Product Comparison: BaoFeng UV-5R vs BaoFeng BF-F8HP

Advertiser Disclosure

This site is a free online resource that strives to offer helpful content and comparison features to its visitors. Please be advised that the operator of this site accepts advertising compensation from certain companies that appear on the site, and such compensation impacts the location and order in which the companies (and/or their products) are presented, and in some cases may also impact the scoring that is assigned to them. The scoring that appears on this site is determined by the site operator in its sole discretion, and should NOT be relied upon for accuracy purposes. In fact, Company/product listings on this page DO NOT imply endorsement by the site operator. Except as expressly set forth in our Terms of Use, all representations and warranties regarding the information presented on this page are disclaimed. The information which appears on this site is subject to change at any time. More info

BaoFeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way Radio

Check Price

Best Pick

BaoFeng BF-F8HP (UV-5R 3rd Gen) 8-Watt Dual Band Two-Way Radio

Check Price

General Specifications

Brand

BaoFeng

Model

UV-5R

BF-F8HP

Origin

China

About the Product

BaoFeng Introduced the UV-5R Dual Band, Dual Display radio in 2012. Since its introduction the UV-5R has seen a massive success.

The BF-F8HP is a dual band handheld radio that improves on the UV-5R with more transmit power based on a new generation chipset - along with new concierge service.

Key Specs

Packaged Quantity

Frequency Band

VHF, UHF

Frequency Range

136-174 / 400-480 MHz

136-174 / 400-520 MHz

Communication Range

25 miles

Number Of Channels

128

What customers say about "Key Specs"

BaoFeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way Radio

Was averaging about 6 to 7 miles with the antenna that came with the BaoFeng UV-5R radio.
Great thing about the Baofeng as opposed to ones like the Midland, is that all frequencies from 136-174 and 400-480 are fully programmable.
Reception and transmitting are both good with the stock antenna.
Solid radio. construction is very good. reception is great with an aftermarket 14.5 inch antenna.
Great coverage area. Crisp and clear TX and RX.

BaoFeng BF-F8HP (UV-5R 3rd Gen) 8-Watt Dual Band Two-Way Radio

This is a very nice radio for the money. I live in close range to some local repeaters, so I'm not really challenging the radio's receive capabilities.
But I have two of these radios and they work great over about a 2-4 mile effective range.
With 8 W vs 5 W you can expect ~125% the range of of the UV-5R (sqrt(8/5)=1.26). The flashlight is a little silly and unnecessary, but w/e. The speaker is nice and loud.
I have found it to be a good, reliable radio transceiver with pretty good function sets, as well as excellent frequency ranges for the various U S radio services bands.
I was hoping to improve my range in my rural environment with the advertised 8 watts of transmit power but my watt meter showed that although the radio had the advertised 1 watt on the low setting and almost 5 watts on the medium setting it had less than 1 watt on the high power setting.

Size & Weight

Height

4.33 in.

4.3 in.

Width

2.28 in.

2.3 in.

Depth

1.26 in.

1.3 in.

Weight

0.29 lb.

0.47 lb.

Features

Display Type

LCD Display with backlight

Tri-Color LCD

Headset

Yes

Keypad lock

Yes

Protection

IP54

Accessories Included

Power Adapter, Earpiece, Belt Clip, Hand Strap, Battery Charger, Antenna

V-85 Antenna, Power Adapter, Earpiece, Belt Clip, Hand Strap, Battery Charger

Extras

VOX, Flashlight

A new 76 Page In-Depth User's Guide, Versatile for Amateur USE, Dual Watch Receiver, FM Broadcast Station, Group Tones supported, Internal VOX function, Flashlight

Headset
Keypad lock

What customers say about "Features"

BaoFeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way Radio

Nice to have the flashlight and the key and display backlight. Overall great radio for the price.
The BaoFeng radio is solid, small, comfortable to use, has cool voice menu operation, supports FM Broadcast frequencies.
Astonishing performance for the money. Simple to program and simple to use.
Had no trouble programming the channels I needed without the USB cord or software.
The radio is extremely easy to program with CHIRP software.

BaoFeng BF-F8HP (UV-5R 3rd Gen) 8-Watt Dual Band Two-Way Radio

First of all, the SMA connector is likely opposite of what you would expect. I had several high gain dual band antennas from my previous HTs, and the connector on the Baofeng is the opposite gender.
I like the colored screens, as the black stand by screens that the GT-3 have are hard to read.
It's tough. You can view the screen well. Volume is very good for the price it is a out standings value.
The speaker quality is not that great - again, comparing it to some other portable radio of the same price range, it's below the bar.
The screen backlight goes off based on what you set in the menu, 10 seconds is longest. At first, the backlight going off in 2 seconds while I was transmitting was a bit confusing.
The readability of the color screens are a bit of concern. Once the back light goes out, It's very hard to read.

Power

Battery Type

1500mAh Rechargable Battery

2000mAh rechargeable battery

Battery life

16 hours

24 hours

Battery life

What customers say about "Power"

BaoFeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way Radio

Another plus is the battery life, so far I am on the initial charge and I still have 3 out of 4 bars after 5 days of fairly heavy use.
The unit itself has felt solid and performed well, with the stock battery offering days of monitoring and learning worth of charge.
It feels well made, the battery life is fantastic.
Battery is inasanely good and will go all day with normal usage on a single charge.
The construction is solid and the battery life is excellent in standby and about 4-8 hours with normal use.

BaoFeng BF-F8HP (UV-5R 3rd Gen) 8-Watt Dual Band Two-Way Radio

The included battery holds up well, I've had it mostly on for days, listening with a few minutes of talking here and there as something piques my interest, and only had to recharge it twice since I've had it.
The optional battery and mic/speaker are identical for both BF-F8HP and the UV-5X3.
Battery life is unsurpassed and the added broadcast FM band quality is a nice touch. At the price, a ham needs one if only for a spare..
All in all it feels like and so far is a well-bought radio that works great, has excellent battery life and is easy to learn and use.
The dock station included in the box is very cheap. I don't like it has an external power charger and when the radio is docked, the radio is not firm like any other dock station I've seen for radio.

Warranty / Certifications

Manufacturer warranty

1 year

Certifications

CE, FCC

Other Information

Manufacturer

Link

Manual

Download

MSRP

62.89 $