Amateur Radio News and Reviews

09/23/2026

It's here!🍁🎃🍂

09/23/2026

Explore the Xiegu G7250’s 100W HF output, 6-meter coverage and 7-inch split control head, plus preorder details and questions to ask before buying.

Could the Xiegu G7250 fit your shack? A practical preview of its advertised 100W HF output, 6-meter coverage, separate control head and current preorder information.

09/23/2026

🛰️ A ham radio satellite launched in 1974 is still talking!

AO-7 went silent in 1981 and was thought lost. Then, in 2002, it unexpectedly came back to life.

Its failed battery effectively allows the solar panels to power the spacecraft directly when conditions are right. More than 51 years after launch, AO-7 remains one of amateur radio’s most remarkable engineering survival stories.

AMSAT:
https://www.amsat.org/ans-228-amsat-news-service-weekly-bulletins-2/

More @ KE2YK:
https://ke2yk.com/

Practical Ham Radio Guides, Reviews & Tools

09/20/2026

🛰️ Three new amateur-radio CubeSats are preparing for launch!

Binar-5, Binar-6 and Binar-7 will operate on 437 MHz and include packet store-and-forward capability along with student experiments and technology demonstrations.

One particularly fun experiment is an amateur-commanded LED designed to flash a call sign in Morse code from orbit.

Launch is planned no earlier than Q4 2026. Frequencies and operating procedures should be confirmed after commissioning.

AMSAT:
https://www.amsat.org/ans-228-amsat-news-service-weekly-bulletins-2/

More from KE2YK:
https://ke2yk.com/

Practical Ham Radio Guides, Reviews & Tools

09/19/2026

A 1:1 SWR does not prove antenna efficiency. Troubleshoot your portable QRP antenna with checks for deployment, counterpoise, coax, and on-air results.

A tuner can find a perfect match while the antenna system still needs attention. Use this portable QRP field guide to check deployment, the return path, feed-line interaction, and repeatable on-air…

09/17/2026

📻 How much signal do you really give up by running QRP?

Dropping from 100 watts to just 5 watts represents about a 13 dB difference—nominally a little more than two S-units using the 6-dB-per-S-unit standard.

Real-world S-meters vary, of course, but the numbers help explain why a well-set-up 5-watt station can accomplish far more than many operators expect.

A good antenna, favorable propagation, low noise and good operating technique can make those five watts count!

ARRL's explanation of decibels:
https://www.arrl.org/news/amateur-radio-quiz-a-log-of-dbs

More practical ham radio, QRP and antenna information:
https://ke2yk.com/

Practical Ham Radio Guides, Reviews & Tools

09/14/2026

QRPers Need This Inexpensive Battery

The TalentCell battery pack offers portable power for compatible QRP radios. Compare three sizes and learn what to check before connecting one....

The TalentCell battery pack offers portable power for compatible QRP radios. Compare three sizes and learn what to check before connecting one.

09/10/2026

See how DXChrono turns a spare shack monitor into a live ham radio map with greyline, propagation, spots, logbook activity, and more.

Got a spare monitor in the shack? DXChrono can turn it into a useful world map for time, propagation, on-air activity, contests, and club events.

09/06/2026

Build the K4QCD Dually Antenna: 49:1 and 9:1 Ununs

Build the K4QCD Dually antenna and learn how its separate 49:1 and 9:1 ununs support resonant EFHW and tuner-assisted random-wire operation in one portable project....

Build the K4QCD Dually antenna and learn how its separate 49:1 and 9:1 ununs support resonant EFHW and tuner-assisted random-wire operation in one portable project.

09/06/2026

Pebble HF is an ultra-affordable 20-meter amateur radio kit designed to make HF operation more accessible. Expected to cost under $50,

Pebble HF is an ultra-affordable 20-meter amateur radio kit designed to make HF operation more accessible. Expected to cost under $50, this compact QRP transceiver supports both CW and SSB, offerin…