Re: [Paddlewise] Icom Revises Rating

From: Robert C. Cline <rcline_at_onramp.net>
Date: Mon, 17 Aug 1998 10:04:17 -0500 (CDT)
Dan wrote:

>(2) They have a higher up-front cost.  If you are going on a long
>expedition (say, more than one month) you might need to buy two or more
>battery packs.  My recommendation of a 900mAh and a 1200mAh for the M15
>will last a VERY long time, unless you are talkative to the point of
>violating FCC regulations.  (While the upfront expense of two or more
>battery packs is significant, if you use the radio frequently this is
>still much cheaper than buying a mountain of alkalines.)
>
>While this is one of those issues where I do not expect to change
>anyone's opinion, in my experience (having used both alkalines and
>NiCads) there is no contest.  NiCads, on balance, are a clearly superior
>choice for handheld VHF radios.  But if for some bizarre reason you
>disagree :^) -- and want to use a reliable, truly waterproof, very
>rugged handheld VHF -- then buy an Icom M15 and have a technician modify
>a battery pack to use AA alkalines (yuck!).

DAn:  Thanks for these and the other very useful suggestions.  Yes, the
only reason I wanted a radio to be able to use the alkalines was to avoid
the necessity of recharging.  On trips of more than a couple of days, it
would be very prudent to have a radio that could use both.  I could not
imagine why ICOM (or any other manufucturer) would not design a handheld
that could use the alkalines as an option.

Perhaps it would be worth it to buy a couple of backup battery packs.  I
never thought to ask about price of the backups NiCads.  I was simply
thinking about the practical matter of having backup batteries availble.


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Received on Mon Aug 17 1998 - 08:05:30 PDT

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