Icom IC440 UHF Radio - 80ch Upgradeable?

[fido666 Banned Find all posts View Profile Close fido666]

My Kakadu came with an Icom IC440 UHF radio installed. I thought this was an 80ch unit but when flicking through the channels only 40 come up. The specs say it can have 128ch in 8 banks but I assume this relates to setting up channel groups.

Having a look around on the net I see there is an IC440N which is listed as 80ch. I also found some discussion on another forum that mentioned the possibility of a firmware upgrade for the IC440 to bring it up to 80ch but it seems Icom decided to bring out the N variant instead.

http://forum.uhfcb.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=166

Does anyone know if the IC440 unit can be upgraded despite what the above linked thread says?

It's not the end of the world if it can't be as I have a Uniden handheld that is 80ch, just a "nice to have".

[D4D Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close D4D]

I am a fellow IC440 owner and the answer is a big fat no and Icom don't care. The IC440 and IC440N are identical except for the model number and the firmware. Good way to sell more radios.

[fido666 Banned Find all posts View Profile Close fido666]

I suspected as much, cheeky devils! I'm not in mining country so the current 40ch don't seem overly congested but if I go on a big trek it might be an issue. I don't think I can justify spending another $395 Prestige Communications current price for the 440N) to get the extra 40ch, will just have to make do with what I have.

My little Uniden 80ch handheld seems a solid unit so hopefully that can fill any gaps, the only issue being connectivity to the Kaka's UHF aerial (connector is hidden somewhere under the shifter surround). I guess I could mount another aerial if needed, I have another mount on my bar.