First, are MVBs even worth the money anymore? ReptileUV was great in its prime: affordable, knowledgable, well-to-do. I'm not a fan of going to ZooMed for every tool I need for taking care of my turtles (minus Mazuri food). I don't like their non-domestic manufacturing, large company attitude, sometimes low quality, and high prices.
A nice deal on a proper MVB these days is $60-70+shipping, and us Reptile caretakers are lucky to gain a year of usable UVB from the bulbs. The customer service is adequate, but so was ReptileUV's. I feel there is a monopoly on the reptile mercury vapor bulb business, and I'm not happy. What are the choices other than PowerSun? There is another name, but that is just the PowerSun in a different box. I could buy 3 of the coil UV bulbs for the price of one MVB, and that will give me a strong 18 months compared to a strong 8 months and a weaker 4 months.
Is the group of people giving correct lighting to their reptiles being kept indoors so small that no other companies see the point in pursuing the market? I would love to see some competition, and resulting price lowering. I would gladly support a smaller company as long as they do their homework prior.
I get my reasoning from a completely separate, but easily as small, market. Car audio. The serious car audio fanatic world is as small, if not smaller than, the pet turtle world, but there are a plethora of reputable companies to choose from when buying wiring, speaker drivers, sound dampening, high-output alternators. Most of these products are only purchased once and used for years, a little different than the time-driven market of pet care, but if there is room for competition in that market, why not in Reptile lighting?