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Reviews For: Icom IC-208H

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

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Review Summary For : Icom IC-208H
Reviews: 137MSRP: 319.95
Description:
2M / 70cm mobile with 55 watt VHF and 50 watt UHF xmtr. CTCSS/DCS encode and decode, tone scan, detachable and remotable control head, 500 ALPHA-NUMERIC memories, etc
Product is not in production
More Info: http://
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
151374.4
N3IHZ Rating: 2005-01-01
GARBAGE Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Wake up Icom
Fragile construction - mike is garbage - remote cable delicate to say the least.
If they rate this with good intermod rejection-then - they have never built or used a good radio.
Sure-it transmits and receives - fan is noisy -squelch control lacks range. reciever is too hot-resulting in unusable signals,likes to unsquelch whenever it feels like.
The Icom IC-208H is nothing but a low grade scanner without memory priority scanning.Its receive front end is sooo wide you can take a Mack truck thru it.
WHO would build a 500 channel radio without putting dual priority memory search lookback at least every 3 seconds for 15-50 ms?
This is just a means for Icom to sell dual band-dual vfo radios, which this radio certainly does not have.Then you would be able to switch the other vfo to monitor your channel - thusly defeating the purpose of "dual band" operation. Reference the IC-2710
External speakers a must -Icoms $60 one is worth $5
Display only has about 30 degrees of viewing angle.
CS-208 software is the only thing that partially
saves this fiasco. I've worked with a lot of radio software the last 30 years and it's not bad-BUT it should be FREE as with the program
interface should be FREE w/purchase of rig.
I would have returned this not-so-radio when it was new if it had not taken so long to learn how to use it.(10 day return policy)I would sell this radio but I do not want to ruin my reputation as a business radio technician since 1974.Emails to Icom go unanswered - I guess they don't like critisism.
All-in-all Icom is dumping this junk on the unsuspecting amateur community.
Please excuse spelling and grammer mistakes,the point is there are better radios out there.

N3IHZ
I remember tubes.

KD5WPX Rating: 2004-11-01
Terriffic Radio! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
As I type this, I've had my '208 for a year and a day. It's spent that time working as a base with an Arrow j-pole in the attic. When I first set it up I was baffled by all of the features and I still keep the manual handy 'cuz the radio is smarter than I am. I use it mostly for 2 meter repeaters, some scanning of the VHF & UHF business frequencies, and a little 440 repeater work. I've gotten good on-air reports and all the issues I've had were "self-inflicted". I've been very happy with the radio and recommend it heartily; get one, you won't be dissapointed.

73s, Bob
K5SF Rating: 2004-09-17
Good Radio Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.

This radio has a lot of features in one package. I'm not sure I ever would use all of them. For basic repeater operation it seemed a bit of overkill.

As a mobile rig it was very good. No problems from any of the components. Only noticeable problem might be the heat that builds up on the heat sinks during high power. Yet no problems with operation.

The Options seemed pricey on this radio. I wasn't happy that you had to buy the software and the cable. I might have played around with packet and such had those been more reasonable.

I really have to complain about the audio reports. Out of the box it seems weak. You have to adjust two parameters in the radio to get it up to an acceptable audio level. Then there is the manufacture inconsistency with the Mic. This is the only reason I marked it down.

I would not use the radio in a base situation, as the Fan is too noisy for a quiet environment. As a mobile it is just fine.

Best 73's
Rich
K5SF
N1ZMH Rating: 2004-08-31
solid radio Time Owned: more than 12 months.
this is my first mobile and after 1 year of service it has been working flawlessly.
wide receive was a must as i'm in service and sales and listen to local law and fire as well as weather,to avoid getting in their path and getting around the traffic of course.
i use an external 5 watt radio shack speaker and a comet sbb224 tri band antenna,for use with kenwood thf6 hand held also.
not rated a 5 because the manual is somewhat vague.this is my first icom radio so i'm not sure if this is common.
K0MCI Rating: 2004-08-31
Cockroach Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Probably a 4.5 later on.
Most the good stuff is covered here so I will just spew my thoughts.
For 299.00 it is a good value IHMO.
Love getting the cable, but emailed ICOM to say the software should be a freebie.
The manual is as other manuals are. Took me awhile to underdtand the band button also has effect in memory recall operation too.
I had low audio reports. So I...
A: Cut the rubber away from the mic element.
B: Got off the narrow default setting.
C: Turned the sensivity to high.
Works okay, I made sure to get a report from the toughest critic around.
No real fan noise under the seat, engine on or off. That could change of course. Still quieter than my FT-100D.
I think this is a great radio if you happen to have a less than understanding YL or XYL that is a bit anal retentive about what you put in the car. Also if you want to keep it simple and not dual receive. (I have to go single, I'd hit someone).
Enjoy yours if you get one.
73,
Kevin KB6P
N2PFS Rating: 2004-07-18
Awsome Radio! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Have Owned The ic-208 For Over A Year Now. Great Radio I Drive A Tractor Trailer In Manhattan Nyc And Mounted It In The Truck The Radio Is Built Rugged For What I Put It Through Expecially In a Truck Thats Always Bounceing All Over The Place,The Detach Kit Works Great It`s Nice To See A Company Incluse It Instead Of Paying $65 And Up For The Kit Separately, Anyway Actually Just Ordered Another One For The House Just To Use From Time To Time Great Rig So Soon To Be An Owner Of Another One ! 73`s
KB9CCX Rating: 2004-04-20
Very pleased! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
The detachable face and the included attachment cable are pleasent surprise compared to other rigs. Installation was much easier then first thought. The sensitivity is very good with little inter-mod noticed. I found that mounting the rig under the seat still leaves me enough cord length so I'm not pulling to socket too hard. The fan is a bit noisey however would probably only bother the user in the home ham-shack. The features are great!

Down side: The speaker has too much base so you will probably need to purchase a seperate 3" 8 ohm speaker and mount it closer to you. The instruction booklet doesn't explain how to set an odd repeater split. Very frustrating. The mic has so many features that it is somewhat over whelming however the learning curve is tolerable.

I paid $299.00 (US) and would buy another.
K6DWW Rating: 2004-04-15
Great Little Radio Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Display is great --- can see it clearly at any angle & it fits comfortable into my little convertible; easy to use controls; great speaker (even with wind noise)....I'd buy another one!
K9GPS Rating: 2004-03-14
Bad experience Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
The other reviews of the IC-208H on eham.net seem to be positive but my experience has not been so great.

1) The cooling fan drags on the inside of the fan housing. If the mounting screws are loosened, it not as bad. Send it back to Icom!
2) The transmit deviation is set low at +-3.5 Khz. Icom's excuse is that it works OK that way on narrowband systems in California. I do not live in California and we are not doing narrowband in our area. Send it back to Icom!
3) According to Icom, narrowband setting only sets the passband on the receiver. It does not set the deviation on the transmitter. Their answer was to split the difference. Unacceptable in my opinion.
4) My last and most critical complaint is the software for service adjustments (deviation, etc) is unavailable. I had several discussions with Icom about this. I was finally told that the FCC prohibits the distribution of the software to the end user! That's a crock. I work at a Motorola shop and even Motorola will supply (expensive) software to the end user. I then contacted a local authorized Icom service center and he was told by Icom that he could not get the software! Icom said send it back to the factory! I find this unacceptable yet Icom apparently does not care. Another individual from Icom said this was the way it would be in future models. After problems with other Icom models and their lack of customer support, I am looking at other manufacturers for my radio needs.
K4PDM Rating: 2004-02-28
Outstanding rig Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The only "wish" I have for this radio is that it would receive the 222 MHz band--it picks back up at 230 MHz. And yes, I knew that when I bought it,so no big deal.
Except for that, I don't see how it could be much better. I downsized from an FT-100 when I bought a new vehicle, and am really impressed with the little ICOM. The transmit audio is lacking in bass response, but it sounds good, especially into some of the repeaters that seem to emphasize bass. Plenty of audio output into an external speaker. Scans really fast compared to the FT100, and receives really well. This is the first radio on which I use the memory banking system, primarily because you can put as many channels as you want into each bank. You can put in hundreds of frequencies for long trips, but just scan the locals when driving to work--Awesome! Intermod is better than average, definitely better than my FT100 or THF6A. If you don't need crossband repeat or two-bands-at-once capability, I don't think you can go wrong with the IC-208H!