Field Notes from N1JUR
Real-world ham radio tips, portable operating lessons, gear thoughts, and activation stories from the field to the shack.
What You’ll Find Here
This blog is where I go deeper than a YouTube description. You’ll find practical ham radio guides, activation lessons, gear breakdowns, and field notes from real operating experiences.
Some posts are beginner-friendly. Some get a little more technical. And some are just honest lessons from the field — because not every activation goes perfectly, and that’s usually where the good stuff happens.
Portable operating tips
POTA, SOTA, and location-based activation ideas
Gear and antenna experiments
Beginner-friendly ham radio guides
Field stories and lessons learned
TOP 5 HAM IOS APPS : Part Deux
After the immense interest my previous post received on the Top 5 Ham apps, I decided to create a Part 2. Here are five new HAM apps for iOS that you should definitely have on your smartphone.
Following the positive feedback I received on my previous blog post about the best Ham Apps for iOS, I thought I'd share another list. Without further ado, here are five Ham Apps for iOS that I personally find useful. Please note that these apps are presented in no particular order, and some may be free or low-cost. For full transparency, I purchased these apps with my own money, so the reviews are solely based on my own opinion.
Let’s dive in!
APRS is a well-liked mode utilized in ham radio. The APRS website for tracking plays a significant role in this infrastructure. Whenever possible, I employ APRS on my mobile and handheld devices. I understand that some people feel uneasy about being tracked. Still, I want to emphasize that utilizing APRS on your mobile device improves other tracking systems, particularly in VHF/UHF propagation. Your APRS data can aid in predicting when DX windows open up, as your spotting information provides insight into when and where these openings may occur. The APRS web Shortcut app is one of my smartphone's “important” apps.
APP COST: FREE
I won’t go into much detail with this app as you can easily google it and find a “butt-Ton” of reviews on the app. But if you do any Portable radio or POTA itself, you know its value as a logger. Having it on multiple platforms makes quick, speedy logging the only choice.
You're not alone if you struggle with differentiating between UTC and military time. I often try to calculate the local time when presented with UTC. But with Zulu Time, you no longer have to go through that hassle. This straightforward app has a screen widget that displays the current Zulu time and offers a time converter to help you convert local time to UTC. It's a fantastic addition to your Ham Toolbelt.
APP COST: $3.99
This app may be simple, but it offers a wealth of information when you're out in the field. It utilizes the phone's GPS to determine your latitude, longitude, altitude, and grid square. I find this app incredibly useful when I engage in digital POTA, as it simplifies setting up WSJT-X with the correct grid square.
APP COST: FREE
Building an antenna can be challenging, especially when determining the correct length of wire. While many calculators online can help, I often find myself in a situation where I need to cut the wire and can’t access my paper calculations. That's where HamAntCal comes in - I can quickly get the wire lengths I need with just a few input values. This app offers a variety of calculations for different types of antennas, including ¼ verticals, inverted V's, ½ wave dipoles, and more. Although I don't use it frequently, I always turn to HamAntCal when I need assistance with antenna building.
APP COST: $.99
These are my favorite five Ham apps for iOS. I'm interested in hearing your feedback if you've tried any of them. Additionally, if there are any other Ham apps that you use that I didn't mention, please share them in the comments section. I'm constantly on the lookout for new Ham apps to test out!
My Top 5 Ham Apps for iOS
What Ham Radio Apps are on your smartphone? I take a quick dive into what I use and the features that keep them on my home screen.
BE SURE TO CHECK OUT PART 2 HERE FOR ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS
I was planning a short talk for my local club on some of my favorite Ham Apps I use on IOS.
I also wanted to share them with my “Ham-ily,” knowing it might help spark a conversation.
If you have a favorite I didn’t touch on, feel free to share it.
Here are my top 5 Ham Apps I use.
HamAlert -This is the portable version of the spotting dx cluster. If you ever want to be notified of callsigns that you need to complete a WAS or DXCC, then this is an app you want to have.
SolarHam - we all want to know the solar/band conditions well; this site is packed with detailed maps and up-to-the-hour stats on rf conditions.
EzyQTH - if you do pota or are always outside playing the radio, you’ll love this app. Many of my logging apps aren’t GPS or grid square aware but fear not; this app will take your GPS coordinates and tell you your Lat/Lon, grid square, and maidenhead without input.
Pota. App - this isn’t so much a universal app but is one you want to make part of your smartphone. I refer to it daily, whether hunting or activating, as it’s a great site to stay abreast of the latest activations.
Radar Scope - this isn’t so much a ham app, but it has been helpful for me to keep tabs on weather conditions and lightning. I hope to automate this someday, but until then, I need to disconnect my antennas when lightning is on the horizon manually.
Those are my five favorites. What ones do you use to take up coveted screen space? Let me know in the comments.
I've also updated my YouTube playlist for those interested in other apps I recommend.