I purchased a Qx7 when they were $100 as a "cheap" trial into the OpenTX world. (A few at our club have the x9, so I'm familiar with the ergonomics of that one... Not bad, but not crazy about the buttons for input).
What a nice surprise it was when I took out of box and held in my hands. I'm a pincher, and everything just fell into place and felt great.
I knew my Futabas days were numbered!
The OpenTX programming has been a non-issue.
After setting up a few different models (flaps, no flaps, Crow, spoilers, a few mixes) it just clicks... You just have to forget what other brands call things. Also learning to use curves helped me quite a bit.
After finding the "Q" and OpenTX were for me, I began watching the classifieds for a used unit to have as a backup.
I soon found a standard model, that had upgraded gimbals, the Aloft nimh battery and charge port added.
I couldn't tear the package open fast enough when it arrived to see (feel) what the gimbals felt like.
Well... I quickly came down from my self-induced "high" !
"I" can't feel any difference... After calming down a bit, I realize that's not a bad thing...the stock gimbals feel Great!
After flying both tx's back to back... I can't tell a darn bit of difference, but that's just fine, as I paid much less for the used unit than the new stock unit.
Yes the "hall effect" gimbals should last longer, though I doubt I'll ever know, as the gimbals in some of my antique radios still work just fine.
"My" final opinion... Buy what ya want.. It's our hobby... Have fun, get what makes ya feel good...
But either is a nice, practical, reliable, affordable radio.
Jamie
Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk