Xiegu X108: Many More Pictures

More pictures of the X108 along with unedited labels.

Custom glass protection board.

Transmit mixer ($8)

32-bit ARM microprocessor

BPF module part

Large dynamic low noise preamplifier

Chassis + install aluminum

Bottom

Microphone ALC unit

Imported stereo jack

Transceiver mixer section

The audio output unit

IF section

Front Panel assembly

146.52

The case for monitoring 146.52 simplex:

"If every Ham in the world (or at least the USA) took the time to monitor and make calls on simplex, there would be a more universal feel to the VHF allocation rather than tiny little cells and haunts or local repeater groups."

Via K0NR

TYT TH-9000D: Problems

Russell ‏(@nitro1963) passed along the following via Twitter about the TH-9000D:

@brickolore when u put in repeater inputs eg 477.350 then change power level the input changers to 483.350

@brickolore some will not clone . Audio recieve level is lower. If your only going to use the radio on simplex it may be ok for some people

@brickolore after you programe repeater channels in they should not change after programming input 433.625 output 438.625 eg 

@brickolore many people having problems with the D model tyt th9000D 

@brickolore iv programmed many tyt th 9000 never had a problem until the D model came out 

@brickolore they have changed the wiring on the mic from the 9000 to the 9000D not compatable now

Any other readers having problems?

Second Half

I think it's pretty sporting of the North to let the other team have the arms factories for the second half. http://t.co/Ypw3vHb6KT
— Tamara K. (@TamSlick) July 22, 2014

Shrinking

Sorry about the lack of posts... I've been busy:

Figure out how to shrink the conventional power inverter and we’ll give you $1 million → https://t.co/TgZ3CcU6d7 pic.twitter.com/65f89ik5R9
— A Googler (@google) July 22, 2014

Running Ham

Not bad, but I still want something iPod sized.

It's never the wrong time for #hamradio, neither when #running! #hamr #hamradio_ita #vhf #qrp #portable #iamarunner pic.twitter.com/GDu6LqVYF4
— Christian Diemoz (@Chris_Diemoz) July 20, 2014

Xiegu X108: In Production

"Today began assembling verification, testing the machine"

Yellow Perfection

Seriously, I don't know why all this yellow stuff seems to come my way, but here is a fun little "Where's Waldo/Gaston?" (And this made me look at the special ID-51 again - no yellow there. Boo!)

goTenna

Another tool to make your phone act like a radio... this time it is in the form of the goTenna hardware. (As opposed to the Firechat app.)

Basically, you pair the goTenna with your phone and use it communicate when you are in a congested area or in one with no signal.

From the Gigaom article:

"It’s an extremely low bandwidth network, so it’s really only useful for send text messages and GPS coordinates, but it’s extremely long-range thanks to the ultra-low-band frequencies 151-154 MHz frequencies goTenna uses. Lower frequencies propagate further and can punch through or wrap around obstacles like trees. To put that in perspective, the lowest-band mobile network in operation today is at 700 MHz, while Wi-Fi starts another 1700 MHz further up the electromagnetic spectrum chart."

From the FAQ:

"Is goTenna FCC licensed? 

Delivery of goTenna is dependent on FCC approval. At this very moment, goTenna is undergoing FCC testing and we expect to complete this process in a couple of weeks."

$150 for 2 (pre-orders) here.

Icom ID-51: Colors

Straight out of the Baofeng and Realistic playbook (again proving there is nothing new), Icom is releasing a limited number of the ID-51 in a rainbow of colors (PDF).