The New FrSky Taranis X7 Review and comparison with FrSky Taranis X9D plus

I've had my FrSky Taranis X9D plus for almost two years now. And I love it because it's reliable and has all the features I need. I have done a few Mods to it as well. Like the breaking off the antenna accidentally and having to replace it so might as well do the SMA screw on antenna Mod. I am also a thumb flier so I have installed a set of aluminum thumb end sticks. I had heard the Taranis X7 was going to be cross compatible with the Taranis X9D so i was excited to try it.

When I finally picked it up I was surprised how light it was. At first glance you notice the angular design and think how comfortable can that be? Pick it up and I didn't feel those angles very much because I was gripping these nice rubber grips in the back. My model came with both sticks spring centered and you can chose either mode through the menu. It was easy to open the unit with 4 screws and release the spring on the throttle gimbal and tighten the tension on all axis. While it was open I noticed how easy it would be to Mod the antenna as well. 

I put it back together and noticed it runs on OpenTX 2.2, It was easy to connect to Companion 2.2 and has a slot for an SD card. It has six switches and two knobs. Top left is a two way, top right is a momentary, and the four front are three way. The menu system is just like the Taranis X9D, even the pages are the same. The models don't get to display any images but that's not really necessary now is it. Has all the same telemetry screens and up to three timers can be set as well. All the same haptic, sound and voice features as the Taranis X9D plus . Navigation is much easier with the rotary knob and push center button. The center soft switch turns on with a quick press and to turn it off you must hold it down for three seconds. The gimbals feel very much like the X9D plus gimbals and I've heard that FrSky is coming out with an M9 magnetic gimbal upgrade for the Taranis X9D and I feel it will fit the Taranis X7 as well.

Of course it has a module bay for if you want to use a long range system or other RX protocols. Has a two cell balance port and comes with the usual NiMH FrSky battery. I feel this is a great inexpensive transmitter packed full of features, it has great potential for modification and endless customizable options.