BaoFeng UV-82HP High-Performance Dual Band Radio for Maximum Range

TLengr: I have been a ham for 50 years but this is the first handy-talkie I purchased for amateur bands. I am generally not a fan of HTs. I have operated and serviced many VHF and UHF HTs back in the day. So, this review is probably biased a little bit towards what I've seen in commercial and industrial applications. Without considering the extra features for ham use, the Baofeng UV-82HT checks most of the boxes. Overall, it seems like a good radio. But, as some say, the devil is in the details. There are some great features and in my opinion some warts. That said, let's get to it.

I think the great features (not necessarily unique) are:

User Manual is well written and illustrated in English, and is actually helpful!

Dual Push to Talk (PTT) / Dual Watch
This is fantastic. One can monitor two frequencies at once: UHF/VHF; VHF/VHF; or UHF/UHF. To transmit to one or the other just press
either the A or B PTT as applicable. A question is what happens if both have a signal at the same time?
If you don't want this feature it can be turned off.

Three programmable transmit power levels: High-Medium-Low
For VHF: H=8 Watts, M=4 Watts, L=1 Watt
For UHF: H=7...

United States on Nov 29, 2017

A. Lundwall: I'm a long-licensed Ham with a General class license. I recententI got back into the hobby after many, many years away. My primary handheld is a Yaesu VX-6R, which I bought primarily because it's submersible and I can take it with me when I'm kayaking! So much of what I'll say here is as a result of comparing the two! But with that said, I'll cut right to the chase and say I really like the UV-82HP...I liked it enough to buy another one a week later!!

Now, realize, the Yaesu costs 4X as much, which might at first glance make you wonder if the BaoFeng was going to suck in comparison! Well, it doesn't!! In fact, in terms of audio quality, and reported signal strength from contacts I've made on 2m and 70cm, they are indistinguishable from each other! With the same antenna, from my office, I can hit the same machines, get the same signal reports, and listen with more or less equal sound quality.

Now don't get me wrong...I'm not saying it's a better radio than the Yaesu! For one thing, the Yaesu is a tri-band radio, and the BaoFeng is dual band! But still, for 1/4 of the price of the Yaesu, you get a lot! Dual band, dual view handheld. Dual PTT switch. More power. And, it...

United States on Jan 16, 2016