As a customer, I feel that the power issue is a critical issue and I do not feel that it's unreasonable to expect an answer from Tom on the subject. Every other ASIC outfit has put out power figures, except Tom. It makes me wonder why he's so reluctant to put out power estimates, especially with the understanding that they may be off by as much as 20%.
But in any case, I would like to know what's considered "competitive."
He probably doesn't want to make the mistake BFL did with the FPGA singles. Releasing a number and being way off. Don't get me wrong, I like both companies and they both make great products, but if someone doesn't feel comfortable pre-ordering these units without power figures, wait until they are released and then make your decision. That's just the same when BFL originally stated they were releasing ASICs back in July with very little information. A lot of people pre-ordered, but others waited until more information came out. I'm sure Tom will release this information soon. Also don't forget, Tom announced his bASIC about 2 months after BFL stated their ASICs, and BFL only announced the power numbers 2 weeks ago? Give Tom a little time.
It's kind of ironic, the next thread down is "Why is Butterfly Labs so secretive?"
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=118233.0 while BFL is requesting competitors specs

Fair enough, so he can at least answer as to what he considers 'competitive' and if he'll offer refunds if he's not within that space.