Some reviews 
Problem 1: The rubber duck antenna makes it looks dorky enough that no one who wants it just for the cell phone will touch it with a 10-foot pole. Who might use it? Hams that don't want to carry two devices.
Problem 2: It's not ready for prime time; appears it's essentially 2 devices that charge and operate independently (good idea) but also appear to interfere with each other. It's fine for a cell phone, but other features fall short.
Problem 3: There are a lot of budget ham radios coming out of China (including Wouxun, Puxing, Baofeng, and FeiDaxin – that last one is new to me), but quality is hit and miss. The Wouxun (my radio) gets good reviews; I did some research when I was in China and so made an informed choice, but judging by what I'm reading, the other brands have some quality issues. Haven't used anything else, so can't say from personal experience; eHam.net 
Comment 1: Once the Internet is ubiquitous and you can hit it anywhere anytime for free, there won't be a practical difference between apps like Echolink (that let you hit repeaters with your smartphone or computer) and actually using a radio. Of course, it's not the same; they are as different as sugar and Saccharine, and if the goal is only to communicate with someone, the radio hobby is not the way to go.
Comment 2: New hams that pick up a cheap radio that can't perform won't stay with the hobby. It’s hard to describe the thrill the first time I turned it on, went outside and with just the factory rubber duck and listened to a couple hams talking about meatloaf.[1]
(I can hear you groaning. But compare that conversation with Twitter or Facebook. People talk about what matters to them at the moment.)
What I'd like someday is a handheld quad band transceiver with wide band RX on AM, FM, shortwave, and public safety bands; basically, a great MW DXer, scanner, shortwave, and HT. There are some that try, but they are really ham radios with some fun (and unimpressive) extras.
Oh, and an alarm clock and mp3 recorder/player.
Then again, would kinda ruin the unique sort of entertainment each type of radio affords, for each type of listening has it's own rewards.
But still...
[1]
I asked some hams in a newsgroup sometime back when I was studying for my Technician’s license what type of radio to get; I was told by a few not to get a handheld; they feared it would be a poor experience and I’d give up. I know a lot of new hams do, but I was determined. I chose a complicated path, but it was the right one for me. (Wouxuns are a PITA to program without a computer – I tried ; programming, key sequences, and terminology are different from standard models like Kenwood, Yaesu, Icom, so a lot of online conversations are difficult to translate; and antenna a connectors are different).
My advice? Get what you want. And get a dual band. In my area, there is a lot more activity on 70cm than 2m; if I had gotten a low-end big brand name 2m like Icom or Yaesu for the same price, I wouldn’t be hearing anything right now and I’d have figured no one was on the air around me.
Started: 2012-04-20
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