Chuck S

Using CHIRP software and the BaoFeng (or clone) cable the radio can be programmed to any frequency within the radio's capability. For grins I've been monitoring the local police and fire in the evening and the school buses in the morning. The radio will transmit on these frequencies but the software will disable this easily. Most public safety is now inaccessible with this radio since trunk radio service. But small towns may still have their own frequencies.

The dual frequency capability of this radio makes it possible to monitor a group channel like FRS-04 and another for "private" use with another person. There's a setting that will link the reply to the received channel and another to not transmit if the frequency in in use. Not been able to confirm either though.

Dozens of on-line frequency lists. Many can be directly pasted into CHIRP and uploaded the radio.

BTW one of the $4 clone cables took 3 weeks to arrive from China and bricked my BF-F8HP. Went back to the BaoFeng cable (with the red and green LEDs) and CHIRP and restored everything.

-- Chuck

3CH017

Figured I'd share just in case some of you run into this problem. I had communication issues between (I believe) the brand "Retevis" and my radio. He was on channel 1 and I set the freq to channel 1 but it would not communicate. I held his button down and I scanned. I finally found the channel but I could only receive loud clear but not transmit. I friend of mind said some of these brand of radios have a "code" that you have to program into my radio for it the be fully compatible. Or it could be some other issue or merely his set of Retvis but who knows. Meh... no time for that!

I have a Yaesu and it had no problems with Baofeng and "store bought walki talkis".

Chuck S

These radios all have "privacy" codes. A misnomer but unless both radios have the same settings you can't communicate. Seems one or the other has a code set (or two different codes are set).

-- Chuck