Ham Radio Entry Level Comparison - 2-Meter Mobiles - Icom IC-2300H Yaesu FTM-3100R Kenwood TM-281A
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- Опубліковано 23 сер 2024
- #hamradio Justin, Nathan, and Timmy spent some time with each of the current generation "YaeComWood" low end 2 meter mobile radios. This is our take on each of them and how we feel they compare to each other.
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I tried to take a drink every time one of you said "I'm an Icom guy". I passed out and had to finish the video the next day lol.
But seriously, thanks for the overview of these 3 rigs, I've been looking at picking up one of these radios for a 2nd vehicle and this gave me some things to think about.
Bahaha, that's spectacular. Probably in the first 10 minutes, too! :D Thanks for watching!
Thanks for the review...great video. i just ordered an icom 2300h just now. I am a going back due to the current world situation. i was a radio enthusiast in the 1980's til the late 1990's, its good to be back in the 2 meter mobile radios. Last Nov 2021 i got myself a 2300h . this will be my 2nd unit. thanks alot. regards from southeast asia.
Yes, the situation is also motivating me to get in deeper, and it seems much worse at the moment. I'm looking to get a Yaesu 991a.
If you would like more information on our radios when you do reviews please feel free to contact us. (Example setting the P buttons or what the data port is actually used for on the radio.)
Wow, a comment from Yaesu themselves! Thank you, we will look into that! FTM-3100R is a fine radio.
These Baofeng has worked flawlessly for me the past 4 years. It took me a couple of hours to program the 25 repeaters IN I needed. Bought, then lost, the refiscovered my handhead mic, and have gotten great reviews on repeaters with my magnetic mobile antenna, even mounted to a filing cabinet in my home, up to 30 miles away. I put it on the roof of my 'Yota, and get great reviews 30- 55 miles away. I finally broke down and ordered the programming cable for 15 bux or so from Amazon and that made things a breeze. SO, an HT, and for 25 bux, they do the job. NOW, for my upgrade, I am going to buy the Yaesu FT-2980...
I have looked at the 2980r myself and wondered outside of the 15 extra watts what was the major differences between it and the 3100r.. For the difference in price, I could buy a 30/40 watt linear to boost 70cm with my ht IF I wanted
Nice video, thanks gents. Just ordered my FTM 3100, will be my first mobile/ base radio, second to my FT3DR HT. Supply shortages keeping options tight right now but Bob at HRO Anaheim helped me decide on the Yaesu over the IC 2300
Excellent choice! Hope you enjoy your new radio! 73 de KB9SNL
I love the Icom IC-2300H. Have had a couple of them and I especially love the microphone and front display setup. The other are great as well, just my pick.
These three are used in commercial truck up hear in Alaska, we have been allotted a good piece of the 2m band (long story) give them clean power and tune the antenna GTG...
On the 281 4 buttons on the right are pre-set and programmable. I needed to switching to a mic without buttons, fat fingers...
Some are switching to the Yaesu 2890 for more POWER....😁
Thanks for sharing this review. I’m in the market for an 2 meter mobile. You guys rambled a lot but you had fun and made it enjoyable to watch. I liked the video enough I subscribed. Looking forward to more videos. I’m south of you guys in southern Kentucky. Buy the way, I’ve been leaning towards the FT-2980R ...any thoughts on that radio? 73, KM4OCJ
Thanks for watching! I don't think any of the 3 of us have used this radio yet...I'm sure it is a great choice! Good to hear from someone down in the Bluegrass state! - 73, Tim KB9SNL
I am new to the hobby. Licensed as a Tech/General at Cowtown Hamfest January 2020. I took both tests in one setting. Actually I took all 3 tests but had not studied for Extra and missed by 4 or 5 questions. I hadn’t looked at that theory since I was in Electrical Engineering classes in the 70’s. Haha. So back to my first radio, I purchased a Anytone 878 HT. It is a bit cumbersome to program but it isn’t bad once you know how to add channels. It doesn’t lend itself to program a new repeater on the fly too well. I tried and had it in digital mode instead of analog by mistake while on a trip. It has excellent sound and loud so if it weren’t clunky to program, I would be in high favor of that Anytone. I will be using that HT for mobile VHF/UHF initially and add a Yaesu FT-891 with Ham Sitcks with a antenna switch. I don’t know how much I will use HF mobile so this is a way to try it out without taking out a loan. Haha. Thanks for your content. All the best, 73 de KI5HXM
I’m gonna try to pick one of those Yaesus up, 65 watts for 150 ish dollars and it’s sensitive enough to carry the name “Yaesu”
I've a Icom 2200h. My First radio. It does have a squelch knob and it is programmable using Chirp and there's an optional Digital Modulation card (UT-118). Since this radio was gifted to me, I'm gonna add the Digital Modulation card. I'm still learning this unit. 73's... KN6NBL Stan
Doh, you know, that's true. I'm surprised we didn't notice that, we did indeed say there were no squelch knobs...even after mentioning the attenuator that is built-in to the Icom 2000 series squelch controls over the years.
Thanks Guys. Just what I was looking for...
Glad to help, and thanks for watching!
Could tell the basic difference between yaesu FM 2800M vs yaesu FTM 3100
Can you program any of these 3 radios with chirp?
Great video! Newbie here☺if I want a home radio for emergency alerts/weather & just listening, not communicating. What would you recommend?
Awesome!♡♡♡ this is a fabulous video 🤜👍🤛
Thank you so much 😁
I tend to prefer Kenwood when it comes to HF base station radios, but for mobile I just haven't seen a Kenwood that inspires me, so I end up being an Icom guy for mobile radios.
For a long time I ran a Kenwood HF and Icom mobile, I totally relate! - Tim KB9SNL
Thanks for the review
I wish some of these smaller radios had SSB, but none seems to.
"Do you know what a plethera is?" "No El Guapo."
Been comparing this with the yaesu ft 2980, which one is better base on pov of you guys
It's a shame there ain't more 2 meter mono band radios on the market ea company should have 3 radios. That's why I go to dial banders . The V71A was best Kenwood true twin and. there's with oversized detachable faces don't match the body . Great video tell them 😂
You guys are definitely comical! Your likes and dislikes on the three 2 meter mobiles have been interesting although I'm a yaesu fan and didn't know the 3100 wasn't as good as it seemed to look. I've got the old 1802 50w mono bander that i bought new in 2006 and the menu settings can be a pain to use but it works just fine once everythings setup. I don't own any Kenwood radios and don't plan on doing so being they don't hold up nearly as well as icom and yaesu radios do, just my opinion. I do have the icom 2200h that I bought new in 08 and like it much better especially for base use when needed, but it has become my backup when all else fails. My first mobile radio was the yaesu ft-2700 which I use on occasions because it requires a duplexer just to use one antenna instead of using one 2m and a separate 70cm antenna. Thanks for your video and your thoughts on the three high power mobile 2m mono banders!
I disagree that 5 watt is not enough . I started with 2.5 watts ,with a yaesu ft290 , used , back in 1995 . Sure extra power gets you further down the road. But ssb and cw practice, with lifts ssb and cw can be way more fun .
Good day, bought this radio and installed it in the jeep. I do like it, however, when i put the power level up say to 25watts on one channel, if i switch to another channel it reverts back to lower power level setting. any way to turn that off so it stays at the power level i pick while flipping through channels? thanks for the help.
Hi Ron, there might be...which of the three radios did you purchase? We'll dig into it and see what we can find!
@@3oldtechdudes oops sorry about that, the icom 2300h
very long review to watch - they talk about a lot of other things and dont really stay on task. its really a pod cast
@38:16 That is definately not the radio I'd recommend, except for if you just want a radio to throw away. :) :)😆😆😆
Does this cover uhf vhf
These 3 radios cover 2 meter VHF (144-148 MHz) only.
Imagine an Icom guy picking an Icom 🙄
I don't consider any of these to be "entry level" other than in price. They are way too complicated for a beginner. There is simply no reason for a 2 meter radio to be as complicated as these things are. I have been an amateur since 1987, and these radios are too complicated for me. I own 2 of them. I finally got them programmed to work on a couple of local repeaters, and have not messed with them anymore since. All a 2 meter radio needs is a way to enter the repeater frequency, offset, PL tone, and power level. If you want to include a memory, 10 frequencies is PLENTY.
My first radio in 1987 was a Kenwood TH-215 2 meter handheld. I thought it was too complicated. These new computerized radios are an absolute NIGHTMARE. The other issue with that Kenwood TH-215 was it's 5 watt power output. It wouldn't get a signal out of my back yard. I could hit one repeater from my roof with a three foot long antenna, and got poor signal reports. Unless you live next door to a repeater, or have an antenna 200 feet in the air, 5 watts just doesn't work. So yeah, don't get a handheld as your first radio. And definitely don't get a CCP chinese radio, especially if you are a patriotic American. You are supporting communism, and also buying a total POS that isn't even legal in the U.S.
Great points!! for a newby like me looking for a first radio to mount in my vehicle, what would you recommend for ease of use with good power? I was looking at the icom 2300 but understand your point. thanks for the help
You're probably cheating yourself if you get a 2 meter radio without 70cm too as your first.
These single bands are better as a secondary radio.
In a review of reviews, this one shouldn't even be on the list. Similar to a Baofeng that got fun over. Little or no useful info, none of these are good enough for these experts to touch and they hate everything about everything. If you listen to these guys, you'll find anothre hobby.
Dang, harsh! 🙁
Lots of yapping
So much hate. And no sense of humor.
Zzz 💤