Icom radio help

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Rt169Radio

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Hi everyone,I am starting to study for the ham radio tech class license and so I was looking at Icom handheld ham radios and I was wondering about something.I saw that Icom offered various 2/440 radios or just 2m radios and 440m radios,my question is,would I really need or like a 2/440 radio? Or would I be content with just a 2m radio?

I was looking at these two radios,would anyone have any comments on them?

Icom T70A, Icom IC-70A HT Radio

Icom V82, Icom IC-V82 HT HandiTalkie
 

ST-Bob

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Depends on what repeaters are being used in your area. I have a 2m only mobile radio (Kenwood TM-271a) and find the 2m stuff is plenty active in Massachusetts - but there's a whole bunch of active 70cm stuff too. I just didn't know it existed till I got another radio for the QTH which does more bands.

I suggest you search for a repeater directory for your area and enter them into a scanner or something to see what's active and what's dead. For me, 2m mobile is fine - but it's not the whole spectrum available to us hams. It may come down to dollars and cents for you (as it does for me).
 

LtDoc

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"ST.Bob" pretty well summed it up. Something else to think about is a charging station and an extra battery for that HT. That's almost a 'given'. Then start thinking about another antenna, the 'ducky' that comes with most HTs just won't be enough after a while. Not just another 'ducky' antenna, but one for the house with a feed line, etc.
- 'Doc
 

N4KVE

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I too was in the same position as you 25 years ago. My 1st radio was a 2 meter HT, & my only 2 meter radio. After that, every radio was a dual band, or UHF radio. If you live in the sticks, there might only be VHF repeaters in your area, but if your area is well populated, you might want both bands. VHF repeaters tend to be run by clubs where the rules are quite strict etc. Many UHF repeaters are owned by people, not clubs, & there wouldn't be any rules [except language], & be more fun oriented. In my case I met people on VHF, & went to some club meetings. There I met people who owned their own UHF repeaters, & hung out with them on UHF. I can't remember the last time I made a contact on VHF, however, if I was to take a trip in my car, I'd make sure I was listening on VHF. Soon you'll want a mobile radio, as using a HT in the car can be challenging. Good luck. GARY N4KVE
 

JeremyB

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And if you think you might want to try at contacts on an amateur sat, get the 2M/440 HT. It isn't that hard early morning on AO-51 with a tape measure beam, Arrow, or Elk antenna to get a contact or two on AO-51, afternoon and weekend passes can be crowded
 

John_S

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Definitely take the plunge for the dual bander. You may not use it much, but if it's not in the radio, you can never use it. I realize that it's opening a can of worms here but you might want to check the reviews over on eHam. And to get the most out of the HT, check into a good aftermarket antenna. The stock ones usually aren't worth much.
 
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