{"id":7915,"date":"2013-11-19T15:47:28","date_gmt":"2013-11-19T19:47:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=7915"},"modified":"2013-11-19T15:47:28","modified_gmt":"2013-11-19T19:47:28","slug":"mikes-review-of-the-commando-r-777-self-powered-shortwave-radio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/11\/mikes-review-of-the-commando-r-777-self-powered-shortwave-radio\/","title":{"rendered":"Mike’s review of the Commando R-777 self-powered shortwave radio"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The<\/a>

The Commando R-777 Self-Powered Digital World Band Radio<\/p><\/div>\n

Mike Kitchen, a volunteer at Ears To Our World<\/a>, purchases and tests radios for us. Mike does an excellent job evaluating radios and simply keeping tabs on newly introduced self-powered products.<\/p>\n

Mike has kindly allowed me to share the assesment he sent of the Commando R-777; a radio that, performance-wise, leaves something to be desired.<\/p>\n

Mike writes:<\/p>\n

This thing is pretty awful, in an ugly\/cute way.\u00a0FM mode works quite nicely. In AM mode, LCD screen shows\u00a0as much as 8 KHz off of actual frequency.\u00a0SW1 and SW2 modes failed to detect anything\u00a0on the shortwave bands. \u00a0The WWV time signal\u00a0on 10MHz, 15MHz and 20MHz was no joy.<\/p>\n

Steady charging with crank handle for 2 minutes\u00a0provided 20 minutes of low volume listening time.<\/p>\n

From a depleted battery pack, one minute\u00a0of cranking\/charging will keep LED bulb lit for\u00a0about 10 minutes of usable light, then dim light for\u00a0few more minutes. [As a point of comparison, the Grundig FR200 could provide almost an hour of light from one minute of cranking.]<\/p>\n

The carry handle makes for a good grip while\u00a0cranking what is described as the “Shakeable Generator” handle.<\/p>\n

This radio has roots from the Grundig FR-200, being\u00a0same dimension and weight. \u00a0This R-777 had a sturdy feel\u00a0to it. The charging handle feels very much\u00a0like any other FR-200’s while one is cranking, except\u00a0this R-777 is much quieter. \u00a0None of the funky whining\u00a0sounds as with older versions.<\/p>\n

I’m going to keep this R-777, as a reminder of\u00a0how a good idea can be half heartedly attempted, resulting in\u00a0such a poor product.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Still<\/a>

Still on the market as the Tecsun Green 88, the Grundig FR-200 is one of the best sel-powered radios I’ve ever tested.<\/p><\/div>\n

I believe Mike and I both miss the Grundig FR-200.<\/p>\n

With that said, we still have the Tecsun Green-88 available on eBay<\/a>\"\"; a radio almost identical to the FR200.<\/p>\n

You can click here to search eBay for the Tecsun Green-88<\/a>\"\"\u00a0or the Commando R-777<\/a>\"\".<\/p>\n

Mike, thanks for sharing your mini review!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mike Kitchen, a volunteer at Ears To Our World, purchases and tests radios for us. Mike does an excellent job evaluating radios and simply keeping tabs on newly introduced self-powered products. Mike has kindly allowed me to share the assesment he sent of the Commando R-777; a radio that, performance-wise, leaves something to be desired. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[836,3,26,129],"tags":[2336,2334,2335,2337,2338,4085,2339],"class_list":["post-7915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-new-products","category-news","category-radios","category-reviews","tag-commando-r-777","tag-commando-r-777-self-powered-shortwave-radio","tag-commando-r-777-self-powered-shortwave-radio-review","tag-commando-self-powered-shortwave-radio","tag-fr-200","tag-reviews","tag-tecsun-green-88"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-23F","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":46875,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/12\/aprils-collection-of-japanese-language-websdr-recordings-for-november-2020\/","url_meta":{"origin":7915,"position":0},"title":"April\u2019s collection of Japanese language WebSDR recordings for November 2020","author":"Thomas","date":"December 11, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post contributor, April TimeLady, who shares her latest collection of Japanese language WebSDR recordings--this time, for November 2020. Feel free to listen to her recordings via the clickable playlist below, or on her Archive.org page. Thank you, April for once again uploading and sharing your recordings! Click\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/KiwiSDR-Japan-e1588953466247.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/KiwiSDR-Japan-e1588953466247.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/KiwiSDR-Japan-e1588953466247.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/KiwiSDR-Japan-e1588953466247.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":46545,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/11\/aprils-collection-of-japanese-language-websdr-recordings-for-october-2020\/","url_meta":{"origin":7915,"position":1},"title":"April\u2019s collection of Japanese language WebSDR recordings for October 2020","author":"Thomas","date":"November 19, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor, April TimeLady, who writes: In this email is a link to recordings I made from Japanese SDRs over the course of October 2020 and have uploaded to archive.org. This is the link: https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/JPSDROCT2020 The original files are in .wav, archive.org converts them to mp3 and flac.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/KiwiSDR-Japan-e1588953466247.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/KiwiSDR-Japan-e1588953466247.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/KiwiSDR-Japan-e1588953466247.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/KiwiSDR-Japan-e1588953466247.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8996,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/03\/mehmet-burk-reviews-the-kaito-ka500-self-powered-radio\/","url_meta":{"origin":7915,"position":2},"title":"Mehmet Burk reviews the Kaito KA550 self-powered radio","author":"Thomas","date":"March 18, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to Mehmet Burk of ReliefAnalysis.com\u00a0for sharing his most positive review of the Kaito KA550\u00a0self-powered shortwave radio. [Note: I've updated this post to link to the Kaito\u00a0KA550. I initially linked to the older KA500 by mistake. Apologies!] Click here to read his full review: http:\/\/www.reliefanalysis.com\/2014\/03\/review-katio-ka550-terrific.html The Kaito KA550 currently\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"kaito-ka550","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/kaito-ka550-1024x884.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/kaito-ka550-1024x884.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/kaito-ka550-1024x884.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":30988,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/02\/a-review-of-the-tivdio-hr-11s-self-powered-shortwave-radio\/","url_meta":{"origin":7915,"position":3},"title":"A review of the Tivdio HR-11S self-powered shortwave radio","author":"Thomas","date":"February 25, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"A few months ago, the radio manufacturer Tivdio contacted me to see if I would be interested in evaluating their new Tivdio HR-11S self-powered emergency radio. I receive requests like this frequently, and often pass on the opportunity since I generally don\u2019t have the time to evaluate the overwhelming number\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/TIVDIO-HR-11S-Front-Shortwave-Dial.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/TIVDIO-HR-11S-Front-Shortwave-Dial.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/TIVDIO-HR-11S-Front-Shortwave-Dial.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/TIVDIO-HR-11S-Front-Shortwave-Dial.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1338,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2011\/07\/kaito-ka600-self-powered-emergency-shortwave-radio\/","url_meta":{"origin":7915,"position":4},"title":"The Kaito KA600 Voyager Pro self-powered emergency radio","author":"Thomas","date":"July 17, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Universal Radio has started selling the new Kaito KA600\u00a0Voyager Pro self-powered shortwave radio. \u00a0Two features really set this radio apart in the self-powered market:\u00a0RDS and the ability to enter a frequency via direct keypad entry. I know of no other mass-produced unit that can do this. We have made an\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/07\/KaitoKA600-300x234.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":54109,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/09\/radio-waves-maverick-603-sdr-for-ft8-ec-130j-commando-solo-final-broadcast-wrth-survey-and-railways-on-the-air\/","url_meta":{"origin":7915,"position":5},"title":"Radio Waves: Maverick-603 SDR for FT8, EC-130J Commando Solo Final Broadcast, WRTH Survey, and Railways On The Air","author":"Thomas","date":"September 21, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Radio Waves:\u00a0 Stories Making Waves in the World of Radio Welcome to the\u00a0SWLing Post\u2019s Radio Waves, a collection of links to interesting stories making waves in the world of radio.\u00a0Enjoy! RadioStack's Maverick-603 Is a Fully-Functional Open-Silicon Software-Defined Radio for FT8 (Hackster.io) Built using open tools and readied for manufacturing at\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Articles"","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/1000w_q75.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/1000w_q75.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/1000w_q75.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/1000w_q75.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7915"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7915\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}