Category: Amateur Radio
3D Printing for Ham Radio: Projects, Materials and Tips
When you need a special enclosure for ham radio, an antenna mount in an unusual shape, or a part that simply isn't available to buy — reach for the 3D printer. The combination of amateur radio…
Packet Radio & AX.25: The Digital Legacy of Amateur Radio
Long before the internet became mainstream, radio amateurs were already sending digital data packets over the airwaves. Packet Radio — the packet-switched data network based on the AX.25 protocol — was the backbone of digital amateur…
DX for Beginners: First Steps into Long-Distance Contacts
Japan, Australia, South America — all reachable with your own antenna from the roof? DX operation, meaning radio contacts over great distances, is the pinnacle of the hobby for many radio amateurs. The good news: in…
MeshCom vs. Meshtastic: LoRa Mesh Networks for Radio Amateurs
Text messages without the internet, without mobile networks, without infrastructure — simply device-to-device across kilometres? What sounds like science fiction has long been reality with LoRa mesh networks. Two projects dominate the scene: Meshtastic , the…
QRP Operation: Around the World with 5 Watts
Five watts of transmit power — less than an LED light bulb consumes — and making contacts across thousands of kilometres? That's the fascination of QRP, operating with reduced power. What sounds like a limitation turns…
Yaesu FT-290R: 2.5 Watts of Pure Addiction
There are radios you buy. And there are radios that find you. My Yaesu FT-290R belongs to the second category. I was scrolling through willhaben (Austria's Craigslist) one evening, no plan, just browsing, and there it…
RTL-SDR for Beginners: Discover the World of Radio for 30 Euros
Track aircraft, receive weather satellite images, listen to amateur radio, monitor ships on the Danube — all with a USB stick costing around 30 euros? Welcome to the world of Software Defined Radio. The RTL-SDR is…
HAMNET in Austria: The Data Network for Radio Amateurs
What if radio amateurs had their own data network — independent of the internet, independent of commercial providers, operating on amateur radio frequencies with data rates of up to 200 Mbit/s on backbone links? That's exactly…
Icom X-026: New Concept Radio to Be Unveiled at Hamvention 2026
On 20 April 2026, Icom announced a new project via its official channels: the X-026. A concept mock-up set to be shown as a world premiere at the Dayton Hamvention from 15 to 17 May 2026.…
ITU-R M.1042-4: What the New Emergency Communications Recommendation Means for Amateur Radio
On 19 February 2026, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) adopted Recommendation ITU-R M.1042-4 — Disaster communications in the amateur and amateur-satellite services . It is the first revision since 2007. Nineteen years of silence, then an…
Amateur Radio by the Numbers: Demographics, Trends, and the Future of the Hobby
Is amateur radio dying? The data paints a more nuanced picture. All figures backed by primary sources.
Youth and Amateur Radio: Why the Hobby Is Exciting for Young People
Update 24 May 2026 – Corrections based on reader feedback and article ratings: Based on your ratings and feedback, we have clarified the following points: afukurs.oevsv.at is not an online learning platform for self-study, but a…
