BAOFENG
Anthony Sizemore
Radio works very well I like the way the display is and the gps seems to work very good too this radio is a great radio for anyone but you gotta have your ham licenses to operate this radio. Hopefully in the future the radio will be on chirp so it can be programmed easier. The weather radio works great and this radio doesn’t come with the cradle charger only a usb charger. All together I recommend this radio to anyone great radio.
Old Pageturner
The advertising claims that there can be up to ten zones and any channel or group of channels can be put into any Zone. Working manually, this cannot be done. Further, there are menu spots which indicate channels can be named....oops , sorry, they can only be named in CHINESE. The list goes on. I reset the radio to factory settings and now it refuses to show Channel numbers, but only shows frequencies of channels even in Channel mode. Earlier, I had several channels in Zone 1, and wished to remove one of them. Apparently that's not possible when working manually. I tried naming a zone....thought it would be nice to have a Zone 2. See the photos. After coming up with one Zone totally un-named, the next one which was supposed to be named Zone 2 only shows some Chinese character. There is no direction given in the Manual to actually use the Zone naming feature, or get it set to English. I went through the menu and thought I'd like to put in some ID for this radio and also set my call sign. That's apparently an empty promise as all It will do it set unreadable Chinese characters. So, no ID or Callsign..... I'd like to be able to scan the 2-3 NOAA stations which apply to our local area ( New Orleans and Baton Rouge) but again, if there actually IS a way to set that scan function, there are no instructions offered for that. I thought I'd set the frequency scan to listen to any signals from local hams and local repeaters. So, I worked through the Menu and set the Freq. Scan 145.000 - 174.000......and when I backed out properly and told it to scan then it looked at two different VHF frequencies and a string of UHF frequencies I never asked for. Now, honestly, is this radio running right? Must EVERYTHING be done via a Windows ONLY computer? Zero compatibility with Mac.
Oklahoma Wildman
Awesome radio for the price! I was trying to find something so I can easily talk with my parents when we are on road trips. This has lots of options and a manual to help, but you can ask AI any question about it to get it all set up right. Seems very rugged so far too.
Ty Bosworth
This radio is a hybrid model above the legendary UV-5R and the UV-5RM. Like the UV-5RM, the plus model has a very expanded listen range including airband. It has a somewhat larger color display screen and has increased battery capacity, though in my real world testing they are nearly identical. The price continues to be amazing and this radio has a LOT of advanced features for such a cheap price. It also has the legendary Baofeng build quality (which is a curious blend of quality and cheap. The radio feels heavy and like quality but all of the accessories feel cheap like toys. They all work together, though, and punch out plenty of wattage for just a few dollars. Of course a lot of power has less to do with successful communication as proper positioning and a larger antenna...but this is a wonderful set for a phenominal price. You should totally get it! It's worth every penny!
Professor Matthew
I’ll be honest with you—I already own five UV-5Rs. Yes, five. Some people collect stamps. I collect radios. Why? Because you never know when you’ll need to simultaneously monitor a weather alert, talk to a buddy on simplex, scan the local sheriff's band, and also cosplay as an extra in a tactical sci-fi thriller.
But then... the UV-5RM PLUS GPS entered my life like a rugged little beacon of glorious overkill—and now my other five UV-5Rs just sit around looking like they’re waiting to be picked for dodgeball.
Let me break it down:
GPS FUNCTIONALITY
I can now track myself AND my friends in the wilderness with longitude, latitude. It’s basically a tactical walkie-talkie and a scout drone had a baby. The integrated radar map shows you which direction your buddy wandered off to chase a squirrel. It’s like playing real-life Pokémon Go, except everyone’s on Team Stay-Alive.
2500mAh BATTERY + USB-C
Finally! No more awkward charger bricks. The USB-C port gives this radio modern street cred. It charges fast, lasts forever, and my power bank loves it. I suspect it may also be solar-powered if I just believe hard enough.
EXPANDED FREQUENCY COVERAGE
Want to listen to airband, NOAA, and your local FM station while pretending to be in a Jason Bourne movie? Go for it. This little beast handles it all. I once used it to monitor the weather, check ATC traffic, and listen to '80s hits—all at the same time. My neighbor thinks I work for the CIA now.
10 WATTS OF “CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?”
That’s right. 10 glorious watts. I tested it and accidentally made contact with someone in a neighboring time zone. I’ve never felt more powerful while holding something that fits in my cargo pants.
COLOR SCREEN AND SIDE BUTTONS
The 1.77” color display is basically an IMAX screen compared to the old UV-5R. Bright, readable, and snazzy. The two side keys? I customized them for flashlight and emergency chicken dance (okay, just a weather scan, but still—it’s flexible).
FULL KIT OF AWESOMENESS
It comes with everything—mic, headset, cable, belt clip, wrist strap, charging cable, adapter, programming cable... Honestly, the only thing missing was a celebratory cupcake. But I’ll let that slide.
Bottom line? If the UV-5R is the Toyota Corolla of ham radios—reliable, affordable, and everywhere—the UV-5RM PLUS GPS is the Tesla Cybertruck that knows your location, has way more power than necessary, and still costs less than a family dinner at Chili’s.
Would I recommend it? Absolutely.
Would I buy five of them? Don’t tempt me.
User
This 2 way radio has very good build quality, and functions as advertised. Battery life last me almost all day with light usage, and the size is just right. The radio is easy to use, and program, however the screen is washed out when using outdoors. I feel this radio is a good value, and I am pleased that it supports air band receiving, GMRS, MURS, and ham frequencies right out of the box. Weather band reception was very clear, and helpful. Power output was close to what is advertised, and other stations stated that I sounded clear when transmitting. The GPS location does work, but only outdoors for me.
SNOOCH
I’m so glad I finally got an amateur radio that has the GPS service built it is definitely a game changer. If you are in the market for a new updated radio I suggest you look into the UV-5RM Plus with GPS. I selected this radio because it has so many new features that many of its competitors don’t have. It has GPS while others at the same price don’t, so that’s a great value and a must have for those who enjoy the outdoors. With this radio you can now edit some of your channel information right from the radio rather than having to use programming software. This is such a nice feature especially if you’re out hiking or traveling and need to right away update something it’s quick and easy to do. The radio is solid, easy to program manually, using Chirp, or Baofeng software available for free on their website. The keyboard now has a full keyboard to enter information into your radio. There are many options for the display and also the side buttons are fully customizable. The Kenwood Jack on the side of standard for a program and cable or to use an external speaker microphone. The keyboard also illuminates, which is nice if using in low light situations. There is too much to list here, but I did want you to see how it looks. Thank you for reading my review!
Anonymouse
This Baofeng radio is a nice upgrade from the older UV-5R series of radios. It has a larger, brighter color screen and the weight feels great in the hand. I like that it comes with a speaker-mic, that is a new addition for Baofeng to include. It has lots of functionality, too much to cover in this short review but there are many YouTube videos that cover this radio in detail. The programming software available on the Baofeng website is easy enough to use and there should be CHiRP support coming in the near future as well. This radio claims to have 10w of power output but I have no way to verify that, if it's anything like their other radios it probably has closer to half the rated TX output. This radio comes completely region unlocked and has restricted frequencies that are often used by public safety (Police, Fire, EMS) programmed from the factory. For that reason I am deducting two stars because a lot of people do not know that you need licenses to use these radios and can unknowingly cause interference on those bands, and end up in legal trouble. Otherwise it's a good value and a decent radio for someone who is just getting started with HAM radio.
John
The Baofeng UV-5RM is not compatible with Chirp, a common reason for returns, as it requires CPS, a more complex programming software. CPS allows creating scannable zones, like different cities I visit, which is how I use them.
Like other Baofengs with zoning, it uses CPS, similar to DMR radios, requiring some understanding to program. You must manually copy and paste repeater settings from RepeaterBook.
I own a UV-5RH, which uses the same CPS software as this updated UV-5RM. However, I couldn’t transfer CPS entries from the UV-5RH, which was frustrating, forcing me to manually re-enter data. Other CPS software versions, including a more robust one from Baofeng’s website, didn’t work for either model.
Pros: Delivers up to 10 watts at high power, includes a charging cable, and offers free CPS software from Baofeng’s site. It comes with a hand mic, supports NOAA, Airband (AM) for aviation listening, and commercial FM radio.
Cons: No Chirp support, but many Baofengs are Chirp-compatible, so I won’t dock it heavily. It includes only a short antenna; a longer one performs better. I have plenty of HT antennas, but new users may want a better one.
Included: Short antenna, USB-C rechargeable battery, high-quality Baofeng programming cable, USB-A to USB-C cable with wall adapter, wire headset, speaker microphone, and wrist strap.
I tested power output with consumer-grade equipment (TinySA Ultra, attenuator, dummy load), and it was very close to the reported output, within equipment margin of error.
It misses five stars due to complex programming, which may challenge those unwilling to invest time. Being familiar with CPS from Baofeng DMR radios, I found it manageable.
Yoda Bee Toy
Baofeng 5RM Plus with GPS.
This hand held radio can TX/RX in 2m, 1.25m (220Mhz), 70cm, and GMRS frequencies. The radio uses your standard 5RM batteries and can be charged via a USB Type-C port in the back which is very nice and you don't need a cradle. This kit comes wit an external mic, earpiece, belt clip, and standard 6" antenna, and USB data cable (K1 type connector). I double check and so far this radio isn't supported by CHIRP yet so you have to download and use the factory CPS for now.
As mentioned before this radio can TX/RX in the 2m, 1.25m, 70cm, and GMRS frequencies. I tested the radio out with a SWR meter and in the 70cm and GMRS band, this radios output close to 10 watts which is very nice. On 2m it's around 7.5 watts which is more than enough and on the 1.25m band, around 5 watts.
One of the main features of this radio is the GPS features of this radio. Though the radio menu clearly display it can do APRS, I turned this feature on and monitored it with my other APRS capable radio and the website and did not see my location on there. Also I believe this radio GPS will only work with other similar radios, but for sure this HT doesn't really put out the real APRS info but the GPS does work.
This radios is built just like any other radios in this price point and is packed with features you don't find in other radios that cost 2 to 5 times as much. The one thing I wish they would do is that the supplied antenna, is pretty mediocre and I don't suggest you use it. Tested this on the Comet analyzer and the reading is all over the place and I couldn't get a close and good reading of 50ohm or where the antenna resonates at. Other than that poor antenna, I replaced and tested the radio with a name brand dual band antenna and this radio works really good. I plugged in several local 2m, 1.25m, 70cm, and GMRS repeaters all of which is over 45 miles away. I was able to make contact with the repeaters and audio quality was excellent. Though my mouth was about 3 to 4 inches away from the radio/mic. I was told the mic gain could be bumped up a little more and it would be perfect.
The radio is super easy to use with all the necessary buttons all layout in the front. Another thing, I did notice this radio doesn't have the built in light (another plus) and the GPS now sits where the light would.
Overall, I'm knocking this radio kit 1 star off due to cheap and mediocre antenna. It's a great radio that does a lot and has a lot of features but it was hamper by the bad antenna. Replace this antenna with a well made aftermarket dual band antenna and you will have a nice handheld that pretty much covers all bands on the spectrum.
