What handheld nav/com radio to buy?

tonyjohnson · #1 08-17-2005, 01:45 PM

I am considering which handheld nav/com radio to buy. Any suggestions would be welcome.

akarmy · #2 08-17-2005, 02:16 PM

I just picked up an Icom A6 at Oshkosh this year. It's a bit larger than their smallest unit, but fits the hand much nicer. I also like the larger buttons, easy user interface and direct frequency keying. So far it's worked great.

RVbySDI · #3 08-17-2005, 02:42 PM

Well, I have an Icom A5 that has the communication function but not the nav function. I did not see any need for having the nav function for my usage. I use it as my radio in my current airplane. It functions nicely for what I do but I do have some issues with it. The biggest issue is in the charging of the batteries. There is no graphic on the screen or warning of any kind that will show a low battery. It simply dies when the battery gets too low. Also, when charging the battery there is no mechanism on the screen or anywhere else on the charger or the radio that shows that the charge is in progress, how much charge is needed, how much charging is left or whether the battery is finished charging. It is a complete guessing game as to whether the battery is charged or not. This is a very bad problem to have because of the NiMH battery it uses. It seems to be very sensitive to abnormal charging. Without any mechanism in place to monitor the charging process this lends itself toward developing problems.

According to my conversations with the Icom rep at Oshkosh the battery will not work correctly if it is overcharged. He stated that it should not be charged for more than 10 hours and should really be charged for only 8 hours. Also, you should let the batter deplete down until it stops functioning before you recharge the battery or it will develop a memory and not take a full charge. It seems to be a very touchy set up that takes some care to make sure the battery can take and maintain the charge. Since I use it as a primary means of communication in my airplane I was having a dead radio too often. My radio would basically not hold a charge for more than an hour or two. While at Oshkosh the Icom rep was able to "shock" charge my battery pack which helped. Since returning from Oshkosh I have not had any further problems with the battery dying early on me. I have tried to make sure I abide by the 8 hour charge time frame. It does take some management to make sure the batteries work properly and stay charged when I need them. It seems to me that for the price paid this radio should have a function that will monitor the battery life and whether it is getting a charge or not. If the "free" cell phones that everyone has these days have their little bars showing you how much battery life is left you would think for the price of the high dollar aviation radios they could provide that service on these radios also.

Other than the charging issue I really like this radio. The functionality of it is very good for my needs and it was one of the least expensive choices among the hand held brands. There is a bit of learning curve that exists in learning how to program the presets and how to navigate around on the keyboard. This can be a problem if you try to learn while using it in flight. I have had to spend some time on the ground learning how to use the radio but now that I understand how it functions it is a handy radio.

Hope this helps.
Steve
RVBYSDI

From Rosie:
I've also had my share of 'dead' batteries with the A5

Page ii of the A5 User Guide states: "Even when the transceiver power is OFF, a slight current still flows in the circuits. Remove the battery pack or case from the transceiver when not using it for a long time. Otherwise, the battery pack or installed dry cell batteries will become exhausted." I pull the pack when not using it so it's ready to go when I need it.

zspivey · #4 08-17-2005, 04:50 PM

I recently purchased a Vertex Standard VXA 150. It came with rechargeable batteries. I added a battery case to allow the use of AA batteries when the rechargeable one runs down. It does everything I need.

I also like the Vertex Standard VXA 700. It is a nav/com with the addition of a two meter ham band. You need to have an amatuer license in order to enjoy that feature.

Overall, I am impressed with the Vertex Standard line

In my day job, we use a lot of two way radios. I recently purchased 2 of the Icom handhelds. They appear to be a good radio also.

RV7Guy · #5 08-17-2005, 06:37 PM

Like Andy I picked up an Icom A6 at Oshkosh this year. I got the Lithium battery option for an extra $10. All of the vendors were within $5 of each other (price fixing

. I also sent in the $30 rebate. We'll see how long that takes.

I did not see a need for the Nav function. I talked many people who had the nav function and they said they have never used it.

Darwin N. Barrie
Chandler AZ
Baffling stuff

tonyjohnson · #6 08-17-2005, 09:17 PM

Steve,

I appreciate your input, along with the other guys. Which battery are you using that causes the problem?

Tony

RV10Man · #7 08-18-2005, 04:44 AM

I bought an A5 at Oshkosh 2 years ago. I had the same problem with the batteries, dead most of the time. Did the same thing you'all did, had the Icom reps "shock" it. Works great now, 4-5 hours. I thought it was just my electronics ignorance, not knowing how to operate a battery charger. Although I never had any charging problems with my r/c radios. Looks like this should be a red flag to Icom, lots of folks bringing their batteries by for a "tune-up"

Marshall Alexander
RV-10
wings-tanks

RVbySDI · #8 08-18-2005, 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonyjohnson

Steve,

I appreciate your input, along with the other guys. Which battery are you using that causes the problem?

Tony

The battery in question is the NiMH battery pack that came with the radio. According to the Icom rep these batteries require some specific charging requirements to have them function normally. If you do not treat them right they definetly will cause problems. I also have the optional Alkaline battery pack that I have used sparingly. The alkaline batteries work ok but I have never used the pack long enough to know how long the alkaline batteries will last. There is a low batter warning graphic on the screen that always shows when the alkaline pack is attached to the radio that does not show up when using the NiMH battery pack. This graphic shows up immediatly when I turn on the radio even when I place brand new fresh alkaline batteries in the radio.

Quote:

I bought an A5 at Oshkosh 2 years ago. I had the same problem with the batteries, dead most of the time. Did the same thing you'all did, had the Icom reps "shock" it. Works great now, 4-5 hours. I thought it was just my electronics ignorance, not knowing how to operate a battery charger. Although I never had any charging problems with my r/c radios. Looks like this should be a red flag to Icom, lots of folks bringing their batteries by for a "tune-up"

I agree Marshall, why is it such a difficult task for an established company like Icom to include a simple monitoring system for battery life and charging if the battery is such a touchy part of the system. The real kicker is that I might be inclined to see Icom's side if this feature were available on the higher end handhelds they sell but not on the A5 because it is an economical model. The reality is this problem exists with all of their models. So evidently the decision to omit this function from their entire line was a product wide decision. Hmmmm, I wonder if they ever heard of user feedback in the design phase of a product?

However, as I said in my original post, other than the battery charging issue I think this radio has the best features for the price of all the handhelds out there. I do like the Vertex radios also but they are considerably more expensive.

Steve
RVBYSDI

P.S. Marshall, tell your brother I hope he can make it over soon to do some flying around the patch. I need an RV9 fix to get me motivated to start on construction of my wings.

tonyjohnson · #9 08-18-2005, 09:01 AM

Does anyone have experience with the ICOM A23?

They are available from Marve Golden pilot supplies for $295, which seems a good price. It comes with a headset adapter and a rechargable battery (the one that seems to be a problem). For an additional $20 you can purchase a battery case to use AA batteries.

I am considering getting the battery pack and using rechargable AA batteries in it.

Any thoughts on the A23 would be appreciated. Does anyone know a place to buy at a better price than Marv Goldens pilot shop?

Tony

Brian130 · #10 08-18-2005, 09:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonyjohnson

Does anyone have experience with the ICOM A23?

They are available from Marve Golden pilot supplies for $295, which seems a good price. It comes with a headset adapter and a rechargable battery (the one that seems to be a problem). For an additional $20 you can purchase a battery case to use AA batteries.

I am considering getting the battery pack and using rechargable AA batteries in it.

Any thoughts on the A23 would be appreciated. Does anyone know a place to buy at a better price than Marv Goldens pilot shop?

Tony

I Froogled it. It's the "Sport" version, but the price might be better for you. http://www.flightessentials.net/inde...ROD&ProdID=545