Horus is nearly upon us...

[MattyB]

So it's nearly here, and a bit more expensive than initially vaunted due to the extra software development time and weak pound. Who's diving straight in then?

"Dear Customer

Thank you for you patience! the wait is nearly over. We are excited that Frsky have announced the intended release of the Horus X12S for sale late August/early September!!

As we are the UK's Premier Frsky Retailer we will receive the first batches for sale and because you have registered interest with us, we are now notifying you. T9 will open pre-ordering, on our website, when the shipments are on their way to us. You will be notified when this happens to give you chance to get yours first

Price for the Horus X12S including case, will be estimated around £400 plus VAT ( £480 including VAT, price in GBP ) dependent on the current exchange rate at the time. We will also be selling the new S6R receiver with Inbuilt 3-axis gyroscope and 3-axis accelerometer sensor to compliment the Horus, price around the £27 (£32 including VAT)

Also T9 will have in stock two accessories a must for the Horus:
1. Bracket set for the neck strap which holds the set in the perfect position. as per pic
2. Lipo battery internal charging conversion kit.

Info to come very soon!!
Thanks

Barry"

[David Molineux]

I love my Taranis and have been keeping an eye on the Horus. At £500 I think I'll be staying with the Taranis. The fantastic price was one of the things that drew me to the Taranis in the first place. Open TX was just a really nice bonus 😁

David.

[Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator]

Mmmm. At £500 I would have to think about that very carefully.

It's a hell of a spec true - and a lot of Tx for £500, but it's also true that £500 is a lot of money!

BEB

[MattyB]

Indeed. It will probably sell well initially to current FrSky users, but I can't see it taking a chunk of the big brand users at that price - having seen the early proto software it seems likely it will compare to the best menu driven systems from Spek, Futaba, JR et al. It needed to come in at DX9 money to be a really game changing product, but at a price comparable to a 14SG it's going to be a very hard sell.

[Former Member]

[This posting has been removed]

[Kevin Fairgrieve]

Well I for one can say it IS worth every penny.

Yep that`s right IS worth it.

I have been on the beta test program for a little while now.

Currently running on FrSky`s own OS which is a little clunky at first but soon makes sense.

I soon hope to test it under Open TX.

Can not say to much as I have signed an NDA.

Kev

[Rich too]

Posted by Percy Verance on 27/07/2016 21:50:23:

Rather defeats the object?

Or it could be rather clever marketing. Hook 'em with the cheapie bargain, then they'll want the better (pricier!) one when we offer it..........

It's one of the oldest marketing tricks in the book. Place something just out of reach, and potential buyers will want it all the more.......

 

Edited By Percy Verance on 27/07/2016 21:53:40

I totally agree, and very risky. It goes against the strategy used for the Taranis. It doesn't make sense at all to me.

The low price  was the whole point! 

Edited By Rich2 on 28/07/2016 08:14:03

[John F]

Much of the Taranis' abilities are software based and because it is open source it was cheap to exploit, in a basic Tx case.  Many of the features in the Horus are a little more bespoke and with the new case design it probably costs more right from the off. 

To be fair that is a high price tag but many others who's offerings are costing more, such as any Jeti system, the Spektrum DX18, the ridiculously priced JR XG range or how about the JR 28x at a legal mugging price of £1500!!

Yes it is expensive and if you've got the cash, go for it, but does it do anything that is vital to flying a model aircraft? No, but it probably does a lot more than the pricier examples above so, compared to them, the Horus could be seen to be a bit of a bargain!

Edited By John F on 28/07/2016 08:22:05

[Frank Skilbeck]

Posted by Rich2 on 28/07/2016 08:12:52:

Posted by Percy Verance on 27/07/2016 21:50:23:

I totally agree, and very risky. It goes against the strategy used for the Taranis. It doesn't make sense at all to me.

The low price was the whole point!

Edited By Rich2 on 28/07/2016 08:14:03

When you are new to the market, you either need a killer product nobody else has or a low price, I guess Frsky consider themselves well enough established to be able to charge the higher price. Remember the Taranis used an existing transmitter case and free operating system so development costs were minimal, there's been some substantial development of the Horus and these have to be recovered, Frsky have to judge how they will sell and at what price to recover these costs. £ going down following Brexit also makes them more expensive in GBP, but then so is everybody else's imported product.

[Rich too]

Frank, that is a different marketing strategy to the Taranis - hence it is risky and makes no sense to me. Unless of course the spec of the Horus compares with units costing way more..

Edited By Rich2 on 28/07/2016 08:26:51

[bouncebounce crunch]

I am just an average pilot and six channels i still do not use on my transmitter. except timer countdown if you count that as a possible five.

My old dx6i has not missed a beat, but a dx8 might be purchased eventually, don't now why though; you all know how and why i will, don't you?

Edited By bouncebounce crunch on 28/07/2016 08:38:05

[Andy Meade]

Taranis production isn't being stopped, people. Should FRSky only make one (OK I know there is more than one version of the Taranis, but...) product now? Or should they try and aim higher to mix it up with the big boys?

The spec is definitely worth it, and I'll put the deposit down as soon as Rich lets me

[Dave Bran]

I do not understand the comments that the Horus is simply too expensive when no relationship to what it matches or exceeds with competitors products is mentioned.

MOST competitors offer a range of product. So will FrSky. You don't have to buy it if the Taranis suits you better.

I did get one, even though having a Tx collection inc a Futaba 10CG, Spektrum DX9, and Taranis, but don't let that affect you. (BTW the Futaba 10CG was over £550 when first released with Rx)

A Nissan GTR is an "expensive" car compared to a family sports hatch, but its light years ahead in many respects from cars costing two or three times over its price. You can still buy a Micra if that suits.

[Rich too]

Posted by Dave Bran on 28/07/2016 09:16:32:

I do not understand the comments that the Horus is simply too expensive when no relationship to what it matches or exceeds with competitors products is mentioned.

MOST competitors offer a range of product. So will FrSky. You don't have to buy it if the Taranis suits you better.

I did get one, even though having a Tx collection inc a Futaba 10CG, Spektrum DX9, and Taranis, but don't let that affect you. (BTW the Futaba 10CG was over £550 when first released with Rx)

A Nissan GTR is an "expensive" car compared to a family sports hatch, but its light years ahead in many respects from cars costing two or three times over its price. You can still buy a Micra if that suits.

 

Er, that's exactly what I did say Dave. If the unit is way cheaper than similar spec units from other brands, fair enough.

Edited By Rich2 on 28/07/2016 09:33:10

[Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator]

I think JohnF has the answer to your question Dave. Yes, as I have stated, the Horus has a hell of spec - no one who has looked at it can deny that. So to answer Rich's question - yes it does have a spec that is better thn other £500 Tx's and more than a match for Tx's costing much more than that. So, yes, it good value or money.

But personally, I think FrSky have missed the point. The clientile for such ultra high spec devices is tiny. and its not where the market is.

Its the software capability, at that price point, that makes Taranis spacial - not the hardware! Hardware wise there is nothing special about a Taranis - in fact just the opposite is true, the hardware is its weakest point. I think FrSky need to appreciate that better. What I want is a better mechanical spec (gimblas, switches, knobs, case etc) OpenTx transmitter - and that's the one thing Horus isn't! Yes its a great spec - but it might not be what I am looking for next. FrSky might need to realise that for many Taranis owners our true loyalty is to OpenTx - not FrSky! And we might go with whichever brand gives us a higher quality OpenTx transmitter at a reasonable price point.

BEB

Edited By Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator on 28/07/2016 09:43:29

[Andy Meade]

Horus is both FRSky OS and OpenTX capable out of the box. Dual booting both from a memory cards takes less than 60 seconds (RCGroups beta tester source)

[Peter Christy]

Posted by Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator on 28/07/2016 09:42:10:

But personally, I think FrSky have missed the point. The clientile for such ultra high spec devices is tiny. and its not where the market is.

Maybe - but the profit margin on higher priced sets is greater, so you don't need to sell so many. Whenever there's a financial crisis, its always the British Leylands that suffer before the Rolls-Royces......

If you want a cheap but good set, stick with the Taranis!

Regarding the sticks, I really struggle to tell the difference between my early Taranis and my DSX-9. Indeed, once in the air, I can't tell the difference between it and the plastic molded affairs on some of my older trannies!

As I've said in another thread, my biggest problem with ALL modern Txs is that the springs are never strong enough! I like to know when the stick is centred!

--

Pete

[MattyB]

Posted by Dave Bran on 28/07/2016 09:16:32:

I do not understand the comments that the Horus is simply too expensive when no relationship to what it matches or exceeds with competitors products is mentioned.

MOST competitors offer a range of product. So will FrSky. You don't have to buy it if the Taranis suits you better.

I think most of those comments are coming from the fact that for a year or two it has been trailed as a $500/£350 TX. At that mid-range price point it could have been a true game changer, allowing FrSky to grab significant market share from club pilots who currently use the likes of Futaba, JR and Hitec (Spek I think are pretty much invulnerable in the medium term due to the clever ecosystem they have built up with their BNF offerings).

Unfortunately various factors (most notably the long and expensive development of FrTX, but also the current exchange rate due to Brexit) mean it has come out significantly more expensive, leaving a large gap between it and the Taranis. This those who might have considered it against a DX9, XG8 or 10J will now cross it off the list, whilst those who already own premium sets may still consider it "too cheap to be any good". I still believe it will be successful with existing FrSky fans who in the main will convert it straight to OpenTX, but I can't see it making a material impact on the big established manufacturers now.

PS - One possible silver lining... Maybe this does leave a gap for a (much requested) "Super Taranis", with upgraded sticks, switches and screen? If it could be made to run both FrTX and OpenTX it could be a killer product priced at ~£250...

Edited By MattyB on 28/07/2016 10:47:03

[Andy48]

I'm with BEB on this one. Its OpenTX which makes the Taranis special, combined with good but inexpensive receivers and great telemetry. As a transmitter it will offer little more than the existing Taranis other than a better screen, but then I do very little programming using the transmitter, just the odd tweak down at the field.

At £300, I'd probably have been drooling, but £500, probably not.

"Horus is both FRSky OS and OpenTX capable out of the box. Dual booting both from a memory cards takes less than 60 seconds (RCGroups beta tester source)"

This really doesn't sound sensible, and I fail to see the value in it.

[Andy Meade]

New users to FRSky can get up and running quickly with their own menu based OS, but experienced users can put OpenTX on it straight away. The value? You service two markets at once, obviously.

The gimbals are far superior to the Taranis, but as far as I know they are backwards compatible with the old kit if you feel the need.

[IanR]

I'm not really concerned about the Horus - my Taranis will do me just fine. What really piqued my interest, though was "We will also be selling the new S6R receiver with Inbuilt 3-axis gyroscope and 3-axis accelerometer sensor to compliment the Horus, price around the £27 (£32 including VAT)"

More expensive than the Orange equivalent but less than half the price of the Spektrum one. I have googled but can't find any information. For a start, can anyone confirm that this will work with the Taranis, as well as the Horus?

Ian

[Andy48]

Posted by Andy Meade on 28/07/2016 14:24:50:

New users to FRSky can get up and running quickly with their own menu based OS, but experienced users can put OpenTX on it straight away. The value? You service two markets at once, obviously.

Therefore really only of any use to FrSKY as a marketing/sales tool, and of no use to any Taranis user wishing to upgrade.

[Andy Meade]

Oh, sorry I didn't realise you were looking for a value specifically for you. For FRSky, huge value.

There is / was an S6R advert on a German page that I spied whilst looking through the RCG threads yesterday, although it didn't offer up much more information than what you've found already Ian. Time will tell!

Ian - looks like you're all set

..or not, wrong receiver, sorry

 

Edited By Andy Meade on 28/07/2016 14:48:38

[Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator]

Nah, sorry don't buy this. As I see it Tx's come in 3 classes:

Class1: Beginner/Basic Capability - indicative price £150-200.

Class 2: Intermediate/Established Flyer - indicative price £300-350.

Class 3: Top Line - indicative price: £450++++ (as many pluses as you want!)

The Taranis trick was to make what was, in performance terms, a Class 3 Tx at a Class 1 price point. That's why it worked! And OpenTx was a big element in that.

With Horus FrSky have wasted a great deal of money developing a menu-driven programming system that they need to recover via the price. Had they stayed with just OpenTx they wouldn't have this problem. As a result Horus is a top of Class 3 capability Tx at a bottom of Class 3 price. Still a good deal, but,....I don't think the volume of Class 2 buyers, that will need to be tempted to buy it to make the economics work, will materialise. There is a much bigger gap between £300 and £500 than there is between £500 and £1,000 in the eyes of the people who are in those markets.

And I don't believe its true that profit margins are usefully higher on top spec systems. Yes they are higher in percentage terms - but not to a scale that makes them a usefully profitable part of the business. I'd rather make 10% on 10,000 transmitters than 50% on 10! I believe most Tx manufacturers make most of their money with the class 1 and class 2 products - that's where the volume is. Horus can not penetrate that market at £500. The top of the range stuff is largely for "flagship" purposes - not profit. The DX6 and the DX9 are were Spekky make money - not the DX18.

BEB

[Andy Meade]

I agree with what you're saying, to a point. I think the pricing structure you've indicated is way out though. Futaba for instance : their mid range is £400, and top end is...well, currently £2400. JR midrange £700, top end £1700. Jeti mid range £595, top end £1400.

In that company, I think the price is good. Time will tell! I'm sure they know enough about their intended market, or at least I hope they do