My involvement in technology spans quite a bit. Often, while using equipment, it bothers me that the people who developed it have no clue how it is used. Rarely do you find someone who is both a passionate user and and able-bodied product developer. It is a huge challenge just to find the staff necessary to develop these new technologies. When you do: can you give them the necessary benefits to keep them (workig for you and not jumping ship to work for the competitor)? Do they understand how the product will be used (at least as much as the power users on this web site)?
Thinking back to some "simple" products I've developed, it easily takes at least a year. To develop something comparable to the SDS, I see: product concept, circuit design, injection molding for the case, custom LCD/etc., firmware, software and documentation. You need to be significantly along before you can start to promote it. When manufacturing it is not just the cost of the parts & labor, but also licensing fees, tariffs and more. Rarely do you find someone with the skill set for RF, circuit design & coding; let alone all the other skills. It is a team with some skills commanding more $ than others.
And even if you had a magic wand and could get this out there in a year, you need to keep those people on staff for customer service/etc. By then who knows where the market is (including the latest radio technoloy and encryption). If you have a few million "lying around", I think it is only an investment for someone who is PASSIONATE about this product and who feels they can build something better than other choices. Most investors are likely to put their money into something else.
