Danger, danger - rant coming up. Run away now!!
[rant]
Yeah, Telemtry is very cool - but surprisingly cheap to implement. I can buy a snap-in module and receiver for about $40 that has telemetry. Even hardware to implement an SD card-slot would cost me as a joe-shmoe about $15-$20.
Ooh shiny. Yes indeed!
Packed with features. Certainly.
Disingenuous advertising. Perhaps. "Quick, Quick - it's got an RRP of $450, we'll let you have it for $300. That's a 'saving' of 33%"
Spektrum's DX7 page
Equal in hype and religous fervour to the iPhone. In some quarters.
I should be clear, and state that I do 'have it in' for Spektrum and Horizon Hobbies. Never before in my adult life have I come across organizations that over-rate themselves and their products to such an extent. I've been the proud owner of some Blade helis (SR and MSR), though now am a little embarrased to admit that I got suckered out of all that money (~$550). A number of spare parts were priced rather savagely, though the straws that broke the camels back were (a) The price of a replacement canopy for the SR (b) The price of Eflite batteries for both.
I paid some $23 for a canopy. For heaven's sake, I've bought $3 products in blister packs that had more work and plastic in the (disposable) outer blister. How about the $18 for a tiny 8mm _brushed_ msr motor, $100 for a piece of junk transmitter, and $38 (or $48, I forget) for a simple 15C 1000mah 3S LiPo - I can replace it with a higher capacity, higher C battery for $11, or the $15 for a 1S 130mah lipo that I can again replace with a better unit for $1.33. Oh, and did I mention that the 'balance' charger that came with the SR performs more slowly and with less precision than the $6 turnigy 5011? Yup, it consistantly 'balances' to 4.17, 4.18 and 4.25 volts. The turnigy on the other hand has a 50% higher charge capacity (finished in 2/3rds of the time) and that it charges each cell to 4.20 volts, time and time again on each of the 3 cells (or 2, it'll do either unlike the eflite thing).
Found some Turnigy batteries and never looked back. Bugger the helicopters, I'm interested in flyin, not buyin. And, when I do go buying - I want value for money. Not pretty girls and nice advertising. IMO, You only need good customer service if (a) your gear is no good or (b) your market demographic are the same people that require the warning "do not iron this t-shirt while wearing"
Again, not something I want to be putting my hard earned bucks towards.
I've not had the chance to use anything better than a DX6i. Though based on my experience with the rest of their stock I've had the misfortune to purchase, I'd be fairly surprised if this new radio isn't simply a Hyundai dressed up to look like a Mercedes. There's "You get what you pay for" and there's "you perceive that you get what you pay for", my experience with this company leaves me inclined to think that they could never make me fit into the second category, fat chance of shoe-horning me into the first...
[/rant]
Ahhhhhh. That's better.
