Great review! Just a couple of comments: - this radio, the Pofung G11uv, and the Retevis RB27 are the exact same radio. I have no idea why this one is 3 watts, while the other two are 5 watts, but testing has shown that is true (allowing for the fact that most GMRS radios test a bit lower than the specs state). It would seem to indicate that all three come from the same manufacturer. Baofeng has been able to address the issues in some of their radios very quickly, while others have not been fixed at all. I suspect that this has far more to do with the actual manufacturers willingness to make production line modifications than anything else. - this unit does indeed receive on the 2 meter and 70 centimeter bands, but they can only be added via computer software. Radioddity has free software for it, but it can also be programmed with Chirp using the Retevis RB27 option. Using Chirp you have to tell the software to show empty memory slots. There are a total of 99 slots, with the GMRS channels taking up 54 of them. - There are “24 DIY” extra repeaters channel slots, basically three extra banks of the 8 regular GMRS repeater frequencies. This allows one to set up for repeaters using the same frequencies, but different tones. - I take groups out kayaking, and I use a bunch of FRS and GMRS radios which have the NOAA weather bands. None of them use the search function. When the Baofeng UV9g came out it DID include the weather channels in the scan function. This created a huge problem, because the scan would get stuck on a weather channel, which is, of course constantly transmitting. The NOAA channels were quickly removed from the scanning function. There are only 11 weather channels. It only takes a second to work thru them to see which one is active in that area. - the user interface is extremely simple, with there being only 14 menu choices. That really makes it easy to use. This set up wouldn’t work well with a ham radio, as one can’t edit frequencies, offsets, etc. but it works well for GMRS, where the frequencies and offsets are preset. All one generally has to do is change the tones for various repeaters, which is extremely easy to do. For 95% of what a GMRS power user wants to do can be done from the front key pad in just a few seconds. GMRS is designed to be simple. The user interface of this radio uses that simplicity very well. - all of the channels are set to narrow band. I can’t decide if this is an issue or a feature. Midland is the most popular brand of GMRS radios in the US by far, and almost all of their radios are narrow band only. As this unit is mostly likely going to be used to communicate with those Midland radios, maybe narrow band is the way to go! The real question ought to be “why are Midland radios narrow band?” I haven’t got a clue! - the tones on every channel keep this from being “the ideal beginner’s radio.” That and the marginal manual. A real beginner’s radio should be ready to go out of the box, and should have a clearly written manual explaining all of the technical terms contained therein. Thanks for the review. It helped me to decide to give this radio a shot. I got the Pofung version off of Amazon. At $25 it is a great value! I am programming it and am going to give to one of my kids.
Had bought a pair awhile back and found they're a pretty decent basic GMRS radio. I had one issue, however. A group that visits a location I go to frequently uses a CTCSS code, but others doing general communication at that same location do not. So I wanted to be able to quickly switch from no CTCSS to CTCSS 79.7 Hz quickly. Through the menus it is a lot of button presses. So I tried adding the channel w/ CTCSS as a DIY channel. No go using the G11S programming software on the Radioddity site. Looked at CHIRP, and there is no G11S support listed. Finally found the G11S is essentially the same radio as the Retevis RB27, and CHIRP does support that! Was able to add the channel with CTCSS code to memory location 55 right behind all the DIY repeater memories. Now I can put the channel without CTCSS on the A line of the display and the channel with CTCSS code on the B line of the display and quickly switch between them with the A/B button!
There was basically one other video reviewing this radio as of yesterday and it seemed more like a commercial for it than a review. Thank you for the information. I had already ordered them and this would be my first purchase of a Baofeng product so knowing they had tx/rx codes setup on each frequency/channel is helpful to hear ahead of time and would save me frustration later.
I just bought a new pair of these from Amazon. I haven't tested them out yet but my CTSS codes were turned off for every channel out of the box on both radios too. Looks like somebody got the memo.
2 years later and the codes are still set . Its not hard to turn them off with the cable and a computer. I have 2 different baofeng gm 15Pro and uv9g they dont talks to each other. Different codes. Shut um off and all is good.
Got my ticket a couple years ago. Family didn't join me. These look like a decent compromise when we're out camping. $70 for a 10 year family license seems fair.
Don't do it!!!!... YET! I believe the GMRS prices will be going down to 35$ in a few weeks. I agree though. 35 dollars, the whole family can use it, and no test!
I got the G11S and the Retevis RB27 same radio different color. use the programming cord for the UV5R works on most. down load software and in the extra channels you can set VHF frequency's and give it a name. you can even name GMRS repeater's. limit on how many letters . and the antenna is different than UV5R . the M and F are reversed to match GMRS radios . That the only way i got to receive VHF .73's
Good review. I could possibly see having the tones set on a FRS radio, because you are buying for a casual communication between two people. But for a GMRS radio, you know that there's others out there, so it shouldn't have tones set as a default. Don't know why they did that. Also, how easy is it to program it and does it program with CHIRP?
Radioddity wrote on a review that it is programmable via a computer and cable. As of now, I can't find any software to allow for programming. I'll keep at it though
Many GMRS repeaters use DCS (digital) codes to access their system, and CTCSS codes out. It is nice to have separate TX/RX codes. Many other GMRS radios only allow you to set the same code for TX/RX, so if you set the access (TX) code, you won't hear the repeater come back because they likely use different TX than RX codes.
Hello - when you say all channels must be configured with tx/rx codes off, are you referring to all 30? Has anyone bought this radio recently with the codes off? I just received a set from Amazon
TX and RX codes still configured from the factory. I was able to set "OFF" in about 30 minutes. I did 1-22 channels. 23-> were repeater channels and above my knowledge of GMRS at this time
I just purchased these last week and it appears that all the Rx/Tx codes are set to off. Apparently they finally got the message? I also ordered the program cable to add some frqs to listen too. Have any ones youd recommend?
I am new and done much research but some questions I can't find answers to. I am interested in this Baofeng G11S but am unsure it does all I want. I want a gmrs communicator and police scanner to stay in touch with my neighborhood safety. The frequency I found these work on is "Scanning Receiver Frequency band: 136.0-174.0 & 400.0-512.0MHz" but my local police show they start with 851.xxx for instance. Can you elaborate on if this scanner will receive those and how to get those on this scanner if so? Thanks for your time and thanks for the video.
Almost all police and fire departments now use digital radios. This unit will not pick up those transmissions. It does pick up the usual 2 meter and 70 centimeter bands, but you have to use computer software to do so. You can use the free software from Radioddity or you can use Chirp. Use the Retevis RB27 option. That radio is identical to this one.
connect the radio to a laptop with a standard K series data cable, and download free Chirp app, set it Radioddity GA-510, you can change all the settings on the screen of your laptop
That's not a defect, it's an "undocumented feature". One that everyone should immediately shut off. Not a serious "defect" at all. Somewhere out there, are people that like using privacy tones. I think they're absurd, but hey. At least we can shut 'em off. Don't think you mentioned it but can we program these with a PC, either with chirp or some Baofeng software? Thanks for a good review. For the price, these are great radios for around a large property or using when camping where phone signals won't happen. Too bad they're not at least water resistant, but then they would be as inexpensive either.
Great question: baofeng.s3.amazonaws.com/Baofeng_G11S_Programming_Software_V2.0.1_20210825.zip This is the programming software on Radioddity's website. Additionally, I do not believe it will program with Chrip (although it would be nice to see it in the future). In the next few weeks, Retevis is sending me a waterproof GMRS radio which I will be testing and making a video on. It doesn't appear to have a channel menu display though. www.retevis.com/rb23-waterproof-gmrs-handheld-5w-long-range-two-way-radios . Maybe in a future radio release, baofeng will make the g11s with ip67 capabilities. I agree, that would be nice.
@@HAMRADIODUDE Thanks for the comments on privacy codes as default from Baofeng, confirmed to me that I needed to turn them off. I used the programing software for the G11S from the Radioddity site and it worked fine for turning the privacy codes OFF. I had to go to each channel to switch the privacy code to OFF, but do that in the Decoder column first, then click once on the Encoder column and it switches to OFF as well. Encourage anyone buying these to get the programming cable, although, as you mentioned, the code to OFF can be done on the keyboard. Also, out of the box, the radio is programmed for Narrow on all the channels. Using the programming software, it's fairly simple to change N to Wide by highlighting the box for N/W opposite each channel and just type the letter "W", easier for me than highlight the "N" with the cursor. Once the new settings are written to the radio, unplug from radio dein the programming cable, plug in the second radio and Write to Radio. The settings you sent to the first radio are duplicated on the second. I haven't figured out how to save the data to a file that I can print, yet.
@@drpochoa Hey. Question.. While you were programming the radio are you able to alter the channel name text? Are you able add channels? And are you able to change the channel frequencies while programming? And if so are you able to set them up to between 136-174? Thanks!
Does anyone who has played with a programing cable and the software for these know if you can change channel names and frequencies. And especially if you can add channels that transmit between 136 and 174? Thanks
@@justinfinnsvideo On the computer using the software downloaded from Radiodity, I could change channel name text. It also allows entering other frequencies but I did not transfer to the radio to see if it is accepted, although specs cover 136-174.
The codes aren't a big deal. I think " some people " dont like the codes. "SOME People" like to monitor the channels like they are police. So they can tell users they are breaking the law. ( law) rules not laws.
Great review! Just a couple of comments:
- this radio, the Pofung G11uv, and the Retevis RB27 are the exact same radio. I have no idea why this one is 3 watts, while the other two are 5 watts, but testing has shown that is true (allowing for the fact that most GMRS radios test a bit lower than the specs state). It would seem to indicate that all three come from the same manufacturer. Baofeng has been able to address the issues in some of their radios very quickly, while others have not been fixed at all. I suspect that this has far more to do with the actual manufacturers willingness to make production line modifications than anything else.
- this unit does indeed receive on the 2 meter and 70 centimeter bands, but they can only be added via computer software. Radioddity has free software for it, but it can also be programmed with Chirp using the Retevis RB27 option. Using Chirp you have to tell the software to show empty memory slots. There are a total of 99 slots, with the GMRS channels taking up 54 of them.
- There are “24 DIY” extra repeaters channel slots, basically three extra banks of the 8 regular GMRS repeater frequencies. This allows one to set up for repeaters using the same frequencies, but different tones.
- I take groups out kayaking, and I use a bunch of FRS and GMRS radios which have the NOAA weather bands. None of them use the search function. When the Baofeng UV9g came out it DID include the weather channels in the scan function. This created a huge problem, because the scan would get stuck on a weather channel, which is, of course constantly transmitting. The NOAA channels were quickly removed from the scanning function.
There are only 11 weather channels. It only takes a second to work thru them to see which one is active in that area.
- the user interface is extremely simple, with there being only 14 menu choices. That really makes it easy to use. This set up wouldn’t work well with a ham radio, as one can’t edit frequencies, offsets, etc. but it works well for GMRS, where the frequencies and offsets are preset. All one generally has to do is change the tones for various repeaters, which is extremely easy to do. For 95% of what a GMRS power user wants to do can be done from the front key pad in just a few seconds. GMRS is designed to be simple. The user interface of this radio uses that simplicity very well.
- all of the channels are set to narrow band. I can’t decide if this is an issue or a feature. Midland is the most popular brand of GMRS radios in the US by far, and almost all of their radios are narrow band only. As this unit is mostly likely going to be used to communicate with those Midland radios, maybe narrow band is the way to go! The real question ought to be “why are Midland radios narrow band?” I haven’t got a clue!
- the tones on every channel keep this from being “the ideal beginner’s radio.” That and the marginal manual. A real beginner’s radio should be ready to go out of the box, and should have a clearly written manual explaining all of the technical terms contained therein.
Thanks for the review. It helped me to decide to give this radio a shot. I got the Pofung version off of Amazon. At $25 it is a great value! I am programming it and am going to give to one of my kids.
Thanks for the detailed information! Wow! Pinned this for others to see! Have a great one
They now ship with codes set to off by default.
Had bought a pair awhile back and found they're a pretty decent basic GMRS radio. I had one issue, however. A group that visits a location I go to frequently uses a CTCSS code, but others doing general communication at that same location do not. So I wanted to be able to quickly switch from no CTCSS to CTCSS 79.7 Hz quickly. Through the menus it is a lot of button presses. So I tried adding the channel w/ CTCSS as a DIY channel. No go using the G11S programming software on the Radioddity site. Looked at CHIRP, and there is no G11S support listed. Finally found the G11S is essentially the same radio as the Retevis RB27, and CHIRP does support that! Was able to add the channel with CTCSS code to memory location 55 right behind all the DIY repeater memories. Now I can put the channel without CTCSS on the A line of the display and the channel with CTCSS code on the B line of the display and quickly switch between them with the A/B button!
At least the ctss codes are able to be turned off ... The major selling point for me is the Usb C charging capabilities !
The RX/TX code is great because it keeps the noise down so you don't hear a lot of chatter that you don't want.
There was basically one other video reviewing this radio as of yesterday and it seemed more like a commercial for it than a review. Thank you for the information. I had already ordered them and this would be my first purchase of a Baofeng product so knowing they had tx/rx codes setup on each frequency/channel is helpful to hear ahead of time and would save me frustration later.
Best wishes with them. Let me know in the future what you think!
They listened! I just bought a pair off Amazon this week and they came with codes turned off on every channel by default.
I’m thinking about ordering a set. This was my only real concern. Thanks!
Today, Mine came with codes turned off too!
I just bought a new pair of these from Amazon. I haven't tested them out yet but my CTSS codes were turned off for every channel out of the box on both radios too. Looks like somebody got the memo.
Same here, Curt. I purchased my set a week ago {9/22} and all were set to OFF!
Great review. Hopefully over time Baofeng will get even better and still stay inexpensive.
2 years later and the codes are still set . Its not hard to turn them off with the cable and a computer. I have 2 different baofeng gm 15Pro and uv9g they dont talks to each other. Different codes. Shut um off and all is good.
Okay so I think we are referencing the CTCSS Tones.. very good... Glad you were able to shut them off.. Hopefully this will help someone.
Perfect for new users..
I agree.. as opinionated as I sound (too much coffee). I think they are great for new users, minus the tone thing
My son is eyeing these radios for xmas.
Id do these over the uv5x anyday. As opinionated as I am about the tones, it's not a deal breaker
@@HAMRADIODUDE we are using riding bikes, walking and at the park. Will turn off the tone if we go outside the small world or the neighborhood.
Got my ticket a couple years ago. Family didn't join me. These look like a decent compromise when we're out camping. $70 for a 10 year family license seems fair.
Don't do it!!!!... YET! I believe the GMRS prices will be going down to 35$ in a few weeks. I agree though. 35 dollars, the whole family can use it, and no test!
I got the G11S and the Retevis RB27 same radio different color. use the programming cord for the UV5R works on most. down load software and in the extra channels you can set VHF frequency's and give it a name. you can even name GMRS repeater's. limit on how many letters . and the antenna is different than UV5R . the M and F are reversed to match GMRS radios . That the only way i got to receive VHF .73's
CHIRP for Retevis RB27 works . That how you can set VHF. wish manual had that.
Thanks. I don't think chirp was supported when I got it (I don't remember) that's nice!
Good review. I could possibly see having the tones set on a FRS radio, because you are buying for a casual communication between two people. But for a GMRS radio, you know that there's others out there, so it shouldn't have tones set as a default. Don't know why they did that. Also, how easy is it to program it and does it program with CHIRP?
Radioddity wrote on a review that it is programmable via a computer and cable. As of now, I can't find any software to allow for programming. I'll keep at it though
Many GMRS repeaters use DCS (digital) codes to access their system, and CTCSS codes out. It is nice to have separate TX/RX codes. Many other GMRS radios only allow you to set the same code for TX/RX, so if you set the access (TX) code, you won't hear the repeater come back because they likely use different TX than RX codes.
Did you look at the backwards antenna connectors m/f reversed?
I would definitely turn off the CTCSS code for the emergency channel that is being monitored in whatever park or recreation area your are in.
Hello - when you say all channels must be configured with tx/rx codes off, are you referring to all 30? Has anyone bought this radio recently with the codes off? I just received a set from Amazon
TX and RX codes still configured from the factory. I was able to set "OFF" in about 30 minutes. I did 1-22 channels. 23-> were repeater channels and above my knowledge of GMRS at this time
yeah the default should definitely be no pl tones but they do have their uses
I just purchased these last week and it appears that all the Rx/Tx codes are set to off. Apparently they finally got the message? I also ordered the program cable to add some frqs to listen too. Have any ones youd recommend?
I am new and done much research but some questions I can't find answers to. I am interested in this Baofeng G11S but am unsure it does all I want. I want a gmrs communicator and police scanner to stay in touch with my neighborhood safety. The frequency I found these work on is "Scanning Receiver Frequency band: 136.0-174.0 & 400.0-512.0MHz" but my local police show they start with 851.xxx for instance. Can you elaborate on if this scanner will receive those and how to get those on this scanner if so? Thanks for your time and thanks for the video.
Almost all police and fire departments now use digital radios. This unit will not pick up those transmissions.
It does pick up the usual 2 meter and 70 centimeter bands, but you have to use computer software to do so. You can use the free software from Radioddity or you can use Chirp. Use the Retevis RB27 option. That radio is identical to this one.
I can't get mine to connect to the local gmrs repeater
Offhand, if you're not too far away: maybe you look to see what the ctcss tones were set for on the radio and see if they're incorrect ..
Is there any way to disable the privacy codes all at once or is it a painful, channel by channel process?
connect the radio to a laptop with a standard K series data cable, and download free Chirp
app, set it Radioddity GA-510, you can change all the settings on the screen of your laptop
That's not a defect, it's an "undocumented feature". One that everyone should immediately shut off. Not a serious "defect" at all. Somewhere out there, are people that like using privacy tones. I think they're absurd, but hey. At least we can shut 'em off. Don't think you mentioned it but can we program these with a PC, either with chirp or some Baofeng software? Thanks for a good review. For the price, these are great radios for around a large property or using when camping where phone signals won't happen. Too bad they're not at least water resistant, but then they would be as inexpensive either.
Great question: baofeng.s3.amazonaws.com/Baofeng_G11S_Programming_Software_V2.0.1_20210825.zip This is the programming software on Radioddity's website. Additionally, I do not believe it will program with Chrip (although it would be nice to see it in the future). In the next few weeks, Retevis is sending me a waterproof GMRS radio which I will be testing and making a video on. It doesn't appear to have a channel menu display though. www.retevis.com/rb23-waterproof-gmrs-handheld-5w-long-range-two-way-radios . Maybe in a future radio release, baofeng will make the g11s with ip67 capabilities. I agree, that would be nice.
@@HAMRADIODUDE Thanks for the comments on privacy codes as default from Baofeng, confirmed to me that I needed to turn them off.
I used the programing software for the G11S from the Radioddity site and it worked fine for turning the privacy codes OFF. I had to go to each channel to switch the privacy code to OFF, but do that in the Decoder column first, then click once on the Encoder column and it switches to OFF as well. Encourage anyone buying these to get the programming cable, although, as you mentioned, the code to OFF can be done on the keyboard.
Also, out of the box, the radio is programmed for Narrow on all the channels. Using the programming software, it's fairly simple to change N to Wide by highlighting the box for N/W opposite each channel and just type the letter "W", easier for me than highlight the "N" with the cursor. Once the new settings are written to the radio, unplug from radio dein the programming cable, plug in the second radio and Write to Radio. The settings you sent to the first radio are duplicated on the second. I haven't figured out how to save the data to a file that I can print, yet.
@@drpochoa Hey. Question..
While you were programming the radio are you able to alter the channel name text?
Are you able add channels?
And are you able to change the channel frequencies while programming? And if so are you able to set them up to between 136-174?
Thanks!
Does anyone who has played with a programing cable and the software for these know if you can change channel names and frequencies. And especially if you can add channels that transmit between 136 and 174?
Thanks
@@justinfinnsvideo On the computer using the software downloaded from Radiodity, I could change channel name text. It also allows entering other frequencies but I did not transfer to the radio to see if it is accepted, although specs cover 136-174.
The codes aren't a big deal. I think " some people " dont like the codes. "SOME People" like to monitor the channels like they are police. So they can tell users they are breaking the law. ( law) rules not laws.
Man, I recorded this video at least two years ago.. I am not going to go back and watch it to find out who "Some people" are. lol.
Without CHIP support, these are pretty useless for Mac users.
Ooh, I just found out this is the same as the Retevis RB27, which DOES have CHIRP support! No I can get rid of all those pre-programmed codes.
That's good news and something I did not know. Thanks for the info!