so ive had my TS-590SG for going on 6 years now and honestly it still works great but i keep reading about the IC-7300 and the 7610 and wondering if im missing out. the SDR waterfall stuff looks genuinely useful not just gimmicky. my main thing is contesting and some casual DX, not super serious about either just enjoy it.

the 590 has always had solid rx in my opinion, noise floor is fine for my suburban QTH which already has its own issues anyway. but the UI feels dated now and i got to admit watching guys on youtube with the 7300 touchscreen makes me a little jealous. probably a stupid reason to spend money.

anyone gone from the kenwood to the icom lineup recently? or even the 7610 specifically. wondering if the jump from a one receiver radio to the dual watch on the 7610 is actually useful in practice or just a spec sheet thing

I made almost that exact swap about two years ago, went from a 590S (not even the SG) to an IC-7610 and honestly yeah it was worth it for me but I contest more seriously than it sounds like you do. The dual receiver is not a gimmick if you do SO2R-lite stuff or just want to keep an ear on a second band while you work a pileup, I use it constantly during sweepstakes.

That said if you're casual about it the 7300 is probably 90% of the radio for like half the price difference. The waterfall really does change how you operate, I know that sounds like marketing speak but finding openings on 10 and 12 meters got way easier because i actually see the band instead of just scanning. The 590SG receiver is no slouch though so dont expect a night and day difference in weak signal work, its more the interface and workflow that changes.

tbh i'd just keep the 590 unless you have a specific reason you're frustrated with it. six years isn't old for a kenwood. i've got an TS-870 that's been in the shack since like 2001 and it still pulls dx that surprises me. the waterfall stuff is cool but you can always just run SDRplay or an RTL dongle as a panadapter on the 590 if that's the part you actually want, costs like 30 bucks.