I posted this just before going to bed last night and anxiously turned on
the computer this morning, even before making coffee. Wanted to see what
people thought.
I was surprised to find the answers were not as spread all over the map as I
had expected.
Still there was quite a variety of ideas.
I understand many would love to use their iphone or droid to control their
radios.
Can't imagine I ever would. But I would be willing to try an iPad.
I just can't see stuff on the tiny little phones.
I understand some want a knob for everything.
Been there, done that; too many features these days.
You'd need 50 knobs - most of which you adjust once and never touch again.
15 years ago I could not imagine a radio with just 3 knobs and a few
buttons.
Then I bought an Orion and ran my first CW contest with it. CQWW DX.
I had the external POD directly next to the keyboard.
At the end of the contest I realized that I had not touched the radio itself
more than a dozen times.
Tuning was with the remote POD, band change was done by the logging
software, and I just left the bandwidth cranked almost all the way down.
Surprisingly I didn't even touch the AF and RF gains more than a couple of
times.
You could almost say I worked the entire contest by touching just one knob.
Last week I ran CQWW SSB.
Had the Eagle pulled right up next to the Keyboard.
Used the VFO a lot but also tuned just as often with the Band Map (on the
computer screen), jumping directly from one DX multiplier to the next.
Other than that I used the RF Gain a little, the AF Gain less than that, and
the PBT occasionally.
I ran split a few times on 40 so I punched a couple of buttons occasionally.
I know from last year that in the CW contest, I did not even use the PBT.
I count 3 knobs and a few buttons needed for CW contesting.
OK, I key with an external keyer and it has a big knob for the speed
control.
If I used the built-in keyer in the rig, that would add a knob.
Carl is right. You can run a contest with 3 knobs.
IMO, it's not quite enough but Wood Box will not be the last to build these
interfaces.
We will get more, in all kinds of shapes and sizes.
Some will look like a real radio, others may look like the control box of
the IC-7100, a combination of flat (horizontal) and slanted face. After
all, if it is small and light, we need to be pushing down on the buttons,
otherwise we'll be chasing the device all over the table.
Personally I would want one a little larger; large enough to have a good
front-mounted speaker in it.
Then I would like about 6 knobs and I'll have to put some thought into the
number of buttons.
I want mic, key and headphone connections on both the front and back panel.
I'll probably never get it exactly as I want it but I'm sure there will be a
unit that suits my needs.
As Barry said though, how long will we have to wait?
Speculation: 5 years till we realize these tiny devices are everywhere.
73
Rick, DJ0IP
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