When it comes to buying your first radio, or even your 10th, there are a lot of factors to be considered. I will cover some of the most important criteria to consider when you are planning to buy a radio. These will not cover everything that may be important to you, but it will give you a great starting point.
Price
One of the biggest and first considerations for most buyers, is price. Each of us has a certain price range in mind that we are willing to pay for something when we first start out, and it can be hard to justify spending more. However, do your homework, and look at the total cost of ownership before you take the plunge and end up with a radio that doesn’t do everything you want or need. If you buy a radio that you will not ultimately be happy with, you will most like have to sell the one you bought, losing money in the transaction, and still buy the one you really wanted in the first place.
Once you have done some research, and have a better idea of what is available, and what price range it falls into, you can make a wiser choice based on actual data instead of just a preconceived notion of what a radio should cost. When it comes to radios, the more you spend, the more likely it is that you are getting a better radio, but if you have simple needs, there is nothing wrong with an entry-level Baofeng or similar radios. Below I will discuss some of the factors that you need to consider when buying a radio to truly understand the total cost involved with different options.
Lifespan
When deciding whether to buy a used radio and save some money, or a new radio that is more expensive, you need to consider the likely lifespan of each choice. No matter who makes the radio, it has components inside that will have a limited lifespan. Some components will have their life measure in hours or type of use, and others will be determined by their age in addition to their use.
One prime example of a component that can go bad just from time is an electrolytic capacitor. Any electrolytic capacitor is usually made up of very thin aluminum foil wrapped around an dielectric (a type of electrical insulator that can be polarized) will have a lifespan that is largely determined by the dielectric inside that can eventually leak out or dry up. If the dielectric slowly disappears, the capacitor will lose capacitance, and can cause the circuits to detune or become noisy. If the capacitor completely dries out,it can explode at some point, causing the circuit to possibly stop working altogether. Other parts will also start to go bad over time, like resistors, causing the overall reliability of the radio to degrade, or the radio to stop working. Getting an older radio “recapped” is a common repair to bring them back to their former glory, but it isn’t cheap. The capacitors aren’t too pricey, but the labor to replace them, and to then retune the radio can add up fast.
Another example of a part that can go bad is the final outputs, sometimes simply called “Finals”. These are what provide the main power output of the radio. The harder you push these by running them on high power for long periods of time, the faster they wear out. When buying a used radio, you never know how hard the finals were pushed or how much life they may have left. If the radio was used in a high SWR situation, it can damage the finals, or weaken them prematurely.
Don’t get me wrong, I have many older radios, that still work fine. But, I keep them mainly as backups or for sentimental reasons. My main rig is fairly new, and has a lot more features.
Functionality
Next we get into the actual functionality of the radio. What are your requirements? If you just want to be able to talk to someone, and hear them, almost any radio will do. If you want to be able to talk to someone and have your voice and theirs sound great, with little or no noise, and have the ability to store a lot of presets and channels, have more control over settings, noise filters, a built-in power/SWR meter, or any other number of extras, you will need to spend more, and do more research before making a selection.
When it comes to HT’s, you can only fit so much into a tiny handheld. However, when you move up to the larger mobile units or base stations, you start to have room for bette circuitry, more buttons for fast access to features, better and larger displays, built-in sound card for digital, etc.
Some functionality to consider would be:
- How sensitive is the circuitry (the receiver’s ability to detect weak signals)?
- How selective is the circuitry (how well it can reject unwanted signals)?
- Does it have NR (noise reduction), NB (noise blocking), or DSP (digital signal processing) circuitry?
- How much RF power output does it offer?
- What bands (frequencies) can it transmit or receive on?
- What modes does it support (AM, FM, SSB, FSK, PSK, CW)?
- What input/output methods does it support (microphone, key, paddle, data interface like USB, external speaker, etc.)?
- How many memory locations does it have, and what can they store (?
- Does it have a large, easy to read display that is backlit, or has touchscreen capabilities?
- What type(s) of power supply does it include or require?
- If it’s battery powered, how many mAh (milliamp hours) is the battery, and how do you charge it?
- Does it have DMR, GPS or APRS features?
- What software or hardware is required to program the radio, and is it included or easy to use (does it use proprietary software, or is it supported by Chirp)?
- Does it have the ability to record and playback audio or CW messages?
- Does it offer bluetooth connectivity for headphones, speakers, PTT switches, or microphones?
- Does it offer dual receive, or cross-band transmit?
- If it is to be used mobile, like an HT:
- Is it IP (ingress protection) rated to keep out water or debris?
- How heavy is it?
- Will it comfortably fit your hand or carry easily on your belt?
- Is the display easy to read in sunlight?
- Are the programming keys easy to use?
- Does it have any programmable keys to make it easier for you to access features quickly?
Necessary Extras
Necessary Extras would include anything that doesn’t come with the radio, that could be required for its use. This could include things like:
- An antenna
- Coaxial cable
- External power supply or charger
- External Tuner to adapt to different antennas
- External Sound Card for digital modes
- SWR/Watt Meter
- External Speaker or Mic
- Optional Filters for better clarity
Primary Use Suitability
Another huge decision you will need to make before you buy a radio, is how you plan to use it. Some of the more common use cases are things like:
- Base Station (at home radio)
- POTA (Parks on the Air, which happens in state parks)
- SOTA (Summits on the Air, which happens on the top of hills or mountains)
- Mobile (generally refers to a radio made to be used in a vehicle)
- HT (Handheld Transceiver, which as the name implies is hand portable)
- EmComm (Emergency Communications – like during storms, disasters, emergencies)
You will need to base your decision on which use cases are the most important to you. For EmComm, a radio that is lightweight, portable, and waterproof might be the best fit. For a base station a larger, more expensive radio may give you a lot of features, functionality, clarity, and range that you wouldn’t get with any other type of radio. Decide what your primary use would be, and make the majority of your decision based on that. If your primary use case is for your home, a handheld probably won’t be the best fit for the long term.
Future Needs
When buying a radio, please remember to consider any potential future needs or wants you may have. This could include things like:
- SDR (software defined radio)
- The ability to be upgraded via firmware for additional features, bug fixes, or improvements.
- Features that are not on all radios like DMR, GPS, and APRS
- Extended Band Coverage (MARS or CAP)
I hope this article has been helpful!
73,
N4MCP