Based upon the pictures, etc., I think the Orion is going to be a great rig
(and I will probably buy one).
However... I'd like to see some changes made before the rig is released.
First and most important... HIRE A GRAPHIC DESIGNER TO HELP YOU WITH THE LCD
DISPLAY! This has to be the worst-looking and most amateurish (in the worst
sense) display I have ever seen. Why is it that Icom can have a
decent-looking display on their $1200 746 and Ten-Tec doesn't have one on
their $3300 killer rig? This criticism isn't meant to beat up Ten-Tec...
it's meant to ensure that Ten-Tec has a fighting chance to compete with the
other high end rigs. Seriously... a crummy LCD display appearance will
probably mean 25% to 50% less sales for this unit which will be devastating
for Ten-Tec. You HAVE to make the display as visually compelling as the 756
PRO or you are not going to get the sales!
Re the gold trim... I agree with the other posters who mentioned satin
rather than gloss. I'm sitting here glancing over at my Omni VI and
thinking how nice this rig STILL looks more than a decade after the original
design. The two-tone knobs use color for function as well as appearance.
It looks like a rugged piece of communications gear (as does the
Paragon/Omni V). The secret of a good visual design is that the radio will
not look dated a few years down the road. Timeless -- Omni. Dated --
Kenwood TS-2000. Now THAT is a rig whose styling will go the way of the
tail fin on an automobile.
Hey, looks are important! How many of us wanted to date the ugly girl even
if she was smart and nice? How many of us want to drive the ugly car even
if it was fast and handled well? How many of us buy the ugly clothing even
if it is well-made and durable? How many hams will get rid of their 756
Pros and MkVs for a Ten-Tec Orion if the display is ugly and the front panel
is garish? SOME... but not nearly as many as if the display was killer and
the front panel looked elegant in a high-tech way.
I worked at Msft when Windows was being refined into the killer OS. (Say
what you will about Windows... version 3.0 enabled Microsoft to "overturn
the chess board" and replace Lotus, Wordperfect, and Ashton-Tate as the
number 1 software applications company, and that is a FACT.) Windows 3.0
ruled for one major technical reason, and one major aesthetic reason...
memory was no longer an issue AND the 3D color interface looked better than
anything else out there. But looks are what sold Windows, because no one
would have wanted to try an ugly but powerful OS... they already had things
like OS/2 and Unix to choose from.
Scott et al... you've got one chance with this rig. One big splash in QST,
CQ, and the other mags. Sure... you can refine things but the excitement
will pass to the next offering from Yaecomwood. Pick an LCD that supports
grey scale. Spend the money to have a great LCD UI and make the front panel
of the Orion look as elegantly utilitarian as the RX-340 even if you do keep
it in black.
One ham's opinion...
- jgc
John Clifford KD7KGX
Heathkit HW-9 WARC/HFT-9/HM-9
Elecraft K2 #1678 /KSB2/KIO2/KBT2/KAT2/KNB2/KAF2
...waiting _eagerly_ for KPA2!
Ten-Tec Omni VI/Opt1
email: kd7kgx@arrl.net
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