so i just passed my technician exam last week (finally) and everyone keeps telling me to just get a baofeng to start with but then i see people on here saying they're garbage and i should save up for a yaesu or kenwood instead. i dont really know what i need yet honestly. im probably just gonna use it for local repeaters and maybe some simplex if any of my neighbors end up getting licensed too. budget is like 50-80 bucks to start but i could stretch it if theres a really good reason to.

the thing that confuses me is all the feature stuff — like do i actually need dual band, or APRS built in, or whatever a wires-x node is. just want something that works and doesnt fall apart. any thoughts would help a lot

congrats on the ticket. ok so here's my honest take after going through this same thing a few years back — the baofeng UV-5R or one of the variants is genuinely fine for what you're describing. people who say they're garbage are usually comparing them to $200+ radios which isnt really fair at your stage. the audio quality is a little rough and the UI is not great but it transmits and receives on 2m and 70cm and for local repeater work thats really all you need right now.

that said if you can stretch to around 100-120 bucks the Yaesu FT-65 is a noticeable step up in build quality and the receive is cleaner. i gave mine to my wife when i upgraded and shes been using it for two years with zero issues. APRS and wires-x you definitely dont need yet, those are rabbit holes you can go down later once you figure out what you actually want to do with the hobby. just get on the air first and worry about features later.

i was in the exact same spot like 8 months ago and ended up with the Radioddity GD-77 which is kind of a middle ground — does DMR digital too which turned out to be actually pretty cool once i figured it out. not sure if thats in your budget range though. anyway whatever you get just make sure it covers the 2 meter and 70cm bands and youll be fine for most repeaters around you. the fancy stuff can wait