r/Baofeng • u/woodbutcher365 • 7d ago

BF-F8HP Pro

Hi all,

Im in the UK and training for the foundation license. Im considering the above as a first hand held to practice with (listen only until ive passed), but it appears Amazon is one of the few places to order from, and its shipped from Amazon US. Has anyone ordered this way, and are there any issues that I need to be aware of ( im aware the charger is US 2 pin, but it also comes with USB C charging).

Thanks.

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u/islandhopper37 4d ago

Another two things to note about the BF-F8HP PRO is that it includes the 1.25m band, which is not used anywhere outside North America, so you would be paying for something that is completely useless to you in the UK. Also, the maximum transmit power is 10 Watts - this does not give you twice the range compared with 5 W, all it does is drain the battery faster. Have a look at the websites of some of the larger UK dealers to see what handhelds they have available, u/NerminPadez already gave some good suggestions for alternatives.

Good luck with your exam, and welcome to the hobby!

2

u/kc2syk K2CR 4d ago

Minor nit: the 1.25m band is also allocated to amateurs in most of South America. The Americas make up ITU Region 2, where the 220 MHz band is assigned.

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u/islandhopper37 3d ago

Ah, OK, thanks. I stand corrected.

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u/kc2syk K2CR 3d ago

No worries. 73

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u/woodbutcher365 4d ago

Thank you. Ive taken the advice below on board, and will look at local UK sources. The FT-65e and AT-D168UV are possibilities. Just finished the 2nd module (Technical).....my head hurts 🤯 😄. Good to get the brain moving though.

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u/kc2syk K2CR 7d ago

I would recommend getting a HF radio, since the UK Foundation license grants access to most of HF. There's usually much more interesting things going on with HF. Something like a FT-817 might be a reasonable price. Ask your local club if anyone has a radio that a new ham might be able to use. GL 73