miniCOCKPIT’s latest product, the miniOVHD, was released this month, so I ordered one immediately. It finally arrived today, so let’s unbox it, set it up, and test it out.

The miniOVHD box

The compact miniOVHD

The official website provides detailed setup instructions. The specific steps are: 1 Connect the miniOVHD to the miniCFU 2 Firmware update. On Mac, execute miniCOCKPIT Firmware 20251113 Uploader.app 3 Install the X-Plane plugin. Extract miniCOCKPIT MAC DLS.zip into the resources/plugins directory

The frequently used switches on the miniOVHD are as follows: 1 WING AI / ENG AI: Wing/Engine Anti-ice PB/WIN HEAT: Pitot/Window Heat 2 STROBE ON: Strobe lights BEACON ON: Beacon lights NAV & LOGO: Navigation and Logo lights LAND ON / NOSE T.O/TAXI LAND / RUNWAY TURN OFF / NOSE LIGHTS: Landing/Taxi/Runway Turnoff lights 3 EXT PWR EXT PWR (External Power): External power switch DOME BRT/DIM/OFF: Dome light Bright/Dim/Off SEAT BELTS ON SEAT BELTS / NO SMOKING: Seat belt sign 4 APU BLEED: APU Bleed switch MASTER SW / START: APU Start control 5 5WIPER: Wiper

Next, let’s do a test flight. Previously, without the miniOVHD, I didn’t pay much attention to various lighting settings. With the miniOVHD, I consciously turn on the necessary lights during Takeoff, Landing, and Taxi phases. Plus, using the seat belt sign gives a more realistic sensation of being a Captain in the simulation. Also, since external power is rarely used, I changed the setting to TERR ON ND. This feature is very convenient.

A few years ago, I switched my flight simulation peripherals from the bulky Saitek to the YAWMAN joystick. For flying Airbus airliners, I use miniCOCKPIT products, and combined with a Bluetooth keyboard/mouse, that’s my full setup. I use a Xiaomi 40-inch display, and the computer is still an older MacbookPro M1. If I don’t set the resolution too high, it’s generally sufficient for normal use. I am very satisfied with this setup now; it’s compact, feature-rich, and highly customizable. It truly is the best choice for the current stage.