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Reviews For: Icom ID-4100A

Category: Transceivers: VHF/UHF+ Amateur Base/Mobile (non hand-held)

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Review Summary For : Icom ID-4100A
Reviews: 17MSRP: $459
Description:
UHF/VHF D-Star Transciever
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.icomamerica.com/en/products/amateur/mobile/id4100a/default.aspx
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00173.7
ND3Y Rating: 2022-01-06
A fine radio with some design decisions that could be better Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I opted for this radio because I was in the market for a new dual band rig, and the IC-2730 was sold out everywhere. This one was only marginally more expensive and has digital capability.

Overall, I really like the radio. My other radios are made by Yaesu, so the interface took some getting used to. I like the way Yaesu usually puts all of the same settings in one main menu. This radio has a main menu, but some functions are in the “quick” menu instead (a separate button). All that said, the dot matrix display gives the radio a more computer-like feel in navigating the various menus, and this made it very easy to program once I downloaded the advanced manual (which you will probably need to do). So far, I have been getting good reports.

I really love the SD card. It makes it much easier to update the list of “near repeaters” used with the GPS receiver. You can also record QSOs with the push of a button, with the option for storing each “over” as a separate file. The GPS locks in fairly quickly.

There are a few things that underwhelmed me. First, the speaker audio is not good—or at least, not as good as my IC-2300. I don’t know if the speaker is too small. Sometimes, I think manufacturers put speakers in radios with no consideration for how it resonates inside the radio. The result sounds small but also boomy, and overall inarticulate. Recording a QSO on the SD card and playing it back on my computer confirmed that the radio receives crystal clear audio that would benefit from an external speaker.

The second flaw, which I knew about before I got the radio, is the fan. It comes on after five seconds of transmit, and it is loud. Annoying for shack use. I’ve read that some people modify these with a quieter fan, but at this price, it should be necessary.

Two final things to note. First, the microphone only plugs into the body of the transceiver. The control head does not have a microphone jack for remote use. Second, I have read that you need a Pi-Star to connect to a D-STAR reflection in terminal mode. Apparently the ICOM software only supports call sign routing, which requires your contact to change their settings in order to respond to you.

So overall, it’s really nice, very customizable transceiver for my shack, but some of its basic elements as a radio could be improved to make it nice to listen to. Hope this information helps you make a more informed decision.
IU0CXU Rating: 2021-09-15
Great Dstar dual band mobile radio Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Good transceiver, very sensitive with nice rejection of adjacent channel. Clear tx audio report, very easy and intuitive manual programming. No issue with it until now.
Gps module really impressive good satellite tracking even in the half of my room with a single french door.
Dstar programming modes intuitive
KK8ZZ Rating: 2020-10-28
Great 2/440 Transceiver, easy to mount Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Compared to giants like the ic-5100 or Yaesy FT-400 series, this radio takes up very little space on the dashboard. There are a variety of mounting options running from Velcro to nice Lido mounts. Don't use the "matching" Icom mount... it won't stay sticked to the dashboard unless you epoxy it there ! I've found the radio to be easy to use, menus are logical and easy to remember, and again, the smaller size makes mounting MUCH easier than with other, larger control heads from other manufacturers. Good value
W2SGM Rating: 2020-08-15
Promising, but fails in usability Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I've always preferred the usability of Icom over Yaesu radios in the past, but this radio has too many flaws to overlook.

Good news:

- Excellent receive; no problems with intermod. I haven't had the same experience as others with poor sensitivity. It's more sensitive with a fender mount antenna than an IC-T90A with roof magnet-mount antenna. "Better than an HT" is really what I was going for, so it satisfies my needs.

- The Remote head is compact and fits into some spaces you generally wouldn't want to put a radio. It looks like a generic consumer product when off, and it's discreet in the sense that it doesn't scream "steal me, I'm expensive". The magnet mount is nice and firm.

- The fan speed control is useful for remote mounting. You can opt to leave it on all the time if you have the radio body far enough away where it wouldn't be bothersome.

- The preloaded D-Star repeaters makes getting started immediately much easier than it would be otherwise.

- Three color options for display and buttons-- I always appreciate that. It will probably come close to matching most vehicles: green, white, blue, amber.

Bad news:

- The display is the biggest disappointment. The LCD contrast is terrible. It's more readable in absolute direct sunlight, but due to the glossy nature of the screen, diffused or side light in a vehicle will have you struggling to read through the glare. The backlight isn't nearly bright enough to overcome this. The viewing angle is very narrow: horizontally, about 30 degrees, and vertically about 60. It must be directly facing you or the already poor contrast will be made even worse.

- The UI doesn't make efficient use of the limited screen real estate. There are some quick-menus that use less than 1/3 of the available screen to show you information. Tiny, grey text on a mostly empty screen is what you'll be looking at most of the time in FM mode. DV display is more efficient, but only because there's more to display at once. It's every bit as hard to read.

- The primary knob is on the left side of the remote head. If you have this mounted to the right side of your steering wheel, you won't be able to see the screen when you're turning the knob. This might be a design choice due to Japan's right-hand drive.

- No brackets included, except for a hand mic hanger. The brackets are very expensive for what they are, so this radio is really $60-80 pricier than it appears.
W4AIN Rating: 2020-05-21
Excellent Radio Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I purchased the ID-4100A to replace my ID-880H in the shack and am glad I did. Feature rich compared to the 880 and a pleasure to operate. Icom software makes it a breeze to program. I use it with a DVAP dongle connected to a Raspberry Pi and get excellent audio reports on digital voice modes. FM quality is just as good on Tx and Rx.
K6DS Rating: 2020-01-26
Really disappointed Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Further update on 1-26-20 - REALLY irritated by the damn fan! I do not talk for extended periods of time and I hate that the fan comes on with EVERY transmission. You can set it to run ALL THE TIME at a low, mid or high speed or come on when you transmit even for a one second click. CAN'T TURN THE FAN OFF!! Going back to my faithful Yaesu FT-7800. It's old, but no fan noise unless you "work" it!!

Recently got the radio from HRO. Paid $309 for the radio, $11 for the SD card and $45 for the programming software and cable. I have been a Yaesu guy for a long time, but wanted to see about this D-Star thing from Icon.

The contrast on the display is horrible. Have it adjusted as high as possible and when on "amber"...Forget it! When the display says "white" and it is light blue.

The scanning stops with no visible signal. The volume varies even on the same ongoing QSO. And, maybe it is just me, but the programming seems to be "all-over-the-place".

Haven't gotten into D-Star yet, but hope the radio is better there and makes it worth the money. Still think I mad a mistake, and I guess I should have figured that maybe the dropping of price from $425 to $350 to $304 and now to $289 was an indication of lack of acceptance of this rig. I hate to give bad reviews, but sometimes it is necessary to hopefully help others.
VE7REN Rating: 2018-12-22
excellent !! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
i bought this to replace a 880 and 8800 yaesu in the mobile. the receiver for me is remarkable. I compare it to the 2730 I have. same antenna. the audio is pleasant,loud,and clean.my 2730 is more tinny. same speaker,settings.
this 4100 is a huge update from the 880d I have. the gps is accurate and gives all the info I need. im very happy with my purchase and have only used it on vhf/uhf/ no dstar here yet! I consisitently get audio reports when talking local and using my irlp from the mobile. this is a keeper radio. no intermod either!
G1XXV Rating: 2018-12-21
poor receive Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I've recently been comparing my ID-4100E in the car with my near on 30 year old Alinco 605 and there is no comparison on receive. This radio is stone deaf compared to the Alinco. Both were connected to difference versions the same model of mobile Antenne. Even swapping the Antennas made little difference. While on D-Star it's good enough to get across the Thames Estruary to Icon's own repeater (41 Kilometers), as a 2meter/70cms Radio the receive is very poor, the receive range being about one third worse than the Alinco. The fan is also very noisy. When it kicks in it means the volume on the radio has to be turned up. I'd recommend this radio as to D-Star use, but not as a 2m/70cms transceiver. I have two of these ID 4100s and both compare with each other. Both were easy to set up, having done one in under an hour the other took minutes.
MI0GTA Rating: 2018-11-10
Fantastic rig Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Fantastic Icom radio..
Very easy to navigate and programme.
The menu is a doddle to use and inputting info to the radio to set up manually or via the WCS D4100 data software and interface cable is very easy done.
I've my rig interfaced with an MMDVM NANO CUBE. 4cm square, wireless and fan cooled.
D-star is main operation on this rig.
Yaesu ft4x for 2m / 70cm local.
Would recommend the ICOM ID-4100 to everyone.
Another ICOM classic has been born..
N4KH Rating: 2018-08-03
Good Radio Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This radio is a huge improvement over the ID-800 which I owned previously. The ID-800 was a good radio once programmed, but programming it was very difficult. I had to use the software. The ID4100 is much easier to program out of the box, the menus are pretty logical, and the DR function is very nice for finding local repeaters. Then I as able to use a flash memory card and CS-4100 software (free on Icom site) to load settings, memories and an updated repeater file from dstarinfo.com directly into the radio without having to purchase the $50 programming cable.

I don't really have an issue with the display although the text is a bit small in a mobile application. Different display color options is nice.

My nits with the radio that keep it from being a "5" are first the speaker quality - the small built in speaker sounds pretty bad. I haven't tried an external speaker yet but would expect it to be quite an improvement. Second, the fan - it comes on not long after you start transmitting, even on low/med power and it is pretty noticeable. You can use manual fan settings instead of auto but then I think it stays on all the time and that's not good. Third as others have pointed out is having to pay extra for a basic mobile bracket, and the cost for hardware to mount the control head in a mobile installation is very high. Lastly, Icom changed the stock mobile mic and did away with the two buttons on top that I was accustomed to using on my previous radio to start and stop the radio from scanning - on the ID-4100 you have to push the center button on the main tuning knob, select whether you want to scan all or a certain memory bank and then push it again - less user friendly in my opinion.

This is a radio worth considering for the price if you want to get on D-STAR.