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The Ozark Patrol regenerative receiver kit is only one of NM0S’ many 4SQRP kit designs.
I know a lot of your readers (especially the QRP ones) may be interested in the update I FINALLY made to the radio kit guide. Added, removed, etc. Lots of cool stuff.
Thanks for sharing, Neil! What a great curated list of QRP kits!
This entry was posted in Ham Radio, Kits, News, Shortwave Radio and tagged Neil Goldstein, Radio Kits on December 1, 2018 by Thomas.
The TV-B-Gone: reviewing a fun and (incredibly) useful kit!
Post readers might recall that I attended and presented at Circle of HOPE (Hackers On Planet Earth 2018 in New York City.
One of the many cool things about HOPE was the Hardware Hacking Village: a space with 40 or so fully-stocked soldering stations that HOPE attendees could use anytime during the conference.
I built two kits at the conference: The Cricket QRP transceiver (read about that here) and a very cool little product called the TV-B-Gone.
What is the TV-B-Gone? As the name implies, it’s a TV remote control with only one function, one button and one mission: to turn off TVs!
The TV-B-Gone is packed with power codes for virtually any TV or monitor on the market. Simply point the remote at a TV, click its one button, and wait as the device cycles through loads of power codes in a few seconds.
At first blush, this might sound like a mischievous little device. I mean, imagine watching the World Cup finals at your favorite pub or bar and someone turns off all of the TVs in the establishment at a crucial moment in the game? I’m sure some purchase the TV-B-Gone for this very purpose.
That’s not me. I’m not into pranks and that’s not why TV-B-Gone designer (and Maker community giant) Mitch Altman designed this product. It was more about creating an “environmental management device”–a way to control the ubiquitous TV messages/media bombarding us in situations where they really don’t belong.
Mitch Altman in his element, teaching a class in the Hardware Hacking Village at HOPE 2018.
I’ll be the first to admit here that I’m a radio guy (big surprise, right–?) and really have no love for TVs. We have one 28″ TV in our home and it only receives one PBS station although we do use this TV it to watch the odd TV program or series via Netflix or Amazon Prime Video. I never consume news via TV unless a news-worthy event is one that must be seen. I prefer consuming news via radio or reading newspapers with objective reporters that I trust.
So when I met Mitch at HOPE and saw that he was selling a kit version of the TV-B-Gone for $20 US, I couldn’t fork out my money fast enough!
I bought the kit and built it at a table not even 10 feet away from him.
I meant to take photos of the TV-B-Gone kit as I built it, but was quite distracted helping a father and his 10 year old son both build their first kits (HumanaLight kits, of all things!) across from me.
Even though my attention was divided, I still completed the kit in well under an hour. I didn’t have two spare AA batteries to power it for testing purposes, but Mitch was nearby and gave me two new AA cells.
After pushing the only button on this remote, the small green LED started blinking–“a good sign” said Mitch. Then he had me turn on the front-facing camera of my Android phone to verify the LEDs were blinking (front-facing cameras don’t filter IR light–who knew?). They were blinking/flickering like mad.
The TV-B-Gone kit sports four powerful LEDs that are effective up to 150 feet away.
I bought this kit with one specific use in mind: hotel dining rooms.
I travel quite a lot and almost always stay in hotels that provide breakfast in a small dining room area of the lobby. I’m often travelling with family, so I wake up quite early, head to the breakfast area, grab a cup of coffee, and catch up with SWLing Post correspondence, comments and posts. Most of the time, I’m the only person in the dining room, yet the TV is blaring the news (often an outlet I don’t like) and there is no remote to be found.
This is where the TV-B-Gone could bring peace to my morning. But would it work? Time to find out!
On a trip through Connecticut in August, I stayed a few nights at a Hilton Garden Inn. I found an excellent spot to work on a comfy couch in a corner nook of the lobby. The couch faced a fireplace and was perfect for relaxing and catching up on work. One morning, I woke at 5:30 AM, headed down to the lobby and grabbed a cup of coffee. Unfortunately, right above the fireplace in this small nook was perched a monster flat screen TV with the news blaring. At 5:30 AM!?!
There was no remote to be found, so I reached into my bag, pulled out the TV-B-Gone, pressed the button and within 5 seconds, the TV turned off.
I knew then: I’d fallen in love with this $20 kit.
Then again in New York, last week, I was having breakfast at 6:00 AM in a small hotel. The only other people in the dining room were obviously with the military and there together for breakfast and a chat/debriefing before starting their day. None of them were watching the TV which was blaring commercials–in fact, they had all positioned themselves at the farthest point from the TV and facing away. I had a hunch they wouldn’t mind if I turned off the TV, so I pulled out the TV-B-Gone and didn’t even remove it from the poly bag I keep it in. One press of the button and seconds later the TV went silent.
I won’t lie: it felt like I was wielding a super power.
My EDC Pack easily accommodates the TV-B-Gone.
My TV-B-Gone remote now permanently lives in a dedicated pocket at the front of my EDC pack (a Tom Bihn Stowaway, in case you’re interested).
My TV-B-Gone remote now travels with me everywhere.
If you’re like me and would like a little device to manage your environment, I strongly recommend the TV-B-Gone.
I had a lot of fun building the kit version of TV-B-Gone, but if you don’t care to build one, Mitch has pre-built key chain versions of this same remote on his website for a mere $24.95. Note that the kit version comes with all you need to set up the remote for international use (power codes and configuration differ based on region). If you purchase a pre-built keychain, make sure you buy the version for the part of the world where you intend to use it.
Click here to purchase directly from Mitch at TV-B-Gone.
Click here to purchase the kit from Ada Fruit.
Click here to purchase from Amazon.com (affiliate link).
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This entry was posted in Kits, News, Slightly Off Topic and tagged Kits, Mitch Altman, Reviews, TV-B-Gone on September 30, 2018 by Thomas.
QRP Labs has just announced the QSX an All-Band All-Mode Transceiver Kit that should be available later this year. The Target price for the 10 Band Model is $150, also available will be a 40 Meter version for $75.00.
QSX is still in development! The above list is subject to change. The following is a FAQ with information about QSX.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Fantastic! Many thanks for sharing this, Pete! This looks like a brilliant little kit for any skill level of patient kit builder.
This entry was posted in Ham Radio, Kits, News and tagged Kits, Pete Eaton (WB9FLW), QRP, QRP Labs, QSX Transceiver on August 20, 2018 by Thomas.
As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m currently at the Circle of HOPE (Hackers On Planet Earth) convention in New York City.
Yesterday morning, I grabbed some breakfast and a cup of coffee then headed to the Hardware Hacking Village–a space in the Hotel Pennsylvania with over 50 soldering stations–sat down and started to build the Cricket QRP transceiver.
I’ve always found that kit building and soldering calms my nerves and since my presentation was later that day, it was just what the doctor ordered.
I opened up the kit at 9:00 am and started working.
All of the components were accounted for and the instructions were clear and easy to follow.
Although I didn’t need extra help I did have the extraordinary luxury of having the kit’s designer, my buddy David Cripe (NM0S), sitting across the table from me at one point.
Dave (NM0S) giving my Cricket the nod of approval.
The Cricket was incredibly easy to build, taking only about one hour or less start to finish.
The cool thing about this transceiver is that there are no coils to wind (they’re traced into the board) and by breaking off a pre-scored length of the circuit board, you can build an on-board hand key.
I had it on the air by 10:30 at the special event station W2H.
The Empire State Building as seen from the roof of the Hotel Pennsylvania.
Unfortunately, the blowtorch AM broadcaster on the Empire State Building (ahem…next door!) overloaded the Cricket in no small way. I was, however, able to confirm output power, audio and that the receiver was functioning.
Most impressed!
Incidentally, Dave tells me he has a limit number of the Cricket kits available on his eBay store for about $37 US shipped, if you’re interested.
Click here to view the Cricket on eBay.
As for HOPE? It has far exceeded my expectations.
I’m looking forward to Chris Fallen’s presentation about HAARP later today, followed by David Cripe’s EMP presentation (who I will introduce).
This entry was posted in Current Events, Ham Radio, Kits, News and tagged Chris Fallen (KL3WX), Dave Cripe (NM0S), HAARP, Ham Radio, HOPE, HOPE 2018, QRP, The Cricket on July 22, 2018 by Thomas.
The kit includes the PCB and components, including a custom programmed microcontroller that will continuously transmit the ID / callsign of your choice, up to 8 characters, at about 13 wpm.
Small size – just 2 7/8 by 1 1/2 inches. Easy to build, just a few components, all through hole, no surface mount.
When ordering you note your callsign/ID to send and it will be pre-programmed.
Black Cat Systems has all kit details including full instructions on their website.
If you like the idea of building a beacon, you must also check out the beacon Dave (AA7EE) built recently–a true work of art!
This entry was posted in Ham Radio, How To, Kits, New Products, News, QRP and tagged Beacons, Black Cat Systems, Dave Richards AA7EE, QRP, Radio Kits, Robert Gulley (AK3Q) on May 8, 2018 by Thomas.
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