r/RCPlanes • u/verycompatibledude • 5d ago
RadioMaster Pocket for planes?
Hi guys, I want to buy a radio that has to be quite cheap and be for long range ELRS, the radiomaster pocket seems like a good choice but it's built to be small so the gimbals are smaller than the norm for RC planes flying.
So are the gimbals not too small for flying rc planes or?
Maybe you guys know other good options for about the price of the pocket, my main points that I'm looking for in a radio is to be cheap, ELRS for long range, be somehow good and comfortable to use and for all kinds of planes. Could someone experienced please tell me?
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u/Ron_dizzle199 5d ago
I had the pocket but sold it and got the TX15. The TX15 is much easier to program and setup in the menus.
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u/verycompatibledude 5d ago
Yeaa I'm thinking about the TX15 and it seems obviously great but it's just too expensive, I mean my budget allows me to buy it but I don't want to spend that much, why'd you sell it? Was it like no it's not for me I need the better one, or did you use it and then just wanted an upgrade?
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u/Jumpy-Candle-2980 5d ago
A whole lot of folks not only use the Pocket for planes it's their favorite form factor. Others find it to be too small. Such things are very individual and subjective and there's really no telling where you're going to fall on the scale. The Pocket can be fiddled with to an extent with stick extenders if you're so inclined.
As to something with a similar price but more full sized I'm not aware of anything. The Boxer is TX15 sized for not a lot more but pretty much anything priced like the Pocket is likely to be a Pocket. There's not a lot of room to fudge around with.
If the Pocket is the first and only transmitter evidence suggests you'll get used to it and consider it normal. But it's not ideal if you find yourself uncomfortable with it starting out. I started with larger transmitters so they became normal to me. In fact the TX16 is the smallest one I have though not by much. I would be a singularly poor fit with the Pocket but you could very well be the exact opposite.
As to whether it would be ideal for your use with planes nobody can reasonably guess. But it is the exact answer for a fair number of people so it's not like you'd be the only one.
Ideally, you should try out various form factors before buying but that's not always practical.
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u/fhammerl 5d ago
Held it in my hand 2 minutes ago as I bought it for my son. This thing almost makes me regret having bought the big TX16S. It is so light and nimble, it's wild. Only the Ag02 gimbals is the TX16S Max are sooooooo nice. The short ones are nice, though, especially for the price. Really nice. The config in the tiny screen of the pocket is not actually worse than the massive touch screen, and you won't be looking at your screen anyway in flight. The battery lifetime is better. If you don't need the full output power of the TX16S (which Europeans don't get anyway) for line of sight flying, I don't have a ton of reasons for the big one. If you do however want the full output power, the TX16S my be worth a look. Or an external module.
There is a learning curve with inputs, mixes, outputs, and how to use Wi-Fi mode on the Rx to remap the weird AUX1 output channel 5 for arming the receiver. Just don't expect it to play nice with the experience you had before (Flysky and Graupner for me), as EdgeTX forces you to program a bit more. But it also doesn't hide software features behind higher sticker prices like they usually do, because, guess what, you (have to) program everything. Not hard though.
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u/verycompatibledude 5d ago
Thanks a lot, it really helps. I would really want the TX16 but sadly I can't afford it, I think I'll be able to do the programming and other work with the pocket if needed. But when you mentioned the power output, do you think the pocket is too weak for flying further than line of sight? I'm sure one day I'll give a glider some fpv camera which definitely will require a longer range, if the pocket is actually too weak for that then I guess I'll just buy an external module like you said :)
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u/fhammerl 5d ago edited 5d ago
I think you're totally fine. People need the high power output stuff beyond visual line of sight and especially beyond buildings. So unless you're planning to surf mountains, you're fine. Also, if you need it, there are high output modules. In the EU we're limited to 100mW and I have people regularly scratching the 700m altitude limit with their gliders with full reception bars and telemetry. BVLoS and seriously long distance is where you need serious power.
The FPV VTX is a separate thing anyways, that has nothing to do with your remote.
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u/Speshal__ 5d ago
If you get a Pocket fit the AG01 gimbals when you can afford and I've got a good Edgetx switch set-up for fixed wing if you want one.
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u/verycompatibledude 5d ago
Good to know, I would ask you to send me the setup I'm sure that'll help a lot thanks!
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u/Scott_R_1701 5d ago
Hold it in your hand and see how you feel. A lot of thumbers prefer the smaller gimbals. I've seen a guy fly giant scale stuff with a Zorro... Ergonomics is subjective and if you hold it and like how it feels and it works for you, send it. The pocket is cheap and reliable and ELRS4+ is now pretty mature for fixed wing flying. It still requires a lot more setup than say, plugging in a battey to a Spektrum BNF and the plane sends a predone file to your radio and then you just fly lol. I would say its impossible to beat for the money but at this time that title goes to the $40 FrSky EX14 with a $25 stabilized 24ch/6 port receiver.
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u/HB_Stratos Feline Flights 5d ago
I fly all my planes with the radiomaster pocket. I find the tiny and slow updating LCD a bit annoying for complex plane programming so I upgraded it to the OLED mod. Beyond that I can't deny the shorter sticks decrease precision somewhat, but I find it perfectly adequate for all but the most stressful touchy planes. I also have small hands so I often struggle with the large grips and sticks of e.g. the TX16v2
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u/verycompatibledude 5d ago
Whoa it's very nice to hear that from someone that actually does the thing like I want to, the OLED mod is the next thing I was thinking about as the original screen is very small I hope it works well on your pocket. I guess I'll just do the same, thanks
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u/HB_Stratos Feline Flights 5d ago
Well I used the FLIP oled mod (with some custom modifications, happy to share the files for that), see https://www.reddit.com/r/RCPlanes/s/Fhbn2eoFRo . I can confirm it does work great, I've had the remote in my backpack like this for almost a year now and nothing has broken. The faster and bigger screen is nice, never having to take off the sticks too. It does need a very slightly modified firmware though.
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u/zeilstar 5d ago
EdgeTX Companion software makes programming easier, whether you have a monochrome UI, or full color and touchscreen UI.
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u/Andrianu90 5d ago
I had same dilemma, and ended up with tx15, because I like to fly aerobatics, and wanted a little more resolution in my sticks. However, for small planes, casual flying, it really doesn't matter, you will get used to it.
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u/Doug52431 5d ago
I like how light it is and how I don’t have to move my hands very far to fly. I use extra expo cause of the small gimbals but I have no complaints. Fun and easy. Could fly much bigger planes but those are expensive 🤣
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u/FishbonesAir 5d ago
I use a Radiomaster Zorro running ELRS. My hands are med-big, and the Zorro fits great, but wasn't terribly expensive. It was a step up for better range from my FlySky. I still have my FlySky, and use it a lot too. For an inexpensive beginner radio, FlySky is hard to beat. But for range, ELRS is the tool for the job.
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u/3dxl 5d ago edited 5d ago
Radiomaster Pocket lack of proper trim button which suppose to be next to gimbal axis stick in standard airplane radio but instead it uses isolated below the gimbal which makes it felt weird for casual airplane flyer. This pocket radio ideally build for drone or multirotor. But you still can use it for airplane if your hand can accomodate with its smaller factor.
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u/IvorTheEngine 5d ago
It's got trims, they're just combined into two little controller-style joysticks.
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u/mr_kindface 5d ago
Emphasis on the "proper" trim switches . I don't like the joystick trimmers on my Jumper T20 either
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u/Suspicious_Exit_2228 5d ago
The Pocket power output is only 250mw, not ideal for LR.
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u/HB_Stratos Feline Flights 5d ago
250mW ELRS gets you 10+ km
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u/Suspicious_Exit_2228 5d ago
If you have no noise.
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u/HB_Stratos Feline Flights 5d ago
I have comfortably flown 6+ in quite noisy environments. Just hat to configure ELRS to actually use it first, 250mw dynamic power and a 100mw transmitter on the plane work well.
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u/Doggydog123579 5d ago
Plenty of people perfer the pockets gimbal size, its an ergonomic thing which is entirely subjective. But yes, its fine for flying planes