5 ms·

AM transmitters and receivers are a lot easier to make from scratch than FM, and it covers longer distances (mainly due to the lower frequency band). So it's a

by pajko 2y ago

AM transmitters and receivers are a lot easier to make from scratch than FM, and it covers longer distances (mainly due to the lower frequency band). So it's a better fit for emergency and end-of-the-world situations.

Gualdrapo 2y ago
My father, who was a farmer, used to carry an AM/FM radio with when he was working. He vehemently forbid us to switch it to FM - batteries lasted longer on AM.
- nikau 2y ago
  Sounds like an excuse he made up to stop you changing the radio station
  - pooper 2y ago
    Adults lie or worse, they don't even know the truth themselves but they still need to be seen as knowing everything. I am an adult now and know better but my mom still tries to speak with authority, when I've known for decades at this point that being an adult doesn't automatically make you wise or even knowledgeable.
zamadatix 2y ago
In disaster or end of world situations why do you want your emergency radio to be a car? Likely hard or hazardous to get to to get to, decent probability of not being functional in the situation, and wont have power for long otherwise. AM is great for emergencies so put a wind up in your emergency kit. If, for some reason, you need to take it to your car then go ahead. Want one at home and one in your car? Go nuts.
- shkkmo 2y ago
  Conversely, a car is probably the single most important tool most people will own in an emergency situation. It provides a generator, radio and source of heat that can be more easily moved than any alternative. Sure, fuel usage becomes a problem, but a car provides more of a stop gap in emergencies than most alternatives. I say this as someone who generally dislikes cars and wishes our infrastructure was designed to make them less necessary. They are great in emergencies and decreased car ownership does mean having to make up the slack in emergency preparedness in other areas.
  - zamadatix 2y ago
    Assuming the car is fueled and safely accessible what advantage does the AM radio being built into the car provide over a separate pairing? A portable radio can be taken to the car, be pulled out of its trunk, use the car as its power source (and not require it in the first place), and then taken out again when the car becomes unnecessary/dead/unsafe. If a lot of people having cars is just a convenient place to distribute emergency radios then require they come with said portable radio next to the spare, don't require the car itself to have it.
    - shkkmo 2y ago
      If you want a piece of safety equipment to be readily available to every driver, then putting a radio in the boot won't work. I absolutely think that having an emergency radio is better preparation that relying on your car. However the inclusion requirement makes sense. It is rare that a group of people will be isolated with without a vehicle and ensuring every vehicle has an AM radio is the best way of ensuring everyone has access to one in an emergency.
      - zamadatix 2y ago
        If you can't be bothered to pull over while driving by yourself in the nuclear apocalypse but you urgently need to get the latest emergency broadcast info despite FM being down (EAS also uses that) and cell towers being down then sure, it's an advantage to have it built in. In every other actually conceivable case... it's a worse answer from both the implementation and execution perspectives. If you can get into someone else's functioning vehicle you can also get to the one mandated to be in the trunk instead, where the radio is guaranteed to work without actually being able to start the car too.
        shkkmo 2y ago
        > If you can't be bothered to pull over while driving by yourself in the nuclear apocalypse Are trying to be silly? I'm much more concerned about drivers having access during a bizzard, earthquake, mudslide, forest fire or any of the other regularly encountered hazards about which AM radio is used to communicate with drivers. > If you can get into someone else's functioning vehicle you can also get to the one mandated to be in the trunk instead, An item physically attached to the vehicle is much more likely to be there. If you think mandating emergency radios is good, then go for it. Let's wait to see how well that plan works before removing a standard piece of safety equipment that has worked well for decades.

by pajko 2y ago

Gualdrapo 2y ago

My father, who was a farmer, used to carry an AM/FM radio with when he was working. He vehemently forbid us to switch it to FM - batteries lasted longer on AM.

nikau 2y ago
Sounds like an excuse he made up to stop you changing the radio station
- pooper 2y ago
  Adults lie or worse, they don't even know the truth themselves but they still need to be seen as knowing everything. I am an adult now and know better but my mom still tries to speak with authority, when I've known for decades at this point that being an adult doesn't automatically make you wise or even knowledgeable.

zamadatix 2y ago

In disaster or end of world situations why do you want your emergency radio to be a car? Likely hard or hazardous to get to to get to, decent probability of not being functional in the situation, and wont have power for long otherwise. AM is great for emergencies so put a wind up in your emergency kit. If, for some reason, you need to take it to your car then go ahead. Want one at home and one in your car? Go nuts.

shkkmo 2y ago
Conversely, a car is probably the single most important tool most people will own in an emergency situation. It provides a generator, radio and source of heat that can be more easily moved than any alternative. Sure, fuel usage becomes a problem, but a car provides more of a stop gap in emergencies than most alternatives. I say this as someone who generally dislikes cars and wishes our infrastructure was designed to make them less necessary. They are great in emergencies and decreased car ownership does mean having to make up the slack in emergency preparedness in other areas.
- zamadatix 2y ago
  Assuming the car is fueled and safely accessible what advantage does the AM radio being built into the car provide over a separate pairing? A portable radio can be taken to the car, be pulled out of its trunk, use the car as its power source (and not require it in the first place), and then taken out again when the car becomes unnecessary/dead/unsafe. If a lot of people having cars is just a convenient place to distribute emergency radios then require they come with said portable radio next to the spare, don't require the car itself to have it.
  - shkkmo 2y ago
    If you want a piece of safety equipment to be readily available to every driver, then putting a radio in the boot won't work. I absolutely think that having an emergency radio is better preparation that relying on your car. However the inclusion requirement makes sense. It is rare that a group of people will be isolated with without a vehicle and ensuring every vehicle has an AM radio is the best way of ensuring everyone has access to one in an emergency.
    - zamadatix 2y ago
      If you can't be bothered to pull over while driving by yourself in the nuclear apocalypse but you urgently need to get the latest emergency broadcast info despite FM being down (EAS also uses that) and cell towers being down then sure, it's an advantage to have it built in. In every other actually conceivable case... it's a worse answer from both the implementation and execution perspectives. If you can get into someone else's functioning vehicle you can also get to the one mandated to be in the trunk instead, where the radio is guaranteed to work without actually being able to start the car too.
      - shkkmo 2y ago
        > If you can't be bothered to pull over while driving by yourself in the nuclear apocalypse Are trying to be silly? I'm much more concerned about drivers having access during a bizzard, earthquake, mudslide, forest fire or any of the other regularly encountered hazards about which AM radio is used to communicate with drivers. > If you can get into someone else's functioning vehicle you can also get to the one mandated to be in the trunk instead, An item physically attached to the vehicle is much more likely to be there. If you think mandating emergency radios is good, then go for it. Let's wait to see how well that plan works before removing a standard piece of safety equipment that has worked well for decades.