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World's Most Advanced Portable TV
Eric Schlaepfer writes "Here's another great toy for your wish list! ICOM manufactures the highly advanced IC-R3 portable scanner/television set. Besides picking up radio stations in the frequency range of 0.495-2450MHz, the IC-R3 also receives regular television signals, amateur television, and wireless security camera signals."
In case the site (or routes to the site) get slashdotted. Here is a mirror to link one, and link two.
but U.S. cellular telephone frequencies are blocked =(
This is hardly new - the IC-R3 has been out in Japan since before I bought my ICOM scanner (I'm at work atm so I can't check, but it's an R5, I think) a couple of years ago.
While the Icom R-3 truly is a cool little gadget, I wish to caution those who are buying one for video monitoring purposes. It has a lot of features, to be sure, but as I found out the hard way, for the hardcore video monitoring enthusiast or TV DXer, it has some serious limitations.
Its sensitivity is lacking, so unless it encounters a very strong video signal (especially on 2.4GHz, where a lot of wireless cameras broadcast their signals), do not expect a very watchable or even decodeable picture.
Secondly, the video screen eats the hell out of the battery life. You'll find yourself reaching for the AC adapter quite frequently. This device tends to use the LCD screen to display a lot of configuration/tuning information, even in non-video mode, so beware if you buy this to use as a general-purpose scanner.
After 10 months of R3 ownership, my feelings are still mixed. It's pretty cool to walk around and stumble on 2.4GHz video, especially from wireless security cameras, but as a general-purpose scanning receiver or for attempting to receive TV DX in these skip-prone months, it falls sadly short.
Karma: Excellent Birds (mostly as a result of listening to Laurie Anderson)
Still ... $450 for a ultra-wide band WITH a 2" TFT ...
Only better (at 10x the price) would be the AR-one here, almost forgot ... have to be a non-US location to ship to ...
Karma? Karma? I don't need no stinkin' karma.
C.Crane, $449.95
http://www.ccrane.com/icom_icr3.asp
This TV is neither advanced, nor portable.
...I don't think I saw anything mentioned in the article, but the picture I saw of this device made it look like it had a built-in pen.
Is this a standard feature? I remember many a time I've been watching pronography and have said to myself:
"Damn. I need a pen! I should be taking notes on this!"
If this TV has a built in pen, it's perfect for me!
Edward@Tomato - /home/Edward/ man woman
man: no entry for woman in the manual.
"Qua!?"
Well . It's good to see Americans are making Tv's again.
The IC-R3 has 400 memory channels to store your most frequency used channels.>/i?
What the hell is a frequency used channel? Is it the frequency one uses frequently?
From excellent karma to terible karma with a single +5 funny post...
I know someone who has one, had it for a couple of years now and built a helicopter that had a network cam attached to it so he could fly it around and checkout the video feed from it. Very cool hack. If you want to get one with cellular unblocked check out this site.. http://www.radioworld.ca/swscan/swsc.php All though not many people are still using analog cellphones.
Frequency Range:
USA version: 0.495-815.995 MHz, 902-2450.095 MHz
Non-USA version: 0.495-2450.095 MHz
Ok, so where can I buy a Non-USA version? And price.
pretty sick
It said amateur television didn't it? Whats the late night showing of Reform School Girls if not amateur television?
"Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
Take a look here for some specs. Unfortunately, this receiver has been out for a few years now, and has never had reviews that are all that stunning. Complaints are generally regarding poor sensitivity, which as a owner of a IC-Q7A (Icom's ham version of the IC-R2), doesn't surprise me one bit.
What always surprised me was the crummy UI on this thing. You've got a full color dot matrix display on the thing -- why isn't there a sophisticated OS, slick icons, and on-screen help guide? Why isn't there a flashable ROM for OS upgrades? How about a smartmedia slot to store screenshots? It's almost as if they're afraid to sell too many of the things, so they cripple it my making it cryptic to use, with a lousy UI, and no features.
I used to own an early model Icom PCR1000 - nice receiver, could hear cell bands, but WHO THE HELL CARES? You get to hear the cell site side of a two way conversation and its usually some yokel who can't afford a digital phone trying to rig a meeting with his girlfriend while his wife is at the grocery store.
Don't violate the FCC's rules to listen to crap like that - just use the thing to tune in to Jerry Springer and you'll see the results of what happens when people make calls on analog cellular.
I am very easy to get along with, but I don't have time to waste being nice to people who are being stupid. -Theo
Christmas.
...
I forgot to mention this in the submission, but ICOM also makes scanners that you can hook up to a regular PC. Unfortunately it doesn't look like there is any Linux software...
A number of you have noted that the American version blocks the cell phone frequencies, but rumor has it that snipping out a resistor removes the block.
--Eric
ICON IC-R3 $449.95
Extra Battery & car adaptor $119.95
Series1 Standalone TiVo(eBay) $182.50
Car->110volt-adapter $ 35.99
Hacking TiVo Book $ 20.99
AirNET adapter $ 69.25
Watching extracted TiVo video synced from your
house to your car: Pricele..... **CRASH**
New Fender $210.00
Insurance Deductable $300.00
Emergency Room Co-pay $ 50.00
..Jeff Keegan
seven syllables explain TiVo: kee gan dot org slash ti vo
at least thats what is says on the page, how hard would a firmware hack be to fix that, and listen to all sorts of people on cellphones? maybe w/ an addon decoded for the digital signal.
Ok checkin out the spec., one 1/8" stereo plug for data to clone units etc.. The other 1/8" stereo plug is for audio /video. Questions, what is spec.
on audio/video plug, I wonder if you can get pager
and trunking data off the video or audio.also
what is the resiloution of the video output anyway?
Or do I find the detector out from inside anyway?
Has anybody plugin to the wrong 1/8" jack ?
damage?
So when will the HDTV version hit the market?
A programmer is a machine for converting coffee into code.
As many know the US one has certain frequencies blocked while the non-US one doesn't. Is it legal to mail it to a P.O. box, or equivalent, in Canada and carry it over the border to the U.S.? I would assume so since older ones without the blocking are legal.
Why don't you guys have friends or journals?
Attach a pringle's can antenna or a Cantenna to your wireless TV reciever. I havnen't tried it myself, but it should work. You may get ghosting of the video, though..
Yeah, but where are we going to get a plumber who speaks Norwegian, Brain?
Gimme a P!
P!!!
Gimme an R!
R!!!
Gimme a zero!
Zero!!!
Gimme an N!
N!!!
What does that spell???
Somewhat OT, but I use one of their PCR 1000 wide-band computer controlled receivers in my Jeep not only to monitor ham and NOAA channels, but also in place of the am/fm stereo. Good stuff.
I'm going to agree with others, this isn't new.. I've been drooling over this radio for something like 2 years now.
One downside that I've found in my reading is that when you're using the bigger lcd (for tv and better scanner control) it drains your batteries much faster. You can control the scanner with the smaller lcd, but I think more complex options need the color lcd to set. If you're running it at home on an AC adapter, then you're okay, but mobile is kinda limited with the effect video reception/display has on battery life.
Then again, if you're the kind of person that drives around with their laptop searching for wifi networks, you might be used to that kind of battery life already.
Why does it say "lunix" instead of "linux". Surely theres some clever joke there that I just don't get. . .
Why use this device? I have one built into my head. Oh wait, weren't you all assimilated too? In that case... In reality, I think this is an *interesting* concept, however unless you're watching the teletubbies you're not going to fit much on the screen. I bet with current technology though if they made the screen bigger the picture would have crappy quality.
lunix is a calculator OS.. i forget which one, however.... one of the TI's.
What I really need is a 1080i capable 2 inch HDTV.
http://www.radioworld.ca/swscan/swsc.php
It's also illegal to listen in on cordless phones.
I'm a long-time HAM, and I also have one of the old scanners that gets cellular (old Radio Shack model), and many can be modified to receive cellular signals (though this is illegal... do a google for scanner mods and you'll see how easy it is).
The Cordless phone prohibition came later... I can't recall the year, but a hue-and-cry came about from people scanning the old 49.x mHz cordless phones. Naturally, the newer 900 mhz and 2.4ghz models with spread-spectrum require a bit more technical expertise than the old turn-on-the-scanner-and-listen routine. Even the Donald-Duck-sounding "scrambled" ones used a simple frequency inversion routine that you could easily decode (probably a DMCA violation these days).
The trunking radio systems put a brief dent in the scanning scene, but you can even get scanners to track those now.
Years ago, a buddy of mine lived in an apartment, and had an enormous dipole tacked up in the attic of his building, tuned specifically to the 49.x band... got every cordless phone for blocks. It was a rough neighborhood, so he sometimes got to hear the drug dealers doing business, and the ex-cons talking to their parole officers. I suppose that's the lazy man's way to get to know who your neighbors are BEFORE you invite them over for a neighborhood BBQ. However, before you run out and set up a similar rig, I can tell you that most people's conversations are relentlessly boring. Nosy, boring, and illegal... hardly worth it.
Even if a man chops off your hand with a sword, you still have two nice, sharp bones to stick in his eyes.
Keep in mind that if you live in a large metropolitan area most public service broadcasts (fire, police) use trunked systems. A scanner like this won't help you much when trying to follow any activity on a trunked system. Many even use digital trunking, which you can't monitor at all unless you get a scanner such as the Bearcat BC250D and the optional BCi 25D digital card.
Blocked analog cellular is nothing new here in the US. It really isn't a big deal as fewer people use analog cellular anymore. Most scanners can be opened up to receive the cellular bands, but it usually takes some skill with a soldering iron (I'm not sure if this receiver can be easily modified in this way).
Icom is a top-tier manufacturer of ham radio gear. Their newest creation, the D-STAR system supports 128 kb/s data and phone (voice) over 1.2 GHz links and 10 GHz backbone links. The user radios have a mike, speaker, control head, as well as USB and 10 base T ethernet. Very interesting stuff.
there are 3 kinds of people:
* those who can count
* those who can't
Hours of Fun The IC-R3 also has an extremely wide receive range of .5-2450 MHz, except for the cellular ranges. Speaking of hours of fun! The IC-R3 comes with a Li-Ion battery offering up to 27 hours of continual operation!
How strange... People still use analogue cellular phones???
I think I got some spam about a website featuring some "amateur television"....
"Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one " -Albert Einstein
Being a ham radio operator (although slightly dormant at the moment) I fall for gadgets like these. I've owned a bunch of Icom's in my career. One reason to buy this product would be to bring it with me when I travel. However, it can only do either PAL or NTSC, you have to choose when you order the radio. That's just silly. There's silicone available today that could have made this a TV DX'ers dream (while jetting from one continent to the next). However, with this limitation it just doesn't make any sense to me. I guess I'll have to wait for the -R4 version...?
73,
-Kris
Another complaint I've heard about the IC-R3 is that it doesn't demodulate FM video across its entire receive range (or maybe not at all). A lot of "interesting" video is FM modulated, not AM (like broadcast TV, amateur TV, etc.) That alone would keep me from buying it, but throw in the poor sensitivity and I just don't see the point. Besides, I'm lucky enough to have an AOR AR-5000+3, so I can just add one of these and a cheap video monitor or video capture card to it and get the same functionality, albeit with less portability.
I bought mine in 1987, w/the video adapter. Interesting for a few months... //de KQ6J
All this thing needs is wireless internet and it will be the ultimate machine.