School me on Hand Held radio/walkie-talkies.

[DasSieben]

I just bought a BaoFeng UV 5R for $30 on Amazon. I know it may not be the best but it'll get me started in the Ham realm. I just started studying this last week to get my license but am very excited!

 

[aviator41]

Will make a good starter radio and get you on the air. don't let the hardware snobs talk it down. I got my license back when Icom and Yeasu were the only quality budget radios out there, but times have changes and the imports do very well, especially factoring in the price. For round-town talk they are more than ample, even for storm chasing. Only real down side is effective power isn't quite as high as is stated in the manual or on the box - but it's close.

A good aftermarket antenna will work wonders for distance if you find you're not getting out as far you'd like - I'd recommend a quality antenna to ensure you're not over 1:2 SWR

 

[DasSieben]

Will make a good starter radio and get you on the air. don't let the hardware snobs talk it down. I got my license back when Icom and Yeasu were the only quality budget radios out there, but times have changes and the imports do very well, especially factoring in the price. For round-town talk they are more than ample, even for storm chasing. Only real down side is effective power isn't quite as high as is stated in the manual or on the box - but it's close.

A good aftermarket antenna will work wonders for distance if you find you're not getting out as far you'd like - I'd recommend a quality antenna to ensure you're not over 1:2 SWR

Awesome. A better antenna is the first thing I was going to buy...figured I'd wait till I'd gotten my license and got my feet wet first though. I'm sure as I learn I may realize the benefits of a better radio and decide to get another, but I couldn't believe how cheap it is just to get started!