so i just passed my technician exam last week and im trying to figure out what handheld to get. ive been reading threads on here for like two hours and now im MORE confused than when i started lol. everyone seems to have a different opinion and i cant tell if the cheap baofeng stuff is fine or if ill regret it.

my main thing is i just want to be able to talk on the local repeaters and maybe eventually do some APRS stuff if i can figure it out. i dont really have a big budget, probably $50-80 range to start. someone at my club mentioned the UV-5R but then someone else said i should save up for a Yaesu or Kenwood. i dont know enough yet to know what actually matters vs what's just people being snobby about brands you know?

any advice from people who actually use these things day to day would be really appreciated

congrats on the ticket first of all. okay so here's my honest take after using HTs for about 15 years — the baofeng UV-5R is totally fine to start with. seriously. yes the menu system is kinda annoying and yes the build quality isnt amazing but it WORKS and for learning the ropes on a local repeater it does exactly what you need. i handed one to my kid when she got her tech and she used it for two years before wanting something better.

the thing people dont always mention is youll want a programming cable and to use CHIRP software because programming it by hand through the keypad is a nightmare. but once its set up with your local repeaters its just a radio. if you find yourself actually using it regularly after a few months then yeah maybe look at a Yaesu FT-65 or one of the entry Kenwood HTs — they feel way nicer in the hand and the audio is better. but dont spend $150 on your first radio when you dont even know if youll stick with the hobby yet, thats just my two cents

i was in basically the exact same spot about a year ago and ended up going with a Yaesu FT-4XR which was like $60 at the time. its not fancy but it feels way more solid than the baofengs i tried at the club and the receiver is noticeably less noisy on weak signals. for just hitting repeaters its been perfect honestly. the APRS thing though — most basic HTs dont do APRS natively, youd need something like the FT3D or the Kenwood TH-D74 for that built in, and those are way more expensive. you can do APRS with a cheap HT if you get an external TNC or use your phone with an audio cable but thats kind of a whole extra thing to figure out later