fenderblue
Member
Are the Baofeng radios used for GMRS/FRS communications? I see they have several economical models which has to different bands. Just wanting some info, thanks
-
To anyone looking to acquire commercial radio programming software:
Please do not make requests for copies of radio programming software which is sold (or was sold) by the manufacturer for any monetary value. All requests will be deleted and a forum infraction issued. Making a request such as this is attempting to engage in software piracy and this forum cannot be involved or associated with this activity. The same goes for any private transaction via Private Message. Even if you attempt to engage in this activity in PM's we will still enforce the forum rules. Your PM's are not private and the administration has the right to read them if there's a hint to criminal activity.
If you are having trouble legally obtaining software please state so. We do not want any hurt feelings when your vague post is mistaken for a free request. It is YOUR responsibility to properly word your request.
To obtain Motorola software see the Sticky in the Motorola forum.
The various other vendors often permit their dealers to sell the software online (i.e., Kenwood). Please use Google or some other search engine to find a dealer that sells the software. Typically each series or individual radio requires its own software package. Often the Kenwood software is less than $100 so don't be a cheapskate; just purchase it.
For M/A Com/Harris/GE, etc: there are two software packages that program all current and past radios. One package is for conventional programming and the other for trunked programming. The trunked package is in upwards of $2,500. The conventional package is more reasonable though is still several hundred dollars. The benefit is you do not need multiple versions for each radio (unlike Motorola).
This is a large and very visible forum. We cannot jeopardize the ability to provide the RadioReference services by allowing this activity to occur. Please respect this.
Baofeng Radios
- Thread starter fenderblue
- Start date
- Status
baltimorecs
Member
While they have the technical capabilities for those channels they are not certified to transmit on them.
AFAIK none of them are legal for use on FRS or GMRS. They cannot legally be used on FRS because the power level is too high, and the antenna is removable. They cannot be legally used at all without being FCC certified for a particular use, except by amateur radio licensees. And in that case, the licensee becomes fully personally liable for technical compliance of the radio, and most hams have no idea how much that can cost them.
The ARRL ran an article last November with the results of field testing they have been doing on handheld radios carried by hams at the annual convention. All the big names were in full compliance, even several years old. Almost all the Chinese SDR radios, even brand new, failed to meet standards.
Which is probably why Pofung/BaoFeng have not received FCC type certification for anything except one(?) Part90 model radio.
The ARRL ran an article last November with the results of field testing they have been doing on handheld radios carried by hams at the annual convention. All the big names were in full compliance, even several years old. Almost all the Chinese SDR radios, even brand new, failed to meet standards.
Which is probably why Pofung/BaoFeng have not received FCC type certification for anything except one(?) Part90 model radio.
fenderblue
Member
I was wondering about the power of them. If a construction crew had a fleet of those radios for there work and I had one I could listen and talk to them if I had there frequency. Of course I would be illegal unless I had some time of license.
CaptDan
Member
A simple answer - YES you could. Legal - no so much !
I do not think the 'construction crew' would like that. NOT a good idea.
None of the CCR (cheap, Chinese radios) will be legal for FRS operations as they have removable antennas and are too powerful. While debatable, there are some who subscribe to the belief that Part 90 radios may be used on GMRS frequencies. if you do, some of them are are Part 90 compliant, at least on paper.
"While debatable, there are some who subscribe to the belief that Part 90 radios may be used on GMRS frequencies."
There's no debate. GMRS is not a Part90 service, so without a different FCC certification, using any Part90 radio on GMRS without the appropriate license and radio settings (i.e. emitted power output) using the radio for GMRS is flat out illegal.
You might easily get away with using it, but it would still be illegal. No debate.
There's no debate. GMRS is not a Part90 service, so without a different FCC certification, using any Part90 radio on GMRS without the appropriate license and radio settings (i.e. emitted power output) using the radio for GMRS is flat out illegal.
You might easily get away with using it, but it would still be illegal. No debate.
§ 95.129 Station equipment
Every station in a GMRS system must use transmitters the FCC has certificated for use in the GMRS. Write to any FCC Field Office to find out if a particular transmitter has been certificated for the GMRS. All station equipment in a GMRS system must comply with the technical rules in part 95.
Many interpret that last sentence to mean that as long as the radio is technically compliant with part 95, it is OK to use even if it wasn't specifically type accepted for it. Under this interpretation, Part 90 accepted UHF business radios would be allowed.
You will find that many on this forum, as well as others, believe the above interpretation to be true. While anecdotal, I've heard that people have approached the FCC about using Part 90 equipment for GMRS and have been told it wasn't a problem. Perhaps it was the luck of the draw in speaking to an FCC representative.
Although I have chosen to buy and use Part 95 accepted equipment for my licensed GMRS use, there are others who are perfectly comfortable using Part 90 transceivers. Each does so at his own risk.
Personally, I find the logic in the above mentioned interpretation makes far mores sense than does § 95.179 which states that "immediate family members" are eligible operations in the first sentence and then goes on to mention almost every conceivable relative in the next.
Every station in a GMRS system must use transmitters the FCC has certificated for use in the GMRS. Write to any FCC Field Office to find out if a particular transmitter has been certificated for the GMRS. All station equipment in a GMRS system must comply with the technical rules in part 95.
Many interpret that last sentence to mean that as long as the radio is technically compliant with part 95, it is OK to use even if it wasn't specifically type accepted for it. Under this interpretation, Part 90 accepted UHF business radios would be allowed.
You will find that many on this forum, as well as others, believe the above interpretation to be true. While anecdotal, I've heard that people have approached the FCC about using Part 90 equipment for GMRS and have been told it wasn't a problem. Perhaps it was the luck of the draw in speaking to an FCC representative.
Although I have chosen to buy and use Part 95 accepted equipment for my licensed GMRS use, there are others who are perfectly comfortable using Part 90 transceivers. Each does so at his own risk.
Personally, I find the logic in the above mentioned interpretation makes far mores sense than does § 95.179 which states that "immediate family members" are eligible operations in the first sentence and then goes on to mention almost every conceivable relative in the next.
I think many people are reading something that isn't written.
When the FCC says "write to find out..." you could just as easily call them, or use the FCC database, to find out if that radio is Part95 compliant, meaning, certified. If the little sticker that says "Part 95 certified" isn't on a radio, it may have just fallen off. But, you may have a twin with the sticker, or your buddy may have said "Yeah, I've got the same thing, it has a label."
Well, you can call the FCC in all cases to find out if the radio was certified. But AFAIK the FCC policy is still that aside from amateur radio operators, who can transmit on anything as long as they personally take responsibility for proper technical compliance and in-band use, anything that is advertised, sold, or used as a transmitter in any service, MUST be certified, and must have a label stating that, at least when it is first sold.
I don't see a gray area--just people ignoring the obvious. You don't call for permission, you call to confirm that the radio is certified even though the sticker is missing.
Can't see that Part 90 certification would make a radio legal in Part95 use, the one certification does not remove the requirement for the second. A radio could be certified for dual use, but that's not common. Part90 makes no mention of including GMRS use, although the radios should certainly work well--if the programming limited them to GMRS power levels. IF. But that's like saying you can use a ham radio on marine vhf channels, just because it would meet the technical specs. You can't--because the various "Parts" make no provision for this.
When the FCC says "write to find out..." you could just as easily call them, or use the FCC database, to find out if that radio is Part95 compliant, meaning, certified. If the little sticker that says "Part 95 certified" isn't on a radio, it may have just fallen off. But, you may have a twin with the sticker, or your buddy may have said "Yeah, I've got the same thing, it has a label."
Well, you can call the FCC in all cases to find out if the radio was certified. But AFAIK the FCC policy is still that aside from amateur radio operators, who can transmit on anything as long as they personally take responsibility for proper technical compliance and in-band use, anything that is advertised, sold, or used as a transmitter in any service, MUST be certified, and must have a label stating that, at least when it is first sold.
I don't see a gray area--just people ignoring the obvious. You don't call for permission, you call to confirm that the radio is certified even though the sticker is missing.
Can't see that Part 90 certification would make a radio legal in Part95 use, the one certification does not remove the requirement for the second. A radio could be certified for dual use, but that's not common. Part90 makes no mention of including GMRS use, although the radios should certainly work well--if the programming limited them to GMRS power levels. IF. But that's like saying you can use a ham radio on marine vhf channels, just because it would meet the technical specs. You can't--because the various "Parts" make no provision for this.
Yeah...Not.
Every radio, in every service part, "must comply with the technical" etc. for that service. That applies to marine SSB, ham, and everything else. The second sentence about compliance is just saying that certification alone is not sufficient, if the radio drifts out of compliance--as apparently all the Chinese sdr's do within a couple of years--then it is not allowed to be used in that service, even if it was certified as compliant when it was new.
Not my interpretation. Just the way that the FCC requires BOTH certification and continued conformance afterwards.
The FCC doesn't write very clearly. Most federal agencies don't write very clearly. But there is nothing in the rule, as written, that says compliance alone is sufficient without the prior certification, is there? That's what Uncle Charlie will tell anyone who bothers to write in for clarification. Don't bother calling on that, anyone who answers the phone is allowed to give their opinion, but only a written statement from an authorized party binds the agency. That's also "the way it is" for any administrative agency in the US.
Easy to misinterpret if you're not experienced or trained in these things. Or haven't actually spoken the Uncle Charlie about them.
Every radio, in every service part, "must comply with the technical" etc. for that service. That applies to marine SSB, ham, and everything else. The second sentence about compliance is just saying that certification alone is not sufficient, if the radio drifts out of compliance--as apparently all the Chinese sdr's do within a couple of years--then it is not allowed to be used in that service, even if it was certified as compliant when it was new.
Not my interpretation. Just the way that the FCC requires BOTH certification and continued conformance afterwards.
The FCC doesn't write very clearly. Most federal agencies don't write very clearly. But there is nothing in the rule, as written, that says compliance alone is sufficient without the prior certification, is there? That's what Uncle Charlie will tell anyone who bothers to write in for clarification. Don't bother calling on that, anyone who answers the phone is allowed to give their opinion, but only a written statement from an authorized party binds the agency. That's also "the way it is" for any administrative agency in the US.
Easy to misinterpret if you're not experienced or trained in these things. Or haven't actually spoken the Uncle Charlie about them.
It would have been much clearer to state that all equipment in a station must be certified by the FCC as Part 95 and stop at that. It sure wouldn't make sense that the FCC would certify equipment that didn't comply with the technical specifications of their own rules. Ditto with the eligible operators of a GMRS station. Why the need to interpret what an immediate family member is when the list of eligible family operators is spelled out in the next sentence? At the very least, it is a poorly written set of regulations that could have been made clearer with less. I've dealt with my share of regulatory compliance issues at work and have seen compliance actions thrown out in arbitration due to poorly written regulations. I think the same could be said of the Part 95 rules. I'd guess that the FCC is aware that some of the wording is cloudy and it's turned a blind eye and it's become more of a "spirit of the law" vs. a "letter of the law" type thing. FYI: All of my GMRS radios (with the exception of the bubble packs) are both Part 90 and Part 95 accepted.
The Midland Micro-Mini GMRS isn't "bubble packed", and it is definitely Certified Part 95. At 5 watts and non-programmability means it's a pretty piss-poor radio for serious GMRS use. From the very earliest days of GMRS, most radios and repeaters used were repurposed commercial Part 90 equipment.
The Garmin Rino 6XX series is also 2 or 5 watts GMRS and .5 watts FRS.
Dual GMRS and FRS FCC certified with moving map GPS display and it does simplex and repeater offsets with a separate 162 MHz NOAA receiver built in.
I bought mine for ~ 125 dollars each new, and it beats the bubble pack radios in performance and in features without killing the bank account.
Dual GMRS and FRS FCC certified with moving map GPS display and it does simplex and repeater offsets with a separate 162 MHz NOAA receiver built in.
I bought mine for ~ 125 dollars each new, and it beats the bubble pack radios in performance and in features without killing the bank account.
While it's pretty obvious that the Cheapie Chinese radios aren't certified for GMRS or FRS.. from reading the forums, it seems that they are very popular for GMRS and FRS use 
Project25_MASTR
Millennial Graying OBT Guy
You generally have to look up the FCC ID. I've yet to see anything other than a Baofeng with a sticker other than Part 15. Even Motorola and Kenwood radios don't have physically say Part 90, Part 95 or Part 90/95A. You have to look it up (which sucks as most of the database only covers gear TA'd after 1986.
The one that always got me for being typed was the Motorola RNet 450. Data radio typed to be used on a service that doesn't allow for data…
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
- Status
Similar threads
