Does anyone happen to have insight into what’s happening at Honeycomb?
I have the Alpha and Bravo and love them, bought through Amazon. About a month ago I ordered the Charlie ruder pedals directly from Honeycomb, and the GA trim wheel (via separate order). Was really happy when I saw Charlie show as In Stock. So 10 days pass without any notice of shipping. I then got a long-winded response about COVID and part delays, including this:
“The post Covid consumer product sales crash, severely impacted our sales and profitability. That crash impacted markets and companies on a global scale. Like many other consumer electronics manufacturers we needed cashflow to keep the wheels spinning, continue new product development. Other companies made similar decisions. I truly want to continue to supply you with the best possible product at a fair price. Most importantly to make sure we didn’t have to let anyone in the company go. It was hard time, it still is…”
Eventually get to the point about how I would get the pedals in 3 months at the earliest, or end of Q1 2024. And keep in mind this wasn’t a pre-order. The item showed as In Stock on the product description page. While at the same time, none of this info is still shown anywhere on Honeycomb website.
This all sounded very disingenuous and suffice it to say that I requested a refund immediately. Well, a few days ago I remembered the other order, the GA trim wheel, that I had forgotten about and decided to check in on it. Order Status page shows it hasn’t shipped (as of this writing this item still shows as In Stock). I decided to shoot them an email, and what I got was a response from the mail server that the email address doesn’t exist. I tried emailing again several days later. Same response.
Has anyone been in touch with them at all the last few weeks?
Honeycomb is still alive. But the company is probably the worst when it comes to getting their products out the door. They are good when it comes at designing products but they cannot mass produce them. And they have a really bad or even nonexisting customer service. It has been like this since years. According to other reports they usually do not get back to you or it takes very long and it doesn’t lead anywhere. So all in all a really bad company from the customers perspective.
Don’t buy from them directly if you really want their products, buy from a reseller that has stock. That way you get your products faster and you have reliable support in case something breaks or there are problems. Of course for the Charlie that’s not possible as the Charlie hasn’t been released yet. They recently said that the release is now scheduled for october. But I wouldn’t hold my breath.
If you’re from Europe, I now Aerosoft or Flightsimwebshop have HC products. But the Trim Wheel has been out if stock for a long time now. I don’t know if they are even producing them right now. I think HC are putting every ressource into the Charlie right now. And they have multiple products like a chair, stick, throttle, mousepad, screens, … in their pipeline that are scheduled for the next months. It really is a mess.
So all in all, don’t buy what’s not available in stock at a retailer. Never preorder one of their products.
I got tired of waiting for the Charlie and took a chance on a different manufacturer
If you’re flexible there and don’t want to wait any longer, try the Turtle Beach Velocity One. They are really well made, with lots of metal and very versatile. You can adjust the width, resistance and mount two different types of pedals (GA and airliner). Of course they also use hall sensors. IMHO they offer a better package compared to the Charlie considering they are a little less pricey as well.
I’m very happy with them
I have had the Turtle Beach pedals in my cart for a couple of weeks, but haven’t pulled the trigger yet.
I am still using my 20 year old CH pedals. They work fine as pedals but the toe brakes are shot and at this point I think I would prefer a new set instead of trying to fix the old one.
Yup. I switched to Turtle Beach right away, happy with them so far. I guess I should count myself lucky that I got a refund for the Charlie order. The trim wheel is pretty cheap so not a big deal if I don’t see that back, but such a disappointment in dealing with them. Showing an item In Stock and then doing this bait and switch with a covid sob story. I don’t mind fronting money for companies struggling to make great products, but not when I’m told about it after the fact.
Then that would definitely be an improvement. I have tried the Saitek/Logitech, the cheaper TM and the CH. Compared to the Turtle Beach they are all miles behind - both functionally and qualitatively.
That was fast. Did you have a shop around the corner? You just posted 10 hours ago.
Honeycomb Aeronautics customer service is virtually non-existent. I have been awaiting a return label authorization for a defective Bravo Throttle Quadrant for nearly half a year. Dozens of emails and phone calls. Nothing to show for it but excuses from them. It’s a real shame because the Alpha Yoke and Bravo Throttle Quadrant are fine devices–when working properly.
I just wanted to mention, I had a good experience with Honeycomb support. They totally helped me to troubleshoot an issue I was having with my Alpha Yoke. I really love the design of their products, between Alpha and Bravo (and my Thrustmaster Warthog joystick) I can fly everything in my hangar with a reasonable amount of comfort.
Another+1 for the TB Velocity One pedals after cancelling my Charlie pre-order.
Been using them for helisimming a lot recently where you really need smooth, precise pedals. They completely meet the test. (And came in 2 days, not 9 months and waiting
Even better they actually stay put on carpet without needed to screw them down or put in some bracing piece of wood. This lets you position them exactly where you want them. Something I could never get quite right with my Logitechs.
As for Honeycomb. Well, I don’t think I’ll be getting any more of their products. Not at least until they are built and shipped to reputable 3rd party suppliers.
I went for the Turtle Beach as well and I’m happy with them. I didn‘t even seriously consider the Charlie because of the long waiting time. Plus the TB were a bit cheaper. Having said that, I really hope Honeycomb survives the supply crisis. I have their Alpha and Bravo and they‘re excellent value for the money.
Isn’t it amazing how the companies that are still bleating on about Covid and using it as an excuse for being rubbish are generally the ones that are the worst run.
Honeycomb Products are good, but they clearly need to sort themselves out before this becomes a vicious cycle.
Not really. In fact that’s quite a normal pattern. Bad run companies (and countries) as well as inept people will always blame everything that goes wrong on someone else or an outside source like the weather, the economy or Covid.
Beware of people who don’t make mistakes - they lie
i guess the posts above sums it up very well.
oh no. I ordered them immediately after realizing things with Honeycomb won’t go well. Amazon did get them over in 2 days though 