IP codes used in radio

Ever see radios labelled with IP codes, such as IP55, or IP67? In this post I will explain what they mean and how they were derived.
IP stands for ingress protection, and it is a way of measuring how water and dust resistant a device is.

The first number in an IP rating signifies the dust or particle protection. 0 is none, and 6 (the highest) means completely dust proof, and no dust can get inside the device. In between, you have various sizes of particles ranging from 50mm down to 1mm, and then dust. Almost all radios will be able to get a 4 in this section, so a 4 or below is not a very good score to get. A 5 means that the device is protected from dust enough so that the dust will not affect its operation, and a 6 means that no dust at all should get inside the casing of the dust.

The second number tells you how waterproof or water resistant the device is. If you want a device that can withstand even the heaviest rain (without being submersed), then look for a 5 in this section.  The specification  to get a 5 is that water jets can be sprayed from any direction without any damage occurring to the device. With radios, that includes receiving and transmitting while being sprayed with jets.
For a 6, the specification states more powerful water jets, with a rate of spray of 100 litres per minute.
7 and 8 are the highest ratings that can be achieved, where 7 is immersion in 1 metre deep water for 30 minutes, and 8 is immersion continuously, at a depth stated by the manufacturer. Level 8 will generally not be used for radios, since 8 is only really needed for diving or underwater uses.

As an example of the IP rating used for radios, the Motorola DP3400 is supposed to be IP57. This means that no dust will enter enough to affect operation of the device, and it can be submerged in water at 1m for 30 minutes and will still work fine.

Kirisun S780 information on vocoder and standard

I'm very interested in this radio because it is a cheap way to try out digital, so I have been looking through the internet and contacting manufacturers and resellers about this product and thought I'd create a post to show everything I've found out that you might want to know.
The radios are available on 409shop for $128, or on ebay for $140 or £90. (Correct at time of writing)

So here it is:

Kirisun DP770

The Kirisun DP770 is another digital radio by Kirisun, but this time, following the DMR standard.
I have made this post to collect together some information about the radio because there is not a lot available at the moment.
First you will want to look at the Kirisun website for official information such as specs:
http://en.kirisun.com/detail.aspx?id=11&zhu=1&Cyrus=1


The next thing is the only non official source of photos, which is currently this Russian website who will be selling the radios when they come out.

This radio is currently in a closed beta test, before it's release to the general public, but when it comes out, I am hoping to buy 2 radios to do a review on them. (Edit: Not anymore, see below)

I think this is going to be an excellent product for Kirisun because of all the features it has, which should allow it to compete with MOTOTRBO in the DMR market. This radio is certified to the DMR standard by the DMR association which means it will work with existing MOTOTRBO and Hytera DMR repeaters. It also has optional GPS tracking, and IP67 (water and dust proof) which I was surprised by, since appears to be such good quality for what is should be a reasonably priced radio. I just hope they do set the price low, otherwise there would be absolutely no point in anyone buying this product over a Motorola.
The design of this radio looks very similar to the Motorola DP3600, just with a bigger and better screen. I presume that Kirisun has taken some of the design from the MOTOTRBO product line, and will now be able to undercut their excessively high prices.

Update (November 2013): The price per radio is expected to be around $300 USD, not including shipping or any customs charges. I was a bit disappointed about this, since it is quite a lot once you add on shipping and import duty, you may as well buy a second hand Motorola, which you know will be good quality and you know you're not taking a gamble with.

Another Update (April 2014): I got my hands on a pair of these radios, thanks to Radio Distribution Limited, and made a review which you can see on YouTube at the links below, if you're interested.
DP770 reivew part 1
DP770 reivew part 2

How to decode ADS-B

I thought I'd do a video showing the simplest and easiest way to decode ADS-B signals that might be around in your area.
This uses ADSB# and virtual radar server.

How to record from DSD

I've got a new YouTube video up, explaining how to record the audio from DSD as it decodes it, and then how to play back the .amb files it creates. Check it out, below: