Spending money on an avalanche beacon is like paying for home owner's insurance. It's something you fork out a lot of cash for, while still hoping you'll never actually need to use it. The upside is that an avalanche transceiver is not only cheaper than insurance, it's also something you can use for avalanche safety drills. You know, those things you always swear you'll do, but conveniently forget about when the snow starts to fly, giving you even more of a reason to get a beacon that works and learn how to use it.