MBY TESTED
ICOM IC-M94DE HANDHELD VHF RADIO
Icom’s IC-M94DE is the first handheld VHF with a built-in AIS receiver. It also boasts GPS with full DSC functionality and it’s powerful, too, with 6W of transmit power and 1,500mw of audio output. To find out how well it performs, we headed out for a day on the Solent.
Our first test was to check transmission. From our anchorage in Osborne Bay, we made a call to the National Coastwatch Institution (NCI) at Calshot. Although almost 5 miles distant, the station was in our line of sight. The NCI immediately pinged back a “loud and clear” response – and it certainly was at our end too. A second call to Cowes Yacht Haven, two miles away but around the headland, proved too much, though, and our call went unanswered.
Next we looked at the AIS functionality. Here, there are three list options; Target, Danger and Friends. Menu options allow the user to call, navigate to or plot each item on the list, and an alarm can be set to sound whenever a target is closer than the CPA (Closest Point of Approach) and TCPA (Time to CPA) settings. While the AIS functionality is impressive and valuable from a safety perspective, in operation we found using it challenging. This was partly due to the screen size – large for a handheld but still a bit small for our old eyes – and partly due to the number of
Ais-equipped craft around us cluttering the display.
Although we were unable to test it for ourselves, the radio’s DSC mode offers individual, group and test calls to other stations as well as a distress button.
Moving on to navigation, we keyed in a waypoint and set off for it. On arrival, a pop-up screen appeared and the unit sounded an alarm bang on cue.
Our final test – the radio’s Float’n Flash feature – was carried out in the safety of our bathtub rather than at sea. It did exactly what it said on the tin.
Two further observations worth noting: the box includes a mains charger as standard but a 12V lead is an optional extra. It’s also quite a bulky unit compared to Icom’s smaller, more shapely handheld VHFS, but we appreciate allowances have to be made to accommodate the screen and all that extra functionality.
In summary it’s an impressive piece of kit with a vast array of features that provide a valuable back up to several of your boat’s core navigation devices but it comes at both a physical and a financial cost. Phil Sampson
PRICE £349.95 inc VAT
CONTACT www.icomuk.co.uk
MBY RATING ★★★★★