The US mentality is: we make not so good stuff (but very good) and/or hugliest, for much cheaper. So...
I saw a few Red one in ebay for about 4000...
Different target.
I can and cannot understand the comparison between camera, cars, Europe or America.
I mean Nobody will tell you a Corvette is a better car than an Audi R9 though just about anyone in America can buy a corvette and rip a hole in the universe, where for most people you have to be in the top 10% to own an R9.
Funny thing is in London I see R9's fairly often though nobody seems to notice. I think the public believes they are fancy Audi TTs, though down the street from me in Hoxton is a new Corvette Stingray that always has people standing around it looking and drooling.
As far as RED, I don't understand the film communities angst. I know Arri's are good, but for a used Alexa your about $26,000 to make it work and it's a 23 lb camera. You showed the older RED 1 at $4,000 u.s. but that's just a body. With lens mounts, evf, a 5" lcd, V lock holder, A few V locks, (or goldlines) Rods cradle, arms, cables, ssd mount your into $12,000 to $14,000, a RED Rocket card, plus the $1,000 RED charges to register it and check it.
Still half the price of an older Alexa and though I have limited experience with Arri's from what I can see, a RED shot at 4k doesn't seem to have any more detail than an Arri at 2.2 or 2.7k so that's a wash.
I'm not selling REDs but I know coming from a still background and operating multiple cameras, they are the easiest to grade out of cine-x and match the footage if you're working multi-cam. I think RED is a revelation in the film industry, from indies to big features. It allows a small owner operator to own one or two, mine work reliably in all kinds of conditions with to date zero repairs.
Anyway, people are pre disposed to use what they like, but I love my REDs and though they are older they still shoot to modern standards and I have little issues other than the semi slow start up time.
These are still one light daily clips of the first gig we shot with the R1s. They still hold up.
But speaking of cars, I have a bmw in London, one of my cars in LA is a 400hp hot rod chevy and though the bmw is a much better car, the chevy is fun. Sure it's probably made out of old beer cans and recycled plastic cups, but I like it and to me that's all that matters.
When my european crew comes over to LA, they all want to drive my Impala. Yea at first they kind of bitch about ti, saying "American Plastic" but after a day, I can't get it back and they always take about 1/2" of rubber off the tires.
IMO
BC
P.S. But Fred if you want a chevy at high end euro prices, here's you guy. Johnathan Ward of ICON can't make anything under $200,000 usually more and this old Caprice has a pretty cool design them. They call it "get the f*&c out of my lane". I kind of like that.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HstJWZ8SPw