As you, no doubt, know by now, Yaesu recently discontinued the FT-818ND QRP transceiver. Within a day of the announcement most US retailers sold out their remaining inventory. There may still be new units at some UK and EU retailers at time of posting.
Ham Radio Outlet
Many thanks to John (KC8RZM) who writes:
I notice HRO, after having no listing for new FT818NDs for a few days, it’s now back being listed as being available for ordering (though not currently in stock).
John was correct, of course. I checked HRO’s FT-818ND product page and see that they’re listed as out-of-stock yet you can still order one for $699.95 US they seemed to have increased the price to $799.99 since yesterday (Jan 24, 2023).
I reached out to HRO to gather more information. HRO Sales Manager, Steve (W4SHG), replied:
We have been told more may be coming, we have no idea how many or when they may arrive.
So it sounds like they’re taking orders for an unknown quantity of radios they’ll be taking into inventory at some point in the future.
Martin Lynch & Sons
It also appears ML&S have new FT-818ND inventory arrive by end of January. They are allowing pre-orders to reserve these units. The price is £624.95 and they include a free MyDEL Leg Peg kit. Not a bad deal!
Should you bite the bullet?
If you’ve been considering a new-in-box, fully warranted FT-818ND, it might be worth reserving one of these units.
I would certainly not panic-buy an FT-818ND because there are so many tens of thousands of these in the wild I think there are deals to be found on the used market. I do suspect there may be a temporary increase in prices on the used market, but in a few months they’ll go back down.
Other retailers?
If you know of any other ham radio retailers who will be receiving new FT-818 stock, please comment below.
Here are some tips from readers from the comments section:
Wimo (Europe)
Leo (DL2COM) comments: Wimo was out of stock a few days ago and now seems to have a few new ones. Click here.
Scott (K4IBX) comments: Thomas – thanks for all you do! Nevada Radio still has stock w/shipping and today’s exchange rate about $705+/- delivered via FedEx to US.
Wimo was out of stock a few days ago and now seems to have a few new ones: https://www.wimo.com/de/ft-818nd?queryID=5d8c8db3e5ec6f423306919b004f26bf&objectID=25878&indexName=wimo_live_wimo_b2c_eu_de_products
Thank you, Leo!
Unless it’s a typo/mis-print – HRO is now charging $799.95. Which starts to match ML&S at $801.50 with the MARS mod, in US dollars -unless my math/conversion is off. I’ve been analyzing and trying to reason my way into buying an FT-818. I’d like to upgrade from a (tr)uSDX as my SSB QRP rig. I think I’m going to hold out to and see if Yaesu updates the 818 – maybe at Hamvention? I’d also like to see how the reviews of the FX-4CR go. I think my other options are an X6100 – which may be a half step up from the (tr)uSDX. The KX2 and IC-705 are the top tier contenders, but I’m not sure I want to spend that much money.
Wow. The price at HRO was only $699 yesterday. It increased $100 in a day!
Hi Thomas,
I saw that too.
A little lesson on economics 101, suppy and demand in action.
I snagged one at $699 and looking forward to it arriving.
This is a classic QRP radio and I think it will hold its value.
If someone purchases one and, for whatever reason, decides to sell it, I imagine it could be sold for close to the purchasing price. We must be down to the last batch Yaesu manufactured and then new units will be gone for good.
There’s nothing like that “new smell” radio experience.
Best,
John
KC8RZM
Errr… the X6100 is MANY steps over the (tr)uSDX from top to bottom. Of course, a (tr)uSDX is about 1/4 the price of a X6100.
The (tr)uSDX is about as barebones as one can imagine (but fun none the less for its many, many idiosyncrasies). The x6100 gets bad press for its features that don’t work like they should (especially regarding bluetooth/wifi), some reported issues with the internal battery/charge circuit and somewhat rare AM BCB breakthrough susceptibility (none of which I have despite being within a few miles of 3 BCB stations) but is a pretty full featured radio. Can’t wait to see how the FX-4CR works out, so you might want to go ahead and wait for that.
I agree the (tr)uSDX is pretty barebones. I only use it for SSB out on my front porch with a temporary EFHW 20/40 in the front yard, no tuner. I purchased from one of the certified resellers and I’ve had a good experience so far. The audio is crackly(?), even with headphones, I keep it between 8 & 10. And I have to lean into it to use the built in mic. I do use the couple of filters, they seem to help sometimes. I’d like to start getting away from all the noise and hunt from a park, or activate a park. But I’d like to update to an all-in-one (radio+battery), and get some more bands than the (tr)uSDX.
Regarding the X6100, you and Thomas have brought up the overloading, or I think you called it BCB. I’ve also heard about the weird battery issues, and that Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are buggy. While the FX-4C seems to have some positive reviews, I look at the screen, from some videos, and wonder how difficult it will be to use outside. Same with the X6100.
The 818 has a small screen, but it seems like it may be readable in the sunlight. I think I’ve read that there are no filters on the 818. No mic compression – not sure how much both of those really matter. Maybe there are other things I’m missing. Is a bare-bones 818ND all-in-one unit still better than a X6100 or X5105? Will it be light years ahead of the (tr)uSDX? Worth the $700 -or less? Because, it seems to me the next step up is double the price – and while I’m sure I’d be very pleased with it, I have a hard time justifying spending 705 or KX2 money.
I’m interested in any opinions on this.
I have the 5105 and the 818ND and can report that the Yausu runs circles around the Xeigu. First, if you are a CW op, the Xeigu never was programmed to work breakin on CW. Next, both have small internal speakers but the Xeigu has a lot more hiss than the Yausu. Overall, the Xeigu isnt bad but the Yausu is tried and tested
I agree with this assessment. 🙂
Thomas – thanks for all you do! Nevada Radio still has stock w/shipping and today’s exchange rate about $705+/- delivered via FedEx to US. I ordered one on a Monday and it was delivered to me in eastern NC on Thursday.
73,
scott
K4IBX
WOW! That’s impressive!
I am wondering if it the US version?
Pat
Not interested after seeing the price increase. I’m sure there will be used ones on the market at a more reasonable price within a year.
Since I have the 705 I’m not sure how much I would actually use an 818.
Got to keep reminding myself that want and need are two different things.
W4MKH
https://w4mkh.com
Time to retire this rig. The $100 increase is a scam.
One would think that Yaesu would not stop production of a best seller without a replacement. Anyone have any information or thoughts on this?
Price gouging. I’ll save my money and get better value in a lot others on the market 705/7100/etc.
All you had to do is get a 891 Yeasu and reduce the power.
Actually, Marcus is mentioning the IC-705 and IC-7100 so he’s probably looking for a radio with VHF/UHF.
I was pretty lucky in my purchase of the 818nd. I bought it from HRO right after you made a YouTube community post about the discontinuation. Got it for $650. A day later HRO increased it to $699 and then went out of stock not long after.