Why are people buying Baofeng radios?

[DanRollman]

I mean it is ok if you have no carrier pigeons on hand or don't know smoke signals as replacements for comms but I would NEVER put any of these low cost rigs into a public safety environment.
Marshall KE4ZNR

Asking why anyone would buy a Baofeng in a forum where government radio people might be present is like asking a Dubai police officer why any cop would drive a Ford Explorer or a Dodge Charger. Ewwww!

https://www.web2carz.com/autos/ever...y-new-police-cars-to-boost-their-exotic-fleet

The real answer is not because they are the best, but because they are "accessible" (isn't that the new word for "cheap but kinda gets the job done")? But for those firmly embedded in the government-coffer-to-Motorola-coffer-industrial-complex, nothing but an APX is anything but a carrier pigeon.

All kidding aside, of course a Baofeng isn't suitable for a public safety environment, and I doubt the OP was asking why cops and firemen use Baofengs in mission critical environments (they don't, and for good reason).

Dan

 

[ILjim]

I have 3 Baofeng radios to help me monitor Chicago Police. I live on the far NW side of the city & they help me pickup the far south side zones. They pick up those zones (5,6,7,8,9) w/ the stock antenna better than a standard RS or Uniden scanner & the dual receive is nice. I also use them when I'm out & about, should something happen I'd rather lose them than a more expensive scanner & they're nice & compact, a lot of people use them here in Chicago.

Why is this thread in the North Carolina section? Anyway, I can pick up all 13 CPD zones on my scanners from here in Berwyn using a 16" Diamond whip. I'd get rid of the stock antennas if I were you...

 

[12dbsinad]

and I doubt the OP was asking why cops and firemen use Baofengs in mission critical environments (they don't, and for good reason).

Actually, You'd be surprised how many are in use, especially small rural dept's with a combination of VHF/UHF analog and also personally owned radios. I DO NOT at all support this. I've said it a million times, there is a huge open market between a Baofeng/Anytone etc. and a APX (or equivalent) as far as multi band capability and scalability in a rugged form.

 

[KK4TTR]

I have UV B6 baofeng radios and the scanning capability is actually quite fast.

 

[jonwienke]

Anytone radio are not bad as the Baofeng.

The AT3318UVE is actually a good tri band radio, i like mine very much.

The Anytone AT3318UVE tri-band costs nearly 10x as much as a Baofeng UV-5R, and its fit and finish and overall build quality is proportionate. It may not be as good as a Motorola, but it is much better than the Baofeng.

 

[jonwienke]

Anytone radio are not bad as the Baofeng.

The AT3318UVE is actually a good tri band radio, i like mine very much.

The Anytone AT3318UVE tri-band costs nearly 8x as much as a Baofeng UV-5R, and its fit and finish and overall build quality is proportionate. It may not be as good as a Motorola, but it is much better than the Baofeng.

 

[KK4JUG]

The Anytone AT3318UVE tri-band costs nearly 8x as much as a Baofeng UV-5R, and its fit and finish and overall build quality is proportionate. It may not be as good as a Motorola, but it is much better than the Baofeng.

I have that Anytone and a couple of Yaesu portables. jonwienke, you're right.

 

[AA6IO]

I also own a couple of UV-82s. Lousy as scanners, but as others mention, have good sensitivity and useful for monitoring a few analog stations. On transmit, about 5 watts is about 5 watts, be it a Baofeng, Yaesu FT-60, or a more expensive ID-51 or TH-D74, all which I own. The UV-82s with a mag mount antenna do all I need for local VHF repeaters in Los Angeles basin.
Lose or damage a Baofeng, who cares!. A lot of EMCOMM people here in LA area, including myself, are now carrying Baofengs as part of their equipment. I am active as a W5YI and ARRL VE. At least 70% of the folks that pass our tech exam, start out with some type of Baofeng. I need to be familiar with them to help them program these things. Our group has RT Systems for several Baofeng models.
Are they great radios, of course not. But they are a fact of life and widely used for ham and GMRS (may not be legal, but they still are) here in Southern California.

 

[montana1975]

poeple are tired of having to carry multaple radios for multaple uses ,,

 

[montana1975]

poeple are tired of having to carry multaple radios for multaple uses ,,

fcc refuses to let multi system type radios exist for pretty much all users forcing the need to buy them in most cases

 

[rbarker]

They are very cheap (same reason I shop at Walmart) I got 2 BF-888s EX with 2 drop in chargers for $17 I bought a program cable for about $6 and reprogrammed it with local UHF freqs. plus I have 2 radios to use if needed to talk to family.

 

[KC3ECJ]

For some reason, I am just not understanding the reasons for buying a Baofeng radio to supplement our scanning hardware? If you have one, can you please explain what model you have and for what purpose you have it? How does it improve your scanning capabilities? A lot of you are very good at answering questions and explaining stuff very well. Thank you.

The UV-5X3 makes for an ok analog scanner.
That can lock out channels. The only thing is it will stop on a channel that has a PL squelch even if there is no PL or the wrong PL being received.

 

[KK4JUG]

I think the operative word in all of this is "cheap," as opposed to "inexpensive," and the connotation that goes along with it. It's all in how you word it. For instance, my child is active. Yours is a hellion. You're cheap. I'm frugal. I have a caring mother. You're a mama's boy.

These radios are cheap in every sense of the word.

Yes, I have some and yes, they're cheap.

 

[kf4pep]

I buy them to give away to people with an interest in radio, explaining to them all the ways they suck but that they are just something to learn on.

About the only legit use past that I have found is using them as single channel monitors, not on scan, when you don't need a particularly sensitive radio or one with good audio.

 

[elwood_blues]

I got a UV-5R last summer for free (someone bought it for the wrong purpose...). I wanted to try one anyway. I have 5 other Bearcat's, 4 in use. Is it a Bearcat - No. However, I have it set up to scan only 12 channels. Does it work? Yes, for 12 channels, just fine! Does it have better audio than my 346XT? YES! Does it have a better speaker mic? YES! (Doesn't have Bearcat's BS built-in audio resistor for the headphone jack!). Does it feel more solid? YES! (I've dropped it on asphalt without issue! Wouldn't trust Bearcat to survive.) Do the Bearcat's have a drop-in battery charger? NO! Does it have a longer battery in-use life? YES! About 18 hours on a single charge. Do I use it for public safety? Only to monitor it, but I can tx on almost all local FD's (one went P25). Would I use it for interior firefighting? No. Would I buy another? Probably.

 

[davidzimmerman]

is it JUNK??? yes lol

 

[dlwtrunked]

is it JUNK??? yes lol

I have had Alinco and Yaesu HT that were not as good (the Alinco did not work as well and the Yaesu was not as rugged). and I currently own Kenwood and ICOM. For the price, they are real bargains. Any ham who does not own one (regardless of other radios he may own) is either foolish or down right poor. Having a cheap decent radio that one can risk is smart.

 

[mmckenna]

Any ham who does not own one (regardless of other radios he may own) is either foolish or down right poor. Having a cheap decent radio that one can risk is smart.

That's a pretty broad statement.

The reason many of us do not own one is because we don't need one.

Saying I need one of these because they are cheap is ignores exactly how cheap I really am.
I don't buy something, no matter how inexpensive, if I don't have a use for it.

I don't need a disposable/throwaway radio or one that I can "hand out" to anyone. Over many years I've collected a few solid radios that will stand up to a lot of abuse. I don't need to worry about them getting dropped, because they'll survive it just fine.

Spending $10 on a radio I don't need is a waste of $10.

 

[Citywide173]

For some reason, I am just not understanding the reasons for buying a Baofeng radio to supplement our scanning hardware?

For starters, because they can. More specifically, it may meet the need of the user better than any scanner would under the circumstances. I understand that the scanners have gotten smaller, but sometimes you don't have the need for a scanner's full capabilities or size. The ability to scan the frequencies most important to you in an ultra compact footprint is a large benefit when appearance is of more importance than function.

Although I oppose streaming, I can see where Baofeng or WLN radios would make for a great setup for dedicated streaming channels. Cheap, compact and get the job done.

 

[ElroyJetson]

OK, I'm HYPER opinionated on this subject. Just getting that out of the way first.

I avoid buying Chinese GARBAGE as much as possible. I will do nothing that puts money in the treasury of the Chinese government, a country that is solidly under fully communist rule and does not HAVE an opposition party and executes any who dare to form an opposition party. A country that has expansionist goals and is building its military capability to achieve them. A country that only uses capitalism as a tool to fund its communist expansionist goals while extending no more freedom to the people than is strictly necessary to facilitate the operation of the capitalist-for-funding system they operate under.

I can not understand why people who SHOULD be aware of these facts, and possibly ARE, will still go ahead and buy Chinese junk products.

Fine if you're on a tight budget. Buy an Alinco. DON'T BUY CHINESE RADIOS.