Nice CDU hardware image.

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I have just asked FDS forums if this CDU is compatible with PMDG models, as the driver has been provisionally coded for PM only. It is plug and play USB and is 600USD.

[Guest aarskringspier]

Oh my Lord that would be awesome for the PMDG and LD. I want it.

[Guest mc.kar]

Looks very nice.However...600U$...the price is also up there.But I guess the price is fair given the amount of work that goes into a unit like that not withstanding the fact that there is probably only a limited number of simmers that would want to buy it.I have my own CDU in the pipeline now. I expect that will tick in at about 120U$. However thats including an MCP and a OHP (albeit limited) and 5 rotary encoders. But admitted it will not have the same finish as the units you buy.Lets hear how it goes if anyone buys these units.Best regards

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I recieved this response from a cockpit builder at the FDS Forum reference the CDU being compatible with PMDG........The problem is that the PMDG developers do NOT cooperate. Unless they get a share of the profit.... And i dont think Peter is making very much money on the CDU's at this price. I really dont understand PMDG. Theres many hardware developers that would like to cooperate with PMDG. Many cockpit builders would love to drive their overhead with hardware switches. But noone ever got even a bit of cooperation from them. Stef

[Guest UlfB]

That's right, Stef!And I don't think PMDG is making very much money on the PMDG 737NG at that price, either ;-) The final combination of hardware and the PMDG 737NG means added value. Profits need to be shared. That's all. PMDG to greedy? The market will be the judge in the long run. So far I'll place my bet on PMDGUlf B :-)

[Guest aarskringspier]

By marketing that product as compatible with PMDG, in essence makiing that a selling point then yes, PMDG more than deserves some profit taking. That is simple business, and absolutley nothing wrong with it.

[Guest cw1011]

I have to agree. The market for that piece of equipment is very, very small. I can fully understand PMDG's stance if compatibility will require a great deal of coding and effort on their part. There is greater return on that work on other projects for the plane maker.

[Guest]

OTOH if someone creates hardware that works with PMDG software than maybe, just maybe, that software will sell more...So maybe the hardware vendor than also deserves a share in the profit on the software...Your argument cuts both ways, levelling out.Maybe they should just cooperate in the hope that both sell more like many companies do on joint ventures? That's how it works in the real world more often than not.

[Guest aarskringspier]

Ill buy the software regardless. If my CH yoke wasnt compatible with PMDG I would have still bought the airplane. The fact that that FMS is made to be compatible with PMDG would be a much, MUCH bigger selling point for the FMS than for PMDG.

[Guest mc.kar]

>The problem is that the PMDG developers do NOT cooperate.>Unless they get a share of the profit.... >And i dont think Peter is making very much money on the CDU's>at this price. ...woooooh...easy on the throttles here...lolWe are talking about implementing a hardware (HW) gimmick into a software (SW) with the twist that the HW has entered the market AFTER the SW in question was released. I would say it would be a little unfair for SW developers if they had to reengineer the SW everytime a new piece of HW hit the market. It is actually what the PMDG is being asked to do here and that is off course not acceptable for for a profitbased organisation.Also consider that the SW basis for the currrent 737NG version was laid some years ago (I bought my first 737 in sept. 2003 - and it had been out for a while then). At that time there wasnt the great focus on home cockpit builders as there are today.I have noted that PMDG have said with the upcomming 747-400 they will cater more for home cockpit builders and to me that sounds promising. Hopefully we will see a trend where developers of advanced addons will release a SDK much along the line of another currently sold addon whuch here shall remain nameless :-). With such SDKs for addons like this it gives the right people an opportunity to interface into the advanced systems.Finally it must also be mentioned that PMDG currently is almost on a daily basis requested for a release date for the current project. I take that the people asking for this has the underlaying opinion is that the release of the 747-400 only can be to slow. So...if PMDG were to develop interfaces to HW that would come out of other projects...and would we want that?As always...this is only my 10C opinion... But I think that is a little unfair to slash PMDG the way that it is done by the writer of the post above.Best regardsMichael Christiansen, Karup - Denmark

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In reference to the new 737ng MCP released by FDSQuote[Mind though that it only works in cooperation with Project Magenta. It doesn not work with Add Ons like PMDG 737 (we all know how secretive they are with their offsets). The CPflight MCP can be patched to work with PMDG though, so maybe the G1 can be patched in the future too ?]