Icom ID-5100A 50W VHF/UHF Dual Band Digital Mobile Transceiver

I've had this radio for four years and love it. It crossbands, lets me monitor two frequencies (digital or FM), and sounds great coming and going. Loads repeaters around the country and quickly locates D-Star and FMrepeates when traveling! However, Icom should include the mounting bracket and Mic extension.

This was my 1st radio after getting my Tech. Mostly use it as a base station radio but have taken it on road trips. For mobile use, the near repeater function is great. You load repeater lists onto a memory card then transfer them to the radio. As you travel you can get a list of nearby repeaters this way. I don't do any DStar as there are no users near me but otherwise the radio is great. A standard CAT6 cable and RJ45 coupler serves as an extension cable for the mike, BTW.

it is above and beyond any expectations I had for any radio in it's class

I've had my 5100 for several months, I really enjoy how easy it is to setup. I would recommend this radio to any new ham.

I have one in my truck and I`m looking at a 2nd one for my shack. Been very happy with this radio. Also looking at a 7300 for my 1st HF radio.

I also live in Florida and it does get hot. However, it gets hot most everywhere in a closed vehicle. We have a longer heat time frame but I’ve seen higher temperatures in the Md South and Mid West. Most anywhere a mobile radio needs to be removed during the heat of the day. It’s a real pain with power, antenna and ground wiring plus the mount system itself. But I’ve found no way around it. It applies to all radios regardless of make / model. I’ve insulated, tried computer cooling fans, no viable answer yet.

This is my second 5100a, one in the truck now one in the shack, can't beat the ease of operating this radio. One recommendation is to also order the RT Systems Software for quick easy programing.

ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS RADIO
73

I've had my ID-5100 for just over 6 months and always get compliments about how great it sounds. Most of the time I use it as a base station but when mobile during the summer when it is hot I just take the display out of the car and put it in my pocket, no problem. But ICOM get real for the price the mount and mic extension should come with it!

As much as this radio cost one would think that a mobile mounting bracket and the mic extension would com with it. As it is there is nothing to keep the transmitter from chasing the mic when you are talking. $34.00 for a bracket you need is steep. Come on Icom consider the customer and make it so he can install out of box without having to be an engineer and figure out extra purchases like a business bid.

I've owned this radio since 2014, and the first time the display failed, it was due to heat in the car. The display just appears to get washed out, but the heat actually destroyed the digitizer, and ruined the display. So that got fixed under warranty. Now move on to 2018, the same radio failed again in the exact same way, the digitizer and the LCD cost me $238.67 to have fixed at Icom's repair center. That was not fair, they used a inferior LCD for the radio, and rather than update it to something better, they are going to charge everyone who sends it in out of warranty. The display will fail if exposed to high heat. That is what we have here in Florida, but there are many other states with high heat levels. Other than that, it is a great radio. I will use it in my home from now on, I bought the ID-4100 for the mobile, and that does not have a touch screen, or any problem with the heat. So 4 stars for the radio as it is delivered, minus one star for an inferior display design. Be sure to read the manual, and use the DR function, it is part of every Dstar radio, and it is one of the most useful features of the radio. Also consider the Kenwood TH-D74, it is the Dstar HT that is much better than any Dstar HT you can get from Icom. That radio will get 5 stars.