I decided on the SH radio because of it’s ability to directly call an AIS target without manually entering the MMSI. These support output of the position as both NMEA0183 and NMEA2000 and the VHF 300i is in the black box format much preferred by me (though in a different price league). The DSC+DSE sentences are output for both an incoming DSC call (routine, safety or distress) and a response of a remote radio to one’s own position request which is what I need for the “PLB replacement”.Īn alternative would have been the Garmin fixed VHF radios.
This radio’s support of both the position request/response function and output of the NMEA0183 DSC+DSE sentences is described in depth in the manual so I don’t expect a problem here.
For this, I need to utilize the position request/response functions and this means that I had to ditch my RS82 as it does not support position requests nor can it output a position of the DSC target and it isn’t going to learn either via a software upgrade according to various sources at Navico (the latest software version 2.3 just includes support for the Simrad AI50 integration).įor a replacement I have decided on the Standard Horizon GX2000 with a CMP30 remote microphone. I am happy about SH’s good customer support and their willingness to send out two replacements but wouldn’t they rather document this setting, especially as it is essential to a core function of this radio?Īnyway, I am now happy with it’s DSC functions and plan to use it as a “PLB replacement”. These three are documented but only if you select the fourth undocumented setting “DSC” will it suddenly work. I returned the SH twice for replacement and was about to give up when I discovered an undocumented setting of “DSC” where you would otherwise select “USA”, “CAN” or “INTL” channel settings. I own a HX851E for a good year and have been frustratingly unable to get any DSC communication to work with my (then) fixed mount Simrad RS82. So the “impressed-ment” appears to be mutual. Icom showed a new IC-M91D handheld at METS last month which, while I didn’t take measurements, appeared a twin of the Standard Horizon HX851E. That’s the GX1700, the first fixed VHF radio with a GPS built in, as already noted by my friend Glenn Law. Besides, Standard has plenty of innovations under its belt, and that definitly includes another radio announced today. That’s sensible, and generally good for consumers. Incidentally, I don’t mean to knock SH for trying to at least match some good ideas dreamed up by competitor. It would be great to hear from readers who have lived with an M24, while we wait for Standard Horizon to put up an HX300 product page and for people to actually use them. Sure both have similar “Tag” or “Preset” functions that let you specify the channels you like to scan, but SH is touting a new E2O (Easy To Operate) menu system that I’m not familiar with. What I can’t really comment on yet is their comparative performance and operating systems.
And they seemed priced reasonably, with the M24 now at about $130 on the street, which may come down when the HX300 starts shipping in January with a retail price of only $150 (assuming it receives FCC approval). So these are very similar, and similarly attractive, VHF handhelds. Both radios have internal charging circuits, though Icom’s is driven by an included 120/240v wall wart, or optional 12v cable while SH has gone with a standard USB charging interface. Icom rates its capacity at 1590 mAh or 10 hours of “typical operation” - defined as 5% transmit, 5% receive, and 90% standby - while Standard Horizon cites its battery as 1,650 mAh capacity, but so far without an estimated run time, which is not necessarily proportional due to variable power efficiency.
Plus both use cell-phone-style replaceable 3.7v Lithium-ion batteries. And both can transmit at 1 or 5 Watts and boast “powerful” 600 mW audio on the receive side.
Yes, both the M24 and HX300 float, and they also both fire off flashing LEDs if dropped overboard. (By way of comparison, an iPhone 4S weighs 4.9oz.) A couple of ounces carried around all day does make a difference. That’s close! And it’s remarkably light when you consider that each company’s previous light weight floater - the M34 (which I have tested and like a lot) and the HX290 - come in at around 11oz.
I put a disclaimer on the comparison image below because I’m not positive I scaled the photos precisely, but while Icom specs the M24 at 9.2 ounces with a body W/H/D of 2.3″ × 5.06″ × 1.36″, SH is claiming 8.8oz in 2.32″ x 5″ x 1.34″.