I have been a ham for quite a while now, but I havne't been real active on the air, however. All I have for equipment right now is a pair of Yaesu FT-8800s that I am considering replacing. Unlike many (most?) hams, I don't keep every piece of gear I ahve ever owner, but instead I sell it to help finance the purchase of new (or newer) gear. Which is what brings me here. I might as well give some consideration to getting gear that will do some digital voice mode. Help me put this is perspective, it looks like the predominant digital voice modes for US amateur use areas follows:
-Icom D-Star
-APCO P25
-MOTO TRBO
-NXDN
If I understand correctly, Icom is the only manufacturer of genuine amateur equipment with a digital VHF/UHF mode. It looks like P25 would require Motorola or other P25 land mobile equipment. It looks like MOTO TRBO would be the same. Is NXDN sort of a generic term for either Icom IDAS or Kenwood NEXEDGE format then. And I assume that means Icom land mobile for IDAS and Kenwood land mobile for NEXEDGE then.
I even looked at the equipment websites last night. It looked like:
-Alinco: Has the DR-635T/E with optional EJ-47U digital modulation uint, but what digital mode is it?
-Icom: D-Star is their ham digital mode, but IDAS is their land mobile digital mode
-Kenwood: Analog only ham gear, but NEXEDGE for land mobile
-Yaesu: Analog only ham gear, but has announced P25 and DMR forthcoming for amateur radios. They have land mobile (Vertex/Standard) in P25 and MOTO TRBO.
Is this a safe synopsis so far. Am I missing in other VHF/UHF digital voice modes in use by US amateurs?
To be honest, I have been taking a "wait and see" approcah to this, so far. I have end user experience with P25 over a year ago. I also have over a year of end user experience with MOTO TRBO. It looks like in my geographic area, D-Star is the dominant amateur digital VHF/UHF mode, but there is at least one system that is analog and P25, so I suspect a Motorola Quantar. I
Waht about other land mobile equipment manufacturers. What is Midland, Tait, Bendix-King, and others producing? Have they gone P25, MOTO TRBO?
-Icom D-Star
-APCO P25
-MOTO TRBO
-NXDN
If I understand correctly, Icom is the only manufacturer of genuine amateur equipment with a digital VHF/UHF mode. It looks like P25 would require Motorola or other P25 land mobile equipment. It looks like MOTO TRBO would be the same. Is NXDN sort of a generic term for either Icom IDAS or Kenwood NEXEDGE format then. And I assume that means Icom land mobile for IDAS and Kenwood land mobile for NEXEDGE then.
I even looked at the equipment websites last night. It looked like:
-Alinco: Has the DR-635T/E with optional EJ-47U digital modulation uint, but what digital mode is it?
-Icom: D-Star is their ham digital mode, but IDAS is their land mobile digital mode
-Kenwood: Analog only ham gear, but NEXEDGE for land mobile
-Yaesu: Analog only ham gear, but has announced P25 and DMR forthcoming for amateur radios. They have land mobile (Vertex/Standard) in P25 and MOTO TRBO.
Is this a safe synopsis so far. Am I missing in other VHF/UHF digital voice modes in use by US amateurs?
To be honest, I have been taking a "wait and see" approcah to this, so far. I have end user experience with P25 over a year ago. I also have over a year of end user experience with MOTO TRBO. It looks like in my geographic area, D-Star is the dominant amateur digital VHF/UHF mode, but there is at least one system that is analog and P25, so I suspect a Motorola Quantar. I
Waht about other land mobile equipment manufacturers. What is Midland, Tait, Bendix-King, and others producing? Have they gone P25, MOTO TRBO?
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