Re: [PLUG] microcenter has baofengs again

[Rich Freeman via plug <plug@lists.phillylinux.org>]

On 12/5/2025 2:28 AM, Steve Litt via plug wrote:

> On Thu, 4 Dec 2025 11:16:24 -0500 (EST)
> "Keith C. Perry via plug" <plug@lists.phillylinux.org> wrote:
>
> > Their Baofengs models tend to be a better quality.  The new
> > UV-5R Mini (https://www.baofengradio.com/products/5r-mini) has
> > however been tested by a number of people and that one has had good
> > results too.
> >       
> It's FM only, right? Would that really be considered a "ham
> transceiver"?
>

Most cheaper VHF/UHF ham rigs are FM-only, at least for transmit. Some will also receive AM, but not transmit.

The 50W rig in my car can do FM/C4FM, but not SSB/AM.

There are of course also mobile rigs that will do SSB, but they are less common, and usually more expensive if new. I'm not sure if I've ever seen an HT-style device that can transmit SSB.

My understanding is that to create a power supply capable of working on SSB without too much noise/etc is more difficult, but I haven't really looked into the details of this. It probably also has to do with the fact that FM is still much more relevant commercially than SSB and so a lot more commodity hardware exists around it. AM (non-SSB) is also popular due to aviation, but is not used much by hams and I'm not sure how cheap the hardware is since pilots aren't the most price-conscious group.

-- 
Rich
  

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