Baofeng UV-5r VHF/UHF HT Review

[Robb]

Purchase made.
$63.50 (Baofeng UV-5R and programming cable)

Now . . . need to go to Rat Shack and get a SMA adapter . . . then a Comet or Diamond antenna . . .

I'll comment on it here after I use it for a week . . . take a couple of weeks to get here too . . .

EDIT:
Does the software come with it on a disc - or do I download it from ?

 

[Mudfoot]

Enjoy...

 

[Moleculo]

Does the software come with it on a disc - or do I download it from ?

Mine came with it. If yours doesn't, let us know and I'll post it for download.

Oh yeah, now you can add to this thread:

http://www.worldwidedx.com/general-...you-purchased-ham-gear-because-site-what.html

 

[Moleculo]

Durability

The other night I did a durability test on this radio, and it passed my test. I threw the radio down hard on the hard floor in my house, picked it up and proceeded to use it. The radio did not fly apart, it didn't break, and it is working fine. I did this in front of another site member, AcidRod (Mark) who was actually horrified at what I had just done .

This is a tough little radio.

 

[Mudfoot]

Are you getting good battery life?

Also, can you recreate your drop test, but film it this time?

 

[hawken]

Where to buy?

New to this forum... not sure how I never ran across it before.

Anyway, I'm very interested in purchasing one of these. I have a couple of HTs already, but this is so cheap it might be fun to play with. I'm just curious where you guys are buying this from.

I found it listed on a couple of places like 409shop.com, but that site looks a little shady to me. Anyone purchased there before? I also followed a link to Hawaii Radio Sales listed on brickolore.com, but it looks like he's not selling because they're waiting on FCC certification.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks,

KC0BTP

 

[Moleculo]

New to this forum... not sure how I never ran across it before.

Anyway, I'm very interested in purchasing one of these. I have a couple of HTs already, but this is so cheap it might be fun to play with. I'm just curious where you guys are buying this from.

I found it listed on a couple of places like 409shop.com, but that site looks a little shady to me. Anyone purchased there before? I also followed a link to Hawaii Radio Sales listed on brickolore.com, but it looks like he's not selling because they're waiting on FCC certification.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks,

KC0BTP

409shop.com is reputable. They've been around for quite a while...I've bought several things from them. Hawaii Radio Sales and Wouxun.us will both have the radio shortly if you wish to wait for a U.S. retailer.

 

[BrickOLore]

UV-3R and UV-5R Pic

As promised earlier, here is a pic showing the UV-5R next to the UV-3R for size comparison:

I have pics of the UV-3R, UV-5R, and the Wouxun KG-UVD1P together:

Brick O'Lore: Baofeng UV-5R: Size Comparison

The UV-5R fits in my hand the best, but I agree with m42duster that the PTT is easier to activate than I would like.

 

[Se7en]

nice pictures O'Lore, great side by side photos. Can't wait to buy one.

 

[hawken]

Thanks, Moleculo--I went ahead and ordered one from 409shop.com.

 

[edem072]

Just got my Tech license a couple weeks ago and decided to get this as my first radio just to play with. Ordered it from 409shop on ebay a week ago and just got a message from them that they don't have any left in stock so I'll have to wait until they get their next shipment in.

 

[Robb]

Just got a note from the 409shop. They said they are out of stock of the UV-5R and expect to ship to me when they re-stock in the next couple of days.

 

[Se7en]

Just got a note from the 409shop. They said they are out of stock of the UV-5R and expect to ship to me when they re-stock in the next couple of days.

That sucks bullocks

 

[Moleculo]

Battery Life

The battery life seems decent on this radio. I've experienced better standby time and better TX time (the Icom T-70A comes to mind), but it's not bad. I used it last night on high power in a QSO for over an hour. It got pretty hot toward the end and the screen even started acting up. I noticed that the battery power still showed full power, but it started rebooting like the battery was dying. I'll see if I can replicate this behavior and take a pic. Regardless, an hour of talk time on high power really isn't all that bad.

 

[Moleculo]

Just got my Tech license a couple weeks ago and decided to get this as my first radio just to play with. Ordered it from 409shop on ebay a week ago and just got a message from them that they don't have any left in stock so I'll have to wait until they get their next shipment in.

For the price, it's hard to beat this little radio. HOWEVER, I'm not sure I would recommend them for a first time radio user unless you understand that you're buying something that is unrefined as compared to other manufacturers. While the other manufacturers (Yaesu, Icom, Kenwood) are more expensive, they are also a lot more user friendly for the newcomer. If you are willing to deal with rough English documentation, goofy menus, and bare-bones functionality, you can have a lot of fun with this radio.

I just want to make sure people understand what they are getting. The price is attractive, but sometimes the extra money is well spent. That said, I see a bright future for these new radios.