The quality of the permanent packaging can add a lot of value to the product. I'm not talking about the box it comes in that you later throw away, but the case, or any other permanent form of packaging.
For instance, we bought a vacuum cleaner that has a compartment for all the attachments (I know, that is pretty common in vacuum cleaners). It sure beats having to put them in a box in the closet (if you are organized), or having them lie on the closet floor (if you are not organized). On the other hand, this vacuum cleaner does not have a retractable cord, which is a big drawback--every time you use it, you have to unloop the cord 8 times from its cleats.
A stupid example of the opposite is my new camera, which does not have a retainer for the lens cap (I know you can buy $2 third-party products; I already bought one, and the glue failed).
An idea that comes to mind is a retractable earbud, built into the body of a cell phone. I like using earbuds on occasion, but don't need them regularly, so I don't I carry them around with me. Thus, I generally don't have it when I decide I would like to use it. But, if I could just pull it out from the base of the cell phone--wow! Yes, it would take a little more space in the body of the cell phone, but in my opinion, cell phone size stopped being critical a couple of years ago.
So if Sony wants to have a high-end line of electronics, I think they should consider things like: value-added packaging, and industrial design (for instance, using a more expensive material--titanium or magnesium, for instance--when a cheaper one--plastic--would do, just because it looks and feels "better"). But you can't charge an order of magnitude more for these things; they are worth a 25%-50% premium, in my estimation.
7:58:31 PM 
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