[BrianR]

I think the word for it is an "articulated" arm.

One disadvantage to that is it becomes cumbersome for the driver to control is there are too many joints, and it also requires a great familiarity with the system in order to make it run well. You have a much more complex coordinate system, and that can cause some confusion, especially once you get on the opposite side of the rack.

The elevator is much more intuitive. You understand the cartesian coordinate system, and that makes it much simpler to learn, and you will probably be more proficient with this system.

Overall which is better? I'm not sure. Our team is going with an elevator, but we may throw something in with the "claw" to make it more versatile.