This is a great thread, I'm in the same position as OP, getting ready to launch a small run niche product and trying to understand the certification requirements. From reading, am I to understand that there are not in fact criminal penalties, at least in the US, for selling a device that lacks FCC certification? Or in Canada?
I got a quote for a certification service, it was relatively low at about $10,000 US. IIRC, it was $1,800 for FCC, $600 for whatever Canada calls it and a whopping $7,500 for two different CE type certifications for Europe. I can swing North America, but wow, CE, wow! Not only is it a lot of money out of pocket for a label, These costs really add to the final price of the product.