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Hello Steven!
That’s sort of like asking that you will be taking your DMV test, and what car would we suggest
. It depends upon your budget, your interests, your desirable feature set, durability, user friendliness, etc.
Chinese HTs are so cheap that you can’t go wrong by owning one, even as a “disposable radio”. And Baofengs have the most “bang for the buck”.
If you are familiar with Amazon just search for:
BaoFeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way Radio (Black)
and you’ll find a serviceable HT for a mere $24!Is it the best HT that you can get? Nah, but it is certainly a bargain at this price.
It will only operate as an analog radio. If you want to try your hand with digital voice repeaters you would need a more expensive DMR, Fusion, or D-Star HT.
You can, theoretically “field program” it (from the front panel), but most people use something free like CHIRP or something powerful like RT Systems software to program repeaters into it.
You will need a “programming cable” to program it on a computer, and it is probably not a good idea to buy the cheapest programming cable around – they usually use pirated chips and drivers don’t always work the way they should.
You might also want to pick up a well known antenna for the HT, rather than the one that is shipped with it (these options are available on the Amazon page).
A bit of advice – don’t get too comfortable with your Baofeng – it’s a great tricycle, but you might want to upgrade to a ten speed bicycle or a race car one of these days!
Good luck!
Best regards (73),
Roy AC2GS
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