FYI, these things cost just about 2 dollars US to manufacture, and wholesale, a few dollars more. The gold plating is a scam, it makes no perceptible difference, and coast nothing to do, the generics are just as good! I would assume retailers have a tough time trying to justify this to anyone in their right mind at the point of sale. Especially in the corporate stores where this cable is the ONLY longer usb-A-to-B they stock, as is the case with the Santa Rosa mall in California! Wake up radioshack.