Bike box or bag?

federal where did you get the figure of a few hundred pounds for a bike bag, the ground effect tardis is yours for not much more than 90.
and whose bringing in how much someone earns or has, bike boxes are a false economy, if you plan to take your bike with you on more than one journey.
lets take this fictious unemployed student as our starting point, say you had a trip coming up, and you wanted to take your bike with you, and you'd be going to a couple of different destinations whilst there, would you entrust the bike you've spent months on, grabbing deals on the classifieds, and on ebay to a gaffer taped cardboard box? What happens if the frames bent, or dented or the forks are bent, how much more will that cost to repair/replace.
as the axiom states, buy cheap buy twice. You cut the corners with how the bike is packed, how can you get upset, ask for compensation from the airlines baggage handlers?
also does this hypothetical unemployed student expect to be such for the rest of their lives and if not, will they still be advocating the use of a bike box and extreme amounts of gaffer tape?

http://www.groundeffect.co.nz/product-detail-TAR-BAG.htm
169 NZ dollars 204 NZD with shipping approximate 98GBP
Two quid inside your hundreds of pounds...

Sigh, if you're going to split hairs, at least read what I said properly. I said that you could spend a couple of hundred pounds on a bike bag, bags at that price do exist. I don't understand why you're explaining how much you paid for your particular bag, I never made any mention of it and it's clear that bags in that price range and lower do exist, I was only pointing out that one could spend an awful lot more on one. Which is all well and good if money is a non issue and aesthetics, luxury and practicality are of absolute priority. However, even the £100 odd for the bag you linked is a considerable amount of wedge for most people. For anyone to pay that much for a once off trip with no reasonable intention to do so again in the near future, is in my opinion, frivolous and a waste of money. Like I've already said, for a frequent traveller with bike, it makes a lot more sense. A bike box is no false economy, the initial cost(zero) is not negated by any concurrent financial loss down the line as a result of the saving. The one I used let me protect all parts of the bike and there was not one breach or failure after being hooned around by baggage handlers from Dublin to Vancouver and back, not once was I ever anything but fully confident in my bike's integrity or security.

Obviously the unemployed student does not intend to keep that status forever although surely it makes more sense to make an investment like a bag when they are no longer unemployed and are better furnished financially? Using a bike box as opposed to purchasing a dedicated bag is a great way for someone in that financial standing to save a bit of dough. I also fully back the buy cheap, buy twice principle, but to apply it to this situation is just nonsensical.