Originally Posted By: haertig
Unfortunately, the improvement only upgrades them from "is this thing a joke?" to "throw it in the trash".

I did a mini comparison of the Baofeng to a well known Yaesu radio on a different forum (link below). The Baofeng was totally outclassed. This comparison was not about features, it was only about performance.

On that other forum, I also did a post about an antenna stand I made for a J-Pole antenna. J-Poles perform well. You can mount one on your house or take it portable (mine is a two piece takedown model). You can't mount a J-Pole on your car however.

Link to my Baofeng vs. Yaesu comparison:

https://www.homesteadingforum.org/thread...479/post-242325

Link to my antenna stand for the J-Pole:

https://www.homesteadingforum.org/threads/whats-everybody-doing-today.474/post-269020

Where I got my test antennas from:

https://www.jpole-antenna.com/

https://signalstuff.com/product-category/antennas/

(Note that the Baofeng required an SMA-F antenna whereas the Yaesu requires an SMA-M, besure and get the correct connector type, or buy an adapter.)


Yeah, I was pretty happy when I was able to upgrade from a Baofeng UV-5R to Yeasu FT-65 HT! That being said, 90% of my time is just listening and the Baofengs seem fine for that, especially in my vehicle with a magnetically-mounted antenna. I'd love to have a $500 radio in there but also car break-ins are becoming a problem in the Houston area. I'd rather lose $25-$100 than x$100.

So far the DB25 has been performing surprisingly well Radioddity has great customer service and been over backwards to help with any issues. There haven't been any issues with either of the DB25's I bought but earlier I had a problem with a UV-5R from them. Their willingness to go the extra mile is what convinced me to spend a bit more on the DB25. smile

I like that J-Pole antenna you made. I've been wanting to make a copper pipe one like that for a while. I managed to get my hands on a spool of old-school, flat antenna wire and made a bunch of J-Poles from it. They work amazingly well and roll up small for transport. I'm surprised by how poorly the UV-5R performed in your tests. Maybe Houston is a target-rich environment for repeaters but with the antenna wire J-Pole hanging from the ceiling on the 2nd floor of our house I'm hearing repeaters 30 miles away.
-Blast
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