BAOFENG Radio US Green BF-F9 V2+ HP 5Watt Tri-Power (1/4/5w) w/ 3800mah Extended Battery (USA Warranty) Dual-Band 145-155/400-520 MHz FM Ham Two-Way Radio Transceiver

First of all, I am a new ham & don't have much experience with radios as of yet so maybe I am expecting too much from a $50 radio but here's my experience with this purchase.....The Good - 1) when i was on the air, everyone said the audio was strong & clear, and sounded good. 2) It can be programmed with chirp software (use bf-f8hp). 3) can't beat the price, & had good talk time with the extended battery (3000ish Mah battery) also has backlit keys which is a plus.The Bad - 1) Right out of the box, a trim piece of plastic just fell off in my hand, easy fix with some glue but brand new i should be fixing things. 2) Next i find the factory antenna is simply terrible, had SWR of 6:1 & just didn't perform well at all, even by rubber duck standards. 3) The worst thing about this radio is the lack of quality control & crappy construction of the casing, I ultimately had to return this radio because the battery latch wouldn't allow the battery to be removed after a few days of using it. also the screen is flush with the casing making it easy to scratch.OVERALL - Not a bad radio (internal components) for $50 BUT the casing construction seems terrible, so don't be surprised if you need to return the first one for some defect of the casing. I ended up getting the BF-F8HP from a different distributer which is the exact same radio internally, same functions etc, but with a seemingly slightly better construction of the casing. bottom line is it's luck of the draw with most these Chinese radios, just make sure you can easily return the item, & get one that is properly constructed!! however once you do get a good one, they seem very nice (both the BF-F9 V2+ AND BF-F8HP) & you can't beat them for the money! Good little backup radio or 2nd radio for hiking etc so you don't subject your $600 radio to whatever.... or in my case, just a first radio to get familiar with things while on a tight budget. I don't regret buying this radio, however i did get a bad one the first time around so 3 stars.

I have purchased a number of the Baofeng 5 xceivers and was very happy with their performance especially with the extended battery. Using the Baofeng programming USB cable and Chirp you can load the radio with 100 frequencies in a couple of minutes. I was excited to see Baofeng produce an 8 watt version with a 3800 mah battery. I ordered two of them immediately. As expected, they are of the same quality and performance of the 5w versions. Power output comes in at around 71/2 watts PEP with a decent 2.1:1 SWR (with Nagoya ant). I do recommend you also purchase a Nagoya whip or telescoping antenna to replace the OEM 'rubber ducky.' You will not be disappointed. Programming is the same as with the 5w and you use the same Baofeng programming cable and Chirp, which is really nice since the trend these days is to force consumers to buy products without backward compatibility. Even the batteries for the 8w can be used on the 5w radios. Thank you Baofeng. I highly recommend you consider these 8w xceivers if you possess a Tech HAM license or higher. 73s KB7NES

My experience with the Baofeng UV-5R radios and all their variants have been quite positive. I now own four, and I have purchased several others as gifts and presentations for new hams who take their amateur radio license exams through our local club. All have performed admirably, even under hard use. One radio sits in my horse's withers (saddle) bag during long trail rides. With the additional whip antenna and speaker/mic, that Baofeng is a lifeline for my fellow trail riders on the West Virginia mountaintops and in the valleys, when we are far from any kind of cell service.I received my new Baofeng BF-F9V2+ yesterday, and it is performing as admirably as all my other Baofengs. The battery fitment problems others have reported must have been resolved, because my 3800 mAh Li-ion ion battery clicked into place solidly and securely. I ordered the 1800 mAh battery as a back-up. It, too, fit perfectly. Both batteries arrived well charged, and I set about the business of successfully programming the radio in frequency mode with local repeaters from the radio's menu. Having owned several Baofengs in the last couple of years, programming via the menu comes very easily. This newest Baofeng comes with a vastly improved Operating Manual--kudos to[...] and[...][for publishing the exceptionally user-friendly manual. The included earbud and lavaliere microphone functioned well in PTT and VOX modes. Both batteries quickly recharged as I prepared to program the radio via computer.With the programming cable and in very short order, I had programmed the channel mode with a quick download of the invaluable "Chirp" software. During the local radio club's statewide link system "net" last night, I received very good signal reports, "full quieting into the repeaters."After re-reading other reviews, both positive and less than positive, I can confirm as of this writing that the Baofeng BF-F9V2+ represents a fine value in amateur radio equipment and is viable as a daily operator, hard use, and emergency service device.

Because of my research and hands on uses, I highly reconmend the Baofeng system for two way or group communication. The battery life was what we needed durning this recent storm and we were able to communicate with other family members several miles away.

so far so good, as represented and meets our expectations.

Received the radio. This could be a much better radio if supplied with user friendly info. I ordered a cord and cd with it, and apparently the cord is faulty. I was able to program in 12 repeaters at a friends through chirp. I'm also having a physical problem with trying to keep the battery latched. Haven't been able to totally test it yet

The bang for the buck is off the chart. This is a great little radio. Stocking up your Bug Out Bag, this is your go to radio.

good radio