Unfortunately, our hands are tied with regard to pricing on the SD501. The company builds the MLM program into their pricing and we are unable to work around that. A comparable product that we offer and have researched would be the Watershed AQ500. Formerly sold under the KYK brand name "Harmony" this machine also has flat plates and higher wattage than other machines (2 key selling points on Enagic's SD501).

Here are the main differences between the SD501 and the Watershed AQ500:

• Where the Watershed AQ500 has 5 flat plates with 135 inches of surface area, the SD501 has 7 flat plates with 245 inches of surface area.
• The next most important thing to consider is the power. The Watershed AQ500 is a 200 watt machine and the SD501 is a 230 watt machine. Not much difference there. However, the Watershed AQ500 operates with a Switched Mode Power Supply (SMPS)which allows the machine to operate more efficiently - using less power, no risk of overheating, and the SMPS is designed to run the machine at optimal levels - this is from our electrolysis expert.
• The water output of the two machines in liters per minute are 3 liters per minute for the AQ500 and 7 liters per minute for the SD501.
• Finally, the pricing structure - The SD501 cost is $3,980 where the AQ500 is $999.

The most expensive component of any water ionizer is going to be the plates because of the cost of the platinum and titanium used. With the SD501's 2 additional plates and 110 extra inches of total plate surface area, we can easily say that a some of the price difference is in materials. How much of that pricing is related to MLM-build-in is anybody's guess.  If you're curious, do a Google search for "Enagic Compensation Plan."

• View the Enagic Leveluk SD501 Product Page
• View the Watershed AQ500 Product Page