RE: No fancy battery cycler
I use a cycler for piece of mind. I use it check my batteries 1-2 times per year for loss of capacity. So far, I've only caught one fairly old pack dropping off. I like knowing this information but that's just me.
So yes, the cycler is nice but you definitely can get by just fine without it if you make sure you allow the batteries to fully charge before heading to the field and use the ESV that was recommended to check them between flights. If you have a pack that's getting old and you are concerned about it, no big deal. just replace it, they aren't that expensive these days.