I recently purchased a handheld radio, for those times where I really just don't want to bring my full mobile station along. The radio isn't bad, but it's a pain to take the battery around... Still, being the Ham that I am, I want to have communication in remote areas, and I do a fair bit of hiking and such. Enter my newest radio toy, the FT-60R.
I bought this particular radio with much praise from the guys at Ham Radio Outlet. It is an easy to use, easy to program radio. And, it has a squelch nob, which does make things much easier for working those difficult stations. It has a huge receiver capability, essentially anything of note from 108 - 520 mhz / 700 - 999.990. While I don't have it, it can even run on AA batteries, provided that one purchases the cover for them. It is probably the radio by default for emergency communications, at least, if you are limited to using a handheld.
The only thing I really wish, and perhaps somewhere out there knows the answer, is that I could make my radio talk on 220 and 900 MHz. There are 4 bands in the receive window for the radio, the two that can be transmitted on (144-148, 420-450), and two that can't be used (222-225, 902-928). I really wish I could use those frequencies, and while I have occasionally listened on them, I've not been able to transmit. The reason I wish to use those frequencies in particular is that my local radio group has several people using them, including running a 220 net on Monday nights.
Bottom line is, I'm glad I purchases the radio, but I really wish I could get a bit more out of it. Still, I do recommend this to anyone who wishes to purchase a HT, and the price is fantastic!
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