Elecraft T1
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| Frequency | 1.8-54 MHz (160-6 m) |
| TX power | 20 W (For 0.5-20 W transceivers. Max 20 W peak / 10 W continuous (10 W peak on 6 m). Auto-tunes from as little as 0.5 W (2-5 W recommended for initial tune)) |
| Modes | all |
| rf in | BNC (from radio) |
| rf out | BNC (antenna) |
| control | optional band-data adapter (e.g. T1-FT817) |
| power req | 8-10 V DC; internal 9 V battery (Ultralife lithium >1 yr, alkaline several months); auto power-off (0 mA when off) |
The definitive backpacking/SOTA/POTA auto-tuner: five ounces including its 9-volt battery, a quarter the size of other compact ATUs, yet a real automatic L-network that seeks a true 1:1 match across 160-6 m for any QRP rig. Latching relays and auto power-off mean a lithium 9V lasts over a year, and it tunes in any mode. Stand-alone, so it works with anything from a home-brew kit to an FT-818 or KX2.
It is a QRP tuner - 20 watts peak, 10 watts continuous - so it is useless above QRP power. The three-LED SWR/power display is coarse compared with a meter, it runs on a battery (a 9V is the intended supply), and it is not cheap for its size. Remote/band-data operation needs an optional adapter.
The standard QRP/portable automatic tuner: impossibly small and light, battery-powered, mode-agnostic, and genuinely good at finding a 1:1 match for any low-power rig. For SOTA, POTA, and backpacking it is in a class of its own; the LDG Z-11ProII is the larger battery alternative that also reaches 125 watts at home.
The Elecraft T1 is, in Elecraft's own words, the world's smallest stand-alone automatic antenna tuner - about a quarter the size of other compact ATUs and just five ounces including its internal 9-volt battery. That makes it the default tuner for SOTA, POTA, and backpacking, where size and weight matter more than anything. It works with any 0.5-to-20-watt transceiver across 160 through 6 meters: QRP kits, home-brew rigs, and commercial radios like the FT-817/818, IC-703/705, and Elecraft's own KX2 and KX3.
Inside is a genuine automatic L-network - seven switched inductors and seven capacitors, series-L/shunt-C - that, unlike some tuners, keeps working until it finds a true 1.0:1 match rather than settling for 1.5:1 or 2:1. It tunes in any mode (SSB voice, CW keying, or a constant carrier) and re-tunes from memory in a second or two. The clever power management is what makes it practical in the field: latching relays draw no current once set, the tuner powers itself off when idle, and it sips about 20 mA only during a tune - so a lithium 9-volt battery lasts well over a year.
Its limits are simply its QRP nature: 20 watts peak, 10 watts continuous, so it is no use above QRP power, and its three-LED display is a coarse indicator rather than a meter. Offered assembled or as a kit, it is not cheap for its size, and band-data/remote recall needs the optional adapter. But for low-power portable operation it is in a class of its own; the battery-capable LDG Z-11ProII is the larger alternative that also handles 125 watts back at the desk, and the KXPA100 is the route to 100 watts with an Elecraft station.