Best two-way radio batteries according to redditors
We found 31 Reddit comments discussing the best two-way radio batteries. We ranked the 15 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
We found 31 Reddit comments discussing the best two-way radio batteries. We ranked the 15 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
Radio range is dependent on several factors. In no particular order:
Transmit power
Antenna Height, position and orientation
Atmospheric conditions
Surrounding terrain / environment
Overall quality of equipment
Frequency/band
RF gain/loss
Type of antenna
Operator experience
That being the case I would recommend you read up on repeater operation, and look into getting a technician class ham license if you're in the US.(or your local equivalent) Using an HT, and knowing how to get the most out of them isn't as simple as turning on the power and clicking the transmit button, and a local ham radio club can really help with this. It's also a great way to network with other preppers because hams have been in the prepping world since before prepping was ever a "thing".
For a point of reference, this is the radio kit I put together for my own bag:
Yaesu VX-6R with 19.5 inch counterpoise , Signal Stick , roll up J - pole, speaker mic, USB charging cable, & spare battery.
Picture of the J-pole kit with a 10 foot RG-58 extension and weighted cord for getting it up in trees or whatever.
Get a BF-F9 V2+. There's a lot you can do with it. Get another antenna and a bigger battery for it. You now have a really versatile analog HT. You can reliably hit repeaters 15-ish miles away with it, depending on terrain, and in narrowband mode, probably a bit more. It has a DTMF keypad (DTMF = touch-tone phone keypad), so you can do some fun things with repeaters that have internet links and other little oddities. Get a programming cable and CHIRP, and you can do lots of fun and convenient things like program all your local repeaters and simplex calling freqs into it, and train it to swear.
Get a 12-volt power kit, a headset, and a mag-mount antenna, and now you have a halfway-respectable mobile rig. With that antenna, you'd be VERY surprised how far that little radio can reach out. I've talked to repeaters 25 miles away with my little BF-F9 and a mag-mount, and had no complaints about sound quality.
The point is, don't go crazy with expensive-ass kit right now (cue bot appearance in 3... 2... 1...). You're still very new to the hobby (I'm at the point where I'm kinda new), and you don't quite know what you like. I didn't think I'd care very much for longwave DXing and all that, and for the most part, the idea of having a "shack" doesn't appeal all that much to me, but I'm getting more and more interested in mobile HF. Just noodle around, talk to people, go to field days, etc.
My ideas:
Some ideas here:
A better whip antenna (others had some suggestions).
Magnetic mount antenna for the vehicle. MFJ-1721 or 1729 are cheap options. Diamond or Comet for higher quality. The Baofeng uses a SMA-male antenna connector so you'll need a SMA-female to BNC-female or SMA-female to SO-239 "pigtail" adapter cable. I don't recommend using a rigid adapter because the antenna cable can put mechanical stress on the radio's connector.
DBJ-2 antenna, a nice portable option for stationary use. Throw that in a tree and you'll get much improved range.
A speaker mic, then he can mount the radio at a fixed position in the vehicle. Makes it easier to use while driving.
Programming cable — makes it much easier to manage the list of stored frequencies and repeaters.
Extended battery — in addition to the increased runtime, this makes the radio fit my large hands better
Battery eliminator — powers the radio from a vehicle.
AA battery holder — replaces the rechargeable battery pack.
Some kind of bag or case to hold everything.
Here’s the Amazon links for the battery and the cord.
The battery is well reviewed, the cord slightly less so, but I have no complaints so far.
I used an arduino compatible Digistump Digispark with the proto shield for ease of attaching cables.
The code available from a gent called The Nate Dawg over on instructables.
This extended battery for the baofeng has a 1.7 x 4 mm power connector on it. (thankfully protected by a resetable fuse)
For the radio interface, I just hacked apart the included earpiece which has all the necessary connectors.
Do not do this. The charger you're looking at is for the extended battery for the uv5r. Look up the extended battery and you will see a charge port on the side.
http://www.amazon.com/Baofeng-3800mAh-Battery-UV-5R-1-UV-5R-2/dp/B00ATTVKFQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1380645152&sr=8-1&keywords=uv5r+extended+battery
You could use a battery eliminator to power it without the potential of damaging the battery by being on the charger all the time. You would have to buy a 12v adapter then.
Eliminator: BaoFeng BL-5 12V Battery Eliminator for BF-F8HP, UV-5X3, and UV-5R Radios https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KZ6VGUW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_rHCDAb16QWHX5
12v adapter: AC to DC Power Socket Adapter Converter,Car Cigarette Lighter Socket Power Adapter Charger,Household Cigarette Lighter,With USB 2.0 interface(110~220V Mains to 12V ) (Classy White) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0779V1PVB/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_kLCDAbDXETXMJ
FWIW, I use clones from Upstart Battery in my VX-6R and have had great success with them. I don't know if they have all the proper protection, but they seem to. Not sure if they make anything for the OP's FT-60R.
Something like this?
>BaoFeng BL-1 3.7V 1500mAh Battery Pack with USB Port Power Supply for BaoFeng BF-888S & Retevis H-777 Two-Way Radio Walkie Talkie Transceiver, Black
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01JYJCNU2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_ZH66ybRHG1SY1
Or like this?
>BTECH USB Smart Charger (9-10.8V) Transformer Cable for BaoFeng, BTECH BF-F8HP, UV-82HP, UV-5R, UV-5X3 (CH-5, CH-8, etc. charger base compatible)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01H2HN1KO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_XI66ybDJN7TRX
http://www.amazon.com/BaoFeng-BL-5-AA-Battery-BF-F8HP/dp/B00LAPTWE4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1457702513&sr=8-1&keywords=uv-5r+aa
Plus, I don't know about those Li-Ion batteries from China. If this is being stored in my car, I'd rather use primary Energizer lithiums or NiMh.
Walmart sells LED rope lights in-store that come in different colors. They are intended for outdoors decoration and located in the lighting section (hardware and light bulbs, not lamps) of the store. However, these are not battery powered, and as far as I can tell, you cannot program them to flash on and off.
An alternative would be to solder some waterproof LED strips to a DC connector, which you can then plug into a battery pack. If you go this route, make sure you research voltage and all that (not my strong suit, so I can't help you there). Also, make sure your battery source is protected in some sort of waterproof container, or just unplug it and keep it inside when not in use.
I have three of them and they're great.
Get the USB programming cable.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008RZJHJU/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Don't bother with the software that comes with it. Just get CHiRP which is free and works well. I set all three of mine up with a basic configuration with FRS/GMRS stations programmed, all my local 2-meter stations, weather, etc. all sharing the same channel numbers so they can be used more or less as emergency radios.
I've swapped the antennas for this one. Im not sure which model you have, but they were a definite improvement over the stock rubber duck on my UV5R
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KC4PWQQ/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I've also got a couple of these extended batteries:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ATTVKFQ/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Is this what you're talking about?
http://www.amazon.com/Baofeng-3800mAh-Battery-UV-5R-1-UV-5R-2/dp/B00ATTVKFQ
Kinda unrelated, but if you are interested in emergency preparedness / emergency communications, have you considered picking up a ham radio license? It's quite easy to get these days - the Morse code requirement is long-dead, and finding exam sessions is usually quite easy.
Once you have that, you can pick up a cheap handheld radio (I pretty strongly recommend this one), a AA battery case to go along with it, and maybe a better antenna than the one that comes stock.
You'll also get:
The HH-9900 was pretty much made to complement this radio.
http://www.amazon.com/HH-9900-Antenna-TH-9800-Mobile-Transceiver/dp/B00IZZFH5U/ref=pd_bxgy_e_text_y
You'll need a mount for this - standard SO-239 type connector. In other words, the antenna is like a PL-259. You could screw it onto the back of the radio. Depending on what how you want to proceed, you could just get the cable and make your own mount. You could combine that cable with a lip mount, or a ready mag-mount.
I haven't tried any of the mounts I linked. In fact, I haven't even tried the radio or antenna myself. I have the antenna and radio ordered, they should be here by the end of august. I'm probably going to do something like the lip mount (the first two links) but I already have parts to make my mount. For a more powerful mag mount (though for more $$$), I like the tri-magnet mount. That won't go anywhere.
I would strongly recommend hooking up with your local club and going to a hamfest or two. You'll probably find better prices on coax, connectors, and mounts at a hamfest than you will online. Also, at a hamfest, I like walking around the parking lot and looking at all the mobile setups. I may look like a creeper peering into car after car, but the owner is more likely to show me their setup than anything else.
If you let your local club know you're looking to setup your first mobile station, you'll probably have several volunteers to offer help/advice/parts. There'll probably be a few people in the club with an antenna analyzer. They would be able to make sure your antenna is tuned properly for your vehicle.
also order one of these
http://www.amazon.com/Lb-75n-Two-way-Battery-Baofeng-Vt-uv9r/dp/B00CMMCATS/
If you plan on playing in larger outdoor fields that have a lot of changes in elevation, I'd suggest picking up a better antenna for the UV-5R. I personally use this antenna and have little issue talking over a couple of miles in hilly terrain. Also an extended battery makes the already long lasting UV-5R last a few days before needing to be recharged.
Very true, I seem to be unable to find another of the same battery that came with the F8HP; you think this would work?
The big battery is brilliant as well- lasts a long, long time: https://www.amazon.com/Baofeng-3800mAh-Li-ion-Battery-UV-5RTP/dp/B013WPA6YO/ref=pd_sim_107_32?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B013WPA6YO&pd_rd_r=RQ3HBE97AMF4W4X8V0D7&pd_rd_w=fVhnk&pd_rd_wg=y1Wlw&psc=1&refRID=RQ3HBE97AMF4W4X8V0D7
This is the one I got: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013WPA6YO/
Says it works on the UV’s I’m using it on a BF-F8, works great still.
Wait, you probably meant... vs a UV-82. Yes.
It's a little pricey, but here's a BF888s battery with a USB port for charging. https://www.amazon.com/BaoFeng-BL-1-1500mAh-Battery-Transceiver/dp/B01JYJCNU2/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1474413076&sr=8-6&keywords=Baofeng+bf888s+battery
You could always just use "regular" walkie talkies. Something like this and then hook it up to a push to talk headset. The radio would easily fit into a jacket pocket and the headset would fit like ear buds with the mic mounted on the inside of your helmet. (depending on what PTT you get).