BaoFeng UV-5R impressions

Hi All,

Recently purchased several BaoFeng UV-5R radios. Gave some away as Christmas presents and kept one for myself. As you may have read in several reviews, it is a pain in the red part of a monkey to program but once learned is only an annoyance. I am extremely pleased with the audio quality. Image below shows the new radio next to my Yaesu FT-60 for size comparisons. I have no significant complaints with the supplied antenna however I will be purchasing a larger replacement and will hunt down an adapter to SO-239 female to allow for use with other antennas I have that use UHF male connectors.

Since I only paid $30 for each radio I can't complain too much about the radios short comings. Beside the tedious tuning, it has the slowest scan function I've ever seen. The only "Be Warned" I have for new Amateurs is that it tunes and Transmits out of band. Meaning you can easily occupy the same frequency at the same time with your local police, fire, or ambulance. Not Good. It will also tune and transmit on FRS at GMRS bands too. Neither of which would be legal to TX from a non FCC approved radio. This one may have transmitted once or twice to my wife's FRS radio, purely with scientific intent.

The radio also has some goofy "features", like a LED flashlight function that shines constantly or in a pulse mode. You can also change the colors of the display background for transmit and receive. I have not been able to determine if it is possible to modify a saved frequency in "Channel Mode" on the fly yet. I did find a Users Manual written in English that I honestly haven't read yet. I'll include the link below.

In conclusion I have not found anything to despise this radio for and can recommend for those on a budget or for emergency backup. I will probably buy a few more to be placed in EMP proof storage. Here is the link I referenced:
http://www.buytwowayradios.com/products/resources/Baofeng/UV-5R-Owners-Manual-2.pdf

 

Good review. There are 3 things I would like to add, however. First, these radios have a long battery life between charges...even more impressive with optional extra capacity battery pack. Second item of note is these seem to have an issue with the CTCSS tones when the battery does get low. Almost a reverb type noise is transmitted. Finally, the programming cable does make life a lot easier. A worthwhile investment IMO.

ETA: Radio Shack carries an adapter that works well with these...P/N 278-0012. It has a 20" length of RG-316 cable so you aren't putting a lot of strain on the connector.

 

Agree 100% on batteries. Thanks for info on the cable from Radio Shack. I will be picking up programming cable soon too.

 

Thanks for the review. I was considering these to get my feet wet with ham radio. Amazon just got an order and you and BTPost may be getting some dumb questions in about a week.

Whynot

 

I have been feeling like a short bus rider reading the AARL technician manual bit by bit and taking the self tests. It is sinking in slowly.

Whynot

 

I'm a couple seats from you....

 

Sorry to bring back an old thread but I own a couple UV-5R's even though I own a couple other HT's and mobiles I still love the Baofengs both of mine have the larger battery and ~15 inch antennas I can hit some repeaters that are far away. I actually have a man pack style repeater using them with 2 telescoping fiberglass flagpoles and wire antennas. And it works quite well. Their versatility is unmatched for the price.

 

Good to know considering I'm trying to learn the ropes around here. Thank you.

 

Very friendly place. Need any help finding stuff, there is the search box (top right of the page) or drop a question or comment in the shoutbox and someone will help you out. Lots of good info here,

 

I'm looking to learn how to prepare more effectively to keep my family and myself safe with whatever the future may hold

 

That is a very broad topic. Where would you like to start? You want to start with basics? Or foods? Woodscraft? Communications? Pick a topic and dig in. Lots to learn here.

 

Everything I'm just here to slowly pick things up along the way and make friends along the way!

 

The pool of knowledge, in the shade of the monkey tree, is both wide and deep. The water is fine, come on in.
You might stop by the shoutbox and meet the gang.

 

One thing the UV-5R will not do easily is work 2 meter packet with an "easy-Link" interface...too long of a time for the vox to drop, causing it to lose the front end of incoming packets. Not an issue for APRS, though.

 

I've never used mine for anything but voice communication. My buddy who I bought my kenwood D710 used it for that all the time

I've never really done anything but FM AM and SSB come to think of it actually

 

My uv3r seems to be stuck on NPR radio. Haven't yet figured out what happened. It was set to scan the preprogrammed stations. Is there any way to shut this damn alarms OFF! I've set it off by mistake a couple of times. And why on earth would a hand held radio need three different Emergancy alarms? That's like announcing flight info my intercom in a Cessna. (Serious overkill)