WorldwideDX Amateur Radio Forums

At least one outlet - 409 Shop - is showing the KG-UV6D is now available for US, possibly in two variations. I've purchased from this site with no complaints at all on their service but their website can be confusing and not entirely "US User Friendly". Delivery from Hong Kong is agonizingly slow even by USPS making the term "slow boat from China" too real!

If someone has any hands-on with these I'm curious about what is in the MKII version to justify an additional $49 price.

For me, the only change from my current KG-UV1D that interests me is the higher horsepower on UHF, even though I have no issues so far with 440 signals at only 2 watts. Due to reflectivity, sometimes more is not better on UHF.

They aren't showing accessories yet.

409Shopwww.409shop.com

The one thing about the new '6' Wouxun is the frequency step option for the commercial narrow FM requirements. Not so 'necessary' for ham use but makes the newer frequencies easier to do.
- 'Doc

The way I understand the specs, the MKII version is the one with the 2.5Khz step.

Doesn't one of the submodels also have a wider 2 meter and 70cm frequency range? And a couple of extra "direct acces" buttons.

Google Wouxun "KG-UV6D Reviews". Here is one:
http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/10060

Here is a model comparison table from Powerwerx...
Wouxun Radio Model Feature Comparison KG-UV3D KG-UV6X

I'm researching the right radio to get as my first. Just passed my tech exam and waiting for my license. Don't want to spend a lot. Interested most in emergency communications.

First, I would not recommend a hand-held as your first radio. All hand-held radios are very limited in ability.
Having said that, if you need a hand-held radio -and- a commercial radio, then the KG-UV6X is a nice one. It doesn't have all the 'bells-n-whistles' the big names do, but in my particular case who needs'em?
If you don't need, or are not able to use the thing on commercial frequencies, why bother? There's no huge benefits other wise.
One thing that I've found is that especially with the change in antenna connections on the newer Wouxun(s), that adapter thingy is a very nice thing to have! Extra batteries are nice too.
One thing to watch with programming the new '6' radio is be sure to have the program software required for it! It isn't the same as for the older Wouxuns.
There's a lot I definitely do NOT know about the new '6', I don't have one yet. It would fit my needs (amateur and commercial use) but hasn't found a 'slot' in my budget yet. it ain't easy being this cheap!
- 'Doc

Actually, a hand held may be a good match for me as a newbie because I am also quite limited in ability.

OK, I'll bite. If not a handheld, what radio WOULD you recommend for a first radio for a newbie, a retiree on a tight budget who wants to use it primarily for emergency/civil defense/personal preparedness, has no real interest in DX, does not intend to turn it into a time consuming hobby, but wants the flexibility of a few more frequencies beyond the "ham" bands such as the additional frequencies the "6" offers?

Good research dude.

__________________
"No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country.
He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country."

~General George Patton, Jr.

I'm not trying to tell you to get any particular radio or brand of radio. I'm saying that all hand-held radios are small, not simple to program/reprogram, see, or be able to hit just one button instead of two, you know? Usable range is less due to the typical small antenna supplied. Replace that, or connect to a "real live" full sized antenna and a hand-held will have the same range any other radio of the same power would have on the same antenna.
I know what limited income is, and abilities that ain't what they used to be. You ever find a 'cure' for that sort of thingy and I'll give you a radio!
- 'Doc