Chris Prata wrote: >> One disadvantage is that most if not all handhelds cannot transmit >> when plugged in, too much current. I believe I read that a few wont >> run at all while charging
My ICOM A-24 came with the following warnings: CAUTION: To avoid damage to the transceiver, turn the power OFF while charging. NEVER connect the transceiver to an AC outlet or to a power source of more than 11.5 V DC. Such a connection will damage the transceiver. DO NOT charge BP-210N more than 12 hours. Otherwise, BP-210N will be damaged. BP-210N must be charged for 8?12 hours only. These limitations really surprised me. If you can't operate it while charging, this rules out using it as the primary radio in an airplane unless you carry spare batteries, which is a non-starter in my book. Can't hook it to anything more than 11.5 Vdc? That's another non-starter. Can't charge it more than 8-12 hours without damaging the battery? That's just plain unreasonable. I'd have thought a high tech electronics company could incorporate some smart charging capability that's fairly common in the marketplace. So I carry my A-24 in my flight bag when I go on trips as a backup, and that's about all it does for me. Most of the time it sits on my bench. Apparently (if you believe the instructions), I can't even use it to listen to local airport traffic while I'm at the hangar, unless I want to risk completely discharging the battery (another evil mentioned in the manual), or overcharging the battery (even worse, apparently)... Mark Langford ML at N56ML.com http://www.n56ml.com
