In response to popular demand, I have rushed out this "first look" at the Turnigy 9XR $50 radio from Hobby King. The original 9X was always going to be a hard act to follow but I had high hopes that its successor, the 9XR, would have addressed the very few points that stopped the 9X from being the "perfect" radio for me. Unfortunately, they have missed the boat in a couple of areas that would have been so simple to improve. The trainer switch is now virtually useless -- being completely out of reach, there are still no detents on the rotary knobs, no sliders on the side of the case and, when placed on a flat surface, it's rather unstable.. What a shame more emphasis wasn't placed on making it a more ergonomic radio rather than a more a "shiny" one. However, we must remind ourselves -- it's only a $50 radio! In Part 2 of this review, I will be taking a more technical look at what's inside, what's changed, whats better and what (if anything) is worse. The 9XR is still a great value radio for $50, but it could have been an excellent one.