The standard antenna works well, but I purchased an aftermarket longer one and have been often told that my transmissions are near full quieting

Get the USB cable and a better antenna.

After trying to put a better antenna on it, it stopped receiving and transmitting

as per, everything's working great - antenna kinda

Get a nice (not knock-off) antenna with this

Do recommend getting a better antenna but those are cheap.

Very happy with this little radio, I did buy the optional antenna but the radio is awesome for the money, buy from these guys if you want the US warranty

I will be purchasing a different antennae to improve range

Needs a better antenna.

If you pair it with a good antenna ( which many people do ), it seems to give a lot of false positives for static signals to break through the squelch.

Came with the crappy rounded tip antenna.

Note: Both the included antenna and the Nagoya antennas worked perfectly on a number of other radios.

Rubber duck antenna is fine for casual pedestrian contacts, but for mobile operation, you really need to get the antenna out of the car, just like any rig.

Yes, with a good antenna and in most city situations, 4 watts are enough.

The supposedly "Nagoya" 771 15" Antennas for a little over $8 each are not properly tuned to the radios, so they don't perform as well as the factory antennas that come on the Btech radios.

Contrary to what you'll hear from many sources, the supplied rubber-ducky antenna actually isn't that bad (as rubber duckies go), especially on 70cm, but of course performance will definitely be improved with an aftermarket antenna designed specifically for the 2m/70cm bands (The MFJ 1717 series antennas have proven to be my favorite aftermarket option)

Range isn't the best, better antennas can be purchased

The antenna broke the lense popped out

I strongly suggest a better antenna and a cable so you can use chirp

I think that I'm going to have and get a better antenna and see what happens

When you consider how much is in the VHF and UHF band, during emergency conditions, these units would be excellent to have on hand since with a good antenna (it is removable), you can send and receive at relevant distances.

I won't suggest a brand since there are several good quality antennas.

- Your radio is only as good as your antenna so get the best one you can get and replace that stock rubber ducky ASAP.Also, in comparison to a "Name Brand" 150 dollar radio: my Yaesu FT-60r, it compares very well to it

Probabley with a more effective antenna it should reach greater distances between radios

but I do wish it came with a better Antenna included

I ended up not using it at all because nobody could hear me once I got further than down the road - and that's even after trying aftermarket antennas (genuine nagoya whip).

I'm sure with a good antenna it will improve and can run with the best of em

Highly recommend a mag mount antenna if you're going mobile in a car

Adding a better antenna is a necessity

Cool little radio, I put a better antenna on it which improved it's performance.

I still recommend a better antenna over stock, since I'm using this as both a walkie talkie and as a local scanner

The antenna appears fine but the port is not correctly threaded

Already had a UV-5R - the reception on this HT is a little better due to its upgraded antenna

I have not tried a better antenna because the SMA plug is the opposite gender of my

Fully compatible with all standard UV-5R components (if you have a standard UV-5R you can use the same antenna and battery for instance).

Great little radio for the price, although this first thing I would do when you get the radio is get a better antenna.

Though the extra 3W output may not mean much on a tiny HT, when paired with a good antenna it can be that last punch to reach some distant repeaters.

The short standard stubby antenna works well with local repeater use

The antenna is more like a dummy load.

4) 8 watts reaches out much farther than my prior 4 watt radios from Baofeng, 5) spend $10 and buy a better antenna.

I definitely recommend ordering a different antenna

What I found is the NA771 is a good antenna, but no better than the Expert Power in fact the EP antenna was a little better at picking up NOAA whether stations, but it was also only $10, so I would go with the Expert Power if you are looking for a good cheap antenna for this radio

The only complaint is the antenna and belt clip, I will have to buy a new antenna and the clip cracked just by taking it off my belt but the radio itself works superb.

It has a terrible antenna

: you need a better antenna.

Ordered the recommended Nagoya antenna to try that.

With a good base antenna and a good location I can reach out pretty far but not so good in a mobile.

The antenna is replaceable which is great for me

The radio is nice, but the antenna was missing and the instructions manual.

It needs a better antenna, but I'm able to hit local repeaters and converse with local hams, so it's a good beginner radio

This is a perfect unit once paired with a good antenna

The antenna failed within a week.

Unfortunately you have to buy the cable to get the full function out of this radio and you might as well replace the antenna since you can double if not triple your range

I strongly recommend a different antenna such as the NA-771 if you want to transmit of receve any distance.

The antenna isn't good for most anything other than the FM radio and weather band, Unless you are close to what you want to listen to

The antenna is detachable, so you can get either longer one, or one of the magnet mount kind

Granted, its not its primary use, but the 701 antenna may help here as well

Excellent radio, added to my emergency Radio collection., came whit new antenna works fine, programed with chirp software

What I found is the NA771 is a good antenna, but no better than the Expert Power in fact the EP antenna was a little better at picking up NOAA whether stations, but it was also only $10, so I would go with the Expert Power if you are looking for a good cheap antenna for this radio

works as it should and no issues, love the flashlight and built in radio, good audio as well.

and it dies completely within 3 weeks and will not power up or make a peep no matter what I do - swapped batteries from my other radios, tried different chargers, cleaned contacts, you name it I tried it and still dead as a

Recommend additional silicone case as it has saved mine from a couple low level drops that would normally have killed it

I use it for general communications on 2M and 70cm as well as for activities with my local CERT organization.

Works as it should.

works as it should and no issues, love the flashlight and built in radio, good audio as well.

and it dies completely within 3 weeks and will not power up or make a peep no matter what I do - swapped batteries from my other radios, tried different chargers, cleaned contacts, you name it I tried it and still dead as a

Recommend additional silicone case as it has saved mine from a couple low level drops that would normally have killed it

I use it for general communications on 2M and 70cm as well as for activities with my local CERT organization.

Works as it should.