There has been a lot of buzz about the Yaesu FT-710 (above) on Twitter and YouTube over the past week or so. For the life of me, though, I can’t figure out what the buzz is about. Here are the specs from the Yaesu website:
- TX Frequency Range: 1.8MHz band – 50MHz band (Amateur bands only). 70MHz – 70.5MHz (UK Amateur bands only)
- RX Frequency Range: 30KHz – 75MHz (Operating)
- 1.8MHz – 29.699999MHz (Specified performance, Amateur bands only)
- 50MHz – 53.999999MHz (Specified performance, Amateur bands only)
- 70MHz – 70.499999MHz (Specified performance, UK Amateur bands
- Emission Modes: A1A(CW), A3E(AM), J3E(LSB/USB), F3E(FM)
- Supply Voltage: DC13.8V ±15%
- Power Output: 5 – 100W (5 – 25W AM Carrier)
- Dimensions (W x H x D): 9.4” x 3.1” x 9.7” (239 x 80 x 247mm)
- Weight (Approx.): 9.92lbs (4.5kg)
OK, so it’s a very small, HF+6m SDR transceiver. According to video hastily produced by John Kruk, N9UPC, the FT-710 is meant to be a desktop base station radio and NOT a competitor of the Icom IC-705.
The only reason that I can think of for all the hubbub about the FT-710 is to increase traffic to websites and YouTube channels. And, honestly, that’s the only reason I’m blogging about it. Thanks for reading this, and increasing my readership numbers. <evil grin>