Wow! I guess my Futaba stuff is junk (cheap) as well as FrSky. You can now buy Futaba 617 receivers for $39.00 instead of the $89.00 they've been for years. Now how did that happen? It is called competition. I own Futaba, JR, Airtronix and even a Tactic, and yes, a bunch of FrSky Futaba compatible receivers, as well as a 2.4 FrSky Conversion for my Futaba 9C and FrSky proprietary receivers. Everything works flawlessly. Anyone that thought nobody would come up with less expensive (ok -- cheaper) direct replacements for any of the big names had to be living under a rock. The moment you create a proprietary anything, sooner not later, someone will find a way to compete with you. Fr Sky did that and they obviously have a following. A Caddy and a Yugo will both get you to the grocery store or Grandma's house -- it is just how much money do you want to spend on the product that gets you there and how comfortable you want to be on the journey. It is your money -- spend it as you see fit and ignore those who caution you about the mistake you are about to make. Chances are they don't own and have no intention of owning whatever it is you intend to buy whether it is RC gear, a bicycle, or a car.