"I still for the life of me can't understand why the K3 didn't come with a USB port instead of the outdated com port. That is one reason I have not bought one yet."Really? A USB<->Serial adapter costs, what, $30? This is what's keeping you from buying one of the best performing amateur HF transceivers ever designed?
I'm speechless. Almost.
Other than a possible speed advantage -- and I say "possible" because there is no practical need for anything faster than a standard RS232C connection to control the K3 -- what friggin' difference does it make? Perhaps if the radio ported audio I/O through its serial connection... but it doesn't.
Besides, I've never seen a PC that didn't have a serial port, but there are plenty of computers still in use sans USB. And while I certainly wouldn't mind a USB port on my K3 in addition to the regular serial port, the idea of its ommission being a deal-breaker is beyond silly.
(From 1978 WRTH)
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3 comments:
Hi Paul,
I tend to agree that it's bizarre, in 2009, every amateur rig doesn't come with a USB port. They are small, inexpensive, and useful. I do agree with you that it's rather petulant for the list poster to say he won't buy a rig because of a lack of USB.
Desktop PCs still come with serial ports but I haven't seen serial (or parallel for that matter) on a laptop for a couple of years now. I'm one of those guys who buys laptops and uses them as desktops; mainly for power-saving but also for flexibility. USB is the "hub" (pun intended) of my digital world. A lot of the hams here in the Silicon Valley do likewise; the trend this year (from what I've seen during Field Day planning) is towards Eee-PCs and "Netbooks". This may be a regional phenomenon.
Back in January I wrote a rather long blog article on how the amateur radio vendors need to catch up with computing. (http://sparqi.blogspot.com/2009/01/looking-forward.html) I firmly believe that any rig that claims support for built-in digimodes (as the K3 does) should offer a keyboard port; either PS/2 DIN or USB host-mode for HID profile. C-IV/CAT over serial and/or USB should also be standard. Eliminating the soundcard interface (no Rigblaster or SignaLink needed) would be a plus.
Have you ever noticed that a $30 Linksys router offers a fully-functional internal web server for configuration and control, but you need to buy $100+ of CAT cables, software, adapters, etc to PC-control a ham rig? How come I can't set up my rig's config menus, VFO memories, etc via a browser?
73 de W6DTW sk sk
It's not a regional thing; I haven't used a desktop PC for years, until a couple of days ago when I dug out the old Dell for the shack. It's been 100% notebooks for years over here.
I think the biggest drawback of USB is the driver issue. RS232C will always work, even if the company goes out of business or stops supporting the radio with driver updates. I'd rather use a USB dongle than take the chance that my vintage Elecraft K3 won't have drivers available for Mac OS XXVIII ir Windoze 2056. Having both would be nice, but for someone to say he won't buy a K3 because it doesn't have a USB port is like saying, "I won't buy a Porsche because it comes with regular unleaded in the tank."
Now, what you say about Ethernet and built-in web server -- that I can agree with. Not sure if the Omni VII has the web server, but Ten-Tec certainly got it right with the Ethernet jack.
The K3, by the way, does have isolated audio I/O, so a Signalink isn't needed; you can go right to the soundcard from the rig. I haven't tried it yet, though.
73 de WW2PT
Hi Paul,
I agree with you. There is plenty of USB to serial converter available.Some are a bit weird to setup but better than nothing!
All high end device come with serial port for remote control. RS-232 or RS-485. My brand new R9500 as a RS-232 for remote control.There is still few laptop available with serial port. Panasonic, Getac, General Dynamic, IBM. I know they are a bit expensive but.......
73 de
Daniel VE4PBX
Winnipeg, Manitoba
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