Set Up, Make Contact, Pack Down, Repeat: RaDAR Rally 2026 Is Coming

/
Set Up, Make Contact, Pack Down, Repeat: RaDAR Rally 2026 Is Coming

If you like your amateur radio with a bit of a cardio workout attached, mark the calendar: the RaDAR Rally returns on Saturday 7th November 2026.

RaDAR — Rapid Deployment Amateur Radio — is exactly what it sounds like: a fast-paced, genuinely challenging outdoor activity where you set up a portable station, make five contacts, pack everything back down, and move to a new location — repeating that whole cycle as many times as you can within a four-hour window.

Read More

A Century-Old Transmitter Sends a Message of Peace on United Nations Day

/
A Century-Old Transmitter Sends a Message of Peace on United Nations Day

Some stories in this hobby connect you straight back to the earliest days of radio — this is one of them.

When United Nations Day is marked on 24th October, a message will go out to the world via a VLF frequency transmitted from Sweden. Inside the Grimeton Radio Station, the historic Alexanderson alternator — more than a century old — will be tuned to 17.2 kHz, where it will transmit in CW, under the callsign SAQ, words promoting "peace, unity and global partnerships."

Read More

APRS Connect Lands on iPhone — And Brings APRS OTA Along With It

/
APRS Connect Lands on iPhone — And Brings APRS OTA Along With It

If you've been eyeing up APRS Connect since its Android debut back in August, the wait's over: it's now live on the App Store for iPhone.

APRS Connect, the messaging-first APRS client that launched on Android in August, is now available for iOS 16.4 and later. It's free to install and use over APRS-IS. Connecting a physical radio, along with a handful of advanced features, sits behind APRS Connect Pro, a subscription that comes with a 7-day free trial.

Read More