The Choyong LC90 AM/FM/SW/IN Radio. THE PERFECT RADIO DOES EXIST!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 พ.ค. 2024
- I've reviewed a lot of radios over the years, and I've owned many many more. Of all of them, and I mean ALL of them, this is the radio of my dreams. It perfectly blends the old school AM/FM/SW experience with a entire world of new content that exists online.
This radio is a game changer and it's something I've been dreaming of ever since I heard about it's design.
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I appreciate the concept of this radio integrating the internet, but at a price of $250, it lacks essential features for a shortwave radio. Firstly, for its cost, it should cover 0.2 to 30 MHz continuously. Unfortunately, the current shortwave band range of 2300-26100 KHz excludes CB and 160 m ham radio. Additionally, it lacks single sideband capability, a crucial feature in this price range. It should also include FM narrow for 10 m reception up to 30 MHz. While the radio has commendable channels and reviews, it falls short of expectations due to its limitations. The concept is promising but requires more features for the value it offers.
I disagree with pretty much all of what you said. You are looking for a general coverage receiver that you intend to use to listen to Ham and CB comms. This is a AM/FM (commercial) and SW (commercial) band radio with the addition of an incredible Internet radio feature.
I hear your complaint often here on the channel when I review radios, with Ham operators lamenting the lack of SSB or 1-30 coverage, but for 99% of users, no one wants to hear random Ham operators chatting about dr. appointments. They buy radios like this to hear commercial radio stations. There are no commercial radio stations operating on SSB.
It's great that Ham and CB radio lovers want a radio that does everything, and It's a conversation I had recently with Cobra when I asked about a return to their SSB model CB's They gave me the same answer I sort of already knew. Only a few die hard fans of radio even know what SSB is, and of those even fewer are willing to pay to have a radio with it.
@@FarpointFarms I'm looking for the best value for the money for $100 less I can get a Tecsun PL880.
@@FarpointFarms "There are no commercial radio stations operating on SSB." But also there are very few commercial station operating in AM!! How many SW commercial stations can you pick up on even a really good night? Probably not a lot. And in way you are kind of wrong. All commercial stations operate in SSB besides AM! Because an AM signal has the carrier and both sidebands!! Both upper and lower sidebands. One of the great things with a radio that has SSB is to listen to a commercial broadcaster on only on sideband! You can eliminate interference that way and it often helps to prevent "shortwave fade" and pumping where the station gets weaker and stronger constantly which can be irritating. On a station at at 7400 kHz, if you had a station on 7405 interfering you can tune to the lower sideband to help reduce the interference because you're on "the other side" of the interference. So really all AM stations are also SSB too!! My Drake SW8 had synchronous detection to make it even easier to listen to only one sideband of an AM station. it kind of "auto-tunes" one of the sidebands, whichever one you want, LSB or USB. This can be done for the AM band stations too. I listen to only the lower sideband of KNRS 570 here in Utah all the time. You are smart but you still could learn a lot more about radio theory.
@@markr.1984I must concur with you sir.
@@wxfreakI have the 880, and while it's a pretty good radio for what it is, it doesn't beat the versatility of this new Internet/ Multiband radio!
Without SSB, it's hard to justify the cost. When you can buy any number of SSB capable portables, I don't see the web features making up for the lack of SSB. And it's not Mid Wave, it's Medium Wave.
I think if you sat down with one and played for a few hours, you'd understand the cost. SSB is an afterthought once you slide down the rabbit hole that is internet radio. It's not the stations that I showed, it's the ones that I didn't stations like "The Payphone Network" that suck you in.
@@FarpointFarms I know about the Internet Radio features, but IMHO, it's crippled by a lack of SSB, when it can be done well with simply a chip change at this point in time, and the cost at the production level is very little.
Its good to see radios catching up with the times. SSB and Airband would be a good upgrade for the next model. It's not cheap but worth looking at. :)
I think if they added both of those it would make it a very expensive radio.
Needs SSB and Airband for sure.
Probably best not having SSB because all the radios now have DSP and SSB sounds horrible on DSP radios which is why I believe that the Tecsun PL-680 is one of th ebest portable radios you can still buy new today because it is pure analogue and the pure audio quality makes ECSS a joy to listen to and this makes it one of the best and true DX'ers radio of choice !
DSP = cheap construction and expensive to buy as DSP is marketed as some kind of magic, it's far from it when it comes to SSB.
Yes SSB would be perfect
Thanks for the review. I used to have an old Tecsun that I brought with me on a 1 year tour in Alaska… that was in 1989. Sadly it’s been lost over the years. I was intrigued enough to order one of these LC90s. This is the first portable BC radio that I’ve bought in a long time and looks like it’s got a lot of features that I know I’ll be able to use at home, at work and even while we’re out roaming the countryside in our RV.
You can use you phone as a hotspot as needed to get the internet part of the radio. Might not work in areas that have poor cell reception though.
@@FarpointFarms yeah that’s why I ordered it, it’ll add the Internet radio capabilities to my LP too.
@@FarpointFarmsit arrived two days early!
Thank you for the very helpful demonstration. And I certainly appreciate Choyong's effort. But in the end, I think I would rather have 2: a dedicated Internet radio (or smartphone app or website), and a dedicated airwave radio (Tecsun, Eton, etc). Each will do its own specific job better.
Thanks for sharing- I try to limit my devices if I can
Whats the sensitivity like for AM and SW , compared to other brands ? That would be a useful test. But make sure all other radios in the test aren't causing interference to others. Digital circuits designed badly could be a source of interference!
I mean that's cool but nothing I can't do with a few online sites or apps. My love of radio comes from sweeping some obscure bands in a dimly lit room while trying to max out my antenna capabilities.
I think you would love the internet radio part then. It's the same experience to a large extent, but better. 40,000 stations and nearly all of them are run by a random person with their own flair for radio, talk radio, or whatever. While there are many commercial radio streams, it's channels like "The payphone network" that will draw you in.
I can relate to that, early 1970s listening to a valve short wave radio with the lights turned off. Just the warm glow of the valves and tuning dial.
After watching your video a couple of weeks ago I ordered the radio and am not disappointed. It was a little pricey, but well worth it. It is one unit that does is all very seamlessly. I still need to spend more time with the radio exploring all the features.
thanks for sharing, I am still learning mine as well.
Good frosty morning!! Really neat radio, and I'm sure you'll get hours of fiddle time with it, and hopefully a follow up. Maybe there will be an upgrade with ssb, that would really put it over the top.
Frosty and the snow will just not stop, I am over winter already. SSB would be cool, but I am sure it would add to the cost pushing it out of the price range for too many others
@@FarpointFarms I agree how SSB would jack the price point , my Realistic DX-440 does just fine, got it for a song at a ham fest . Nothing like getting out and cutting firewood in 6 degree snowy weather, just glad the wind wasn’t blowing! ☃️
I enjoyed your review and I may purchase one, however, the thing cannot tune SSB. I really enjoy your channel- it’s one of my favorites.
Thanks!
To bad to hear that, but great that u post the info before others bought it..... i.e. me ❤
I have subscribed to Choyong Electronics TH-cam channel. They have 2 vids on this radio. I will be looking forward your follow-ups to this radio, along with other TH-cam vids on it when released to the market. So far, only your vid and Choyong’s are on TH-cam. I am REALLY interested in this radio. The lack of SSB does not matter as I have any number of other radios for that aspect. Thanks for the introduction.
I have been waiting on this type of radio for a long time. I have it by my bed so I can listen at night to it.
Hey, love the vintage Pro-34 scanner in the background. Mine still works!
Now that's old school!
Cool I still have a Pro 34 that's like new alive and kicking
We would never find out about this great radio if not for your channel.Hours and Hours of great listening.Thanks !
Glad I could share it!
Not sure how this product is new. Internet radios have existed for years. C crain had had them and others, Sangean.
I'm glad that this model has finally come out! There had been some rumours they were gonna make it through 2023. Now I see a lot of interest in radio enthusiasts groups. As a European I'd be also glad to see DAB+ added to this model (but it's not that important if it has the internet connection), and as an amateur shortwave radio listener it would be perfect to add SSB bands. But even without this it seems like a very interesting radio. Pretty nice sound, curious to see some more detailed bandscans to see its abilities. Moreover I'd like to hear your opinion on batteries (how long can they play at once) and external antenna tests.
I'm curious it it uses the famous TEF 6686 chip cause it would mean excellent reception on FM.
The SIM-card slot was something that I've been waiting for years! It also has Bluetooth and other stuff. Wow.
It interests me where it gets the Podcast and Online Station list from - Spotify? Google Podcasts? MediaU or some other?
The radio stations seem to come right from Shoutcast and Ice cast servers, and they are working with Spotify for the podcast list. It will come as a software update once they hammer out the contract according to my contact.
@@FarpointFarms thanks for your answer! I have one additional question about the favourites list - is it one common list for all bands and Internet stations? I've always looked for a receiver that would make it possible to manage them on one list instead of separate favourites lists for each band. It's time consuming and tiring to switch between bands every time you want to check on your favs.
All the best for you!
It's not available for purchase right now, it has been sold out like hot cakes.
No SSB is a deal killer. Also currently unavailable at Amazon.
I hope it works well for you- It make being frozen easier since you can clear your driveway way quicker than shoveling. A tip from another viewer was to spray the auger and chute with pam- it helps the snow not to stick
New firmware 4.4 supports SSB
Purchased the mini version of this! Should be here in a couple days, real excited to get it!
That is cool to know- I hope you enjoy it as much as I love mine
thanks for the coverage of this radio, I'll be checking it out further & btw it is back in stock on AMZ as of this morning :) Congrats as well to the haters for their contributions.....this upload looks to be well on its way to becoming one of your most viewed, despite being live for only a couple of months 🤣
Thank you for the update- Everyone can have their opinion, I respect their right to say it even if I don't agree with it
I just ordered this from amazon its very cool it should be at my door by the 5th of this month its nice to know how to work it before you get it .
It's a really nice radio. Fell asleep listening to the BBC last night on mine.
Very expensive radio for us down here in Australia (over $400). I guess the other alternative is to just buy a portable internet radio with DAB and FM (under $100) and listen to SW and AM on traditional receivers. Great review, I would like one but will wait until the price comes down
I think once they come out and are widely sold the price point will drop.
@@FarpointFarmsnot available now
Unfortunately most of the world doesn't use US dollars and it's priced in USD even for Australia. US$250 = AUD$ 381. That's a lot for a radio that doesn't even have DAB .
Love the new opening!
thank you for the feedback
pretty radio but missing LSB/USB for ham & cb channels like my Tecsun PL660. The preset menu countries / state/ programs is really neat tho
The thing Ham radio guys and gals need to realize is that there are exactly 0 commercial radio stations operating in SSB. I love to hear ham and cb comms too, but this isn't a general coverage receiver any more than it's a scanner.
What frequency again with tecsum for cb and ham?
Agreed. At $250 & no LSB/USB is dealbreaker.
@@FarpointFarms But here in the west ( I live in Utah), you cant pull out any (or very rarely, anyway) commercial broadcast stations on SW. All we get is mostly ham using SSB. I do realize that on the east coast you guys can still get a small assortment of SW broadcasters. In Europe they still have a lot of SW broadcast, so SW is not dead there. They also still have longwave broadcasts (below AM band) but those stations are dying out. We have never had longwave broadcast stations in the US or any of the Americas, BTW. It was only used for directional navigation beacons in the old days.
@@FarpointFarms but we listen to hams on SSB...thats the point and a major FAIL. And BTW, there are many utility and navigation stations that operate on SSB that broadcast by voice. NOAA and other government agencies across the world do...and theyre not in morse .
G''day & Thanks for the great review of the Choyong LC90 AM/FM/SW/IN Radio
I'm an communications buff, & a full on Short wave enthusiasts as well as an Amateur from Melbourne Australia ( VK3ECS ) where 774 ( shown on your review actually transmits from ) in my professional opinion ( mas someone who works in the industry for ( Essential Communications Services in Australia ) there are 4 x major things that disappoints me about this radio with which I feel just a little bit more R & D time that they could have gotten right & it would have been the absolute ultimate radio.
(1) The USB-C, Ext speaker & especially the External antenna ports are all in the wrong place what a pain in the rear end is the external antenna port that would directly interfere with using the tuning dial right next to the tuning dial surly they could have put this port, the USB-C port & the external speaker port on the left hand side where it did not interfere with the using of the dials on the right hand side what a huge over sight, hopefully they will bring out a V2 of this radio with these & the below things addressed & fixed then I'd buy one no problem.
(2) The SW: 2300-26100KHz(Step: 1KHz/5KHz) band coverage who on earth makes a "Short Wave" radio that only covers up to 26100KHz what about the 11m CB & the 10M Amateur band as well as from the top of the 10m band up to 30Mhz or 30000Khz or at least 29.999Mhz or 29999Khz.
(3) This radio does not have or support SSB ( USB & LSB ) so listening to the 40M amateur band that you showed in your review would not be possible neither would listening to ANY SSB utility services like Amateur, Aviation, Marine or the HFGCS just to name a few of many that use SSB be possible.
(4) This radio does not have any sort of a fold out stand on the back that would allow you to lay it back on a 45 deg angle & use it in a portable situation.
For me the above 4 things are an absolute deal breaker & I feel will be for many others as well.
The one other thing that they could have added to the radio which would have made it even better again was AM Aviation Receive 114Mhz to 137Mhz
I absolutely LOVE the SD card & the SIM slot as well as the fact that it can run off of WiFi Wow BUT for the 4 reasons above I don't think it will be incredibly popular amongst the "hard Core" short wave / communications enthusiasts.
Regards
Wayne.
Thanks. The actual designer of the this radio is here to read these comments and to make improvements. I'm sure he will find this useful.
Several years ago I had a real good shortwave portable radio and it would not work on SSB so I found a BFO kit on the internet and put it together to try out on the old
AM/FM/Shortwave radio. That small kit was easy to put together and worked flawlessly on the old radio. The only requirements were that the receiver should be stable
in receive and not drift plus, it had to have a 455 Khz IF which the BFO generated. All a fella has to do to use it on SSB is have a short length of wire near the radio's
antenna The Shortwave radios have come way down in prices so I haven't had a reason to use the external BFO for a few years since I've got several general coverage
radios around plus Amateur Radios that have multi functions like SSB and AM.
.
Cool idea!
I bought a 25 ft long wave antenna kit on eBay. Since I've put it up, I don't have problems finding enough SW radio stations.
What did you buy? I know it's very location dependant but I have a 25ft that bends at 90 and another 25 parallel to roof. Little reception.
I have a Techsun and use Rtl-Sdr
@@IntoTheWild70 I bought this particular antenna kit from a dealer on eBay. He makes these antennas at home and puts the accessories in the bag. I read the instructions and followed the rules etc... The balun is included in the kit. It is a 25 ft long copper wire hanging between two plastic poles. It is mounted on top of an old mobile home. I am glad that I went with buying a kit. That way I got instructions and some extra coaching from the seller. I can send you the link if you would like.
@@IntoTheWild70 wdx2radio
I actually took a 6 strand phone cable and cut each to a specific wavelength.
Looks really good. Im more interested in broadcast radio rather than SW so it looks ideal for me. The only thing is here in the UK we have a lot of DAB but other than that.
Thanks for the upload.
Cheers 🍻
It's a great radio, but no HD or DAB on this one.
@FarpointFarms thanks for the reply.
I've not been able to find anything with DAB and my other than fm.
The LC90 looks really good though.
Cheers 🍻
Yes hello the radio i was speaking of is the grace digital mondo elite. However it is not portible but check c crane they sell it for 219.00 and it does do more. You mentioned bugs what are they. As always i find you always have interesting content. Thank you. Ron. Z.
I'll look into the CC crane model. Thanks!
If anyone can recommend a decent shortwave receiver for about half that price, I'd love to hear it!
Tremendous review, Erik. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on that Choyong.
Thanks!
Sure, the Qodosen SR-256. Doesn't have SSB though.
@ Thank you, Johann. 👍
It does all that, but no HDFM? The very first station you tuned on FM was 89.5 WETS which has 4 sub stations on HDFM radios. That’s the dealbreaker for me! Hopefully they can upgrade that with software? Also, does it have FM RDS? You did a great review, but I’m holding out for HDFM (digital FM) like my Pioneer car radio has.
The man who designed these radios is reading these comments. Maybe that is something he can look into
Thanks for the review !
Probably best not having SSB because all the radios now have DSP and SSB sounds horrible on DSP radios which is why I believe that the Tecsun PL-680 is one of th ebest portable radios you can still buy new today because it is pure analogue and the pure audio quality makes ECSS a joy to listen to and this makes it one of the best and true DX'ers radio of choice !
DSP = cheap construction and expensive to buy as DSP is marketed as some kind of magic, it's far from it when it comes to SSB.
Internet radio, doesn't do it for me, I'd rather a high quality analogue design. I have roberts internet radios and been through having issues with storing stations and the service behind this now wants to charge a subscription service but this is not just for roberts radios. Without this service you have to manually enter every ip and port number of every station !
Can't beat tuning around the bands on SW but this radio has the typical dreaded muting when tuning, = fail,
Just my opinion but it seems like it's not much of a Radio for those who like to tune around the bands, no SSB and if I want to hear highly compressed audio I will use tunein radio on my phone.
Thank you for sharing your opinion- I like the radio as I am able to listen to all kinds of internet stations, but everyone has what works for them
@@FarpointFarms as long as your happy, nothing else matters. Enjoy 😊
I just got mine and it is far better than advertised. Maybe it's a newer version as of 4.2024, but my upper range goes to 29.9 MHz, including CB. Not sure on the lower end but I know it's at least 0.4. The back of the radio still states the older ranges but mine does what I described. This thing is amazing. If you're on the fence and the price doesn't scare you, pull the trigger. Like most of you, I have a lot of radios and I've bought crappy stuff, but this radio is really cool.
Yup. It's a bit of a surprise, but they have upgraded it via software and now it worth the entire spectrum. Plus it now also has ssb mode! They also used software to upgrade the am band reception as well. Very cool radio!
This certainly appears to be a radio worth having yet…I see no questions or reviews on this listing at Amazon. I didn’t think that was even possible. This does not make me doubt the product yet does makes me concerned about the seller. I guess I better give this some further thought. Thanks for the great video.
I am quite literally the first person state side to play with one. The designer of the radio is the person I've been chatting with since the start with this. This new company has just this radio on the market now, but I'm sure will offer new ones as the months go by.
There are now reviews on Amazon for this radio.
I recognized the woman's voice on 5935. Looks like a nice radio. I like the knob style tuning.
That was Eugene Scott' wife!
I can do the same thing with my smart phone.
Admittedly it's kind of pretty but not worth $250
I would be concerned that after a while the links programed into the radio would eventually become broken as these things change all the time.
I don't use a smartphone, so I have no point of reference there, but I can say that you can easily add in new stations. My own shoutcast stream wasn't listed so I manually entered it in with no issues and it's working fine. Shoutcast has been around since 98 or so, so I'd say its a safe bet it will be around for the long haul.
I bet you love Russia radio
@@ericfrederick1227 Huh?
The stooges are all over these days. I just ignore them.
Ha! What a tool. Keep on trusting everything they tell you.
Thankyou for showing us the LC90. Please forgive me if I sound nitpicky however you should know that MW is Medium Wave, it always has been and always will be Medium Wave. Just so you don't continue to call it mid-wave. I appreciate your kindness in showing us the radio. 🙂
Thanks for the correction.
It would be perfect with full SW range + SSB. Flip stand at the back is missing and those two 3.5mm jacks is such a stupid position. Why not left side?
It might be the board on the inside to why they are placed where they are
If they can add a few more OTA bands, like ham and have SSB I would definitely be interested in it. Even if it was a little bit bigger. Many of the radios on the market that have all that stuff, less the internet stuff. Just don't seem to work very good. I had ordered one that you reviewed a while ago for a friend who wanted to get into shortwave and when it arrived I opened it up to check and try it out. It was loaded with features and it looked very nice. I just found that the tuner was not very sensitive. I had it hooked to a long wire antenna and it seemed like it just had trouble with stations that were not fairly strong. I had 2 other radios that I was comparing it with. That being said it was about a $100 radio and it came with many extras and I felt it would be great for them just starting out. If it would have had a little better tuner I probably would have ordered a second one for myself. Maybe if I wasn't into it like I am I would have thought it was awesome and that would have been that. Would you ever consider doing a video showing how to make a shortwave antenna out of slinkys? I purchased one many years ago on ebay and I must say it works really well and the length is self adjusting. I have strung it up in the house from curtain rods to door knobs and it works plus you can change directions real easy to help pull in stations from different locations. It's made of two metal slinkys, a piece of wire, two pieces of plastic pipe as insulators, and a alligator clip. Just something that I think others might be interested in.
Thank you for sharing that- some of the cheaper models are better for the novice users as they might not get their money worth with the fancier ones
Not even watched the full video but adding DAB+ and BT would merge old & new.
DAB+ isn't available here in the USA. We have HD radio, but it never caught on.
They just released a firmware update for this radio. It’s tempting to get this radio. I have a Tecsun pl-990 that costs about the same. I run internet radio through its Bluetooth connection. You would LOVE the pl-990.
I've been happy with mine. I even bought a second one.
@@FarpointFarms I think this radio is a game changer for sure. I got a boat anchor Zenith Transoceanic a few months ago, lots of fun and a different retro experience that reminds me of my childhood in the 1960s. I fell in love with shortwave then.
I have a Barlow Wadley,a good antenna and enjoy twiddling the knobs😂 what I pull in is truly facinating
It's the best part of the hobby!
Yes! I want one. Cant find it anywhere. Keep us posted please.
I wonder if they have a "notify me" option that you can sign up for. Radioddity had some but are sold out
Cool little radio, but your sweatshirt is definitely the coolest part!
That was a gift from fellow TH-camr Dallas Rife!
Thanks-it was a gift from a pretty cool fan.
As always, a great video. I'm thrilled... In my opinion, this fills a gap between smartphones and laptops. The only thing missing is the ability to communicate. But that will surely come one day...
If someone would come out with a shoutcast streaming device that allows easy hookup to a mixer board and broadcasted to the web without the need of a laptop, I'd be the first to buy it!
That is a nice radio, has a lot of great features. I'm looking forward to when they build a full color touch screen version, with multi-frequency display. If you can do a review on this - 2nd Generation Malahit-DSP2 SDR Malachite Receiver 3.5" Screen Firmware 2.30, it is in the $400 range though. Very cool though.
I can review it if the company wants to send it to me. Money is too tight to buy on
I can stream shortwave stations on my smartphone or laptop computer. I do not need to spend $250 for a radio to do this. This radio does not include single side band which I listen to the Ham stations on. Ill stick with my analog short wave radio that covers signals up to 30 MHz. I use a long wire antenna from my house to a tree. I get excellent reception.
Your loss. The Internet side of this radio is incredible. I've found myself on it every night for the past two weeks. So many great never heard of stations run off of personal computers. It reminds me of the old days of BBSs.
@@FarpointFarms Not my loss. My gain. I didn't waste $250!! I get all the streaming shortwave stations I need. Like I said, that radio does not have SSB. My analog receiver suits me fine.
Grab an SDR dongle and an antenna for your computer. You can get the entire frequency band up to 2Ghz (depending on the dongle). FREE software lets you do every mode INCLUDING DIGITAL.
With 2 dongles, you can do TRUNKING on P25 Public Safety bands. I have an 8 yr old laptop set up as a police scanner that runs 24/7, and I can tune in everything from Longwave to Satellites. AM/FM/SSB. I can even receive and DECIPHER Ham Radio FT8 signals (DIGITAL).
If you NEED portable, all you need is a USB adapter for your phone, and do everything listed above except the police scanner.
@@mikeh8416 Thanks. I know that. Just lazy.
@roncaruso931 he sure is snarky of late
Great radio Eric. Its because of your vidios i now started to get into this hobby as well as cb radios since the 70s. 360 from Rock hill SC and morganton NC waving the hand. How do i get one of those. ?
Looks like Amazon and as of this morning Radioitty have it listed on their websites.
Great little radio with lots of features!!!
Agreed. If I designed one myself, this would be it with minor changes.
Nice speaker sounding however without SSB I would not be interested. For me the short wave bands are full of interesting machine chatter, noise ans signal solely for keeping that particular frequency open, so notvso many national broadcasters on there is great for me. As someone has already mentioned the range also needs to be improved etc etc. I guess this radio is designed not for the sw listening crowd but for families to listen to new stations worldwide and be available in times of crisis allowing one to hear a broadcast when the Internet is down and when emergency services are broadcasting on whatever "common" band and frequency they can. In that case this radio hits the mark. How long does the battery last? In an emergency does one needs a reliable source of power to enable it to work?
You make some great points, the sw portion is good but the internet radio function is way better- I like that I am able to hear stations from all over and get some unfiltered news. There are so many stories that never make it to the new these days
I have had the battery on for 4+ hours with no issues
Eric I appreciate the reviews on all the receivers and radios you have received but I think a lot of us would like you to get on the air and do a true check as in like your new base radio and said get cotton this tracker 955 I'm not actually seen you on the air talking and reviewing it❤
I keep getting busy with life and trying to make time for everything, I swear I used to have more time to do everything
A jumper wire with alligator clips will allow you to connect your radio's antenna to a metal frame window. In the field use the jumper to connect to a metal slinky hanging from a post or tree limb. Works great. On the gulf coast after a hurricane all local stations went out. I got the latest news out of Nashville, TN AM and SW stations.
Thanks for the info! I would not have thought to use a slinky
Nice to see a hybrid internet and shortwave radio, and the speaker sounds pretty decent. A few worries though with internet radios, namely if it relies on an external website (which most do) as that might affect the long term reliability and lifetime. Not sure how you could carry that anywhere unless you had WiFi internet access close-by. I can see the attraction but these days smartphones and tablets.... anyway would be interested in how good the shortwave performance is, does it have SSB, what's the frequency range? Hope to see this available in the UK sometime. The UX seems pretty decent - didn't spot the power source, is it a Lithium Ion rechargeable battery? Did someone mention it can take a SIM card for the internet reception?
Yes, you can use a sim card for internet away from wifi. The stations are Shoutcast based and they have been around since 1998 or so, so I think it's a safe bet they will be there for a while more.
It has 2 18650 rechargeable batteries and they are removable.
As an internet radio, this looks more user friendly than the Grace or the CCWifi, however, if this unit had ssb capability i would buy right now. Hopefully the next rev will provide ssb. 🙏
I'm loving this one. Gets all the big SW stations and 1000's of internet ones too.
@@FarpointFarmsOK, I bought one!! The amount of Internet stations is incredible, upwards of 200 stations for Indonesia alone....the Bluetooth function works just fine. For terrestrial radio, however I am not impressed. At 1300UTC for example I scanned the SW bands alongside my XHDATA D-808 and the Choyong was very disappointing, even utilizing a PAR end fed longwire and "unplugging" all other devices. Can only receive strong frequencies comfortably. Nevertheless I really like this radio. Will be my primary Internet receiver. 👍
Great review as always. Thank you!
Glad you liked it!
No SSB and limited HF coverage? That is not perfect in my book. Looks nice otherwise.
Let me flip this for you. My $400 Eton 750 has all that, but.... No internet radio? Deal breaker for me.
@@FarpointFarms I guess that depends on what your needs are. First and foremost, I need a shortwave radio to work without the internet. When you really need one, the internet might not be there. So, if it had the full HF range and SSB (which is very easy to implement using the latest off the shelf RX IC's), plus the internet capability, then yes, it would be an excellent device for basically everyone. But sadly it missed this critical feature, and in my opinion makes the radio far less than perfect.
Seems like some odd frequency ranges.. lw stops at 279khz .. no 160m, cb or 10m.. and fm below 88mhz.. is that for other parts of the world?
Yup! International freqs.
Yes, Russia fm 64-73 and Japan 75-87
@@lindonprice2482 Huh... 64-73.. I wonder if they ever pick up 4m hams on their fm radios over there
It's an interesting concept but as a new SWL (just picked up a Tecsun Pl-368 and loving it!) the thing I like the most about the hobby is the analogue nature of it. If I wanted to listen to Internet radio I could have bought a smartphone. I adore the simplicity and complexity of analogue. It's a century old technology that is still relevant and still evolving. Internet anything is just Internet. I got my first eQSL a few weeks ago and I look forward to checking my email a few days after sending off my reports. I even have an Echo show that I use to display them. (I love the alligator from the good people at WRMI Okeechobee 😅) can I get that joy from an Internet radio? I don't speak a word of Chinese but I enjoy getting a hit reception from half a world away and logging it for simple posterity. The weird thing is I was going to buy a Roberts pocket DAB. I'm so pleased I went with an SW receiver because it's reingnited a love of the persuit in me. I just don't think I'd feel the same about another Internet device
I am glad to hear that you have reignited your passion- That is the best part of this hobby
@@FarpointFarms I literally just got my XDATA AN-80 longwire antenna yesterday and the first transmission I picked up was Western Australia (I'm based in the UK and that was from inside my ground floor flat lol) I couldn't wait to email off my SQL request template. My next purchase is going to be a Retekess VR-115 radio recorder with line in so I can record some stations and hopefully upload them to here myself.
Thanks for the heads up on this radio. It has become my favorite. I bought the mini LC90 from Amazon. I have some very high quality shortwave radios that have great build quality and capabilities, but the LC90 is by far a more entertaining radio. There is always something to listen to. I'll pick it up and explore all the bands and internet radio stations for hours. The fact that mine has an SD card and Bluetooth too makes it even better.
You get this radio, it is fun, and gives you the ability to listen to just about anything
Might get that this summer if they'll be available then. How's the battery life on it, and is it a common battery that can be replaced fairly easy? I have a tecsun that uses a BL-5C, which is nice. I wonder if that radio uses something like a 18650.
I have listened for about 4 hours straight and had no issues, I am not sure about if the battery can be replaced easy as it is still too new to worry about
Those type radios have really good sound.
I have been very impressed with it-
The only reason I got into radio is because it doesn't rely on the internet.
This doesn't either. It simply adds those features to it.
@@FarpointFarms I know, but I already have a smartphone.
I love it nice looking and sounding radio.
I am in love with it- Does it have every feature, no, but it checks all the boxes that I want in a fun radio
Came looking for sensitivity and performance data. Left with clone of a Grace digital review.
Never heard of them. Sorry!
You'll need to go outside the building if you want to get signals from Australia, Tonga, Europe, etc. You may even need a long wire antenna.
I have a long wire antenna and will hook it up at a later date.
I've been using a C.Crane WiFi 3 for a few years and Crane is hard to beat for quality and different models for different users, but they don't have an all in one like this. I would be most interested in the Choyong if it could be programed to record to the memory card when you are busy with something else.
I know that Retekess makes a few models that can record to SD. I'll have to find a card and check this one.
why sure, i'll give the CHICOMs the password to my internal LAN wifi - LOL! this is a far more sophisticated intrusion than the 'kill switch' embedded in all CHICOM handheld and mobile transceiver
I've got to know man, and this is coming from a true conspiracy theorist, but what in gods name is the value of your wifi password to anyone but the kid next door? I'd imagine that the Nigerians will get you first anyway. Those guys have a lot of free time.
Oh, and your phone was also made in China my friend.
How about a review with an actual antenna hooked up to the radio so you can figure out actually how good it is
I mean i did pick up a ton of SW stations with just the built in antenna, You need more proof than that? I guess I can when I make a follow up, but I had planned on focusing on the Internet radio part of it more in depth instead.
Is there a stand alone ssb radio you can listen to? I like this radio but to much money for me
I'd imagine that once this radio hits the market in larger numbers the price will come down.
I’ve owned a Hallicrafters S-38B, a Zenith Transoceanic G500, a Sangean ATS-803A, a Drake SW-2, a Sony ICF-7600G and a Tecsun PL-330. I’ve sold all except for the Sony and the Tecsun.
I bought an RTL-SDR v4 dongle and and a MLA-30+ antenna. I don’t use the portables anymore because I usually have my MacBook Along when I travel.
This radio may be cool, but I have no need for it. I suspect other folks will feel the same.
If you already have a decent laptop, you could get the dongle and antenna for about $80. Software is free. It will do more than this radio.
Thank you for sharing- You might be right for having a computer, but the older generations are not that tech savvy and this is a simpler option for them. There is not right or wrong way to listen
Thanks for the review Eric . Does this Chinese radio have any excessive power consumption issues like its little brother Qodosen SR286 ? The internet is abuzz over Qodosen's sensitivity but it's tef 6686 chip draws a lot of power resulting in shorter listening times and longer charging time for the 18650 li - ion battery . If you had to critique pros and cons what would they be ? Thanks .
I have not seen any draw that I can notice- There is an update coming, so I will do the new review then. Many of the frustrations should be addressed with that update
Interesting indeed. Thanks for posting. Does it have a remote control? Be nicer if it also had weather band. The display looks nice; what are the dimensions? I agree this looks like an intuitive easy to use and cool device that blends OTA and internet radio that can be used at home and when traveling.
Not sure of the demensions, but it doesn't come with a remote. I will say the key pad layout is perfect for searching stations in bed.
Thanks for the review it looks like it would be a nice radio, now for my criticism part of the show I wish people would write off the bat state to suggested price of it because that lets me know right off the bat if I want to spend 15 minutes looking at a review or you can go ahead and spend 15 minutes doing other stuff more important, I know a lot of people out there the price doesn't matter but with me an old grumpy cod you're trying to live off the social security that's a very important thing to me, may the Lord bless you and keep up the great work, thanks again for the great review
I can see the point you make, i try not to say prices anymore because they change so fast now.
The 4G network bands in Australia are FDD Band1, 3, 5, 7, 8 and TDD band 40, while this radio supports 4G FDD bands 2, 4, 5, and TDD band 40. Only Band 5 and Band 40 are common bands, which leads to the inability to normally connect to the 4G base station network. There is apparently a European version that is available to get around the issue but not sure who offers that one for sale.
Good to know for overseas listeners. Thanks!
First review I see of this radio, thanks. It's certainly nice to have all of this in a single device, but the price tag is too high for me at this point. It's certainly not the best SW radio, lacking important features as others have pointed out, and internet radios can be found for much cheaper. I think I'll pass on this one.
I think people see "Best Radio I've ever reviewed" and think "Not the best SW, not the best AM, not the best GMRS.... " I feel that overall, this is the best overall radio I've ever reviewed. Is it perfect? Nope, does it come with every bell and whistle? Nope, but overall it's got everything I want in a modern radio.
I stand corrected, and yes for sure I can understand that you've been rightly impressed. As for me, I already have more SW radios than I can use, and good FM/DAB+/internet portable rechargeable radios go for less than 100 $/€ so 250 is over the top for the novelty effect.
Tennessee, HELL YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
few people caught that- Glad it made you proud
I ended up buying it, and I think it's a wonderful radio with much needed improvements though. I truly thought the AM reception was nonexistent. I live in the Chicago suburbs and I should be able to recieve local stations and I couldn't. The reception for SW for me was just ok and the FM I felt could be better. Strong FM stations weren't coming in as strong as they usually do with my other radios like the Tecson 880. One other improvement would be to have a flip stand in back of the radio.
The internet radio though is absolutely outstanding. It has countless stations listed from around the world so i would rate that an A+. Like I said before though, wonderful radio but I feel it just needs improvements.
I am glad that you like it, I was talking with the man who designed it and he is reading all these comments so he knows what improvements can be made. He was really great about wanting to make the next version better.
And when WWIII kicks off for real, all those stations will magically become Radio Beijing. 😎
I don't think you understand how internet radio works. Its VERY decentralized. I run a shoutcast internet station and it is 100% run from my 15 year old laptop. On this radio if I enter in my station it is literally logging into my laptop to listen to the stream.
While it might be easy to take down the directory, the direct links are 100% based in software on my laptop.
@@FarpointFarms It wasn't clear or I missed that the radio was talking to your laptop. I thought it was communicating with a server on the Internet. That said, it's only slightly more difficult for the manufacturer to gimmick your laptop. I'm not saying it's a bad radio. But I would say know its limitations and possible weak spots. I'll stick with something that doesn't require Internet access, even occasionally, to run.
That is really cool. I think I want one! Thanks for showing this today !
Any time! You will love searching all the great private stations.
External antenna jack is in the worst place possible. SSB workes great on my many DSP radios, it needs that for sure. It's basically a internet radio. For the price I would just buy a internet radio and use a real shortwave radio for everything over the air.
I've had no issues with the earphone jack or antenna jack. What issue are you talking about? Is yours different from mine?
Hiya from Italy! By chance do they think to sell one also to Europe? May you ask them or point their website? Or is it only for US market ? I found a couple of website (starting with your link) but it seems Italy isnt listed
I am not sure about that- I wish I had a better answer for you
@@FarpointFarms better: apparently it allows me to start the order but once I tell it I am in Italy something goes wrong with the address (despite it's google auto filling it) well, it doesn't matter, I hope they will open their market over here too. I saw there's a choyong radio channel
Well sort of impressed. However not nowhere near the 1st inter net there are more than several for half the price currently on the market.. i like your show. Thankyou.
I am unable to find any other SW portable with the additional 40,000 channels via wifi. Can you send them to me?
I’ve seen internet radios that were able to pull in the visual display provided by the radio station. Currently this radio seems only to have a generic place card(s). I wonder if they have plans to update the radio to add this feature?
They do have some big plans for updates. They are hoping for April if everything goes right. I think I will do an update video when it happens.
I am interested to know is it possible to see anywhere online what stations are currently supportes by this radio? Thank you!
I think they are from Shoutcast-
Nice review, great tech. If it only was smaller to fit a pocket. I know I have a high threshold.
I was a bit surprised at the size of it. A little hard to travel with it.
A plus for this radio is the batteries are replaceable.
Agreed.
I just ordered one. Will I be able to swap my iPhone SIM card temporarily into the LC90? Also, it is one of my hopes to fully explore the MP3 playback function. Do you know the TF card capacity? Thanks again for your excellent video.
It can take a sim card to get the wifi- That is a pretty cool idea they did
I don't get it. I can get any channel this can get on the net, why do I need it, is the SW section superior? I can even get a radio smartphone app. This is $250 US, I don't think it's worth it, I don't think I need internet radio on a radio when I have the same thing on a laptop. Maybe because I an amateur Extra Class with a full station with good quality shortwave, I don't know, am I missing something?
For some, this is everything they want in a radio. Not everyone has a computer to do that kind of stuff or don't want to be attached to a device. I am sorry that you don't get it
@@FarpointFarms To each his own but I've heard people complaining about the reception - check some of the reviews. Have you compared reception to other $250 portables?
@@mosfet500Yes, I wasn't able to pick up a single internet radio station from them. Not even my Eton 750 was able to.
@@FarpointFarms I'm asking about analog reception over the air, not WIFI or BT.
That’s internet radio that buffers. Let it not fool you.
3 weeks of daily use and my radio has yet to buffer. Another commentor that doesn't own the radio.
I am going to wait a while, because I need to read the reviews of this radio and wait in the middle of the year before I can buy me a new LC-90. Good thing you were patient enough to wait 6 months to get this radio reviewed and tested before we buy it. BTW, It's not yet available to purchase on Amazon and Radioddity right now.
SWLing has a review of it on his channel. His thoughts were similar to mine. A little weak on MW, but solid on FM and SW.
@@FarpointFarms Sounds like they need to work on improving the LW-MW reception, and why the LW band is not expanded from 153 kHz to 519 kHz at least do that there since other radios cover that range like the DX-398 and ATS-909, ATS-909X and X2. Having a limited coverage of 153 kHz to 279 kHz is just not enough there. Also the AM band needs to be re-tested again at least outside the shack. I am trying to figure out on how to get a SIM card to use it on the 4G LTE network unless it's going to be used with a wireless mobile hotspot. If I had this radio, I would of used it wit my external antennas here indoors. I just found out there is a external antenna jack on the right side of the receiver. Right now, sorry, but $250.00 does not grow trees yet in my budget due to high cost of living here at home. I hope they lower the price down on it soon, and I hope other companies will follow this radio model soon in the near future.
The bandwidth selector is a game changer for traditional radio.
The online streaming function is also pretty cool. Hey, this could get some younger "techies" get interested in radio!
40,000 channels. I can't get over it.
Last time i had a radio w/video. The display caused a hum that precluded any weak signal. And pressing on the display. No better. So it sets on the shelfe.. hope the smart radio is better tks om
I did not notice too much interference with this one. I hope you have better luck in the future
Will the Internet radio work forever? What happens when the URL's change. Who is maintaining the directory (if there is one)? Internet radio stations come and go.
The radio stations are curated from Shoutcast. They have been around since the late 90's! I doubt that it will leave anytime soon. You can also add new channels manually.
I wondered too. So it's Shoutcast. The BBC ended its streams on Shoutcast last year. Bring me an internet radio where the radio directory can be reconfigured at will if needed, they never last.
Might not be a fair question for obvious reasons, but if you had to purchase this radio or the Eton 750, which one would you go for?
As my video states, and maybe it's that I'm biased as I've been running an internet radio station since 1999, but this is my all time favorite radio. Great for FM, ok for AM, and really good for SW, and of course perfect for Web based radio.
I don't understand how that radio is unable to pick up any am stations.
Welcome to my corner of the world. The nearest AM station is 30 miles away in mountain terrain and has only 1000 watts of power. The best radio I own barely picks it up. Now, night time with the clear channels is a totally different story, but during the day, I am cursed to not have a single station on AM in my location. It sucks! Back in Raleigh I had at least a dozen.
Very impressive.
Agreed. I was surprised to see some hate for it, but then again, my channel does suddenly seem to have it's share of grumpy old men.
Needs a Weather Band channel. Also, an external antenna jack for the AM band would be convenient. I love the combo of the Internet radio capability with the AM/FM band availability. The only radio that does that didn't work very well on broadcast modes. Someday, the weather band channel will be available on the internet as well. Nice review, I wonder what the battery/charging situation is, and how many amp hours it will hold. Are the batteries swappable? I wonder which IP provider network it uses? Seems like this radio would be a candidate for an all-round emergency radio. Save for SW and WB.
I've been very pleased with the battery life. 4 hours of use and it still reads full.
Are the batteries removable/swappable?@@FarpointFarms
A nice little piece of equipment... but without access to the Wi-Fi / Internet it'll soon become just a good radio. Still good to own though!
I've been waiting for the internet to fail since 1997. I still have a dial up BBS here for when that happens, but I feel confident that if that happens, this radio will be the least of all our worries.
Cool, a portable internet radio. Does it tune Upper and Lower Sideband signals?
No this radio is AM/FM/Internet only. Still, I assure you, you'll spend so much time surfing the channels you'll never miss the SSB mode with this one.
Have you done anything on the Uniden Beartracker 855? A common man's opinion would be useful. I want a CB radio for safety reasons when I'm way out there and away from the grid, but an emergency is something you never want and work hard to avoid- if you're smart. So some extra listening in features like the 855 has, I would find very attractive.
Any plan to review it?
I would love to review it- Maybe I can get Uniden to send me one to review
Its a nice radio, to be able to take with you.. i just ordered eton elite 750...i havent even received it yet. How does it work without internet?..and is this tracable?
Without internet, you have two options. First, use it as just a regular AM/FM/SW radio, or two, you can add a sim card and it will work anywhere there is a cell signal. As for tracing... I'd say with a sim card its as traceable as any cell phone.
Good video but I am not spending $250.00
While I can't say for sure, I'd bet that once this gains a wide release it will come down in price. I see that it is now listed on Radioddity's website.
How useful is this device w/o internet access?
That's what I'm wondering too
Well, it still would work on LW/AM/MW/and SW. It also has a sim card so it would work over cell networks without a wifi signal.
internet radio functions can be replaced 100% by smartphone nowdays, so it's not my preference, but thanks for the nice review
Good point, but for some (older generations) radio is the way to go.
@@FarpointFarms Actually not only the older generation. I'm tired of being available 24/7 via my mobile phone and sometimes prefer to use some dedicated devices that serve only one purpose, thanks to that I'm not getting distracted.