Quote:
Originally Posted by sosidge
The BBK offer to trade in MRT's is pretty generous in my opinion, considering they are basically taking a fake product and giving you an authentic one at a heavy discount in return. But that offer stops at the end of March, as does the offer for a cheap upgrade to the RC4 decoder.
That might not be a problem right now - but it will become a growing problem in years to come. AMB/Mylaps won't support RC3, supplies of Hybrid transponders will probably dry out soon, and any club that wants to buy an AMB/Mylaps system (or needs a repair) will end up with RC4 - and straight away you are back to the same issues with MRT transponders.
UK racing has nothing to gain by declining the AMB/Mylaps updates in favour of keeping compatibility with MRTs. What seems a cheap choice now, will be an expensive decision forced up us in a couple of years time. And any suggestion that AMB/Mylaps will have to cave into pressure from a few UK racers and withdraw RC4 or change it to ensure compatibility is a complete flight of fancy - there is a plentiful market for RC4, with or without the UK.
I'm just glad I stuck with an authentic AMB from Day 1. I didn't buy an MRT on principle. My transponder will work with any decoder, and I know that I'm the only person with my number anywhere in the world. Not something every MRT user can say. It's a shame the the existence of the MRTs has put the clubs - the backbone of racing - in such a difficult position.
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That's ridiculous!
What you're saying is like suggesting that whomever invented the automobile, that every other manufacturer of automobiles (including all the British car companies) are "fake products."
AMB/MyLaps have repeated tried to increase the cost involved in using their products - from discontinuing "handout-out/club" transponders (with the introduction of the original "personal transponders 6 or 7 years ago, to the introduction of their smaller 2-wire transponders 2 years ago (to compete with the smaller MRTs), and now with their 3-wire transponders (I can't keep up with all the names you guys are assigning to the models - purcy, harry, etc.) and corresponding RC4 decoder intended to kick MRT out of the game entirely.
The reality is, and I don't care how much anybody wants to spin any of this, is that MyLaps is trying to create a monopoly by cornering the market.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jimmy
Maybe it's my failing memory - but when I bought my PT's they weren't cheap but they nearly doubled in price not long after. I'm sure they were tickling £90 - but maybe that's my failing memory.
PT's are just one of the awesome things I love about racing now. For club racers / new racers / lil Jimmy with his £50 second hand car - it's a real shame that a new modern hand-out that's robust and reliable isn't developed. I'd never have started racing if I had to buy a PT first.
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Exactly, when I bought my first PT they cost £40. Pretty soon after that they price starting climbing. And once MyLaps corners the market again, do people really think the price is going to remain stable? No, of course they won't.
And you're correct about the handouts too. It was just last week a newbie father and son showed up at the track, all excited about racing, but at the end of the day he lamented to me about the £180 (he was quite shocked) he was going to have to dish out just so he and his son could race.