Seriously Doomer I agree with you.

Not cool TM not cool at all!

You'd think it was in their best interest to post some more news. With the Saitek X65 recently released there may be many going that route instead because of the lack of info from TM whereas if they'd kept feeding us little bits of info and new pics every now and then people may be more inclined to hold on.

Marketting never was their strong point...

"Don't 'tease' me bro!!"

This thing is slowly taking airs of vaporware!

What is real sad though, is that CH Products has also a promising product to compete with it, but its release to the common joe is not planned as of yet. It appears nobody wants to lay down their cards and show their hand.

Only sensible solution; DIY!!
At least if you don't get it on time, it's your own fault!

To the best of my knowledge, CH has not "promised" anything. What they have done is release a set for military simulation. That product *may* evolve into a consumer issue in the future. However, that last sentence is pure speculation. Could it happen? Sure. Is it likely? Sure, why not. Has it been "promised"? No, it has not.

Every single time I see a new post in this thread, I have my hopes up that Guillemot/Thrustmaster quit with the cockteasing and just give a proper unveiling already...only to find that they haven't!

At this rate, I'm probably going to just dump any money I get into what I've currently got. Hall sensor for the Cougar throttle, new microstick pots, something that'll fix the handle shaft play in the stick so it works better with the FCC mod, new centering mechanism for the RCS to eliminate the "detent" feel, and of course, linkages for that Strike Force 3D gimbal mod I've had planned for a long while now, but never managed to execute due to having no idea what size those R/C vehicle linkages may be.

I completely agree. And I didn't mean to imply anything else.

I forgot to point out that CH Products' HOTAS setup is most likely far superior than anything Guillemot would be willing to release to the general public.
Their respective clients have different expectations, and in the case of CH Products' setup it would be much more expensive as well.

I guess it depends on what is meant by "much". I bought the Cougar when it first came out. And when it revealed itself to be a steaming pile I switched to CH. The prices were very comparable - at least in my experience. It could be the same again - if such a system was released.

yeah this dicktease is really pissing me off.

Guillemot? James Hallows?

While I'm not a fan of Guillemot based on past experience, I will say that like with sims, it is far better that they take their time and get it right. I'm also not sure that it would be fair to lay any hard feelings on James. He's just responsible for the software. I believe that he is as much at the mercy of the timing gods as we are.

aRareKindOfMonster said "a promising product", not "promised a product". A big difference.

There are several being tested amongst community members, and developers, as we speak. At the moment, fine tuning of the hardware, button responses and axis forces are being undertaken by TM. Kudos to them for taking onboard the suggestions coming at them from the team although it has to be said that most of the suggestions have come from them which has surprised me. NDA and contract and all that, so that's all I'm saying at this point in time.

This will be a popular HOTAS, of that I have no doubt. But not to be accused of bias, by all means, wait and try one and decide for yourself. So far, a lot of great thinking and attention to detail are apparent.

Minor correction to one post: the software for this isn't being developed by me.

Cheers

Nutty

All very well and good; but I'm still left with a bloody poor stick in my Cougar, a fantastic throttle, lovely programming language (yours I believe); and rather than buy add ons I'm about to ship out and buy CM stuff even though I know my hands are too small to reach the buttons. At least the plastic fantastic will work for years and I will get used to it. At the moment I'm 150 quid short, with 20 lbs of cheap alloy, but still with a smidgeon of loyalty to a company who have delivered nowt. Please kick their ring piece upwards towards their olfactory organs whilst they still have a customer base.

Thanks for the update James. This will keep us quiet at least few weeks

Thx James.

But the question remains...if this is still in testing then are we a long way off??

James, can you say anything about the programming software? I'll admit, the Warthog has my attention!

Sorry guys, I'm not in a position to comment on a release date and software capabilities. That's all for Thrustmaster. And yes, I too would love it if they released further information in the near future, especially about the hardware, because there are some very neat features you're going to like.

As soon as I can say more of course, I'd be delighted to pass on as much as I can and answer questions.

Nutty

Well, as small as it is, its very kind of you for giving this small info, and its also nice to see that things are still moving foward and making improvements with the fine tuning of the hardware.

Me too i´m interested on the Warthog, and certainly want to buy it, even if i dont know to i will able to do it considering that in Argentina we have to pay extra 50% of price item plus shipment on import taxes! . But that´s a another story.

Thanks Nutty. It is good to hear that there is some substance to what has been teased. I am looking forward to the product launch - having been let down by the Logitech hardware and some of their design choices (no center dents on the trim/rotary dials and the 'mouse stick' being on the flight stick instead of the throttle). I would just stick to my CH set but the split throttle is such a nice option and the trim wheels, although lacking in center dents, meaning that I have to look at them to center them, is annoying.

I am looking forward to Thrustmaster's entry

Let me throw in my 'thanks' as well, Nutty. It's good of you to post a line or two here every once and awhile to let us know this project is proceeding, albeit slowly.


I don't know if you would be in the know, but has any progress been made towards some sort of programming for the MFD Cougar Pack?

I thought that most if not all Cougar users pimped their tick with the U2 Nxt gimbal mod. That way, the Cougar is perfect when it comes to handling and durability. No more wear and tear. The rest of Cougar doesn't really need any fixing, except for some repositioning of severa buttons, which is fairly easy.
I use mine for almost 7 years now and all i have to do is to change on of the U2 Nxt springs from time to time. They have a tendency to fail after a couple of months. Mostly the y-axis ones.

But nothing really competes with the Cougar! The Warthog will be my next choice but this time, i will wait after the release to see how it really performs and let others beta test this puppy.