ICOM IC-410PRO in-cab UHF radio review – Reliable comms for remote touring

When you’re hundreds of kays off the blacktop – crawling across gibber plains or picking your line up a rocky ridgeline – communication isn’t just handy; it’s essential. 

Whether you’re spotting for your mate behind you, calling out a cattle grid, or just bantering over convoy chat, your UHF needs to be reliable, clear, and built to handle a bit of dust and heat. We’ve been running the ICOM in-cab UHF radio on a few recent trips – from the Victorian High Country to the red guts of the Simpson – and here’s how it stacks up.

Right off the bat, this ICOM IC-410PRO unit is built solid. You can feel the quality in the buttons and overall construction. It’s got that proper mil-spec vibe – the kind of gear you’d trust in the glovebox of a bush-fire truck or under the dash of a mining LandCruiser. Reception is crisp, and it holds signal well, even in hilly terrain or tight gullies where cheaper units tend to drop out. The display is easy to read, even under harsh midday glare, and the menu system is simple. You’re not fumbling through weird key combos just to change channels or tweak the squelch.

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Now, here’s the rub. For a unit at this price point – and with ICOM’s pedigree – not having a speaker in the handheld mic feels like a bit of a miss. If you’ve mounted the main unit low under the dash or tucked away in a console, the audio can get muffled, especially with the engine humming and a bit of wind sneaking in through the snorkel or a cracked window. A speaker mic would make life much easier, especially when you’re bouncing down a track and want to keep your eyes up, not lean forward just to hear what Baz in the Prado is barking on about.

Also worth noting: the unit doesn’t come with an antenna, so you’ll need to factor that into the setup cost. Bit of a bugger, really. For new players or those building a rig from scratch, a ready-to-go kit with a whip antenna included would be a welcome addition – one less thing to chase down at the local 4WD shop.

Verdict

The ICOM IC-410PRO in-cab UHF delivers rock-solid performance where it counts – clear reception, tough-as-nails build, and intuitive controls that don’t get in the way when the tracks get rough. 

While the lack of a speaker mic and included antenna are small let-downs at this price, the overall package is hard to fault for serious remote touring. If you’re after reliable comms that can handle heat, dust, and distance, this one’s worth a spot in your dash setup.