Joedy Drulia wrote:
Another 'good' thing about EVERYBODY at the field using a 14MZ,
there'd be a lot fewer guys at the field, and a lot less >interferrence!
BUT, I'm envious. Sounds like the radio everyone needs. How long
before the other manufacturers catch up?
Bill,
It is hardly the case that other companies are playing catch-up with
Futaba. Instead, it’s more the case that Futaba is now starting to play
catch-up with Multiplex.
First, the quote above was NOT in my post. It was a response to one of
my posts.
Second, nowhere in MY post did I say anything about anyone playing catch
up with anyone. I merely stated that I liked the fact that the 14MZ
requires you to actually look at your transmitter and to push a button
before it transmits. Nowhere did I say that this was a first. I am
fully aware that Multiplex had this before, which is why I did not claim
it as a first for the 14MZ.
I’ve been reading a great deal about the new 14MZ and the more that I
read about it, the more I come to the conclusion that much of the
marketing touted “revolutionary” features of the 14MZ are, in fact,
implementations of designs that Multiplex has offered for years.
Fine. Now explain why the Multiplex never caught on. There are 4 14MZ's
at my field and I have NEVER seen a Multiplex there. So the problem you
have is that it is NOT Multiplex and is being marketed better. OK, I
feel your pain. I use Apple computers. Plainly superior and far more
innovative than Windows, but not nearly as popular. Oh well.
Take, for example, the free assign ability of the widgets. This is a
standard practice of Multiplex. The 14MZ has the severe limitation,
however, in that the receiver ports are hard-set and cannot be freely
assigned like they can on Multiplex radios.
Not so. You can assign any function to any channel.
Futaba claims that the 14MZ can fly for 3 hours on a single charge, but
I can get up to 8 hours on the standard pack on my Multiplex EVO.
Wonderful. Show of hands. How many fly more than 3 hours in a day?? I
never have. I also have an extra pack in case I ever want to.
addition, the EVO also offers a battery management function – it
constantly keeps track of the remaining spare milliamps, even when
turned off! It even allows for battery drain daily as the EVO sits on
the shelf during the non-flying days.
The Futaba shows percentage remaining in the pack. Works very well to
determine how much left to fly.
While the 14MZ does
have Control switches (the position of one widget at a certain point
during the proportional travel enables a “switched” function), it does
not offer the ability to assign them to every one of the possible widgets.
I have not seen this. As far as I know and in my direct experience with
the radio, this is not the case. Any channel can be mixed using any
other channel as the master.
I do concede that Futaba has come up with a lot of bling-bling on the
14MZ and that its marketing folks are pulling out all of the stops in
generating publicity.
Can't beat good marketing. Ask Sony Beta-Max and Apple.
The biggest problem that I see is that most of the improvements that
Futaba has implemented on the 14MZ affects the pilot only when not
flying.
As a person who actually flies the radio, I do not agree. First off the
2048 resolution is VERY noticeable, especially on my aerobatic planes.
The biggest problems with Multiplex has always been marketing, publicity
and market saturation here in the U.S. Multiplex has also failed
miserably in hiring individuals who fully understand the capabilities of
their radios and who can also explain and articulate programming
approaches to pilots who have experience with other brands of transmitters.
I agree and I also think they missed the boat on US ergonomics. The
pizza box transmitter killed them.
While I applaud Futaba for raising THEIR standards, I am savvy enough to
see through some of their outlandish claims.
I think this merely reflects your clear prejudice towards the Multiples.
Much like mine towards Apple. I can't stand it when Microsoft does
something well either.
Take care. Enjoy your Multiplex as I do my 14MZ. One final question. Why
is it SO important to the few Multiplex owners out there to attempt to
point out all the alleged "problems" and "non-firsts" with the 14MZ??
Seems odd to me. Oh Well. The basic argument always seems to come down
to "It's NOT Multiples and therefore is inferior".
WEM
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