Manager


Manager - NA4M
Manager Notes

Reviews For: Icom IC-208H

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

eMail Subscription

Registered users are allowed to subscribe to specific review topics and receive eMail notifications when new reviews are posted.
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
AF4KK Rating: 2007-11-30
Very nice rig!! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I have plenty of radios in my mobile unit (such as the Yeasu 857, the Icom 706 mkIIg, two Icom IC-7000s, a Kenwood TS-480SAT plus more!) but I wanted a rather basic radio for voice communications that I can use without changing some of the settings of the other radios. The Icom 208H fits the bill very nicely!

It's a powerful radio with great audio and the sensitivity is excellent! It can hear whatever I need to hear and getting into distant repeaters isn't a problem with the 208H!

The wideband receive is a very nice feature and that control head, being as small as it is, is PERFECT for the tight space I put it in!

The reason I gave it a "4" rating and not a "5"? The mic connector isn't on the control head (not a big deal) and the display, while easy to read isn't in color and only allows alphanumerics of 6 characters or less. I have an Icom 2800 and that display is in a class by itself!

Good job, Icom! It's a great radio at an affordable price!!
KE4RWS Rating: 2007-11-29
Very Nice Radio Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I used a 208 for nearly three months and found it to be an excellent radio. I particularly liked the large display. The frequency can easily be seen and is much easier to quickly interpret what you’re looking at while driving (when you can only make a quick glance at the radio). I also noticed the microphone must be plugged into the chassis vs. the display, however I only used the radio with the display snapped onto the radio. If the 208 is like past Icom models then you can use a CAT5 cable and coupler to extend the mic to whatever length you may need (but again, I know past Icom models such as the 2710 and 2720 can use a CAT5 for the mic extension so I’m assuming the mic pin-outs would be the same as prior models). I also find 50-watts RF output on UHF a welcome addition vs. the 35-watt models of the past. Although an extra 15-watts may not translate a significant improvement, the greater the output on UHF the better.

I noticed the newer IC-ID800 uses the same chassis as the 208 (at least it looks the same). It also sports the large display and many of the same features as the 208 but includes D-Star. The ID800 will likely be my next purchase since it is virtually the same radio as the 208.

The microphone is and improvement of much older models (80’s and early 90’s), which is the last Icom mobile I owned. Like most other radios on the market today, most if not all of the 208’s features can be controlled via the microphone. Although it’s been standard on all radio models for some time now, having CTCSS and DCS is always a plus. Only a few years ago you had to purchase the option to decode PL tones, and DCS (sometimes referred to as DPL) wasn't even available as an option back then. Random contacts have stated the 208 has great audio characteristics but I would recommend using an external speaker for receive audio, as the internal speaker can be a little hard to hear if used in a noisy environment, such as a vehicle with the windows down traveling at higher speeds.

I would recommend the 208 to anyone desiring an easy to use dual band mobile transceiver. The 208 reminds me of the Kenwood TM-707, which was a like radio with nearly identical features but lacked higher UHF output and DCS feature. Although I loved the 208, I will most likely purchase the very similar ID800 for D-Star ability, since it is essentially a 208 with D-Star added to it.
K4QE Rating: 2007-11-27
Nicest dual-band Mobile Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I disagree with some of the previous reviewers about the lack of a mic connector on the remote head.

ICOM's suggested installation is to have the radio under the driver's seat. When in that location, there is plenty of mic cord to reach the radio. Having the mic connector on the head would place undue stress on the head's mount (which is usually going to be double-sided tape or velcro in most installations).

As previously pointed out, an extension cable for the mic is easily made, if required. BTW, Yaesu uses the SAME method as this ICOM for their FT-857D mobile (and ALL of its separation cables are OPTIONAL, unlike the ICOM which comes with the necessary cable!).

I am quite pleased with how this radio has fit in my compact vehicle. It's got plenty of features, it's very easy to use, and it's got the right amount of power on tap.

I am VERY happy with my purchase.
VA6SZ Rating: 2007-11-27
Not too bad... Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I have to agree with the previous reviewer. Just what was Icom thinking with this radio when they didn't include a mic connector on the face plate? Kind of defeats the purpose of remoting the thing, don't you think? OK, so I remote mount the face plate in my new VW GTI. It seems for this car (not unlike many of today's vehicles), you almost need a degree in some form of "ergonomic- scatology" to try and fit it into the interior environment. So the only solution for me was to mount the radio in the rear hatch compartment. There goes the transmit capabilty. Oh wait...I can use cat-5 cable and make my own remote plug-in for the mic.
Again I have to ask, just what was Icom thinking when they designed a remote face plate without a mic connector? Good luck with your installation. Besides this really stupid design flaw, the radio has exceptional performance. Great front-end and output power, not really that difficult to program, no TX audio problems with my radio, solid construction, and plenty of memories. The small 6 space alfa-numeric display is kind of "low-end" for Icom (but hey, most of their mobiles are like that).
All in all, I would not purchase one again if I were to buy it strictly for a mobile environment. Yaesu has a better arrangement with regards to the "remote-able" face plate.
W5FAE Rating: 2007-11-27
OK But..... Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Good electronics, strong xmit, especially on UHF (50w) and solid receive performance. But.... I remoted the head to my dashboard and had to mount the mike beside the seat because the mike cord attaches to the radio body, not the control head. For a receiver, it's great. Mount the head and the soeaker together using a long remote speaker cable but that mike is still six feet away connected under the seat!
W2FDH Rating: 2007-11-16
Great Radio! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Great radio all-around. Very easy to program (I never had to open the manual) GREAT frequency coverage (covers the 900 Mhz ham band, the Yaesu FT-7800R does not!) and very well built (entire chassis is a heat-sink). The only negative is that ICOM placed the power button between the volume and squelch knobs, so if you have big fingers it could be a problem.

73 de Frank/KB2VYZ
N7WR Rating: 2007-10-18
a 3+-4 Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The radio itself is fine except the control head is not as solid as I had hoped for. Even though mine is a brand new, current production model I did have to open up the aperture for the audio to get to the microphone element. Without doing so the transmit audio was muffled and weak. The receiver seems sensitive enough and I have yet to detect any intermod issues though, admittedly, I do not live or travel in high RF environments. The small size of the control head makes mounting even in small vehicles easy to do.

I join with several other reviewers in saying the programming "software" provided by ICOM is inferior to the software I use in programming public safety radios. I finally gave up trying to use it as it became obvious that I could program the radio manually almost as fast and with much less frustration.
N6KYS Rating: 2007-10-03
Buy this rig! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I can't say enough good things about this radio. I've owned it since Dayton '07, and have been completely satisfied with it. The detachable face concept is a second generation design (compared to the IC-2720 for example), and is quite a bit more refined. The instruction manual is well written, easy to understand, and allows you to take full advantage of the many features in short order. The receive section is awesome...air band, very wide UHF, etc. The rig has the tightest, most solid feel of a small mobile that I've seen yet. Exceptional radio......I couldn't be happier.
VA7CRH Rating: 2007-07-17
Programming difficulties Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
A great rig from a technical point of view, with great signal reports. But in this day and age of judging radios by the ease of use of "software", the 208H gets a 4 out of 5.

I own a Kenwood TH6A handheld, and appreciate the ease of use and intuitive nature of the menus. Not so with the 208H. This latter radio needs constant reference to the manual - figuring out how to do things should be intuitive, like with the Kenwood. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to the naming of the keys with why it needs pushing to get a particular function.

Also, the 6 character display pretty much rules out meaningful alphanumerics. At least in this day and age. Maybe I'm just too used to the extended alphanumerics of other rigs.

It's a great radio, though. The gripes are with the software and ergonomics. I think I'd buy it again but would take a harder look at all the other dual band mobiles out there.

At Cdn$303 the price was right.
W8TG Rating: 2007-07-15
Nice but Programming Issues Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This is my first programmable rig so I was concerned when I read what some were saying about programming difficulties. From what I can deduce many rigs regardless of manufacturer are programmed in basically the same manner so once you learn the basics you can program any rig fairly easy. I my case I was a raw beginner. To make a long story short only the manufactures manual that comes in the box with the rig contains no grieious errors unlike the downloadable manual from Icom and the quick reference card I bought. But even the manual uses illogical page sequences and gave functions confusing names. I know I could write a manual that explained things in much easier to understand language. Otherwise I've got no complaints about this nice little rig.