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TRIED & TESTED

72 http://www.yachtingmonthly.com MARCH 2016

Standard Horizon

HX870E E2O

Handheld DSC/VHF

radio with GPS

PHOTO: GRAHAM SNOOK

PRODUCT PHOTOS: COLIN WORK

Is Standard Horizon’s DSC/VHF with

built-in GPS receiver easy to operate?

Duncan Kent tested one to fi nd out

Standard Horizon is a leading supplier

of marine VHF radios and always ahead

of the game when it comes to packing

in features. It was the fi rst to bring

AIS to its radios and now this feature-

packed handheld radio boasts another

fi rst – a built-in 66-channel GPS

receiver and full DSC operation, among

a plethora of other useful functions.

The HX870E E2O (E20 stands for

Easy to Operate) is no bigger than a

standard handheld VHF, but no smaller

either – personally I prefer handheld

VHF radios to be big enough to get a

decent grip on and use the controls

with ease, rather than some of the

really small pocket models around now.

It has a decent size display, so you

can clearly see what’s going on, and I

like the fact that it comes with both a

hefty 1800mAh rechargeable battery

and an alkaline battery pack (3 x AA

cells) for emergencies and liferaft Price (RRP) £229.95

Contact Standard Horizon

Tel 01962 866667

Web http://www.standardhorizon.co.uk

use, so pack lots of spare

batteries and you’ll hopefully

have enough power when

the time comes to use the

radio in anger.

Have they crammed

too much into such a small

device? So long as each

function is easily accessible,

but doesn’t interfere with its

primary purpose, then why not?

This radio has a lot to offer small-boat

sailors, too. You get a full channel radio

with dual watch, three-level transmit power

(1W/2W/6W), memory scan etc, plus a basic

navigation package with waypoints, routes,

GPS compass and an instant ‘fi x and return to

MOB’ key. It even has a mini-USB NMEA0183

output for GPS position data and log retrieval

on a PC, and a bright white LED that can be

set to solid, blinking or SOS mode.

There is also a Group facility. The MMSI

numbers from a group of up to 20 other

vessels can be programmed in, allowing you

to call the group simultaneously, their radios

automatically switching to the

transmitter’s chosen channel.

It’s also possible to ‘poll’ a

position report from the

group, which is useful for

things like club rallies.

The only thing I miss

is a rotary knob, which

is quick and easy for

channel changing and

volume control. That

said, the menu control

is very logical and the

large icons above

the soft keys easy

to understand at

a glance. Which

all help to make

the radio easy to

use, even to those

unfamiliar with it.

OUR VERDICT

Most boat owners

want a handheld

radio for convenience

and emergencies, so

why not get one that

has all the bells and

whistles? Even if you don’t need all

the fancy frills, the HX870E is rugged,

waterproof, fl oating VHF with the

benefi ts of DSC/GPS and a water-

activated strobe for emergencies for a

very reasonable price.

PROS

■ Waterproof, fl oats

■ Class-D DSC with GPS

■ Navigation features

■ Dry-cell battery pack

CONS

■ No rotary knob

8/

RIGHT: We tested the

HX870E out on the water by

calling the local Coastguard

The feature-packed

HX870E is waterproof,

fl oats and easy to use

LEFT: The

press-to-talk

button is raised

to tell it

apart from

the power

button

The DSC distress

fi ring mechanism

is obvious and

simple to use

What looks like a rotary knob is actually

just the socket cover for the external mic