"Jim Burns" wrote in message news:
Umm... actually... I talked with 3 Honeywell reps and they told me that
they were hoping the 770 would enter the market under $20k... just like
the KFD840... my jaw dropped.

Once again, for the 3rd consecutive year, the Honeywell/Bendix King team
disappointed me beyond belief. I've talked with them at OSH for three
years running, and each year non of the reps I've talked with know more
than whats been released to the media, which is very little.

The three reps that I talked with knew nothing about:
Price (within $10k)
KLN94 upgrade package to the 770
770's ability or lack there of to couple with any competitor's GPSS roll
steering/autopilots (two reps didn't even know what roll steering was) I
actually had to tell them to walk over to the S-Tec booth and ask them why
the KLN94 wouldn't work with anybodies GPSS roll steering unit. They
didn't have a clue. They also didn't have a clue about:
Whether the 770 would be a options based unit or an all in one price only
unit
How anybody with a full stack could remove a KLN94 and a KX155 and still
make room for the 770
Datalink weather only or XM availability.

They repeatedly kept emphasizing how the 770 would work seamlessly with
their new KFD840. In fact, they wouldn't shut up about it. I finally
walked away.

Did anybody talk with anyone from H/B-K who knew more than those that I
talked with??

Being the large company that holeywell is, my guess is that those "reps"
were there for company political reasons and not becuase they were product
experts.

At ~$20K for each for the B-K models, it looks like Garmin still has an edge
with the G600 for ~$30K and its PFD/MFD combination in a small space. Also,
I don't see where the 770 is more capable than the TAWS-enabled Garmin
GNS530 aside from screen resolution.

With many of Garmin's key people originally from Bendix King, this their
edge is not from pure luck.

Marco