r/Baofeng Jul 11 '21

Announcement: Many new Baofengs are limited to only transmit on ham radio frequencies in firmware. 144-148 MHz, 222-225 MHz, 420-450 MHz -- ONLY

64 Upvotes

Due to FCC action, new devices seem to be locked to these transmit frequencies in firmware. Be aware of this when purchasing new devices.

That means they cannot be used on MURS, GMRS, FRS, Marine VHF, or Part 90 business frequencies. No LARPing without a ham license.

This cannot be worked around via Chirp programming, AFAIK.

Relevant threads:

Outstanding questions:

  • Does this apply to all new Baofengs or just the UV-5R?
  • Is there a hardware mod to open up all-band transmit?

YMMV, as old stock may still be present with some sellers.

Edit: this seems to apply to USA sold/distributed models only.


r/Baofeng Feb 08 '24

PSA: Do not get a Baofeng or other cheap radio to transmit on air band!

42 Upvotes

We have had several pilots post their interest in getting a Baofeng as a "backup" radio for air band use. This is a BAD IDEA™ for multiple technical and legal reasons:

  1. These radios have FM transmitters only. There is no way for these radios to transmit using the AM modulation required for air band. If you transmit with FM, your signal will be unintelligible and you will fail to communicate. Example of listening to a FM transmission with an AM mode receiver. (thanks /u/W2XG)
  2. These radios lack AGC required for usable 2-way radio in AM mode.
  3. Baofengs have direct conversion DSP receivers in them that go deaf at altitude due to being overloaded by the many strong transmitters that will have clear line-of-sight above ground level.
  4. These radios lack the filters required to transmit a clean signal on air band.
  5. These radios lack FCC Part 87 certification for air band use.

In short, these are the wrong tools for the job for multiple technical reasons in addition to the legal reasons.

Furthermore, I would question your judgement as a pilot if you were to rely on a $30 piece of crap radio as a backup. Remember that baofengs aren't popular because they are good, they are popular because they are cheap.

There are technically competent and legal air band handheld radios from Yaesu and Icom. Get one of those:

Edit 2025-12-23: update Yaesu link


r/Baofeng 1d ago

UV-5R fake antenna?

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17 Upvotes

Hello, I am new in this hobby and just got a 2 pack of these radios with some “upgrades” from Amazon. I was sent an “upgraded” antenna that needs an adapter to fit on the radio. I am also in the fpv drone hobby so I know a bit about antennas. The connector on the antenna in the picture doesn’t appear to be a real connector, and instead just a piece of metal to screw on. Does anyone know if it’s a real antenna or a just a fake piece of junk?


r/Baofeng 1d ago

Should I get license to use this model?

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9 Upvotes

Bought is as BF888s in flipkart in 2022


r/Baofeng 1d ago

PROBLEMAS DE RECEPCION BAOFENG UV5R

0 Upvotes

Buenas compañeros baofengeros, alguno le ha pasado que al configurar una repetidora no pueden escuchar? solo puedo escuchar si apreto el boton "monitor" pero esta todo configurado con los subtonos como corresponde, le entro algun demonio a mi uv5r? ayer funciono un rato y despues de eso empezo con este problema y no pude comunicarme mas, pd: en la flota de handys uhf no hay drama funciona todo de 10, pero para radioaficion no..


r/Baofeng 1d ago

Baofeng BF-88E ist constantly hissing

2 Upvotes
It’s constantly hissing, and it only stops when I transmit or someone else transmits. Does anyone know what’s causing this and how I can fix it?

r/Baofeng 1d ago

seeking mode baofeng dm32

0 Upvotes

hi everyone,

when i start the seeking mode on my baofeng dm32uv also if i push the ptt button on another radio it doesn't find anything. instead on uv5rm plus when i push it it finds immediately.

can anyone help me?


r/Baofeng 1d ago

Correct battery for UV-9r Plus

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1 Upvotes

I've had these radios for 5 or 6 years now and they have been great, I programmed them for all north American marine and backroads channels and we've been through a lot together, however one battery is now dead and the other one is tired. I ordered the wrong one and want to make sure this time i get it right. Correct oem battery is on the left, wrong battery on the right. The closest I can find is this ebay listing, but it still doesn't look quite right, the pattern is different and the charging terminals appear to be recessed instead of a bump. Any insights into how to order the correct one would be much appreciated!

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/325358736014


r/Baofeng 2d ago

Preventing sma from breaking

0 Upvotes

Hello guys, Im going to buy the rh-770 antenna for my handheld, but i heard when you are using it you should do so in a stationary place otherwise you might damage/break the sma connector, is this true and is it with any antenna even whips or just rigid long antennas? Thanks.


r/Baofeng 2d ago

Trying to find GM15-Pro Firmware File

1 Upvotes

I have 2 GM15-Pros that have had a firmware issue. I'm trying to find the factory firmware file so I can push it to these 2 radios to un-brick them. I've searched the internets for over an hour without any luck.

Does anyone have this file on hand or know where it can be found?

If I can't find it otherwise I may have to get another GM15-Pro. If I do I may try put it in DFU mode and see if I can download/copy the firmware it is running. Not 100% sure if that will work or not.


r/Baofeng 3d ago

Connecting TV antenna to uv-k61

0 Upvotes

I wanted to connect a TV antenna to uv-k61 bc j don't use it and idk what to do. I read about it and supposedly it's dangerous and j can break something etc. so is it really dangerous and if is not, then what adapter should I buy bc I have no idea. Thanks alot in advance


r/Baofeng 3d ago

Comming from hell and back with my dm32

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4 Upvotes

If you saw my last post about getting a dm32 running gd77 off Facebook, I ended up buying another unit from Alibaba and somehow it cleared customs I pulled the flash files from it using the open uv8000 tool and uploaded them to my bricked unit and actually managed to get the factory firmware into it flawlessly. I thought I had it all figured out but it won't transmit or receive and currently says "wrong model" each time you turn it on and try and transmit.

Hoping someone smarter than me has seen this or for anyone in the future good luck.


r/Baofeng 3d ago

Advice me

0 Upvotes

What is the best or more complete baofeng radio they sell no matter the price?


r/Baofeng 5d ago

Issues with programing BF-1909

2 Upvotes

Hi!

I've recently acquired BF-1909 and an original programing cable, however upon connecting it to Chirp, it says radio refused to enter programing mode. I have checked and updated the drivers, tried multiple ports on my laptop, yet nothing works. Is there anything I missed, or is something wrong with the radio or cable?


r/Baofeng 6d ago

bf-k5 plus with gps and aprs, is it worth it ?

0 Upvotes

i was looking through amazon and found a bf-k5 plus but it comes with different menu design and it has aprs and GPS functions, is it worth it or should i get the normal k5 plus?

here is the amazon link:

https://www.amazon.com/BAOFENG-K5Plus-Charging-Frequency-Programming/dp/B0DKNT534P


r/Baofeng 6d ago

AR-152 charger size

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13 Upvotes

Recently picked up a baofeng AR-152 that didn’t come with a charger for a good deal. Having a hard time identifying the charging port side. Everything I’ve seen online says 2.5 but it’s not, it’s somewhere between 2.5 and 5.5


r/Baofeng 6d ago

Baofeng problem ?

0 Upvotes

in settings of my baofeng 5rh pro I’ve been trying to turn on tone for my emergency button to make sure other people can hear it. When I go into my settings and go to the alarm setting I hit the green menu button to edit it but nothing happens, it just makes a small beep. And every other setting I can edit fine except this one. I have a BAOFENG 5RH PRO GPS&APRS. I also made sure I had dual watch off and I am not on a restricted frequency but its still not working. Can anyone help me.

Update, I was under the impression that this radio could broadcast in case of an emergency but I guess the firmware does not allow you to do that.


r/Baofeng 7d ago

Issue with programming software in Windows 11

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1 Upvotes

Helping program my friend's DM-32UV and had downloaded the CPS v1.6 software on a Win11 PC. During install it had to install using compatibility mode and it did complete the install successfully, however when opening it I get this on the screen:

I think it may be trying to open in Mandarin instead of English, any ideas of switching the language around? TIA


r/Baofeng 8d ago

Connecting uv-5R with a group using Dp4401 Ex

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23 Upvotes

Dear all There is a group in my work using the dp4401 motorolla and i have the uv-5r and want to connect with them. How can i do it? Please don’t tell me that it is not possible because someone have done it for me in the past. Also, i don’t know what are the frequency they are using. If there is a way to figure it out my self please help me.

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r/Baofeng 7d ago

Receiving and transmitting on different frequencies

3 Upvotes

Hey everyone, been using a quansheng for a while and just got a baofeng UV-5RH. I’ve saved some memory channels and switched to channel mode. The receiving channel is much lower than the memory channel frequency… SFT-D, OFFSET, DCS and CTCSS are all off… how do I fix this??


r/Baofeng 8d ago

Baofeng UV-5R Won’t Scan UHF Frequencies — Keeps Reverting to VHF

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22 Upvotes

Hello, I’m having an issue with my Baofeng UV-5R and was wondering if anyone knows what might be causing it.
When I’m in VFO/frequency mode and enter a UHF frequency, such as 446.000 MHz, holding the scan button causes the radio to jump back to the VHF range and scan from there instead of scanning upward through UHF.
I can manually tune to and receive UHF frequencies normally. I’ve also tried resetting the radio, but the issue remains.
Is there a setting I’m missing, or is this a known issue with certain UV-5R versions or firmware?
Also, if this turns out to be a limitation of the radio, could anyone recommend a scanner or handheld that can reliably scan both VHF and UHF ranges without this issue?
Thanks.


r/Baofeng 9d ago

UV-5R mini Not switching from FM to receiving signal

4 Upvotes

I use the Baofeng at sports events to listen to commentary on FM and receiving Chanel’s used by staff, this worked flawlessly with my old UV-5R lll . With the new UV-5R mini when listening to FM radio it switches once for the A/B receiving signal then back to FM - but then it will remain only on FM - Switch the unit on and off then again it will only switch once.

I’m far from an expert and might be missing something but I believe this is a fault ! Any suggestions to try ?


r/Baofeng 9d ago

Phase 25 Radio suggestions

2 Upvotes

I was wondering if baofeng sells models that can listen to trunked/encrypted frequencies? If not are there any radios that don’t cost an arm and a leg that have these capabilities? I like to listen to Police/EMS frequencies and they recently moved over to both DMR and P25e frequencies. I currently use a 5RM.


r/Baofeng 10d ago

Btech UV-PRO - APRS questions

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0 Upvotes

r/Baofeng 11d ago

Baofeng UV-17 Pro GPS ou Dm-32 GPS

2 Upvotes

Qual a melhor opção dos 2 atualmente?

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