It's probably a sort of pilot project - if they don't lose their shirts on Type I, maybe they'll fire up Chromium and Metal cassette production later.
And what is this stuff for, anyway? Hobbyists, or real music production work? Will most of these tapes go into cheap Tanashin-knockoff Chinese cassette players?
Are we playing with analog for analog's sake - should a new cassette transport include noise reduction like Dolby S or is it a solved problem already (Digital Compact Cassette)?
Wouldn't it make sense for a new cassette transport to use direct drive instead of belts and fewer parts for reliability?
I'm putting this Nakamichi Dragon vs. LX-5 comparo and a boombox review below just for reference - there is a small niche market emerging...