Review on 📻 LYU LAM UV-5R + Pro 8W Dual Band Two Way Radio with Extra Battery, Hand Mic, Earphone, USB Programming Cable, Antennas - Complete Communication Package by Jason Taylor

This is a radio amateur, an amateur radio operator. While you can legally buy, own, and listen to it in the US, you must be licensed to broadcast, and only on approved frequencies. Different countries have different laws regarding acceptance and transfer. Now that there's no question about it, this is a great starter kit. Yes, there are cheaper radios (check out the Tidradio H6) and you can put together a slightly better set if you shop around. However, if you're just starting out and want to get on the airwaves, then this is a great little kit. For transmission, he works on 2 meters and 70 centimeters. For reception you get a lot more including commercial VHF. The exact specifications are listed above. Overall I found it worked quite well for both sending and receiving. Part of this behavior depends on the antenna used (more on that in a moment). You can control two frequencies at the same time. You can program the radio to use repeaters. It can scan frequencies, but it scans very slowly compared to higher quality, more expensive radios. This kit comes with three antennas: standard 6 inch (aka rubber ducky), 1 inch flex, 18 inch high gain. I tested them with an SWR and a power meter. The rubber duck had an SWR of 1.2 and an output of 7 watts. The plug had a relatively high SWR of 2 and an output of around 7 watts. The high gain antenna had an SWR of 1, but only a power reading of 5. The rubber ducky and high gain reached the local repeater I use most, which is about 15 miles from home (over the hills of New England). . A stub can't do that (Mirkit makes a stub that can). The kit includes a larger battery with longer lifespan. I would recommend using it most of the time and keeping a small battery for backup. However, this increases the size and weight of the device. Overall battery life is pretty good. Up to a few days are possible in standby mode with a larger battery. In addition to the charger, to which you can connect the battery separately, you don't have to plug in the radio, you get a microphone and a so-called monitor receiver. The headphones are equipped with a small microphone. Honestly, throw that thing away. If you want to use a microphone, use the large included microphone. This works very well. If you want to use headphones with a microphone, look in the store, you can find one that plugs into the microphone. This works better than the "Observe" setting (or ODOM search which makes better headphones). Finally, you will get a programming cable. Strong advice, get a copy of the Chirp software. This makes setting up the radio much easier than trying to program it and changing settings via menu items. When testing this radio, I noticed what appeared to be incorrect transmissions. This is common with these radios. If you are a devotee and find that your radio has these transmissions, you should not be using it legally. That and the fact that there are better quality radios at this price point lost it in a star. Overall though, this is a great place to start your ham journey.