[Icom] latest radio technology

Fri, 23 May 2003 20:52:18 -0700

Hi Ron,

Leaving aside the issue of Yaesu/VS' ongoing QA issues (now somewhat less
severe, apparently) - Icom is addressing a different market. The Pro and Pro
II are, in fact, the "killer radios" you mention - in terms of the
technology that Icom put into them.

Icom is the only one of the JA "Big Three" which has taken DSP architecture
almost as far as have the major commercial/military radio manufacturers in
HF transceiver design. Yaesu/VS is still milking the last drops out of the
old MP platform, and Kenwood seems unsure of its future presence in the
amateur market - at least concerning HF gear. The new IC-7800 will bring
Icom up to the level of Harris, Rockwell-Collins, R&S etc. In fact, the 7800
employs technology licensed from R&S. You may have seen the IC-7800
announcement at Dayton - that is an amazing radio.

The FT-857 and FT-897 are analogue radios, based to some degree on the
FT-817 platform.

Icom's major sales are to the mil/gov and commercial markets, which demand a
100% DSP topology; the worldwide ham community is but a part of its customer
base. Those non-amateur markets do not seem to have much demand for 2m or
70cm coverage. The IC-7400 (IC-746Pro) fills the gap as a "little brother"
to the Pro2, with similar basic performance to that of the Pro2, and 2m
thrown in.

There is some preliminary IC-7800 information on my Icom page.

Best 73,
Adam, VA7OJ/AB4OJ
North Vancouver, BC, Canada
http://www.qsl.net/ab4oj/
Icom FAQ site:
http://www.qsl.net/icom/

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]On
Behalf Of [email protected]
Sent: Friday, May 23, 2003 16:06
To: [email protected]
Subject: [Icom] latest radio technology

Hi all. Finally getting the new QTH finished here in the Sunshine State.
Life
is good!
I was kind of disappointed at Icom not coming out with some new killer
radios
by Dayton. Looking at what Yaesu has been doing, it appears that they are
outpacing my beloved Icom. I have many, many Icoms and dearly love them. In
fact,
Steve, WB2WIK, ran a picture of my shack back in the 80s in the VHF section
of CQ mag. He said my shack looked like an Icom ad. ha ha.
Well, now I can say I have radios from nearly every company, but it appears
that Yaesu is marching away big-time. The new 897 and 857 are getting
fantastic
reviews, I don't understand why Icom can't take the PROll and come out with
a
PROlll that covers DC to daylight.

Any thoughts?

later, ron

N4ue
----
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