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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
AF4MH Rating: 2003-09-04
Great Radio Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I basically like the 50 watts on UHF, because other radios only offer 35 watts. I still playing with some features so, will report more later...

N2PLI Rating: 2003-08-27
I give a A+ for icom Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have this radio,for about a month now. It is a very good radio, the power output is even more then icom specified.It does get a bit of intermod on uhf just above the amateur band,But only but you would have to be very close to the transmiter sight.And if used in fm narrow mode no intermod will NOT be heard.It also has a great heat sink nice display!!! you gotta own one I highly reccomend it!!
KF9VH Rating: 2003-08-23
Happy Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I am very pleased with this radio. It does everything I want in a dual band rig.
KC9CFM Rating: 2003-08-02
Another winner Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Just as a disclaimer, I have only owned this radio a week, so take that into account for the review.

If you liked the IC-207H you will probably love the 208H. I bought the 207H because I wanted a dual bander that was simple to operate, practical, reliable, and one that had good reviews. I've owned the 207 for a year, and just decided to upgrade and see what they've changed.

Some pros compared to the predecessor are, more power for one thing. an extra 5 watts on 2 meters, and an extra 15 watts on 70 cm. The receiver can scan a much wider range now, up to 999 mHz. The buttons on the front seem more durable and ergonomical. The frequency display is much easier to read from a distance. One big thing, on top of the 500 memories (Alphanumeric!), you can now put these stored frequencies into banks A through J. This way, you can scan or cycle through only certain memory channels at any one time. I like this because I am scanning only the repeaters I know are reachable in the local area...i.e. I don't have to listen to some distant repeater that I can't understand, let alone reach with my mobile while I'm driving around town. I program each bank as a separate geographic area. It works well. You can organize your memory channels any way you like. Just like the T-90A handheld! Oh, and last but not least, you can choose between LCD backlight colors, amber, yellow, or green! Woo hoo. I also like the appearance, moreso than the yaesu or kenwood designs for their dual banders.

Some of the cons... When you program memory channels, it saves the output power. So if You're on 15 watts and then switch to a memory channel that was programmed in while the radio was set at 5w, or 55w, that's what it will be on. Also, the LCD only displays low and med, it displays nothing when you are set for high power. Unlike the 207, there is no longer four power settings, just three. Also, the fan is loud. But it has to be, because you could cook dinner on the chassis, after running it on high power for a couple minutes...depending on your talk-to-listen ratio of course. It is also difficult to see the LCD if you are viewing it from an angle below. It is best viewed head on or looking down at the LCD

Overall, I'm very happy with my purchase. The IC-208H is a no-nonsense dual bander that gets the job done. I hope I am as happy over the long-term
K1NTZ Rating: 2003-07-31
So Far So Good Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Although I've been licensed for nearly twelve years, this is my first dual-band FM ICOM rig. While I've only used it for a few days, I have been fairly impressed with this compact, one-at-a-time dual-bander. The body of the rig is very solid and the controls have a high-quality feel with silky-smooth operation.

Like most recent rigs, the 208 is highly configurable through a SET MENU structure. However, I found it fairly easy to program even though the ICOM protocols are somewhat different from the YAESU and KENWOOD mobiles that I am used to.

PROs: The RX on this rig appears to be pretty sensitive, even though I have been using relatively small antennas. The 500 memories can be a mix of any covered frequency. I tend to make use of the scan functions on my radios, and this one scans very fast. The rig will also power-up in the scan mode if that's what it was doing when it was turned off. The multi-color LCD display is quite clear and relatively large, but cannot be viewed well from below the display. For what it's worth, 800 MHZ sensitivity seems better than most ham rigs. A separation cable for the control head is INCLUDED, and I thought that the internal speaker sounded pretty good considering how compact this radio is. Also, if output power is important to you, this one is rated at 55w on VHF and 50w on UHF.

CONs: I have experienced very little receiver intermod while scanning the guaranteed (ham band) frequencies, but the UHF public safety range, in particular, gets lots of junk... some of which may be images from control channels in the 800-900 MHz range. (A certain percentage of these can be minimized by tightening the squelch.) Even though a separation cable is included with the radio, I wish ICOM would switch to a standard six-conductor modular cord for their cables. Finally, as noted above, the display should not be mounted higher than the operator since it can not be viewed well from below.

That's it for a first pass. For the price, not a bad little radio.
N1GYM Rating: 2003-07-11
NICE RADIO, LOTS OF FEATURES. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
THE RADIO HAS MANY FEATURES.PREPARE TO SPEND SEVERAL EVENINGS WITH THE MANUAL. THE RADIO IS KIND OF BUSY FOR A MOBILE. LOTS OF FUNCTION BUTTONS AND MENU FEATURES. DONT SPEND ANY MONEY FOR MOUNTING KITS FOR THE REMOTE HEAD,IT CAN BE FASTENED WITH VELCRO OR DOUBLE SIDED TAPE.THE RADIO COMES WITH A CABLE TO SEPARATE THE UNIT FROM THE HEAD. I MOUNTED MY UNIT UNDER THE DRIVERS SEAT. I PAID 329.00 FROM HRO AND FOR THE MONEY THE RADIO IS A GOOD BUY.............
WV4I Rating: 2003-07-09
Great 1st Impression Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Just purchased one of these yesterday. Offhand seems like a very nicely designed, at least ergonomically, 2m/70cm rig. Audio sounds decent fm int speaker, as does quality on both AM aircraft and amateur FM receive. Ditto for NOAA wx. Xmit audio reports are FB as well.
Control head is detachable, vy lightweight, and looks to be mountable with velcro. A 12' separation cable for control head is included. Mike cable is abt 24" coiled and attaches to body. Ext speaker jack is on back of rig. Power cable is roughly 9' long with T type connector. Mount body under seat? There is a cooling fan on back.Operation is fairly intuitive as I have not had time to thoroughly read manual, but managed to do basic ops with radio. Large display with three selectable colors, buttons and knobs fairly obvious.
The mike has MANY multifunction buttons and WILL require a little manual time. Looks like most all functions controllable fm mike for those that do not wish to lean fwd toward control head, hi! Mike buttons CAN be locked out so as to avoid inadvertent activation. Very well designed from what I can tell.
This radio does not have dual receive, but I liked the control layout and display better that the IC-2720 which does offer dual receive, at a higher price.
Hope this initial info/review is of benefit to others trying to decide on a new V/U mobile rig.