John Smith wrote in message . ..
I am also looking for a portable, Sporty's seems to have some of the
best prices right now, especially for the Icom A23 @ $369
The Vertex 210 appears to have most of the A23's features, but is a
lot less expensive ($279). Why?

Because it's a free market and that's what they think they can get for
it.

My own experience with Yaesu is that performance leaves a lot to be
desired. I've found that a Sporty's even with a rubber ducky works
nearly as well as a panel-mount nav and Yaesu would only pick up a
VOR when it was close enough that I could hit it by throwing the
Yaesu at it. Due to the miserable nav performance, I sent the Yaesu
back to the manufacturer and had them check and adjust it. Upon its
return, I found it worked not the slightest bit better. When it finally
disappeared at an air show, I was more relieved than angry and replaced
it with an Icom A-5.


Also, with the A23, is a separate PTT necessary to use the headset
adapter? I'm not really clear how the headset adapter works with my
headset (DC H10-13.4) and the A23.


No external switch is needed. It's just a convenience to have a PTT on the
yoke.