This radio has been generating a fair amount of controversy and has also made for some great discussion across the internet. The controversy is over why Alinco would pour money into two very unused bands. Personally, I think it is fabulous that there is an off the shelf product out for the 900 MHz ham band finally, which would allow for easier exploration. Pairing these two bands into one rig also will allow these two underutilized bands a little bit more attention than they have been afforded in the past. As you know, 220 Mhz is something that we have added to our repertoire over the last year or so, and have really enjoyed the benefits of the band. I have messed with 900 gear in the past and still have a 900 radio, but this would be an excellent way for someone to join some local action, experiment with 900 simplex, and get acquainted with how radio propagates at that high frequency.
The radio is called the Alinco DJ-G29T, and it looks like with the stock battery pack that the power output will be 4w on 222 and 1.7w on 902 MHz. Higher power is possible with 13.8 volts. It looks like the radio finally has FCC approval (visit here for pics, approval details, and users manual). Well if that just isn’t slicker than pig poo. Watch the shelves in the stores to see what they will actually cost, and how they will perform.
Yeah, this one does boggle the mind. Either they know something we don’t, or they are looking to set a record for the radio with the fewest number of units sold.
I know there’s sporadic 220 activity around the country, but I never hear much about 900, except for maybe some linking/backbone applications.