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Class action lawsuit against Baofeng

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RFI-EMI-GUY

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(snip)

I would be more concerned with a HAM leaving these 25 dollar radios around and his kids take them thinking they are "walkie-talkies" and playing "space-patrol" on public service frequencies, but hey they could do the same on your 200 dollar handheld or you dual band base rig.
(snip).

That is precisely the problem the FCC focused on. These radios come pre-programmed for the masses with random part 90 and other frequencies plugged in. They make no attempt to educate purchasers that the radios need to be licensed for a particular frequency. It is left to chance. Many models that claim "FCC Certification" are actually certified as scanners (Part 15B) with the transmit functions available. They could be marketed to ham radio under that guise, but are marketed to general public via Amazon.

The sad thing, is that they could actually be designing decent radios like Hytera makes and sell them for $300 or more.
 

KK2DOG

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Oddly enough, as hams we can build/modify equipment and get on the air with it.
Baofeng/Pofung simply made slinging RF quite inexpensive.
 

AK9R

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Yes, amateur radio operators are free to build transmitting equipment to their heart's desire...as long as the equipment complies with the emission standards contained in §97.307.

But, we aren't talking about home-brewed, one-off transmitters. We are talking about commercially-made transmitting equipment sold at retail in the U.S. This equipment must meet whatever standards apply to the FCC radio service for which the transmitter is marketed. If the transmitter is being sold for Part 90 applications, then it must meet Part 90 standards. If the transmitter is being sold for Part 95B (FRS) or 95E (GMRS), then it must meet those standards.

The catch with equipment sold at retail in the U.S. for use under Part 97 is that if the transmitter includes a receiver that is capable of scanning multiple channels in the VHF-UHF spectrum, then it must meet Part 15 as a scanning receiver. This requirement applies to amateur radio equipment even though there is no requirement for Part 97 certification.
 

KK4JUG

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I said that's the way class action suits are supposed to work. Filing a class action suit and having it go to trial are two different things. I'm hard-pressed to ever second-guess anything a court does in any stage of its operation, to wit, an idiot who orders a hot cup of coffee at McDonalds then complains because they were "burned" by it or a court who will allow a defendant to claim too many Twinkies affected his mind.
 

radioman2001

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quote"
As to the crap angle and such. How many hams actually have the spectrum analyzer, deviation meter and other gear to "spec" their own gear to see if it falls within FCC or manufacturers specifications? Not many I suppose.

It's a ham radio it doesn't have to meet Part 90, and if they had the gear you mention then they wouldn't need to buy a $25.00 radio they could buy a $1,000.00 radio..
 

radioman2001

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quote"
True, but the amateur radio operator using that radio still needs to know that the transmitter meets the emission standards specified in §97.307.

Again without test equipment not going to happen. How many hams do you know that have a service monitor, or a good Bird meter? Testing against another radio is about all most hams can handle. Since these CCR don't (require) a type acceptance for ham use, well you can see where this is going.
Part 15 is nothing more than a promise not to interfere and accept all interference, just like your TV remote. The FCC dropped the ball years ago in not heading this off as usual.
 

needairtime

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After looking at "Boafeng" on that website, I thought this post was a 4/1 special, now I'm not so sure...

BTW, I saw somewhere that "Baofeng" means "full of gems/treasure/loot" or something like that, in Chinese -- but not certain. Seems reasonable as a name... No clue about Yaesu or Tytera, they don't look like anglicized Chinese words.
 

AK9R

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Again without test equipment not going to happen. How many hams do you know that have a service monitor, or a good Bird meter?
A lack of access to proper test equipment does not erase the need to be compliant with §97.307. One has to seek out product reviews with technical lab reports or find a trusted fellow ham who has the proper equipment.

An alternative answer is the blind assumption that since these radios allegedly had Part 90 certification, they must meet those rules, so they are good for amateur radio. Now, we are finding out that the Part 90 certifications on some of these radios was completely bogus which throws the whole "who do you trust" question into a crocked hat. If I were behind this legal action, which I'm not, I'd be shining a light on the FCC for taking the word of "independent" test labs rather than doing their own testing.
 

Bob1955

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For your information and amusement:

Baofeng Class Action Lawsuit
I'm KEEPING my Baofeng GT-5TP. I'm NOT a drug dealer, and obey the laws and ONLY use this transceiver to receive police/fire and trust me, they work MUCH better then "any" brand (name I won't mention)handheld scanners for $39.95 and with LONG battery life along with great audio/sensitivity too.
 

K7MFC

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BTW, I saw somewhere that "Baofeng" means "full of gems/treasure/loot" or something like that, in Chinese -- but not certain. Seems reasonable as a name...

Google says:

ZtCM5CO.jpg
 

KK4JUG

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So the name pertains to the lawsuit in what way?
 

Bob1955

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BAOFENG IS A JOKE! Their drop chargers all FAIL! A lot of re-packs too. Mine is going back to Amazon.com Monday, 4/8/19. I'm not going to even monitor with a illegal transceiver. I'm reading that Boafeng is the only place to buy online. Is this true guys?
Hope everyone has a nice weekend.
 

needairtime

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Well name is a name, can't expect it to perfect (for post #29 above) when transliterated to another language. Still wonder what Yaesu and Tytera mean if anything? And if Tytera deliberately trying to evoke a response when its three letter abbreviation is read?

And agreed the Baofeng drop in charger is garbage, the one I got failed in 3 weeks - it no longer charges. I ended up hacking mine with a different circuit so at least it now charges, just that I hope the battery doesn't fail prematurely.
 
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