Hi, I’m beginner in flying drone and practicing using velocidrone simulator and xbox gamepad. But I think gamepad is limiting my practice so I want to buy a transmitter within a budget under US$ 200 including tax.

I found a Taranis X9D Plus at local store at US$ 173. And I’m planning to use the transmitter for many years without buying a new one. After I’m good with the simulator I’ll use the transmitter to fly a mini quad.

Is Taranis X9D Plus (not the new 2019 version) still good to buy now in October 2019? Because of the tax fee (almost 40% of the price, including tax and shipping about US$ 254) the 2019 version is out of my budget.

How about the ACCESS protocol? Will it make the older Taranis with ACCST become obsolete after some years?
Or should I purchase another radio like Jumper T16? (I’m a bit afraid about future proof of JumperTX)
Or I should wait until Frsky release another ACCESS protocol transmitter at entry level price beside X9 Lite Pro? (Maybe like Q X7 2019?)

Sorry for the long post, because I have many questions.

Things are changing over at Frsky. They are trying to get people to move to their newer protocol ACCESS. New ACCESS only receivers are coming out. This is a tough choice to make at this juncture. Questions like how long will Frsky continue to sell their ACCST receivers? Likely OpenTX will continue to support. But Frsky is basically abandoning the ACCST protocol.

Jumper is not a bad option. Joshua Bardwell has already jumped ship from Frsky to Jumper. OpenTX is officially supporting Jumper. The new Jumper T16 Pro is within your budget.

If you want to future proof, go with Frsky ACCESS radio. If you want to stick with ACCST, I would get the Jumper T16 Pro. Also, you can also wait for another radio release.

After some thought, I think it's not a good time to buy a radio now. I'll see how things going and wait for another radio release.

(11-Oct-2019, 09:07 AM)voodoo614 Wrote: This is a tough choice to make at this juncture.

This. I really agree with your statement.

Thanks for the reply voodoo, have a great day!

Hi all,

I'm also in the situation of buying a new radio and I agree current situation is bit uncertain, big crossroad now Frsky/Jumper. If you don't plan to fly in a near future but want to develop skills on the simulator, buy something cheaper like flysky or spektrum. These are widely available, even second hand, and will allow you to progress in the hobby.

Santi

Honestly, even a gamepad will get you started in a sim. If you have an XBox controller already, I'd just use that. It's less about the physical feel of the sticks and more about quite what the hell happens when you move them, and how to translate that into flight.