oh no, it is most subjective, but to be understandable new kite must do better or at least must perform at same level your previous favorite kite didFaxie wrote:Define 'flying better'....
Is it 'objectively better in all aspects' of 'more to your taste'?
i can answer you in the same manner: ...feel good about your "cheap brand"... you have to justify the low price to others by praising its either imaginary high performance or build quality or whatever else qualities...Faxie wrote:You get what you pay for.... a lot of expensive demo days, alot of advertising in magazines, alot of expensive team riders, of lot of distributing/retailing ...
But shure, feel good about your 'top brand'.... you have to justify the high price for yourself off course
i know you are right about this. but how did i find it out? to know about it i had to buy the switch kite and just test them for free and see and touch the other brands kites on the test days organized by the retailers. because switches web site promise you heaven, but reality is different thing.Faxie wrote:Build quality is on par with North/Ozone/Core/Cabrinha, and better then for instance F-One/Slingshot/Naish (talking about overrated brands... )
I've owned 2 Bandits (3 and 4), and nursed them like babies (rinsing after almost every session, and checking for pinholes) just to have them both ripped in half after a pussy crash. So much for quality
yes, i liked the N1 speed on the flat, but otherwise it was big disappointment.Faxie wrote:Only thing I don't really like with the E V1 is the low wind performance. But on the other hand, the high end is great.
Why should I justify the low price? The quality and performance is not imaginaryeree wrote:oh no, it is most subjective, but to be understandable new kite must do better or at least must perform at same level your previous favorite kite didFaxie wrote:Define 'flying better'....
Is it 'objectively better in all aspects' of 'more to your taste'?
i can answer you in the same manner: ...feel good about your "cheap brand"... you have to justify the low price to others by praising its either imaginary high performance or build quality or whatever else qualities...Faxie wrote:You get what you pay for.... a lot of expensive demo days, alot of advertising in magazines, alot of expensive team riders, of lot of distributing/retailing ...
But shure, feel good about your 'top brand'.... you have to justify the high price for yourself off course
i know you are right about this. but how did i find it out? to know about it i had to buy the switch kite and just test them for free and see and touch the other brands kites on the test days organized by the retailers. because switches web site promise you heaven, but reality is different thing.Faxie wrote:Build quality is on par with North/Ozone/Core/Cabrinha, and better then for instance F-One/Slingshot/Naish (talking about overrated brands... )
I've owned 2 Bandits (3 and 4), and nursed them like babies (rinsing after almost every session, and checking for pinholes) just to have them both ripped in half after a pussy crash. So much for quality
yes, i liked the N1 speed on the flat, but otherwise it was big disappointment.Faxie wrote:Only thing I don't really like with the E V1 is the low wind performance. But on the other hand, the high end is great.
seams like everybody who has purchased the switch kite pretty quickly found some flaw(s) in it and sold it shortly.
in my opinion switch is manufacturing quality product, but they making too specialized kites for too narrow sector of the target groups. some times it is just schizophrenic - on the one side their kites are suitable mostly for light weight kiters, mostly beginners, on the other side bar pressure is too heavy and the kite handling is too complicated for the beginner.
they knew pulleys (and/or sliders) are not popular already when they started, but they still made kites with pulleys and later with sliders. it took them three generations (versions) of kites to find it out.
it took them generation to find out people don't like heavy bars and slow turning kites. how many generations there must past to them to understand they must make kites for every day kiters who kite at real world choppy water gusty wind kite spots? not for some pro riders at nice mirror-flat locations with steady winds in NZ... they narrow they target group for themselves. people who had to sell once purchased switch kite not prone to buy another one from them any time soon. they still showing on their map four "team riders" for my country, but i know for a fact that at least two of them are no longer ride or have switch kites. i liked switches business model. but i don't trust them any more.
so i say, if you are marketing your product only by on-line shop be at least honest about your product, have some responsibility, advertize your goods honestly. and you'll not regret it.
finally, about the pricing:
245€ for the paint-over switch bar? does not 35% rise sound a little steep for just 3g?
at that pace in a couple of years traditional brands don't have to worry about "low price" kites any more...
good luck...
Are you a "team rider" faxie? or are you a stoked guy who paid full retail for the kites? you sound like a "team rider".Faxie wrote:
Why should I justify the low price? The quality and performance is not imaginary
And you don't have to buy the kites to test them. If you do, that's a risk you take.
But they shouldn't keep raising the price, I agree. That way they will lose their benefits compared to other brands.
The CL of the bar is repainted (maybe lighter as well, but I'm not sure about that yet), and I think the organiser is the same as well. The rest is all brand new...
On a sidenote: An online only brand that still offers guarantee can't afford to sell crappy kites, because the costs for al the returns would be skyhigh.
And I like high bar pressure. Low pressure is for pussies
I wouldn't say slingshot build quality is overrated. Agree about F-one though.Faxie wrote: Build quality is on par with North/Ozone/Core/Cabrinha, and better then for instance F-One/Slingshot/Naish (talking about overrated brands... )
I've owned 2 Bandits (3 and 4), and nursed them like babies (rinsing after almost every session, and checking for pinholes) just to have them both ripped in half after a pussy crash. So much for quality
Well l am a Switch TR from the first moment they came in the picture.plummet wrote:Ok before I start this is not a Switch bashing exercise. Its an observation of what has happened at my local.
I have this theory that you pay for what you get. If its cheaper you sacrifice something to make it cheaper. Quality, performance and or service.
The Switch business model by its very nature means its service level is worse. Online companies cannot give the service level a bricks and mortar shop can provide.
When Switch was released a bunch of guys bought them at my local. For a while there it was the most common brand to see on the beach. Then one by one the guys that bought those kites sold them and replaced them with more a expensive kite from one of the top brands.
Intrigued by why these guys sold these kites typically after one season and went back to more expensive brands I asked the question. The typical answer was that their new kite flew so much better than the Switch It was worth paying the extra to get better performance.
On a side note. The kite brand I have seen torn to shreds by the wavesthe most is Switch kites. I put this down to the theory they newbies would tend to by switch Chasing a bargan, So there are more inexperienced people riding Switch kites. therefore they are more likely to crash/damage them.
So.... My theory still stands.
Low cost = a reduction in performance or quality and or service.
So from my observations there is a reduction in performance and a reduction in service.
Righto....
Are Siwtch getting better? Will they be like Hyundai? 10 years ago nobody wanted to by a Hyundai as there were low quality crappy cars. Now they are high quality and many people would want to buy one. But as the quality increased so has the price.
So here is my question to guys who have flown switch and compared them to other brands. What is your impression? is the next generation of switch kites better? is there still a performance gap.
Lastly. If you are a switch team rider and get discounted gear please remain silent. Your opinions will be bias. I want to here from guys who do not get a discount and have paid there hard earned cash at full price to buy these kites.
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