The Flytec Element
Flytec has announced that all Brauniger instruments are to be sold under the brand name Flytec from the end of 2014.
The two companies merged a decade ago, but continued to sell the same or very similar products, just under different brand names.
However, under new head honcho Joerg Ewald the focus of the company will be all Flytec.
The company said in a statement: “From the end of 2014 onwards, all new products will be introduced under the name Flytec. The current Bräuniger devices which are kept in stock will remain available under their old name. We are taking this step to bundle our resources and put them behind a single brand to strengthen it.”
They added: “Nothing will change for our vendors and pilots, however: They will keep their old contacts and commercial processes and can expect the prevailing high standards of quality and service from us.”
Flytec have also revealed their new flight instrument, the Element. Based on the Flytec 6015 the company has “completely reworked” the instrument. They said:
• Starting on the outside: Same casing, but more colours. To start, we will offer the Element in four colour combinations. The decision which ones we will produce in the long run will be up to you and your customers.
• New keyboard design, with simpler labels and using a new technology that makes the keys easier to feel, even with gloves on.
• Screen clean-up: We removed unnecessary information to gain more space for important data, especially the direction indicator.
• New Micro USB connector, after connecting the Element to any computer (Windows PC, Mac with OS X, Linux PC) it becomes immediately available as a mass storage device, without any installation. With that comes standard file-based data exchange.
• Now for the inner values: The new USB interface brings an increase of computing power that can be used for new and improved functionality:
◦ Simplified operation with fully written-out menu options
◦ Flight data as IGC or Google Earth files straight after landing
◦ Simple airspace warning with direction and distance information
◦ Waypoints, airspaces and software updates can be directly copied onto the device
◦ Optimised route guidance for competition tasks
◦ GPS altitude above groundThe improved USB interface is already a big progress compared to the IQ Basic GPS / Flytec 6015, so we will launch the Element very soon. Some of the new functions listed above will then be released as software updates over the following months.
The price for the Flytec Element will be in the same range as the Flytec 6015 / Bräuniger IQ Basic GPS As soon as we are able to provide you with specific delivery confirmations, we will inform you again. We think this will already be the case in early November.
The company also revealed a new use for its Sensbox – displaying flight data on videos:
“It is well known that the SensBox works perfectly in combination with several iPhone and Android apps. But only a few pilots realise so far that the SensBox can also be used without connection to a smart phone, as a stand-alone vario with IGC recording – this makes the SensBox a perfect backup or hike&fly instrument. Almost unknown is the fact that the SensBox is also a first class data logger for a huge number of interesting sensor values. This is an area where we see a use that could interest many people also outside the free flying scene: Data collection for outdoor videos.”
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