Recycled Radio: Wouxun KG-UVD1P Dual Bander Transciever
The Original Wouxun dual bander
Manufacturer: Wouxun
Model: KG-UVD1P
Country of origin: China
Description: Dual Band FM Transceiver
Sold As: Used
Approx Age: looks new 2016
Condition: Very good.Missing original antenna + box
Price: £27 including shipping RRP £79.99 still available
Vendor: private seller on eBay
Shipped from: UK
"International Version"?
First impressions
As well as buying new radios i also buy non-working or used radios all the time.
This time my recycled Radio is an absolute classic!. Yes, the original Wouxun dual bander radio, the KG-UVD1P.
Plenty going on up top
The KG-UVD1P is not a new design. It actually started appearing around the end of 2010 so it won't be a stranger to everyone. It was regarded as one of the first radios to challenge the likes of Yeasu, Kenwood and Icom in offering all of the functionality but only costing a fraction of the price - Ultimately leaving the door open for budget brands such as Baofeng and Retevis to steam in behind.
Past reviews seem to be very favorable towards the Wux. Often regarded as the best budget radio (at the time) due to the solid build quality and abundance of features.
I was intreged to find out if any of my radio friends had ever had any experience with the KG-UVD1P in the past.
With the exception of one (Ringway Manchester 😁) everyone I spoke to spoke highly of it. Infact two radio operators still have their Wouxun radios from years ago and refuse to part with them.
One guy said he had conducted a test with the KG-UVD1P and a Yeasu FD60 a few years ago and found that the Wouxun was better in his opinion. The Yeasu was probably twice the price too.
I was quite looking forward to using the radio after hearing that.
This radio came to me as second hand but in reality looked brand new.
It was missing its original box, manual, lanyard and earpiece (who cares about the crappy earpieces anyway) admittedly, the radio itself was brand new looking and still had the protective plastic film across the screen.
I'm not really bothered about the piffling extras as they don't seem to add any value to the experience.
I was more than happy with what i recieved. The Wouxun still sells for around £80 so getting it for this price was a bargain.
The stock antenna is OK
Good Points
- Well made
- Splash proof IP55 rated
- Quick dual mode toggle
- Good receiving capabilities
- Programmable FM stations
- Rotary dial/selector
- Good PTT button
- Not as prone to 'Inter-Mod' as other cheap radios
One thing that immediately took my notice was the build quality of this radio. The casings are made from a tough ABS plastic and seemingly on par with its more expensive rivals. For a cheap radio it's hard to complain. Sure, some of the cheapo Baofengs are pretty well made but this Wouxun seems heavier and more robust somehow. Apparently this unit is IP55 rated so it should be impervious to a bit of dirt and water. This extra protection explains why the buttons on this radio are more heavy duty feeling. The front keypad is made up of little semi hard buttons which click positively when pressed. I don't imagine much water or dirt could get past those very easily.
Original replacement batteries are hard to find
After a few days of owning this radio i thought i might keep it rather than selling it on as i normally might.
The next sensible thing to do would be to buy a spare battery.
I normally have at least two or three spare batteries for each of my radios so i was hoping to snag one or two for a few quid.
It's turns out that spare batteries are near impossible to find in the UK. And I'm talking non-original copied batteries here. If I had wanted an original Wouxun battery (like the one i got with the radio) then i would end up more disappointed. They simple don't exist? or so it would seem.
So left with few choices I opted to buy a replacement battery from the only UK eBay seller to have them charging me £17.99 for the privilege. Scandalous! 🎃
I could have taken the other route and bought one from the Philippines for £8 - it's a long way to send it back if it turns out to be crap and i would have to wait ages for it arrive from the far east.
Bad Points
- Tinny sounding speaker
- Backlight stays on when scanning
- Battery meter is crap
- Battery doesn't last that long
- Signal meter is vague
Wouxun are keen on anti-counterfeiting
The recieve sound quality is clear but lacking in bass. Especially when compared to more contemporary models such as the Baofeng GT3 and UV-82 radios which cost much less.
In situations with a noisy background it's sometimes hard to make out what's coming through the speaker.
The sensitivity of the reciever is very good with the only downside coming from the poor digital squelch system.
The usual button configuration
Battery life is quite lame in comparison to other similar style radios. Even with battery save enabled and the back light switched off the battery has a struggle to last the whole day with the minimal of use. One suspects that the claimed battery capacity of 1400mAh is a crock of crap.
The extra battery i bought wasn't much better either. It claims to be 1700mAh but in reality lasts as long as the original. Crap.
A solid little radio
Overall it's a solid little radio. The design is getting a little long in the tooth now but it's a good radio to own if you can get one cheap.
👍👍👍👍