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Notice From Autel About Controllers and Compatibility in the Future

Just spotted this on FB. I have no reason to believe it isn't valid and it was confirmed by a reliable 2nd party.

"Autel V2 Product Announcement

Dear Supporters,
In order to stay true to Autel Robotics’ commitment to transparency, this notice is to inform you of a few changes coming as a result of the well- documented global chip shortage.
Due to the shortage, we will be unable to produce more of the current version of our EVO II platforms, Smart Controllers, and Live Deck. As a result, we will be releasing a second version of these platforms in the upcoming months. Unfortunately, this means Version 1 aircraft will not work with Version 2 controllers and vice versa, although batteries will remain cross-compatible.

Though brought on by necessity, this change gives us an opportunity to improve on our product. The new version will provide increased transmission stability, significantly enhancing the user experience. It will also enable us to create a more sustainable supply chain so we can continue to get our tools into the hands of those who rely on them.

With this new development in mind, only a limited number of Version 1 Smart Controllers will be manufactured. These will be distributed on a first come, first served basis. If you have any further questions, please reach out to our team at [email protected].

Thank you for your support and understanding. We will do our best to remedy the situation as quickly as possible."
I bought mine 4 months ago and hope they will have an upgrade plan even if for a fee so I can get upgraded.
 
That's pretty much what I said in my reply to his reply since he wanted to know what exactly my concerns were. I want to be reassured I can keep my E2 in the air for years to come with parts available.
This, to me, is a far more serious issue than the smart controller one poses. We don't have those in our hands yet. If our current RCs cannot be replaced when the battery or antennas break, etc, we are all screwed.
There is no way they will not honor the warranty on the V1s. Worst case senerio they will upgrade you to a V2 and if you have a V1 SC chances are they will upgrade you there too and resell the V1 or use it for parts.
I just called autel and asked this question, and they said they don't have an answer on if the standard remote will continue to be available, or what happens if one is not available. They did say expect more communications soon as the management team is trying to figure all of it out.
 
<SNIP>
Its good to see that the New Autel CEO has posted here. Remember that this is NOT an authorized Autel forum. (if it actually is him, he didn't sign the post with his name)

As @PingSpike pointed out, there is no proof that the poster is in fact Randall Wardas. Even if an admin were to verify that the IP address is from Bothal WA, that still does not disprove that PR personnel posted that... really, how many company CEOs being paid thousands per hour would directly engage a few hundred upset customers. And I quote a few hundred, as a figure based on the number of active posters there are here... active as defined by posting here more than once a week. If there is only 5400 total members, there is probably less than 200 "active" posters.

We need to be assured that the standard Autel RC for the Evo II will continue to be made available for our "V1" Evo II drones and will not be affected by this chip shortage. If the chip shortage will affect the current RC, and Autel comes out with a V2 RC that ONLY WORKS WITH THE V2 MODELS, and discontinues the "V1" RC, then that will be a huge issue, making our current drones obsolete if we need replacement parts. I hope this is not the case.

^^^^
THIS
 
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I just want plug and play ……
As a hobbyist, I just sit back and shake my head, been flying now since Dec. with just the lowly RC that came in the box. It helps being myopic though, no reading glasses required ;)
 
As a hobbyist, I just sit back and shake my head, been flying now since Dec. with just the lowly RC that came in the box. It helps being myopic though, no reading glasses required ;)
So you only fly with the 3" screen? You've got better eyes than mine... myopic helps to be sure, but at some point, presbyopia counteracts that advantage... especially over 60 years old.
 
Brief update: I tried to reach Randall by phone but could only get to customer support. Autel Robotics is working on this issue, understand concerns and are working to communicate an update to the community when they have something else to share; they are interested in preserving trust. They also said Randall had posted to Facebook over the past week, but I've not found those posts yet. If anyone finds them, please do share.

As always, thank you for constructively sharing you concerns and ideas.

Regards,
Marc
 
I hope Autel gives everyone like me that bought the V1 of the EVO 2 Pro a chance to upgrade to the V2 through an exchange - once the V2 is out I dont see that supporting 2 different versions of the same product will last very long nor will it be economically feasible for Autel to do so. I purchased mine directly from Autel and paid top dollar last year. Giving us a chance to exchange/upgrde (even if there's a nominal upgrade fee) is the very least Autel could do to make things right with their loyal customer base. If they dont every you-tuber out there is going to have a field day at Autel's expense - and rightly so. Autel's customer base is small compared to DJI - I dont think Autel can afford to make a wrong move on this issue. They need to stand by their product anf their customers and do what's right.

I think an equitable exchange is the only option - the resale value of any V1 out there will crater once the new V2 comes out. (V1 will be looked at as the inferior "soon to be unsupported" version)

All of us will be watching what Autel does very closely.
 
We are working to get through our ticketing of emails, chats, PMs, voicemails, etc as quickly as possible. Yesterday's announcement has sure created a huge spike in communications for our team regarding the Autel Robotics servicing of our business, and rightfully so. Hopefully you have now been in communication with a member of our team. If you have not heard from someone, PM us on the forum and we'll be happy to provide any clarity needed.

We as a dealer unfortunately have no ability to discount in this situation as 1) margins are extremely thin, 2) Autel has pricing policies and procedures that we strictly adhere to, 3) demand on the limited supply of Smart Controller (V1) has increased substantially since yesterday's announcement and supply is known to be limited. Maybe you were implying Autel in this message, yes it would be nice to see, but doubtful and would not be expected, could they make it up elsewhere to the user base, absolutely!
Yes I absolutely meant Autel should reduce the price even take a loss since the perceived value is way less now with no future they should consider an”instant “ rebate since those who ordered are likely the most dedicated fan base and deserve a little better treatment than bait and switch. I have had email responses from Matt over the weekend addressing the announcement so as mentioned above no better customer service then you guys hopefully Autel will get the straight and ship it soon. And lest we forget DJI changed the Phantom 4Pro protocol and made a V2 I don’t remember the outrage but there it was only one drone line abd I believe the smart controller would do both
 
I qualify!
I like the Idea of V2 being an "uprgrade", send in your V1, swap some guts, calibrate, ship. the airframe appears ready built for the concept
I like that idea too. Of course this would require a new controller as well or a retrofit of the original V1 RC. Probably a firmware upgrade too. If they only sold 5K Evo 2's; this would be a huge undertaking by the company. I don't see that happening.

Perhaps a trade-in program up to a certain date. They could accept all the old ones, ship them back to China for their workers to swap parts, then sell worldwide as a refurb. The question is how much would we get for our trade-in's?
 
I hope Autel gives everyone like me that bought the V1 of the EVO 2 Pro a chance to upgrade to the V2 through an exchange - once the V2 is out I dont see that supporting 2 different versions of the same product will last very long nor will it be economically feasible for Autel to do so. I purchased mine directly from Autel and paid top dollar last year. Giving us a chance to exchange/upgrde (even if there's a nominal upgrade fee) is the very least Autel could do to make things right with their loyal customer base. If they dont every you-tuber out there is going to have a field day at Autel's expense - and rightly so. Autel's customer base is small compared to DJI - I dont think Autel can afford to make a wrong move on this issue. They need to stand by their product anf their customers and do what's right.

I think an equitable exchange is the only option - the resale value of any V1 out there will crater once the new V2 comes out. (V1 will be looked at as the inferior "soon to be unsupported" version)

All of us will be watching what Autel does very closely.
I hear you. A good share of a valid point of view for certain. I trust they're considering consumers like you and everyone else that's lit this topic on fire. I want Autel Robotics to win with a Smart Controller that works with what we have and the products they will release as was the plan; I hope that's what they've been discussing at depth today. Then I'll be happy to throw more of my $ to buy Autel Robotics drones that work with that controller (which certainly specs out to be nicer than my DJI Smart controller which I enjoy for all it's provided) and I'll gladly advocate for a company that delivers on a promise and continues to deliver great product.
 
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I doubt Randall is the problem here. He could very well be Autel's fallboy here. Lets give him credit for the work he's probably had his first couple of weeks with Autel. The simple fact he is sending more than one sentence responses to many of our concerns is proof he's aware and understands the issues surrounding our concerns. We still don't know much. It could very much pan out that V1 is more desirable. Perhaps more secure, perhaps grandfathered against future drone registration issues. The biggest issue I see is V1 flyers who want a SC but can't get one due to limited supply.
 
Note to whom it may concern at Autel:

In the future I will either purchase alot of your products, or none at all. There will be no middle ground. Which path I choose depends upon YOUR actions and on their timeliness - I will no longer wait for "promises" that don't materialize or put up with planned obsolescence. The ball is in YOUR court. I'm only one small customer, but I think many more share this opinion.
Amen. Well said.
 
I doubt Randall is the problem here. He could very well be Autel's fallboy here. Lets give him credit for the work he's probably had his first couple of weeks with Autel. The simple fact he is sending more than one sentence responses to many of our concerns is proof he's aware and understands the issues surrounding our concerns. We still don't know much. It could very much pan out that V1 is more desirable. Perhaps more secure, perhaps grandfathered against future drone registration issues. The biggest issue I see is V1 flyers who want a SC but can't get one due to limited supply.
I suspect Randall inherited this; it happens. I have a boatload of unbelievable stories I'm glad are in the past (that were do or die to manage through). Great to reflect on, not so awesome to go through.

I also suspect we'll get a bunch more communication from Autel Robotics; they are aware of the many ongoing discussions.
 
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If most of us get v1 sc, you might see a healthy supply of rc's on the market. You hate Autel so stop depending on them to make life good for you. if I like my sc, I will keep my v1 rc and make it available to you so you won't have to deal with "them." If your 1.5 year old rc breaks (which it won't) out of warranty and Autel won't sell you a new replacement v1 rc for $288 or repair your "obsolete" v1 rc for $400, don't risk getting a v2 sent to you and find me and I'll have a 0.5 year old rc for you for $199+. if you go thru more than 2 rcs during this crisis, we'll that's on you. :)
 
Conspiracy Theory #1) I find it hard to believe that none of the dealers were aware of "somehting happening" the days before the fire-sale began 3 weeks ago,

Comment on marketing: What if they simply called this Evo 2 V2 an EVO 3 ?? I would bet the uproar would be WAY LESS. I think that was a BIG marketing mistake. Since the V2 won't be out for "months" they should have announced an "EVO 3 coming soon in the 4th quarter" which was expected anyway.

Comment on Resale Value: Thinking about it, since so many pros have so much invested in the V1's one would think they would be buying up used ones for backup.
 
Conspiracy Theory #1) I find it hard to believe that none of the dealers were aware of "somehting happening" the days before the fire-sale began 3 weeks ago,

Comment on marketing: What if they simply called this Evo 2 V2 an EVO 3 ?? I would bet the uproar would be WAY LESS. I think that was a BIG marketing mistake. Since the V2 won't be out for "months" they should have announced an "EVO 3 coming soon in the 4th quarter" which was expected anyway.

Comment on Resale Value: Thinking about it, since so many pros have so much invested in the V1's one would think they would be buying up used ones for backup.
I don't know where you heard an E3 was expected in Q4 but as far as I know the lifespan of the E2 was expected to last 3 years much like the Mavic 2 Pro.
 
..the official Autel distributor for Italy is returning the pre-order money, the smart controllers for the current version of EVO2 will never arrive due to the impossibility of solving some technical problems .. so they say ...
 
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Conspiracy Theory #1) I find it hard to believe that none of the dealers were aware of "somehting happening" the days before the fire-sale began 3 weeks ago,

Comment on marketing: What if they simply called this Evo 2 V2 an EVO 3 ?? I would bet the uproar would be WAY LESS. I think that was a BIG marketing mistake. Since the V2 won't be out for "months" they should have announced an "EVO 3 coming soon in the 4th quarter" which was expected anyway.

Comment on Resale Value: Thinking about it, since so many pros have so much invested in the V1's one would think they would be buying up used ones for backup.
it's not going to be called Evo 2 V2. it's going to be called what it really is: Evo 2.
 
  • Wow
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.. in my opinion there would be a solution that would allow Autel not to lose credibility and get out of the corner, provide the new controller combined with a new naked version aircraft, without all easily removable parts, without batteries, without camera , without propellers, at a very affordable promotional price. It would be bought only by the owners of the previous version, it would not be convenient for new buyers ... with this initiative they would save face and would not lose the market, on the contrary they would increase it ...
 

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