Not to revive a dying thread, but some comments made in another of my threads got me thinking about this one again.

In my thread I discussed something that wasn't even mentioned here. When looking for a new radio, although having all the features is important, you should also take into account the "feel" of the radio. When I started a couple months ago I bought a copy of RealFlight, then about a week later I bought an Avistar RTF. I knew the radio that came with the Avistar was essentially a "throw away", and I would need to upgrade before I got another plane (this was based on personal preference, as the radio is capable of flying other planes).

Since I started flying with the sim before I ever took a real plane up, I had become used to the feel of the sim controller. Those of you who have one know it is a bit sloppy (not a lot of stick tension). As I said I flew this for about a week before I had a chance to get my plane up. Since I was working with a club instructor, my first flight was done using the club buddy box. We are fortunate to have a couple different boxes, but the one I used primarily was an old Futaba Conquest 6 channel radio. The first time I flew I immediately could tell that it was a better quality radio than the sim controller. Even though I had not actually flown using my controller, I could also tell that it was better than what came with my Avistar.

So I flew using the club buddy box, and all was well until my first solo flight. I was handed "my" radio, and was told to take it up. I immediately noticed a couple of things. First the stick tension was different, the amount of throw was different, and lastly there is basically no knurling on the tips of the sticks. This last bit wasn't really an issue on my first couple of flights, but after messing with my radio on the ground a bit I got some fuel on my thumbs. This was a real annoyance when I got the plane back in the air. When I moved the stick, it constantly wanted to slip away from my thumbs. A little knurling on the tips and this wouldn't have been an issue.

Now all of annoyances with the radio that came with my Avistar are moot because I have bought a new (well new to me) radio that I will be switching to. However before I bought my new radio one of things I did was go around to everyone at the club, and ask them about their radios. If they let me I made sure actually got my hands on their radio (generally turned off of course). I attend a great club, and everyone is willing to help out so this wasn't a problem (some even let me buddy box with their radios). Through this I discovered what I liked in a radio (biggest surprise here was how much I like a throttle with no ratchet which was something I didn't even knew existed), so when I had the opportunity to buy my new radio I immediately jumped at it knowing I was going to like the feel. If you don't have the opportunity to "try" different radios at your club I definitely suggest trying as many as you can at your LHS before just jumping in and buying one. It is my opinion that the feel of the radio is just as important as the functionality. You have to hold this radio the entire time you are flying, if you don't like the feel it doesn't matter how many bells and whistles it has it may not be the best radio for you. If you are like me your upgrade/first radio will probably have to last a while so you want to make sure you get something you truly like.

Just my thoughts, hope they help!