The Elecraft KX2 made a big splash with QRP enthusiasts at the Dayton Hamvention this year. HamRadio360 had some good coverage of the product introduction. Basically, the KX2 is a shrunken version of the KX3, covering the HF bands 80m through 10m.
There were rumors circulating that Yaesu would introduce a replacement for the FT-817ND, but that turned out to not be true. It is a good rumor because the original FT-817 was introduced way back in 2001 (according to Wikipedia). Also, Chris Wilson NØCSW was actively soliciting inputs for an 817 replacement at the Central States VHF Conference last summer.
A while back, I did a comparison of the FT-817 and the KX3 (big brother to the KX2). I evaluated the two radios from a VHF/UHF point of view. The FT-817 is the only portable single-radio solution for 50 MHz, 144 MHz and 432 MHz. The KX3 includes 50 MHz standard and 144 MHz is an option. The KX2 leaves out the VHF bands completely to achieve a smaller size.
What’s Next for the FT-817?
Its always fun to speculate on what might be coming in new gear. I expect Yaesu will maintain its position as the QRP transceiver that covers HF/VHF/UHF. It has a long history of delivering cost-effective “do everything” radios. We can look to recent product introductions from Yaesu to get a hint of what might be coming.
The FT-2DR, FT-400DR and FT-991 have all adopted larger touch-screen displays so we can probably expect that for the 817 replacement. However, this will challenge the existing form factor…you can’t just drop a larger display into the existing 817 design. The three newer radios include the System Fusion C4FM digital mode…at this point, I don’t think Yaesu would introduce a VHF/UHF radio without it.
Which raises another question: will the new radio also include a GPS receiver? This capability is a good complement to the C4FM mode in a portable radio. The FT-991 requires you to enter your location manually, which the FT-2DR and FT-400DR use a built-in GPS. But it adds circuitry and complexity so I am going to guess they will leave that out.
I am expecting (hoping?) Yaesu will improve the battery life of the transceiver. (Receive standby current is spec’d at 450 mA.) Even if they don’t improve the current drain, newer battery technology could be used to improve operating time. Also, depending on the form factor changes, it may be wise to dedicate more space for a physically larger battery.
Yaesu will probably improve the overall receiver performance, including advanced DSP features. Many 817 users have complained about the lack of coverage of 162 MHz weather radio in the US. On the transmit side, a little more output power would be nice…maybe match the KX3’s 10 watts on HF. Yaesu could really make the VHF crowd happy (in the US) if they included the 222 MHz band.
Take One Tablet
The radio will surely have a computer I/O port with USB being the most flexible choice. There is an opportunity to innovate a bit here by coupling the radio with Android and iOS tablets. I could see a really nice app that handles logging, CW, PSK31, RTTY, bandscope, and other advanced features. This could take the pressure off having a larger display and loading tons of features into the radio. The most convenient I/O would be wireless, most likely Bluetooth or maybe WiFi. Many of the SOTA and QRP operators already take along a smartphone or tablet for logging and other tasks, so it would be a good fit to that market. The key to this idea is careful human factors design and tight integration with the radio. Do I expect this from Yaesu? Not really. So surprise me and knock my socks off.
Those are my thoughts. Your turn.
73, Bob KØNR
I just recently purchased a lightly used 817ND and it is a great all-in-one package for those of us who enjoy portable QRP operations. I think many fellow QRP enthusiasts would agree that if Yaesu modestly increased the footprint to add some essential updates, we’d be happy. I think some improved receive capability (including adjustable filtering), built-in compression for SSB transmit, an internal auto-tuner comparable to what Elecraft offers, and of course a larger screen, would all be great additions. One thing I’ll have to respectfully disagree on is System Fusion integration. While I think it’s a neat concept, I just don’t see how it would be really needed in a portable QRP radio that’s supposed to carry on the torch of the 817. I think omitting C4FM to put in the above mentioned features would be much better for a portable QRP rig.
What comes to mind for me is something like what Icom offered in the IC-703 package. That was a great QRP rig (even though the latest flavor still did not have 70cm). If they weren’t so rare and expensive to buy used, I would have easily picked that over the FT-817ND.
In my opinion, I don’t think we don’t need touch screen either. Some will likely be operating in colder temperatures on mountain tops, and would probably like to keep their gloves on and not worry about a rogue or missed screen press.
Keep it simple, give us features comparable to what Elecraft offers (as they’ve really seemed to now set the bar on what a great portable QRP rig should have) while still keeping the style and tradition of the 817, and I think they’ll have a knockout radio.
K9MAP,
Thanks for the comments, all valid I think. Looking back on it, my post is more about what I think Yaesu will do rather than my ideal radio. Of course, if it was my ideal radio it would probably leave HF out completely and just do 50 MHz through 1.2 GHz.
I should have been clearer on the C4FM…I don’t see it as important for this radio but it seems like Yaesu will include it as part of their Fusion strategy.
I totally forgot about the internal antenna tuner. I intended to mention that, thanks for catching it. It seems like they need to close this gap with the KX line. Probably optional.
On the Touch Screen, you may be right. I often hear complaints about the FT-817 screen size and small displayed numbers. That could be fixed with a bigger non-touch display, ala IC-703. But I also hear complaints on the nested menu system on the FT-817, so I do think usability could be improve via touch screen. When I looked at the FT-2DR, I thought “yeah, they’d probably go that direction”.
So I’ll take your “like an IC-703” idea and merge it with a tablet for the fancy features.
73, Bob K0NR
And I should have specified that my comments would be what I’d say to Yaesu directly. 🙂
I totally agree, the screen size on the 817 is something that most certainly needs improvement. I’m lucky to be blessed with good eyesight, and even so the screen leaves much to be desired. If they can implement a touch screen that’s on par of what Icom is offering on the 5100 and 7100, that also has good stability in colder temperatures, then I’d be all for it. The entire line of Yaesu FT-8X7 radios all relied way too heavily on deep menu items for commonly used functions, and I’ll admit if they implemented a good touchscreen that alleviated a lot of that, I’d be all for it. That being said, can it be done while keeping a relatively reasonable form factor for a DC to daylight portable rig? Again I have to go back to Elecraft and say I think they have done a great job with a standard screen on KX2/3. As I said in my previous post, keep it simple, yet effective and usable.
Touch screens & rain drops – don’t work!
Touch screens & gloves – don’t work!
It’s a small, compact transceiver => has a small, compact display.
This box was designed for a specific purpose – which it does well – and that purpose wasn’t a table-top box.
If it did not aggrevate the already high rx current drain then adding a bluetooth/wi-fi link so your smart phone could be used as a generic interface (with an app) would help those who struggle with the display. [I don’t have a smart phone, but also have no complaints about the display]
The rear UHF/M/SO-239 socket needs to be replaced
with a BNC-f.
Adding 600m, 60m & 220 MHz could be a worthwhile design challenge.
The FT-817 should include DSP and full-QSK. Like the 857 and 897, it should have a connection for an outboard LDG-type large, full reading meter. I mean everything the little display has. If you need it (I do), plug it in for better viewing. Also nice for home use making the 817 a good radio-shack-on-the-desk rig. I don’t think Yaesu has any intention of upgrading or replacing the 817. Too late in the QRP-friendly propagation cycle. Maybe in a few years.
well I like the yaesu ft-817 the way it is with only one exception and that is put in a auto notch filter and that would be just about right! I hate those tuneuper’s lol!! yaesu brought this radio out ahead of its time and is super for what it was designed for and I know they can’t please everybody but I own one now and plan on one more soon before they are gone!
There are different technologies available for touchscreens. Some do OK in the rain.
I didn’t know that. I guess I should expect there’d be display technology around that copes with rain & fat fingers.
On the other hand every feature has its financial cost – it might be be cheaper to add blue tooth in lieu of a larger touch-screen and take advantage of the average smartphone that has a bigger display (compared with anything you’d put in a small transceiver) and has already been paid for without costing Yaesu etc a dime.
I like my 817 too. To lighten it for backpacking, I have removed the heavy steel covers and replaced them plastic, removed the rear so-239 and cut the rear cast protrusions. With out the battery, its just amazing how light the radio is with these mods. Still stuck with the high DC current draw in receive – to me, that is the biggest drawback of the radio. The display, the menu system, etc, doesn’t impede the operation of the radio for what I do with it. I now have a KX2. Side by side, the 817 holds its own. The KX2 has its own quirks just like any other minimal compact radio. Having the KX2 makes me appreciate the 817 more and further solidifies my opinion of just how good the 817 is. So for me, my wishlist for an updated 817 would be lighter and lower DC power draw. The rest is fine as is….
Personally, I think that the FT-817 is fine just as it is. It really does work very well and battery consumption is no longer an issue with new LiPo batteries available at reasonable cost. Also, it is entirely possible to reduce the RX current drain to less than 300ma. and it will last for a long time.
TX audio compression? Nope. Not needed. I’ve tested 11 FT-817s over the years for PEP output on SSB, using both an oscilloscope and an HP 8921 service monitor. In ALL cases, the FT-817s easily produced full PEP output with their stock microphones. The two FT-817s which I own now do the same.
RX filtering? – I suppose that some DSP would be nice.
All in all, I can’t think of much more that I would want from my FT-817s. They’re tough, dependable, do all radios. Yaesu must be in agreement because they’ve had a 16-year production run so far with little change.
My changes would include better receiver performance, possibly even an SDR one (although maybe that will increase receive current consumption?). And definitely a high capacity battery.
I even have money waiting for the new replacement rig!
But my biggest concern is that Yaesu won’t bring one out before I die! LOL!
VK6JT,
Now that Yaesu knows you are ready with funds budgeted, I am sure we’ll see some action. Maybe.
Just stumbled on your post. I hope somebody at Yaesu is reading it. Most of what you said seemed like “the usual” from people thinking how to make this little radio even better, but the thing about a direct link to Android or iOS devices actually made me sit up straight in my chair (my mother would love you)! If I could plug a cable into my radio on one end and my iOS tablet on the other and… the possibilities are endless. They really are.
Log contacts in real-time, with the radio filling in fields for frequency and QTH (GPS anyone?) and UTC time (automatically calculated)…
Adjust parameters from the tablet – scan slowly to a higher frequency so I can listen for a weak CW contact on the way, bump the little beast up to full (5 WATTS) power for a difficult QSO, electrocute the user for trying to have the tablet decode the incoming CW for them, one-button search for contact information on QRZ, map overlaid with QTH and contact QTH with colored lines showing path of propagation, a central data store showing frequencies and openings in real-time… so many possibilities!
*cough*
I *know* Yaesu is VERY proud of having the only fully portable HF/VHF/UHF all-mode all-in-one on the market, but, honest to God, before your tablet connectivity suggestion, I would have been happier with a radio that did CW/SSB-only, HF-only (all-band), 5w max, no keyer, no autotuner, no chicken soup recipes, with jacks on the back to plug in an IF filter, audio filter, speech compressor, whatever – modular. And I *know* Yaesu is SMART enough to do that in a box that draws like 20ma on standby, built sturdily enough to handle a few knocks. I mean, honestly, do people really use FM on 40 meters? Does AM actually provide anything over SSB on 40?
Tri-band HTs are everywhere for those loving VHF/UHF, and, despite literally YEARS of trying, I have yet to log my first VHF CW QSO. Nobody is listening there – nobody!
I would trade this 817 in a heartbeat for something like the SGC-2020 (no longer in production) or another, even simpler, CW/SSB-only HF-only QRP ultra-portable rig that allowed me to filter the IF.
If I can’t have that, I want an 817 with tablet connectivity.
Thanks for all the great comments. Looking back at my post, I realize that I drifted off into predicting what I thought Yaesu would do versus saying what I want in a next generation FT-817.
So here’s what would make the radio great for me:
1. Larger battery, lower receive current
2. Bigger display, easier to read (does not have to be touchscreen)
3. Upgrade of transceiver with better DSP/SDR
Bonus points: bluetooth interface and tablet support