On the topic of radios. IMO there has been major changes if that is the direction you want to go. Yes you can still get a basic radio ( all computer based these days ) or something that has some very useful features depending on how advanced you want to go. For example, the Jeti DS16 that I fly with is actually 24 channels. So with the correct receiver setup you can have multiple servos on one channel. Simply select the servo number and assign it to the function desired. It also is capable of telemetry that gives you RX battery voltage, current consumption at the moment, current consumption running total, receiver antenna signal strength, airplane interior temp and many more. Like anything else, it can be as simple or as complicated as you want.