5 ms·

The use-case I am interested in - and what would have me licensing and tooling up next week - is an actual qwerty device for using that HAM text mode/feature (A

by rsync 5y ago

The use-case I am interested in - and what would have me licensing and tooling up next week - is an actual qwerty device for using that HAM text mode/feature (APRS, right) ? There's all kinds of info and notes and discussion about APRS but there isn't a single device for it. No I am not interested in serial connecting my yaesu to a laptop. I mean a standalone handheld that I can type in a message without T9-style pecking. Why doesn't this exist ?

jdofaz 5y ago
I wanted the same thing. When I discovered I could send text messages via APRS to a callsign on my kenwood tm-d710 I felt excitement that was then followed by disappointment in that I had to type my message using a knob selector. I had initially thought you could use the number pad on the microphone to input the message T9 style. I think someone made a keyboard for the older model but it didn't work with mine
- detaro 5y ago
  I think other kenwood models are at least a bit better than that, but nothing really comfortable afaik. There's also bluetooth-enabled TNCs you can use with phone apps, but then you again have phone + TNC + radio. All-in-one's seem to be mostly just trackers that send position, without extra features, at least the ones I've seen. EDIT: the PicoAPRS can at least be used as a TNC+transmitter over usb, so that could be combined with a smartphone for a two-device pair.
justin66 5y ago
How could it possibly be more convenient than hooking a radio up to a laptop you like? Is it just a matter of all the software options being bad?
- detaro 5y ago
  How is using a laptop in any way convenient while walking around?
  - justin66 5y ago
    What "actual qwerty device" (the OP's words) is convenient while walking around? I mean, I'm curious what form factor we're talking about here. Is the OP talking about the cell-phone form factor? The interesting thing there is that people have already abandoned qwerty on cell phones, so there's no real reason to think it's ever going to pop up on a new radio. Perhaps you'd have better luck convincing someone to make an amateur radio with a glass touchscreen.
    - int_19h 5y ago
      People haven't abandoned QWERTY on cell phones - we replaced physical keyboards with touch, but the keyboard itself is still there. Furthermore, there are still smartphones and PDAs made with physical keyboards today, catering to niches where it makes sense. Some examples would be Unihertz Titan and Cosmo Communicator.
      - justin66 5y ago
        > People haven't abandoned QWERTY on cell phones - we replaced physical keyboards with touch, but the keyboard itself is still there. I think the OP has quit the thread but hopefully you'd agree that it's not normal to refer to a standard iPhone or iPad form factor as an "actual qwerty device," and he probably meant something else entirely. > Unihertz Titan and Cosmo Communicator And I bet they sell literally dozens of those. The question is whether Kenwood or whoever would prefer to build something with a physical keyboard or something with a glass screen, if they took an interest in really pursuing what the OP was talking about. There's a lot of stuff you could do. Being able to dock an iPhone or iPhone SE into a larger radio and use the phone UI to control the radio might work. Trying to replicate all the UI stuff a good phone, tablet, or laptop does on a radio feels like a doomed project for any radio manufacturer to undertake.
        int_19h 5y ago
        I'm not entirely sure what the OP meant, but the scenario as described - "a standalone handheld that I can type in a message without T9-style pecking" - would be served perfectly fine by an on-screen touch keyboard. And there already are Android-based phones with transceivers! E.g. Unihertz also has one: https://www.unihertz.com/products/atom-xl https://www.unihertz.com/products/atom-xl. So basically it just needs to be something similar, but with APRS.

by rsync 5y ago

jdofaz 5y ago

I wanted the same thing. When I discovered I could send text messages via APRS to a callsign on my kenwood tm-d710 I felt excitement that was then followed by disappointment in that I had to type my message using a knob selector. I had initially thought you could use the number pad on the microphone to input the message T9 style. I think someone made a keyboard for the older model but it didn't work with mine

detaro 5y ago
I think other kenwood models are at least a bit better than that, but nothing really comfortable afaik. There's also bluetooth-enabled TNCs you can use with phone apps, but then you again have phone + TNC + radio. All-in-one's seem to be mostly just trackers that send position, without extra features, at least the ones I've seen. EDIT: the PicoAPRS can at least be used as a TNC+transmitter over usb, so that could be combined with a smartphone for a two-device pair.

justin66 5y ago

How could it possibly be more convenient than hooking a radio up to a laptop you like? Is it just a matter of all the software options being bad?

detaro 5y ago
How is using a laptop in any way convenient while walking around?
- justin66 5y ago
  What "actual qwerty device" (the OP's words) is convenient while walking around? I mean, I'm curious what form factor we're talking about here. Is the OP talking about the cell-phone form factor? The interesting thing there is that people have already abandoned qwerty on cell phones, so there's no real reason to think it's ever going to pop up on a new radio. Perhaps you'd have better luck convincing someone to make an amateur radio with a glass touchscreen.
  - int_19h 5y ago
    People haven't abandoned QWERTY on cell phones - we replaced physical keyboards with touch, but the keyboard itself is still there. Furthermore, there are still smartphones and PDAs made with physical keyboards today, catering to niches where it makes sense. Some examples would be Unihertz Titan and Cosmo Communicator.
    - justin66 5y ago
      > People haven't abandoned QWERTY on cell phones - we replaced physical keyboards with touch, but the keyboard itself is still there. I think the OP has quit the thread but hopefully you'd agree that it's not normal to refer to a standard iPhone or iPad form factor as an "actual qwerty device," and he probably meant something else entirely. > Unihertz Titan and Cosmo Communicator And I bet they sell literally dozens of those. The question is whether Kenwood or whoever would prefer to build something with a physical keyboard or something with a glass screen, if they took an interest in really pursuing what the OP was talking about. There's a lot of stuff you could do. Being able to dock an iPhone or iPhone SE into a larger radio and use the phone UI to control the radio might work. Trying to replicate all the UI stuff a good phone, tablet, or laptop does on a radio feels like a doomed project for any radio manufacturer to undertake.
      - int_19h 5y ago
        I'm not entirely sure what the OP meant, but the scenario as described - "a standalone handheld that I can type in a message without T9-style pecking" - would be served perfectly fine by an on-screen touch keyboard. And there already are Android-based phones with transceivers! E.g. Unihertz also has one: https://www.unihertz.com/products/atom-xl https://www.unihertz.com/products/atom-xl. So basically it just needs to be something similar, but with APRS.