The Zhiwhis ZWS-C919 is a device that receives a wide range of frequencies and has a long list of features. It scores high on quantity. This review concentrates on how well it performs all those functions it has. The firmware underlying this review is v1.723.
I picked the Zhiwhis ZWS-C919 out of the 4 available brands, because it had best sale price on Amazon (and a little because Zhiwhis bought some good will by offering to send me a free updated version of the ZWS-603).
HanRongDa is the OEM manufacturer for all the branded versions, and today they seem to all have the same firmware and accessories. Raddy, however, has the best manual, but that’s not a deciding factor since they make it available online for free. All the ones I checked online also are advertised as having latest 1.71 firmware (mine ended up with 1.723).
Please keep in mind that these are first impressions. I may not be using some features right and I might not understand some things. I could change my mind. I’m going to mention comparisons to the Tecsun PL-990 throughout this post because it happened to be nearby and as my other higher-priced upper-tier radio, I intend to make more comparisons in the future.
Continue readingOctober 7-8 are Amazon Big Deal Days, and there are some deals to be had on shortwave radios. I didn’t see anything for Tecsun or Qodosen, but the Raddy, Zhiwhis, Retekess, Retevis and XHDATA crowd are offering 20% or more off on some items, and there appear to be some new regular prices on the high end RF919 (also branded Zhiwhis, HanRongDa and Retekess).
Here are some I found:
Decisions, decisions. Recently I’ve been thinking about a radio: the HanRongDa HRD-C919 / Zhiwhis ZWS-C919 / Raddy RF919 / Retekess TR113.
Here are some reasons I’m interested:
The fellow with the hard hat standing next to one of the three big power company trucks parked in front of my neighbor’s house said they were working on the transformer and the power would be off for a couple of hours.
For most people, the failure of electric power is an inconvenience, but this morning it was an opportunity to do some radio listening without the usual electronic noise blanket. I grabbed my accessories bag and two radios, hurrying outside to see what I could get. The two radios happened to be my almost constant companion Qodosen DX-286 and my Tecsun PL-330, recently featured in a Fred In the Shed video on the subject of what radio to buy at different price points.
Continue readingBut, but, but, don’t you already have a ZWS-603 that you bought in 2022 and wrote about?
Yes and no. I do have a ZWS-603 from 2022, one with version 1.6 firmware. I wrote to the company asking if it were possible to update it to the latest firmware, mentioned on Amazon as version 2.4. They replied that the update is not possible because some chips have changed, but that they would send me a new one to check out. They found me online and I guess I’m an influencer! ROFL. The latest firmware according to their email is 2.5, so I will want to check that out.
The main problem I had with firmware 1.6 was that there was no way to set the FM band start frequency, wasting time waiting on an FM ATS scan that starts at 64 MHz. According to the Amazon product description, FM band setting is a new feature in the 2.4 firmware. 😉
While I don’t use my ZWS-603 often, I think it is a solid entry level receiver with a very good speaker and a flexible record capability. At a coupon price of $21.17 (Sept. 30, 2025) on Amazon US, it’s not going to break the bank for someone curious about the hobby.
Over the years, I’ve noted that radios that appear identical are sold under different labels. In fact, they are sometimes not exactly the same; for example, one might have a green display background while another is orange. They might have different firmware versions. They might come with different accessories. Here are some Zhiwhis-branded radios you may have seen: ZWS-102, ZWS-103, ZWS-107, ZWS-109, ZWS-206, ZWS-2415, ZWS-376, ZWS-603, ZWS-700, ZWS-701, ZWS-702, ZWS-702X, ZWS-727, ZWS-757, ZWS-777, ZWS-787, ZWS-878, ZWS-8801, ZWS-903, ZWS-905, ZWS-A320, ZWS-C919, ZWS-200, ZWS-380, ZWS-605.
I often get a laugh from Amazon product photos, like this one:
One question I’ll have is what charging port it uses, USB-C or USB Micro. My current one is Micro and the Amazon product description says Micro. The similar looking HanRongDa K-603 product photo clearly shows a Micro jack, but a reviewer of the K-603 (named Kevin D. — no relation) says that his manual says it’s “Micro” but really it’s USB-C. So I’ll want to nail that down (and if there are any discrepancies, report them here).
One Amazon reviewer named Kyle has both the old and some newer version, reporting significant improvement in the recording capability, particularly improved AGC. However, Kyle noted in his review the same issue that I found in my older one, reversed left and right FM stereo channels. I’ll let the company know if it’s still a problem.
Someone made a comment on the Official SWL Channel Facebook group:
So I’ve got the modern raft of DSP and SDR radios, just the same as anyone else. I was wondering whether, in 2025, there’s any point in picking up an older PLL shortwave radio. … Tell me, is there any real advantage to a dual conversion PLL shortwave portable over one of the flagship DSP based radios or an SDR radio in 2025?
Group founder Gilles Letourneau replied:
There is no real reason to get one, except that you want one.
A wise answer. He should know, given his vast experience with all types of listening on many types of radios — and I have no reason to dissent — but I just like to compare radios, so I want one, or two, or five.😳
I bought 3 of those older dual conversion PLL radios (used) this year partly out of curiosity, but mostly from nostalgia. The Grundig G4000A is one them; it’s a good radio but it didn’t outclass my modern DSP receivers like the Qodosen DX-286 on a visit to the park a while back (see: Grundig G4000A: Observations Part 2). I added two more, the Sangean ATS-909 and the Kaito KA1101.
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