I have a Limited Edition Outback and love it, but as far as I can recall the only extra features it had over the normal Outback at that time were:
- square hatch (handy, but with my minimalist fishing I don't find I use it that much)
- foam padding (nice, but except for the knee pads ... not something I take notice that much)
- graphics design of all the types of fish that the Outback has caught. Meh, nice, but not exactly functional
- bigger sailing rudder. I already had that on the previous kayak, so no big deal for me. Although the bigger rudder is something we always put on our boats
- turbo fins (not an issue for you) Again, we had that on our previous kayak and again this is a must have.
- IT IS LIMITED. Even the dealer thought that 'Limited' was not going to be really limited, and he was surprised that Hobie had not made more different 'limited' editions.
The dealer explained to me that all these things could have been added on to the the stock Outback, but I was lazy and in a weak moment, I pulled the trigger and bought one. I haven't regretted it and love it, but if I were to do it again, maybe I could have stuck with a stock Outback.
If you are getting one WITH the new Mirage drives that REVERSE (would be handy, but it depends on your fishing style) and it is cheaper than the 2018 model ... it sounds like a pretty good deal to me. I don't know of any other extra features that the 2018 offers over the 2016 model.
Your mileage (money) may vary
