It's called the 'snooty' factor Ken.
I believe it equates to 2.468 times the typical price.
Still, a quality transport should in theory make less mechanical noise if it really was made better. My present 2 yr old dvdp is starting to make a louder noise than when we first bought it. My friend's dvdp already has the noise (a Toshiba) and i commented on this to him several months ago. General wear and tear and probably what i would have expected from a plastic part filled 5 disc tray.
I hear Phillips makes some of the best transports, but i'm not paying $1000 just to spin a disc.
