Product Description
This BAOFENG UV-5R transceiver is a micro-miniature multiband FM transceiver with extensive receive frequency coverage, providing local-area two-way amateur communications along with unmatched monitoring capability
Product Details
- Color: Black
- Brand: BaoFeng
- Model: UV-5R
- Dimensions: 3.70" h x 6.50" w x 8.40" l, 1.15 pounds
Features
- Dual-Band Display, Dual Freq. Display, Dual-Standby
- 25KHz/12.5KHz Switchable
- Channel Step: 2.5/5/6.25/10/12.5/25KHz Frequency Range: 136-174 / 400-480MHz
- 128 Channels 50 CTCSS and 104 CDCSS
Most helpful customer reviews
46 of 49 people found the following review helpful.
StormWind (Baofeng) UV5 Transceiver
By David Schattilly
I talked to a Chinese student here at my college and this translated out to Stormwind which is an interesting name for a company. Now to the review.
This transceiver is very nicely made. I would thought that for the price it would be broken easily espeically when it came with a strap, ear/microphone and a charger. Now this transceiver is not for the beginner ham who doesn't have experience with programming this radio. It is highly suggested that if you buy this rig, that you get a programming cable so it is easier to program. Since the repeater offset is only good in Frequency mode, channel mode it does not save to memory.
In order to save to memory you first put in the RECEIVE frequency then Transmit frequency. Now be sure to put in the T-CTS (menu 13) or if the repeater transmits a tone then you set the R-CTS (Menu 11) For example 147.280 uses CTCSS then you would set Menu 11 and Menu 13 to the same tone. which is set in each menu item and it always starts from 67.0 even if it is set to say 100.0 good The good thing is you can type the tone in eg. 1035 will input the tone of 103.5hz before saving to the memory. Then after saving that you then have to set the offset frequency which will be 147.880 and save it to the same memory channel. When you save the receive frequency into the memory it will confirm by saying "Receiving memory." and the offset frequency by saying "Transmitting memory" and to confirm the settings exit the menu and switch to Memory mode and go to the channel you saved. It will show a +- on the top of the display. Then if all is set right you should be able to access the repeater.
You have to repeat this for every channel you program. It is fine if you have 5 repeaters in your area, but very tedious if you have 25. This is why the usb programming cable is a must. This package has the handstrap even though it does not state that like other sellers do. For a radio around $50.00 it is an excellent buy for the cash strapped ham. Also a huge suggestion if you need to hear the repeater tail you must turn the STE from 5(ms) to 0(MENU 35) and RP_STE to off (MENU 36) and RPT_RL (MENU 37)
Pros:
Bright display.
Flashlight Feature (tap MONI to turn on and off this is NOT in the manual)
FM Radio Feature (Tap CALL to turn on and off this too is NOT in the manual)
5W/1W Transmitter both bands.
Dual-Watch (Suggesting that you set your TRANSMIT BAND TO A or B not OFF in MENU 34 otherwise you may transmit on the wrong band)
Color led display for TX/RX/Idle (Orange/Blue/Purple) Menu settings 29-31
Green/Red square LED to indicate Rx/Tx respectively.
Very loud receiving speaker. 1000mw. First time I owned a radio this loud.
1800mAh Battery for long standby time and a decent talk time.
Earpiece Microphone. (watch the volume level it can blast your ear out)
Drop-in Charger.
Cons:
Very limited manual.
Difficult/tedious programming scheme.
F-SMA (Reverse SMA) can be adapted from F-SMA to M-SMA for wider compatibility with an adapter there are also F-SMA to BNC as well as F-SMA to SO-239 ones that can expand types of antennas used.
This has an unlocked transmitting range on both bands so be careful if you use as a scanner, you may accidently transmit in areas you are not authorized.
Slow Scanning speed despite what the manual says.
61 of 67 people found the following review helpful.
AMAZING RADIO
By Mike Reingold
I am a bit of a geek when it comes to radios. But I am not a programmer. I figure for $50 what can I lose. I was blown away by the quality, the features and even the well printed manual. Buy the USB cable and download the software. I was up and running in 10 minutes after I charged the battery. This radio has more features then my Vertex VX5 which was 10x the price. I run security in a hospital, and when someone steals or loses a Motorola I am out hundreds of dollars. There is no compromise here, this radio works, and had no trouble hitting the repeaters.
Like the vodka ads they ran in NYC and had to take down. "ESCORT QUALITY AT HOOKER PRICES" !!!! That sums this radio up. I agree with all of the positive feedback by others regarding this radio. When the Zombies come now I got my radios, my ammo and some food. What more do I need :)
Mike
25 of 25 people found the following review helpful.
Tiny package...packs a big punch !
By Slorigami7
I purchased 2 of these for "Just in case" in my camper, figuring for the price, as long as we could talk to each other across a couple of miles in an emergency, they would be worth the $ 100.00 for the pair.I ordered them on Wednesday, Amazon had them at my door on Thursday ! They were in a tiny little box about the size of a shoe box, so I didn't even bother to open it at first, figuring it was a pair of shoes that my wife was waiting for.
I got in a little trouble when she opened the box and found no shoes, but once I retreated to the back room and started to play with them, I was stoked ! First of all, these little radios are solidly built, I would compare them to my Vertex. They claim to pack 5 watts max, and my subjective test of sending my daughter for a ride around the neighborhood while trying to talk puts them a couple of notches above the typical GMRS " 32 mile range" radios. With a set of Motorola GMRS/FRS radios, we could talk at 1.2 miles away if the monitor button was on ( This is way less than the 32 mile claim) With these little Baofengs, we were talking clearly at 1.6 miles...still clear at 2.5 miles, then static started to take over at 3.0 miles. Now mind you, this is in the absolute worst place with little valleys and hills all over...all in all, way better than the $85.00 Motorolas. All in all, if you need a cheap little radio to talk for 3 to 5 miles, you can't go too far wrong with these. Thanx for reading.
