Icom IC-2820 Amateur Radio Transceiver with GPS Option
I have been an amateur radio operator for several years now and I became interested in GPS much more recently. It was interested to see that Icom has now announced that it will be selling the Icom IC-2820 Dual Band mobile FM transceiver that with have optional GPS receiver capability.
http://www.icomamerica.com/products/amateur/2820h/default.asp
D-STAR DV mode + GPS receiver
The optional UT-123 provides D-STAR DV mode operation plus GPS receiver capability. Your location information can be sent simultaneously with the digital voice transmission.
Location information exchange
The IC-2820H sends your location information either when the mic PTT switch is pushed, or at a preset interval (5 seconds–30 minutes). When available from a calling station, the IC-2820H displays the distance and direction to the station.
GPS alarm
The GPS alarm alerts you by beeping when a preprogrammed point is within 500m or 1km range from your location or anyone of preprogrammed points is within a preset square range.
GPS location tracking
When connected to a PC* via the optional RS-232C cable, OPC-1529R, your own or the received location information can be plotted by map software* on a PC.
* Serial port and map software (NMEA 0183) are required.
If this were to become popular, perhaps they could consider adding this to a line of FRS/GMRS/MURS radios. That way non-amateur radio operators could enjoy these features with legal, license-free or easy to obtain licensed radios. I know Garmin has their Rino radios with some type of GPS features.
I mention this here because I know that our Uniden BCD996T units have a GPS option. It will be interesting to see if the GPS data from the Icom could be shared to the BCD996T, or if they are totally incompatible. If that is the case, I envision seeing a ham at a hamfest somewhere in the future that has not only a mobile porcupine with man antennas for transceivers, but also one with several GPS units. Just think, you may have one GPS for automobile navigation, a second for your BCD996T, a third for the Icom IC-2820, etc. Also, as an aside, the GPS units are so small in some cases that perhaps we will see a GPS option for the BCD396, or its successor, sometime in the not too distant future!