Under 300 bucks. For one thing you can rent them for like 50 bucks a week. So if I was planning an adventure in some remote part of the world, an extra 50-100 bucks on a PBL would be a good investment (compared to the cost of such a trip). I don't get to venture off to places that remote often, so buying one right now at 600 would seem to be a poor investment, for me, at this time.