What did you do for your comms setup today?

[MacWa77ace]

Checked the voltage on my spare, rechargeable, lithium battery packs and compared a VOM reading to the internal battery meter's reading on the radio. These stored batteries are only about a year off a fresh charge and are 7.4v. When I charge them they usually charge to 8.0+v.

3800 mAh = 8.21v on the VOM and 8.1 on the internal
1800 mAh = 8.09 on the VOM and 8.0 on the internal

1800 mAh battery that was attached the radio and has some use but was probably recharged at the same time read: 7.43v on the VOM and 7.4 on the internal.



IIRC I did an internal volt meter comparison between multiple radios and the same batteries a long time ago and there was a variation between readings on each radio but it was only 0.1v +/- . So IMO those internal meters aren't as accurate as a VOM. But they're more than good enough for a quick field reading.

[MacWa77ace]

I have an Alkaline 9v on my old radioshack  scanner that lives in my glovebox, in the florida heat that is IDK how many years old and still works.

That scanner battery is an anomaly. I literally think its the original battery and that scanner is a radioshack analog. That's old.  Not sure though.

You're not going to believe this. I got stuck in an all lanes closed traffic jam yesterday so I pulled the scanner out to see if I could pickup any info. I was listening to music on my phone also, using noise cancelling earbuds. And then I keep hearing this beeb every once in a while and think that's weird even for the trance music I was listening to on my phone.

Then I glance down at my scanner and its off. What?!? Turn if off an on again and start scanning, and shortly hear that beeping. It's the same song and I'm like 'annoying right'?

Then the scanner went off again. I then realize it was a low battery beep and the beep was coming around my earbuds. not part of the music.

When i get home I test the battery which wasn't a 9v alkaline. But 4 lithium AA batteries. 3 are 1.8v and one is 1.2v so I replace it. Those were not the original batteries but what a jinx I gave myself by mentioning the lifespan on these. 

[airballrad]

Well I guess this explains why that alkaline 9V hadn't leaked yet. 

I have an Alkaline 9v on my old radioshack  scanner that lives in my glovebox, in the florida heat that is IDK how many years old and still works.

[NT2C]

Well, I hadn't actually planned on getting a new cell phone, especially given this one was $1200 and I just had a new battery installed last year.  But it has been 5 years since I bought this and it's starting to show its age technologically.  Then this popped up in a video I was watching and...



How could I pass it by? 

And yeah, it has a built-in 6W (as measured by a ham on Reddit who has one) dual-band HT, in addition to a host of specs that put my current phone to shame.

[airballrad]

   

That is a rare combination of capabilities, and I will be very interested to see what you have to say about it as you have time to fiddle.

And yeah, it has a built-in 6W (as measured by a ham on Reddit who has one) dual-band HT, in addition to a host of specs that put my current phone to shame.

[airballrad]

I went down a rabbit hole last week about what Winlink is, what it can do, and what is needed to use it. As my local amateur radio club has a VaraFM node that I can hit with a UHF HT, I grabbed couple items online and got to playing with things.

Today I sent myself an email over radio. Then I sent an SMS message to my phone over radio. It was a very strange feeling to hear modem noises again. 

[12_Gauge_Chimp]

I went down a rabbit hole last week about what Winlink is, what it can do, and what is needed to use it. As my local amateur radio club has a VaraFM node that I can hit with a UHF HT, I grabbed couple items online and got to playing with things.

Today I sent myself an email over radio. Then I sent an SMS message to my phone over radio. It was a very strange feeling to hear modem noises again. 

You mean these noises ?


https://youtu.be/gsNaR6FRuO0?si=PgxjUS3MjABz9ffy

[NT2C]

   

That is a rare combination of capabilities, and I will be very interested to see what you have to say about it as you have time to fiddle.

And yeah, it has a built-in 6W (as measured by a ham on Reddit who has one) dual-band HT, in addition to a host of specs that put my current phone to shame.

Unfortunately, in order to give it the HT functions they had to take out the FLIR thermal imaging that their other phones in this series all have. But my wife may be getting one of those. 

[NT2C]

Well, the new phone is... rugged.  And heavy.  Very heavy.  And large.  Quite large.


You wouldn't think a 1/4" would make that much difference in screen size, but it does.  It's 1/4" wider, 1/2" longer, and 3x as thick as my current phone... with my current phone in its protective armored case.  If I take my current phone out of its case then the new one is 1/2" wider, 3/4" longer, and 3.5x thicker.  Oh, and about half a pound heavier.  Maybe more.

it is currently in its 33w dock taking its initial charge.  Presently it's at 8%, up from the 1% it was at 30 minutes ago.  It can charge up to 120w and comes with a 120w charger and beefy cord rated 6A but I thought it best to go slowly with the first charge.

I will try to get a picture of it next to my current phone when I can.

Edit: have a picture of the phone but not the two together because I need on the take the photo and I can't hold both at the same time and take a selfie.

[airballrad]

Today I re-wired my mobile VHF/UHF radio to use a switched circuit so that when I inevitably forget to turn off the radio that it will not run down my battery. 

[NT2C]

Today I re-wired my mobile VHF/UHF radio to use a switched circuit so that when I inevitably forget to turn off the radio that it will not run down my battery. 

Why not just program it with a 90 minute auto shutoff?

[airballrad]

Huh. I managed to overlook that feature when I was reading the manual. Well, good to have options. If I end up moving it back to a always-on circuit now I have a way to keep my carelessness from biting me. Good catch!

Why not just program it with a 90 minute auto shutoff?

[NT2C]

Huh. I managed to overlook that feature when I was reading the manual. Well, good to have options. If I end up moving it back to a always-on circuit now I have a way to keep my carelessness from biting me. Good catch!

Why not just program it with a 90 minute auto shutoff?

I usually keep mine set that way unless I'm working an event or driving long distances. For events I reset it to an hour longer than the event. For long distances I set it to 5 hours.

[airballrad]

Auto Power Off for this one gets you OFF/30min/60min/120min. So better than nothing, but limited. So switched power is a good fit. The truck is a diesel, so idling or even running off the batteries gets me some time. I can't set this up as a crossband repeater or anything (that's an upgrade for another time).

I usually keep mine set that way unless I'm working an event or driving long distances. For events I reset it to an hour longer than the event. For long distances I set it to 5 hours.