I’m pleased to announce the new APM 2.0 revision, better known as APM2.5!
But before you start screaming that you just got an APM 2.0, let me explain that there’s NO difference in performance at all between the two, the board is still the same in terms of functionally and it runs exactly the same code as APM 2.0. We just took the liberty of throwing in a few new universal connectors in there (so accessories can be cross compatible with the new PX4 and protect the user from connecting the cable in the wrong direction), some production improvements that will allows to manufacture it faster and finally we added some protection features to protect it from those reverse polarity/short circuit lovers.
Here goes the full list of changes (you already know all its features):
- No more shield/daughterboard: magnetometer and dataflash were moved to the main board, making it easier to assemble, repair and hack.
- No more on-board GPS, but we added a new 6-pins DF13 connector for our new GPS cable standard (PX4) and kept the old but reliable Molex (EM-406) connector for old GPS compatibility.
- The old radio-modem connector is gone and now is being replaced by our new 6-pins DF13 connector (like the GPS, because both are UART’s. Got it?), this will make it compatible with PX4 and prevents users from blowing up the UART mux.
- We added a second protection fuse and diode (you are no longer required to solder it yourself) for extra reverse polarity and short circuit protection.
- The old I2C connector is gone and has been replaced by our new 4-pins DF13 connector (yeah PX4 compatible. Oh wait correction… None of both (PX4 & APM2.5) are compatible with each other, we created this standard together as a team, but I have to give the average of the credits to PX4).
- Added a “mystery” 6-pin DF13 Connector that will be used later. I know you like surprises so please stay tuned. No big deal but is really cool and will save you some soldering here and there.
- Added “Magnetometer Jumper” that allows you to disable the on-board magnetometer, so you can attach an external one.
- Added extra LED attached to the PPM encoder (Atmega32-U2) on pin PC7. This will allows us later to use it as PPM status indication and leave those poor TX/RX LED’s do their intended job.
Those who ordered the APM2.0 and are still waiting for it (only if is not shipped yet) will have the option to upgrade to the new APM2.5, but you will be required to wait an extra couple of weeks for production to begin. For upgrades please send us an email to sales@3drobotics.com.
If you want to order one now you can get the assembled version here and the unassembled version here (for those who want their choice of RC connector: straight or right-angled). They will begin shipping in a week or so, but if there is a huge flood of orders, the backlog for any individual order may grow to 2-4 weeks. We're making them at the new Tijuana facility, so we hope that we'll be able to keep up with demand much better than we have in the past. We're committed to shrinking all delays, and our investment in the Tijuana facility is just one sign of this.
The APM 2.0 enclosures will not fit this new board, so new enclosures are on their way. If you buy an APM 2.5 now, you will get a $4.99 credit for a free enclosure with your next order (the enclosures should be in in about a month). Also, APM 2.5 will ship with an adapter cable for the 3DR/Xbee radios, converting from the APM 2.5 DF13 connector to the radios' conventional 6-pin connectors. Eagle files for the boards will be posted in the next few days.
Comments
George: Yes, we've said it many times, but I'll say it again: we're on 12-month product cycle, with six month incremental releases.
So you get a unitary release (legacy, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0) towards the end of each year and incremental releases (legacy shield, APM 1.4/2560, 2.5, etc) in mid-year. We've been on more-or-less the same cycle for years, dating back to the original legacy Ardupilot. and APM 2.5 is almost to day on the six-month roadmap.
If that's too fast for people, we encourage them to skip generations. We aim to officially support retired product lines with the latest code for at least one year, and the community normally takes over support after that to extend their life even further.
So, to be clear, APM 3.0 will probably come out around the end of the year. Some people may choose to wait for that, but since it's a radical platform shift (to the ARM processor), full code support may not come until later. Other people would rather just fly with a stable platform now, and for them APM 2.5 is a better choice.
Gee wiz......... Just had to check me avatar and make sure I was on DIYD forum and not RCG.
I'm sure I read a product timeline statement (sorry the fancy names escapes me) around the the time of release of the APM2.0 which described pretty much what is happening now. Or did I just dream that?
Tony, this is the quote from the post above:
I don't think it's really unethical to give the customer an improved product, but looks like they will give customers the choice.
My understanding is that $199 comes with the MediaTek GPS, as see here:
The uBlox is an ungraded GPS, so it would cost more. Maybe Chris or Jordi, might want to clarify this.
As for customer service, and already mentioned, not sure if you can get the Apple CEO to respond to you about a product inquiry these days. Don't misconstrue what I say to be any kind of official 3DR statement. I don't work for them, and nothing I say is meant to be representing them. I am a user and customer, like you.
Tony - you are right, of course, 3DR has had some growing pains, in large part due to the extraordinary growth of the community/market. And the (production challenges of the) APM2 has also played an unexpectedly large part in that. All the more reason to rejoice at the introduction of the APM2.5. The 3DR native customer service has also been problematic for reasons I cannot explain, even if I, myself, try to be sympathetic and patient. I try to never contact them, if I can avoid it, mainly because I believe they are buried in requests from others, and I can usually fix any issue I have myself, eventually. The one time I did contact them, it took so long to get any answer, I ended up fixing the issue myself even then.
Look, I think the fact that the bulk of these projects and community include thousands of members who are willing to help for free, spend hours diagnosing, fixing, contributing... I think that shaped the priorities of 3DR. I also think that, unfortunately, scaling issues with NING, the technology behind this Web site, has recently hampered a lot of the volunteers to see and help one another. But that doesn't address your concerns, even if I think it has an impact. I suspect 3DR has seen a rise in support requests over the last two months that have outpaced their projected and observed growth... due to ning scaling issues impacting on community help and because of various unexpected challenges with APM2.0 design and production.
On one tangent I would have to slightly disagree with Dr Chan. I don't think it is insulting at all to compare DIYDrones to Apple. Not accurate, perhaps, but ironically in this case, it is a good fit. Apple routinely releases product updates that are improvements over existing products, and almost always does so at the same price points or at reduced price points. Where they are different is that Apple *does* typically work on the product for months, plan the releases to maximize marking impact, and go to extraordinary lengths to keep the updates secret until they are announced. 3DR just works on it quietly until something can be released, and they releases it, with little or no time between....
As someone who's been following the APM 2.0, and with no commercial interest in it, I've had a feeling that a revised APM 2.0 was bound to be in the works. Even the APM 1.0 had a post release revision. There were a lot of nagging issues with APM 2.0. One was the GPS mounting, which this revision addresses.
As for deciding which to order, it really is not in the hands of the consumer. As, Chris, and Jordi mentioned, backorders of APM 2.0 are going to receive APM 2.5, as soon as it was ready for prime time. I don't think they will ship APM2.0, if APM2.5 are available. Unlike Apple, I'm sure 3DR does not keep large amounts of inventory, for cost reasons, so they are not trying to sell you obsolete hardware, if better stuff is available.
Unlike Apple, 3DR is not charging a premium for the next generation. In fact, the price is dropping. APM 2.0 is cheaper than the APM 1.0, and the APM 2.5 is improved with no price hike. Please don't compare a product, like the APM and a company like 3DR to the likes of Apple. It's a bit insulting, imho.
Tony: It isn't my place to say, but you'd be amazed what the members of this community pull off in just days. I've told you already, but you didn't believe me, so it is not hyperbole to say "you wouldn't believe me if I told you." Rather, it would be redundant. If you don't want your APM2.0, put it up for sale on Buy, Sell, Trade. Someone will buy it, I haven't seen any APMs not sell. And most importantly, because of, as Jon put it, the "relentless innovation" you'll be able to buy an APM2.5 in less time because 3DR has learned many lessons from the harder-to-produce-than-expected APM2.0.... they are just ordinary people doing extraordinary things daily. Not monthly. Each and every day.
@Tony: I feel your pain, and I understand what you are saying. But the reality here is that this is more of a grass roots community operation than it is a big commercial operation. There are constant, in part volunteer driven advancements being made every single day. The APM2.5 board (and future designs) are always being worked on, and there is much less time between having a working board and releasing it than you might guess. If 3DR/DIYDrones announce a board in advance of it being production ready, then they may have to retract that statement and everyone complains that nothing gets released. On the other hand, having been a community member for some time, I've picked up on hints from time to time that made me realize that sometimes the final board design (and the decision to go ahead with it) is just a day or two before the announcement....A week before and it's not even a sure thing that the product will be released at all (something would be, eventually, but it might not be that design or that product...)
However, one thing that should be emphasized here is that they are essentially the same board. They have the same chips, a different layout, the same general shape, and a few different connectors, but its the same code. So this is a revision to address some issues, improve.... if you'd rather have "3DR ... a lot to learn about customer service" then we might see deliberate delays in releasing improvements as they are available because the folks who bought them two weeks before did not feel left out... but that means delaying known improvements for a board that wasn't ready for production just days before (and might have been scrapped entirely if it wasn't proving to be an improvement) and that is product stagnation, good for commercial business perhaps, but not as in line with the DIY spirit, don't you think?
But I do sympathize. If you've been around for the last six or eight months, then you will have seen the discussions about ARM and about 32 bit. You know we will eventually get there too... and that will be a big deal, I suspect, for our entire community. However, it's not clear when that will happen, as the entire industry is waiting on Arduino's progress. APM2.5 is an exciting set of improvements, but ultimately, it is a set of tweaks to the APM2.0. I have three APM2.0's (and three APM1) and I paid for each one also from my hard earned money.... but I'm using all six, and plan to use all six long after they've become obsolete, and I would rather not have DIYDrones hold up releasing improvements because I just bought the prior version last week just so I can feel I've gotten more value out of it. Nearly all the differences between APM2 and APM2.5 can be had with a tiny bit of solder and a few differently wired cables. Yes, they are tweaks, and yes, they make the boards a little nicer, but its fundamentally the same board, all the same chips, but the most important change is that it makes them easier to produce, more reliable to produce, which addresses the more important customer service challenges that 3DR has been struggling with for the APM2.
Just another perspective.....but I do sympathize with you. I just don't think the answer is to hold up a release once they've gotten something that is an improvement, nor foreshadow a product that is still actively being developed and might not be ready this week or next week, or ever. If there is a significant issue discovered with APM2.5, I'd want them to release APM2.51 or whatever, as soon as it was available, and not based on an arbitrary marketing schedule. This is, after all, DIYDrones, not Acme Commercial Drones...
DC: I really don't know how we can do it any differently. As Jordi says in the comments earlier in this thread:
"I announce it as soon as I have the first prototype working on my desk. We are always prototyping and in many occasions we cancel the revision at the last minute, that's why I can't just say: "Hey guys right now I'm working on something please wait" to later on say "Hey guys I changed my mind, sorry for waiting for nothing".
What we have opened are pre-orders, not orders. Last time (with APM 2.0) we opened pre-orders six weeks ahead of delivery and got a hailstorm of complains about the delay. We're trying to get the balance right.
Given all this, what would you have us do differently? We already publish a long-term roadmap (for example, including APM 3.0 in Q4).
Tony: that's what this post is doing (giving people a 3-4-week heads up about the new board).
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