Please note that I'm talking about a K3S. I've owned a K3 since 2008.
On 8/4/2015 1:52 PM, Barry Baines wrote:
Wes: You made the decision to get the K3 at the time of purchase because you wanted the radio as it apparently met your needs at a price you were willing to pay. Manufacturers don’t normally advertise when new products are being released in advance; they do so when they are ready for sale. Yes, the various boards were announced before the K3S, and the “K3” has been in production for a number of years (2008?), suggesting that at some point in time there would be a ‘refresh.’ The option available to us when making a purchase decision is either to purchase what is available at the time or defer for an unknown period of time for a “new product.” The problem with waiting is that none of us are getting younger, and who knows how long that wait might be. The moment something is purchased, one might argue it is becoming ‘obsolete’; at least most of the enhancements of the K3S can potentially be retrofitted to existing the K3 at some point. I have a slightly different situation than you where “time” certainly drove my purchase decision. I purchased a K3 “system” in August 2014 because my Flex-6700 didn’t meet the promises made by the manufacturer when it was first announced in May 2012 and I made that purchase decision based upon those promises. The radio was delivered in November 2013. It isn’t the hardware, but the software and firmware that determines the radio’s capabilities. In fact, it won’t be until sometime in 2016 before a software/firmware upgrade is made available that will fulfill the original promise that drove my decision based upon the manufacturer’s claim of performance that the radio will have (Remote access via WAN). By mid-2014 I decided that time was a wasting since I wanted a reliable method for operating remotely; otherwise no HF. I decided to get the K3 and K3/O-Mini combination and the Remote Rig (plus KPA500 and KAT500) and ordered them at the 2014 Huntsville Hamfest. I received my gear and had it up and running right after the Labor Day holiday at the remote site in Southeast Georgia. I’ve been pleased with the results because I could now operate from my primary residence in Massachusetts. I can now log into the Sunday afternoon AMSAT net, rag chew, and listen to the ‘banter’ on the HF bands from 1,250 miles away from the transmitter site. Pretty nice even if one can’t do everything remotely that one can do at the transmitter site. Meanwhile, the Flex-6700 is in the shack and I’ll focus on it when the firmware upgrades are made available in the future (the upgrades will require paying for renewal to the software subscription) so that I can operate it remotely through a PC or their new “Maestro” display that will be available late this year (assuming it will have WAN capability as well at some point). I have confidence in the overall quality of Flex Radio products and their desire to provide competitive equipment. The issue is that the timeline has been so long in providing the expected capability that I decided that if I wanted to operate “Now”, I had to get a K3. Even if I knew in advance that a year later a “new” K3 would be released, I still would have ordered at Huntsville because “time is a-wasting.” Bottom line is that we make decisions based upon what we know at the time those decisions are made. Enjoy what you have and avoid the regrets. You have a fine piece of equipment that you can enjoy for a number of years and if you wish to upgrade your existing setup at a later date, you certainly have that option. 73, Barry WD4ASW
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