On 27/07/2011 5:57 PM, Rick Robinson wrote:
In my opinion the standards of the ULR list regarding what is and
what
isn't an ultralight radio are quite arbitrary
It costs less than $100 which
qualifies it as a ULR according to list guidelines, while
a Sony T615 is
$145 on ebay which should disqualify it but doesn't in the
eyes of some
ULR members. Go figure...
Hello Rick:
The Reason the Sony T-615 qualifies as an ULR even though it costs
more than $100.00 is because the "Original Price" of the T-615 when
it was introduced to the Market was about $89.00 USA Dollars. The
ULR Guidelines regarding PRICE state that the Radio must be Under
$100.00 when "Introduced" to the Market.
The Price of the T-615 remained well under $100.00 until a bunch of
us realized just how good the radio was and Gary DeBock praised it's
merits. A PILE of people started buying up the T-615's and of course
the sellers realized there was Money to be made........and they
raised the Prices!!
So..the T-615 meets ALL of the Criteria for being a ULR...including
that of price!!! Not only in the eyes of "Some" ULR members but as
as set out in the Criteria!!
You may feel that the Criteria for being a ULR is "quite
arbitrary"........but a lot of thought and deliberation went into
the "Criteria" by the founding members Gary DeBock and John
Bryant...along with a lot of input from other early members of the
group!! It may not be perfect....but it's served our purposes quite
well......
If we were to allow Radios that did not meet the Criteria for
whatever reason..the Ultralight Group would lose its mandate and
would pretty soon be just a group of PORTABLE USERS/DXers.
Of course any Dxer can use Any Radio to DX with and have lots of
Fun!! You can even Report the Loggings to the group...we don't have
a problem with that. However....if you wish to participate in the
ULR AWARDS PROGRAM...you need to use a Qualified ULR....as set out
in the criteria!!
Many have challenged some of the aspects of the Criteria...but after
careful consideration......the Original Criteria always stands the
test of time!!
Have Fun with ULR Radios........and Good DX.
Robert S. Ross VA3SW ( For the ULR AWARDS COMMITTEE)
London, Ontario CANADA
