Oren wrote:

Just for clarity, "sharkbite" connectors are not an essential
component or part of a PEX system - just something folks use, if they
like.

I can see your shock about cost, but they are not needed...

And an additional point - the economics of PEX have to be looked at as a system
- and that includes labor, not just material. If a two man crew can plumb an
entire house in a day with PEX, but sweating copper would take a week, paying
more for the material makes sense.