What are the effects of different types of rear shock installation on full-suspension bikes? I've been looking at full-suspension mountain and trail bikes lately, and I've noticed that the rear shock can come in a few different configurations:


It can be installed roughly vertically, between the seatstay and the downtube. E.g. Norco Range A7.2.
It can be installed nearly horizontally, also between the seatstay and downtube. E.g. Diamondback Atroz Comp.
Finally, it can be installed between the seatstay and the downtube. E.g. Norco Revolver 9XX.


What are the effects of these different configurations, and why does it seem like that last configuration is so much more expensive (on average) than the other two?
The good folks at Bike Radar have already covered this in pretty good detail in a two part article:
Part 1 and Part 2

There's also a chunky thread on the Pinkbike forums that has pictures and descriptions of loads of different setups:
Pinkbike - Basic Full Suspension Types / Reference With Pictures

In regards to price, it is not the suspension setup making the difference, it is the quality of the components.