Craaaazy expensive headphones, nobody needs anything better than Skullcandy $20 buds
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$20? For the computer Iām still rocking a really old pair of wired buds that were bundled with an iPhone 4 or something. And the lightning buds bundled with some random newer iPhone. Love how the cord gets caught on kitchen drawer knobs and yanks phone out of pocket during a call, like on this morningās 6am conf call while I was making coffee 
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Thatās silly. I only wear S-Works headphones.
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I can see it nowā¦
- Aethos model with pure skeleton & utilitarian design that is as light as possible for walking up the stairs.
- Tarmac model with sculpted industrial design for aero flow when walking around the office oblivious of other workers.
- Enduro version with clips for goggles to āshred the gnarā on your bus commute.
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Modified Jeep Wrangler owners feel personally attacked with this parallel comparison 
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I STILL ride a Cube Agree SL with Ultegra 6600 SL from 2007 (!!!). I have tried so many bikes, I would love an Orbea Orca with Ultegra Di2, or the new Tarmac SL7 but I can literally not buy one!
I have test ridden most of the new bikes (if i spend 6000-10000 euroās I want to nail it. I can also buy a car for that money). But always when I come back to my trusty machine I am in love again - it still rides great and I never had a mechnical besides flats. Never ever once. Not bearings, no chain coming off, no creaks (but I do service well).
So how far has bike technology come actually? Yes, more aerodynamic. Lighter? Yes. I think an Orca or SL7 is around 7 kg whereas my bike is 8.2kg. But thatās only 1kg lighter for 5 times the money I spent 15 years ago. That is the progress weāve made.
We had press fit which is a disaster. Di2 already existed and pros were riding it, we already had carbon everything. And hiding cables may be more aero, but I think most āimprovementsā were in the looks department (how they route cables internally, hide junction box in seatpost, cables through steer in frame instead of going outwards and then in frame, disc brakes, etc.).
So what is REALLY an advantage nowadays? The sheer power of disc brakes? Aero? What is it that you really MUST haveā¦ that will make a night-and-day difference on a new bike that I should pay 8000 euroās for? Compliance?
Perhaps I am just ignorant here. Donāt get me wrong, I want and will buy a new bike when they come available again (Orca, for instance, is estimated 4-7 June now online here in the Netherlands in 2021!). But for me the innovations are iterative and refinements (besides perhaps disc brakes).
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As some one said earlier, the āmodulusā 
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If you are happy with what you have, stick to it 
I still carry an iPhone 7 and my mountain bike is 8 years old.
Weight isnāt a big factor in most circumstances, and given the UCI weight limit, there is little incentive to develop cheap(er) bikes below 7 kg. But I think the biggest advancement apart from aero are bikes like the Open UP or the 3T Exploro that allow you to go anywhere, on-road and off-road. Disc brakes were essential since caliper rim brakes usually max out with 28 mm wide tires.
Internal cable routing isnāt just a visual thing. I donāt know why people are so against it. My mountain bike has external shift cables, and even though it is affixed to the chain stay with two cable ties, my shoes still get caught on my rear derailleur cable ā very annoying. Internal cable routing not only looks nicer, it also protects the cables from dirt and the weather
Yup, thatās a big factor. Iāve recently had a 3T Strada for a week. Even though this is an aero road bike with aggressive geometry, it was significantly more comfortable than my endurance road bike, a 2016 or 2017 Cube Attain SL Disc. Ditto for BMCās Teammachine.
Drifting off topic a little, but if (ok, when 
) I spend over Ā£4k on a bike again it will almost certainly be a custom alu/steel frame. Iām happy to take the 0.5-1kg weight penalty for durability, quality and fit.
One of the benefits of the price rises from the major manufacturers is that some of the niche/bespoke stuff suddenly starts to look better value. You can now pick up a custom geometry, custom paint, sub-8kg, disc, modern steel/alu bike for Ā£5-5.5k, and unless I was at the seriously sharp end of races, Iād struggle to justify a Tarmac or similar over that. Tbf Iād struggle to justify (or afford) that amount of money full stop, but if I had that sum burning a hole in my pocket, thatās probably where Iād put it.
Sounds interesting, Can you point at me at those bikes? Thanks!
Ok, hereās 3:
A Shand Rizello is c.Ā£1900 frameset only, including custom geometry. I think a frameset is c.1750g (carbon forks at c.400g), so 8kg or a smidge more is fairly achievable at 5-5.5k without going mad. Rizello frame and fork, build your own bike | Shand Cycles
Condor Italia RC, Ā£1200 frameset, +Ā£250 custom geometry, so Ā£1450 total. Frameset about 1450g, again carbon fork. Di2 build, mid level carbon wheels. Ā£5k total. Condor Italia RC Disc Frameset ā Condor Cycles They look MUCH nicer in the metal, so to speak.
This last one doesnāt quite fit the bill, as itās rim brake and pushing the budget (about Ā£2400 frameset depending on paint), but if anyone wants some bike p0rn: Izoard RR ā Spoon Customs
Never thought Iād see it but here we are. A $20k bike https://www.cycleneron.com/us/21-levo-sl-sw-carbon.html felt like only yesterday the top end was 10k.
How this is more expensive than a car is beyond me.
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In USD thatās only 15k, considering top end road bikes cost close to that, getting suspension and a motor for another 2k-ish isnāt a bad deal. Itās also got AXS components which on their own arenāt cheap
You say itās wrong, I say the market determines the price based on what someone will pay. People said the same about the $1000 iPhone yet masses bought them and now itās become the norm for flagships (whatever someone is willing to pay determines this, not what we think is āfairā). If youāre going to compare prices for top end bikes you should compare them to top end cars, not a Corolla
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Well when thereās a pandemic and companies know they wonāt be able to produce or deliver as many goods due to external factors, prices have to go up or businesses cease to exist
If my revenue target is $100 and I plan to deliver 10 goods, but suddenly can only deliver 8, the price goes up to $12 a piece, otherwise the first thing businesses cut to save operating expenses are labor.
I guess it has been said before on here, but looking at high end bikes is kinda pointless. There isnāt really a limit upwards as with all products.
A mate just bought the same ālow endā bike that I bought 1.5 years ago and he paid about 10% less