John Deere unveiled more than a dozen new products and updates at a media event a couple of weeks ago in Waterloo, highlighted by its first-ever four-track tractors.

The 9RX Series tractors, which have a beginning list price of $498,000, range from 470 to 620 engine horsepower and feature a large undercarriage and track system engineered to provide power, durability and improved ride quality, said Jerry Griffith, John Deere product marketing manager for 6-9 series tractors.

"The 9RX has been designed with our customers in mind to provide the performance, maneuverability, comfort and reliability to operate large, heavy equipment under a wide variety of soil conditions and terrain," he said.

Griffith said Deere leaned on experience gained from the past 20 years of its two-track systems to optimize the four-track models.

"We took what we...