First Impressions of Icom IC-E90

Posted on by

Well I have had my Icom IC-E90 for a few days now and battery life is pretty good so far. The Charger that comes with the Radio requires 15hrs to charge, so I may have to purchase the 2-1/2 hour desktop version very soon. As I am writing this it’s having it first charge since Christmas day, but has been charging since 2am and is now 7pm and is not complete (But that may be because the cable when I picked it up at 10am fell out so may not have been home snugly. We’ll have to wait and see.).

I have managed to program in all the CB (UK & EU) and PMR (446Mhz) channels into the memory, as well as some normal radio stations like Capital FM (95.8fm), Kiss (100fm) and Radio 1 (98.8fm). This radio has a feature that when listening to Public radio stations and TV channels (yes can get them as well) switches to a WFM mode.

My uncle will be making a cable to connect to a PC for me and then once I have the Icom software I can arrange all the channels via the computer. (Hopefully that will be easier than programming on the handset.)

On Boxing day I also caught about 5-10 minutes of a broadcast (I think they call a net) by the Sutton & Cheam Radio Society. I heard them using their Amateur Radio call signs, but either because I am not used to listening or they were said to fast I missed them.

Boxing Day?

Posted on by

How did Boxing Day get it’s name?

Was it Throwing all Rubbish in a Box from Christmas Day?

A Boxing Match put on on day after Christmas day?

Or Something Else?

The holiday Boxing Day may get it’s name from the 19th century English custom of giving Christmas boxes containing food or money to family servants and suppliers, the day after Christmas.

Another possibility is Boxing Day may have come from the opening of church poor boxes that day.

The most basic understanding is that gifts, or boxes, were given to those who were less fortunate, on the day after Christmas, while gifts to those with equal standing were given on Christmas day.

It is also known as, the Feast of St. Stephen, or St. Stephen’s Day – the first Christian martyr.

It is most often celebrated in Australia, Britain, New Zealand, and Canada on December 26.

Although it is a statutory holiday in these countries it is not celebrated as such. Most countries host Boxing Day sales on that day which have little or nothing to do with the holiday at all.

Icom IC-E90

Posted on by

Icom IC-E90I got in touch with my uncle last weekend, and during our video chat using iVist, he mentioned that he may be giving me an amateur radio/scanner.

It would be the Icom IC-E90 as pictured left.

From the ICOM website:- Icom announces the debut of the IC-E90 multi-band handheld transceiver. This transceiver covers 50MHz, 144MHz and 430MHz bands and is equipped with a wide band receiver, which covers 0.495-999.990MHz in AM/FM/WFM modes. If that isn’t enough, the IC-E90 comes as standard with a 1300mAH Li-Ion battery ideal for long operating periods and provides 5W output on all bands! All these great features are built into an ultra compact body, measuring only 58x87x29mm!

I have so far only seen images on the net about this Radio. But I love how small it is. It apparently can also be used as a Radio Scanner.

How Amateur (Ham) Radios Work!

How Radio Scanners Work!

In doing some research, I have found a local club called The Sutton And Cheam Radio Society. The society has been running for 50 years and are an affiliated member of the RSGB (Radio Society of Great Britain).

Ideas for Series60 Developers

Posted on by

There are some ideas for Series60 developers who would like some of what to work on. I would gladly Beta Test these programs if made.

  1. Star Trek Tricorder, utilizing the Camera in some way
  2. Random Ringtone Player (Changes with each call with percentage settings for eac)
  3. Operator Logo Maker/Editor/Sender
  4. PC/Mac Program that work like a Digital image frame so you can send images from phone via BlueTooth/infraRed
  • To Acheive Smaller File Sizes

More ideas may be coming later!