On Sep 13, 9:28*am, John Cochrane
wrote:
On Sep 13, 9:30*am, Darryl Ramm wrote: Well if the vario does not include a GPS and IGC flight recorder at
least as as an option that's likely the end of any interest for many
potential purchasers who are looking for a C302 replacement.

*I disagree (and I admit to badgering the NK team to produce a great
standalone speed to fly vario).
-If you have/want to buy a clearnav, then NK vario + clearnav is your
total solution. You can add a cheap backup logger or a flarm.
-If you have a clearnav + 302, then the 302 becomes your backup vario
and logger.
-If your'e too cheap to buy a clearnav, you buy a cheap GPS + PDA for
a few hundred bucks to navigate.
-If you have some other system, sell your mechanical backup vario, put
in a real speed to fly with audio.
-If you're a club with no GPS, you finally have speed to fly in the
club gliders, so students in the ASK21 have some idea of how fast they
should fly through sink to get home, and can learn proper instruments
while the instructor is in back.
(No, I'm not a salesman for NK, and have no inside information as to
what they're producing)
John Cochrane

And if you are like many people today and have a PDA and want NEMA out
TAS airspeed data for wind? And an IGC flight recorder?

I think the ClearNav does what it does pretty well, specially for
people who cant' seem to get their PDAs sorted out or who just cannot
read the screens (which gives them an interesting older demographic?).
I am not sure it is really about being "too cheap to buy a ClearNav".
Although I am sure the cost is a factor for many people. And the cost
may also be more of an issue for some folks because they investing
thousands of dollars in screen technology that risks being outpaced by
other consumer technology..

For me the screen is just plain too large for my cockpit and (as a
fussy software developer/marketing wonk) I personally really dislike
the user interface. It does have some nice features, some of which I
expect will be copied/improved on by the PDA crowd. If I was NK I'd be
looking at the vario as the central point of acquiring new customers
and work to upsell them on the the ClearNav, not the other way around.

I hope NK is not building a closed proprietary system and thinks
ignoring the PDA/PNA market is a good idea. I expect there will be
significant innovation on Android and other platforms and they'll be
cut off from being the back-end data-provider box for that. I was/am
hoping for more, a lot more, given the talent and pedigree of the
developers involved. (and I'm not just looking for a C302 clone, there
is a lot more that could be done with a modern platform and decent
firmware). Maybe time to buy a hot-spare C302...

Nicer transition and XC club ships should have a flight computer like
a C302 with IGC flight recorder and be encouraging its use for badges
etc. And teach the students how to use a STF etc. So I've often felt
that is a worthwhile investment. Lower-end ones, yes a stand alone
electronic vario makes sense. As would something like a stand-alone
vario and a PowerFLARM for the flight recorder.

Darryl