Once upon a time, there was a Japanese company that introduced a
most revolutionary product. This company was quite a bit
smaller than its competitors.
This product was small, lightweight and possessed ergonomics
that were beyond that of the brethren. Manufactured by the tens
of thousands, the product became well known for the ability to
perform very well on a limited budget. As I said, it was much
smaller, lighter and faster than the competiton. None of the
other Japanese companies produced anything like it as this was
modelled more after a German one than Japanese.
Through the years they upgraded the product and kept improving
features and performance. Aftermarket companies produced
accessories for it.
But, alas, the company changed its focus. It no longer wanted
to be competitive in this area. The American market dried up as
the buyers were into BIG! The feature and size war was lost.
Nobody was buying performance. By 1993, the writing was on the
wall. They kept raising the price of the product as sales went
down. The more they raised the price, the fewer were sold.
Eventually, they just stopped bringing them into the USA. The
glory days of the '80s were finished.
Finally, this company figures that it wants to be back in the
game again. But loyalties have shifted. It will take a
completely new revolution to succeed a second time. But this
company has abandoned the old buyers buy not making it backward
compatible. It even has a new name! Yes, they also added a lot
of bulk. There are more doors on this than you can imagine.
The old engineering team is long gone. It's a new day, a new
product. But is this new product too little, too late? Is it
way underpowered? Is it too heavy? It has too many "features"
and not enough purity in design. This appears to be a
compromising product.
But still, as I went to the store, I drooled. I can't wait to
fire one up. Even my wife likes it because of the "practical"
applications. The grip looks to be positioned just right and
all necessary controls right at your fingertips. The new
digital display will take some getting used to.
If I wait a year or so, I might pick up a used one. Or maybe
they will have a new upgraded one that performs better. But
just like the old products, it allows for aftermarket products
to be fitted to it.
I'll take it in Yellow!
AG-Schnozz
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