Baofeng UV-5R: Specs and Pictures

First, I would like thank Chris (NH7QH) at Hawaii Radio Sales for sending me the heads up about the UV-5R. Be sure to support Chris by visiting his website for your Baofeng and other radio needs. (And no, Chris is not paying me to say this.) He's at IWCE now and I hope he comes up with some new toys for us there.

I found out about the UV-5R being "in the wild" while I was at the UT basketball game last night. As I mentioned, PA2OLD sent me this link first. I was very excited to get confirmation that UV-5R was available so soon. No KG-UV920R here. Unfortunately, trying to decipher a Chinese web site on an Android Phone while at a college basketball game with congestion on the mobile network is not fun.

Not too long after that, someone posted anonymously in the comments with the link to the 409Shop listing for UV-5R. And then in quick succession, Nate sent me the link and Carol from the 409Shop responded to an e-mail to inform me that it was available. I felt like Will Bailey in this episode of the West Wing.

On top of all of this, Knology was having major problems in my area, so I had no cable internet at my house. I used the mobile hot spot on my Android phone, but the 3G was painful. It was all I could do to get this simple post up last night.

So here is my more formal post about the UV-5R. I looked on the Baofeng website, but did not see the radio listed yet, so here are the specs from the 409Shop page.


BAOFENG UV-5R 4W
136-174/400-480Mhz

BAOFENG UV-5R The transcevier is a micro-miniature multiband FM transceiver with extensive receive frequency coverage,providing local-area two-way amateur communications along with unmatched monitoring capability

VHF/ UHF  DUAL-BAND TWO WAY RADIO

Frequency Range: 136-174 / 400-480MHz
Dual-Band Display, Dual Freq. Display, Dual-Standby
Output Power: 4 /1Watts
128 Channels
50 CTCSS and 104 CDCSS
Built-in VOX Function
1750Hz Brust Tone
FM Radio (65.0MHz-108.0MHz)
LED Flashlight
Large LCD Display
Hight /Low RF Power Switchable
25KHz/12.5KHz Switchable
Emergency Alert
Low Battery Alert
Battery Saver
Time-out Timer
Keypad Lock
Monitor Channel
Channel Step: 2.5/5/6.25/10/12.5/25KHz
Roger Set


■  Dual band, dual display, dual standby
■  A/B band independent operation
■  128 groups channels storage
■  Shortcut menu operation mode
■  VFO & Memory channels scan
■  Emergency Alarm
■  Tri-color background light selectable
■  0~9 grades VOX selectable
■  PTT & ANI ID
■  FM radio and 25 stations storage
■  Voice companding
■  CTCSS/DCS coder & tone searching
■  PC programmable
■  Wide/Narrow Band(25kHz/12.5kHz)
■  Transmitter time-out timer(TOT)
■  High/Low TX power selectable
■  Busy channel lock-out(BCLO)

Specifications:

General
Frequency Range 65-108MHz(FM Receive only)
        136-174MHZ and 400-480HZ (TX/RX)        
Channel No. 128
Frequency Stability ±2.5ppm
Antenna High gain DualBand Antenna
Antenna SMA - Female
Antenna Impedance 50Ω
Operating Voltage DC 7.4V
Mode of operation Simple or semi-duplex
Dimension（W x H x D）100 x 52 x 32 mm
Weight 250g （including battery, antenna）
Transmitter
Output power 4W / 1W (Max 5W)
Modulation Mode 16kΦF3E / 11kΦF3E
Maximum deviation ＜5kHz(Wide) / ＜2.5kHz(Narrow)
Spurious Radiation ＜7μW
Adjacent Ch. power  ≤-65dB(Wide) / ≤-60dB(Narrow)
Pre-emphasis characteristics 6dB
Current ≤1.6A(5W)
CTCSS/DCS deviation 0.5±0.1kHz(Wide) / 0.3±0.1kHz(Narrow)
Intermediation sensitivity 8-12mv
Intermediation distortion ＜10%
Earpiece / mic type   Kenwood Plug type

The package contents are listed as:

1 x UV-5R (VHF136-174Mhz UHF 400-480Mhz)

1 x 7.4V 1800mah Li-ion Battery Pack
1 x Antenna 400-480Mhz
1 x Belt Clip
1 x ENG Manual
1 x Desktop Charger ( 100V ~ 240V )+(2pin USA or 3pin UK or 2pin EURO or 2pin Australia)
1 x PTT Earpiece for free


The 409Shop has the UV-5R for $56 USD. Hopefully the description is correct (High gain dual-band antenna) and the package contents (Antenna 400-480MHz) is incorrect. Baofeng should have learned that lesson with the UV-3R when it provided the two band specific antennas originally.

Nate hopes, based on the description, that we can get U/U and V/V. I can't wait for somone to get their hands on one.

Baofeng UV-5R: Now Available

Hat tip to PA2OLD who first posted a comment with this link.

Also, thanks to someone for the anonymous comment to the 409Shop link.

The 409Shop has the UV-5R for $56 USD. It says it is a dual band radio and is 4 Watts. in one section is says it comes with a dual band antenna, but package contents says a 400-480MHz antenna.

More to come!

Baofeng UV-5R: Output Power

The question was asked on the UV-3R Yahoo Group if the UV-5R was 5 watts. I don't know the answer to that question, but the UHF TYT TH-F8 is 4 watts and the VHF TYT TH-F8 is 5 watts.

Baofeng UV-5R: Dual Band?

If this picture is accurate, then the UV-5R is a dual-bander instead of a single band radio like the TYT TH-F8.

Image courtesy of OH6HGN who posted about the UV-5R several days ago.

Also, a hat tip to Nate who pointed out the OH6HGN web page.

Baofeng UV-5R: New Baofeng Model

Chris (NH7QH) at Hawaii Radio Sales sent me the following about the new Baofeng UV-5R. (On a side note, Chris is now also selling ham equipment via eBay.)

"Just got this email - looks like it is a TYT TH-F8 - same marks and all mono band, already FCC approved since a TYT."

He also included a couple of pictures - see below. The styling looks more like the UV-3R +. Other obvious features are the charging connectors on the battery pack (so a drop in charger) and the keypad. I am not as familiar with the TYT radios, but it looks like Baofeng is willing to leverage the success of the UV-3R to build its brand by buying radios from multiple companies (Vero Telecom and now TYT). This model also more directly competes with the Wouxun. (I felt like the UV-3R was more of niche radio than a direct replacement for the Wouxun's.) These Chinese radios are keeping it interesting for sure. Maybe Baofeng needs to rebrand a mobile and steal the thunder from the much anticipated KG-UV920R.

Pricing on the TYT TH-F8 is around $50 to $75 on ebay. Here are the specs for the TH-F8.

Single band, dual display, dual standby	■  A/B band independent operation
■  128 groups channels storage	■  FM radio and 25 stations storage
■  Wide/Narrow Band(25kHz/12.5kHz)	■  0~9 grades VOX selectable
■  Chinese/English voice prompt	■  CTCSS/DCS and scanning
■  1750Hz tone	■  PTT & ANI ID
■  Priority transmit selectable	■  0~9 grades squelch level setting
■  LED display mode	■  Keypad beeper setting
■  Transmit over beeper	■  Dual watch/monitor
■  Receive saving function	■  Auto keypad lock
■  Power-on display	■  Battery power voltage
■  Power-on message	■  Repeater offset function
■  Channel name display and setting	■  Reapter shift direction
■  VFO step function	■  Shortcut menu operation mode
■  Emergency Alarm	■  DTMF encoder & decoder(optional)
■  8 groups scrambler(optional)	■  2/5 tone encoder & decoder(optional )
■  Remote skill/stun/activate(optional)	■  High/Low TX power selectable
■  Busy channel lock-out(BCLO)	■  Transmitter time-out timer(TOT)
■  Voice companding	■  Tri-color background light selectable
■  PC programmable	■  Wire clone