I don't know why they wouldn't do that for that kinda money. You know full well that the components don't cost them anything near that amount. It may benefit them in the long run to do so for even less than your suggested amount and here's why:
I bet there's an electronics whiz or two out there that can open up an EX2, interface with it, crack the software once he determines the programming language, reverse-engineer the board, and install it for a decent price (on the sly) and STILL turn a profit. It looks to me that the addition of the numerical ferrous representation on the Digital screen is purely a graphics tweak. All it is doing is taking data that's already present on the XS (horizontal crosshair plot) and presenting the value in the same manner that the conductivity value (vertical crosshair plot) is already also numerically represented on the Digital Screen. All you have to do is order the processor and other board components from the same Asian manufacturer that they probably get theirs from. They're all labeled. It may be proprietary but since when do they pay attention to that sort of thing in that part of the world if someone tosses a few greenbacks at them? If it's written it can be transcribed. If it's encoded, it can be decoded. This would be a very simple hack for someone who plays the game.
I bet anyone capable of hacking a DirecTV card can figure this puppy out. Programming lines are programming lines. As long as you name it something other than what it was originally called, and make a few superficial changes that don't affect function. (such as changing all of the characters to lowercase and renaming menus and screens) then nobody can get you for anything. The burden of proof is on them that you didn't just coincidentally come up with something very,very close to their hardware/software all by your little old self.
Sound dishonest? You betcha. But then again, so is denying that a new Explorer is coming out when someone asks before making the decision to plop down the money for an XS. You know what they say payback is.
But since I have trouble even programming my VCR, and haven't written programs since my Commodore 64 and VIC-20 days, it ain't gonna be me <IMG SRC="/forums/images/smile.gif" BORDER=0 ALT="
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