RE: Does the hobby really need to be cheaper?
i think the hobby has a nice price range.
one can spend $150 on a RTR truck or $600(evader DT or flux)
same for planes, a mini super cub is $100 RTF, while higher end parkzone RTF's cost over $200
same with batteries and chargers. one can buy a cheap imax B6 and some hong kong lipos, or a fancy charger and brand name lipos.
all depends on budget and preference.
i have recently gotten a few redcats. while they do have some weakeness, they are great for the money IMO. to me, its worth it to do a few mods and make them stronger. while others would choose to spend twice as much and get a HPI/Tamiya/traxxas and have aftermarket support..ect. one of the guys at my LHS wont touch a redcat. but mine is a ton of fun running a novatech ESC and 2s lipo, but cost me $125 used.
i have been helping a couple of my school-aged friends get into the hobby. having been in the hobby for awhile i know about sites like nitrorcx where you can get a RTR drift car for under $100.
i wish cars like that had been around back when i was spending $180 for a tamiya that had the same performanc!