Unfortunately, it appears that Kaito has been shipping a batch of PL-880s with older firmware and one very annoying audio level glitch. I don't think Kaito is to blame, but buyers should take note:
http://swling.com/blog/2013/12/important-note-about-tecsun-pl-880-firmware-versions/
[[Between us: the PL-880 may represent the future of firmware-based radios. I just wish Tecsun would have taken even one more week to iron out firmware versions and glitches. Anon-Co is shipping the latest version.]]
Cheers,
Thomas
thomas@swling.com
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If Tecsun made the firmware user upgradeable, they could avoid people returning units to the seller because they have missing features. It seems that most radios don't have user upgradeable firmware, the Degen MP3 recorder radios being one exception, but a lot of people seem to "brick" these radios when trying to upgrade the firmware.
Many devices these days have user upgradeable firmware. One good example is digital cameras. This sure beats having to send the item back to the manufacturer to have the firmware upgraded, but it's best if the manufacturer provides a robust firmware installer to minimize the chance of bricking the device or installing an inappropriate firmware version.
Posted by: Gary | December 13, 2013 at 10:59 PM
I don't know what to think about Tecsun.
They come out with interesting, advanced radios, one after another. They're about the only company who does so. That makes them exciting.
But so often they just miss greatness. The quality control will be bad, so it's a coin toss whether you'll get one that works properly. Or there will be a spurious signal due to an unshielded part. Or, as in this case, they will rush a device to market incompletely developed, with poorly thought-out features, obvious upgrades needed, or software bugs.
They're good about fixing these problems and upgrading their radios as production goes along. That's nice, but it leads to that constant worry about whether you're getting the latest version of the radio, or whether they are going to come up with a fix for some annoyance and introduce it a week after you buy yours. It would be far better if they tested these radios. It would be best if they made sure the design was reasonably well developed before letting it loose in the market.
Posted by: Bill | December 14, 2013 at 09:53 AM
Seems that in this day and age it's best to wait a while before scoring that new rig. I'd very much like to get my hands on one of these, but I'll bit sitting it out for a while. Bummer.
Hate to see the folks at Kaito step into it like this. They ship from stateside (LA) so you don't have to wait for slow boat from China shipping. Let's hope they get this situation fixed and quickly.
Posted by: Drive-In-Freak | December 14, 2013 at 01:43 PM
I agree. Tecsun appears to view early adopters like Thomas as beta users. Remember the early versions of the Grundig/Eton Satelit 750? QC and firmware issues, which took a couple of years to resolve. Tecsun, give us upgradable radios, please. Otherwise, I'll wait a year or so before buying mine.
Posted by: RadioFlynn | December 15, 2013 at 03:59 AM