Neo]

Definitely have considered the price of a tent compared nights in a hotel. I don't stay in hotels but if I did...
Similar comparison is say a carton of beer ~$50 that lasts a short time compared to a piece of gear, or a city type lunch for ~$15...

Likewise a package holiday of 1-2 weeks versus the cost of my whole kit which should last me for many years and nights out there

[Gadgetgeek]

I like that. Its even better if the person who is doing the review or whatever makes their own assessment based on their priorities. Be it meals, hotels, work shoes, whatever it may be, as a way to get an insight into why they thought it was a good value, or how they see the value.

[ribuck]

With even the cheapest hotel room hitting the magic $100- a nite

Motel rooms start around $100 per night, but there are plenty of pub rooms for $70 or thereabouts. So you need to use your sleeping bags more times before you are cashflow positive. And a hotel room can take two or more people.

So break-even for a full set of gear (sleeping bag, tent, raincoat, mat, etc) is probably about forty nights in a hotel.

[Lamont]

That's the way I have always justified my purchases! Makes me feel like the cost of these things is SAVING me money!