"James M. Knox" wrote in message
...


Yeah, but aren't we missing something? Ignoring the fact that I got my
stormscope (installed) for a total of around $2800 (which would probably
be
more like $3200 in 2003 dollars), we still have the capital and
installation costs of the XM unit? What does the "aviation FAA PMA

1. There are no installation costs for the XMRadio unit -- it is portable,
and unlike the WSI In Flight system, the XMRadio antenna is not permanently
installed so it is truly a portable device, just like a handheld GPS.

2. The XMRadio unit should cost notably less as a capital investment than a
stormscope -- they are saying under $1000 but the final details are unknown.
But really the comparison in price is not to a Stormscope, but rather to
panel-mount weather datalink units, where there is no comparison -- say
$1000 for XMRadio vs. over $10,000 for most panel-mount weather datalink
systems with an MFD.

3. Comparing this to a Stormscope also does no make sense because weather
datalink is NOT a replacement for sferics -- sferics is clearly more
important and probably more useful than ANY weather datalink system.

4. Lots of pilots rent airplanes or for other reasons fly or instruct in
airplanes they do not own. In that case, the XMRadio system seems to have a
major portability advantage over most of the competition.

5. It is true that the XMRadio system requires a laptop computer or PDA for
its display, but is it really fair to include that in the price considering
that many (most?) pilots probably already own a PDA or laptop for other
reasons?

--
Richard Kaplan, CFII

www.flyimc.com