Speedlite transmitter vs. slave

[RxForB3]

I recently bought a 580ex II but mistakenly thought I could use it off camera straight out of the box. Now that I know better, I was looking at the Canon st-e2 transmitter. I noticed the cost of the transmitter was about $230 and a 430ex II is about $280. Seems like the second flash is a much better deal...am I missing something?

 

[Carny]

I would get the 430. You can also get a cord pretty cheap or radio poppers. I just got two sets of the yongnuo 603's for about $60.

 

[fokker]

No, you pretty much have the idea there. Though of course you know that you can use only the 580EX as the commander, 430EX works as slave only. As an alternative to the ST-E2, consider the yongnuo version, which is about $100 new on ebay and actually rates better than the canon version in most comparisons.