I understand that but it's frustrating. The only reason drives are as expensive as they are is due to a lack of competition. There is no way they cost anywhere near $3000 to build.
Cost to an end user is more than just the actual cost of components. There's a decent amount of vendors that actually make tape drives, so if it truly were much cheaper, someone would undercut to get business.
Given these are intended for enterprise usage, there is an expectation of quality, service, and support associated that you ARE paying for with that cost.
