Very nice! I thought it was a little pricy, but the last three cell phones I have purchased were over $1k USD each. This B1 blows them out of the water . I think its a good deal and will add to my collection soon. Thanks for sharing!
Nice review. Even the new version of this, the B1+, only has Android v9. That's 4 years old! Most apps will no longer work or aren't optimized for these older versions. I'll wait for something much newer.
Which apps do not work on v9 of Android? I'm still using a Nexus 5x with Facebook Messenger, Telegram, Skype, Signal, Wechat, my online banking app, coinomai crypto wallet, VLC Player, etc.. etc.. not optimized? pfft. i use this phone as a daily driver and have since 2016. The battery is showing some wear, but it can mostly get through the day without needing to be recharged. This phone is 7 years old. your thinking that Android v9 is too old to be used is bordering on highly autistic....
I doubt they will sell many at £1000. I expect heavy discounts when they see the sales figures. So probably worth waiting around. My other concern is long term support for this product. Interesting product none the less. Look forward to seeing tests on air.
£1000? Are they having a laugh? Chinese phone and DMR radio combined bought separate would be 1/5th of that. I might consider it if it was about £300-350 but that's about the limit. And only then if I then didn't have to have a running subscription to keep an app working.
Yea, but its not separate...its fully integrated and just works...pretty much anywhere on earth. Well, except maybe deepest darkest Mongolia...not many machines there....
Very impressive, also very expensive. Though when you consider what you pay for the latest top-end iPhone not really and this radio/phone has more functionality. Enjoy your videos and the very informative and professional presentation.
I was hoping the rubber duck would be for LTE as well. That's a bummer. I would have ordered it on the spot. I can't wait to hear what it sounds like in a future video.
Can frequencies be loaded manually. For example, i have many FM and DMR frequencies from Public Safety, Stores, Malls, Colleges, Hospitals, Air, and Railroads that i listen to on my scanner and on my Anytone Radio. Will the B1 allow me to input these frequencies?
Yes it's pricey but, it's helluva piece of kit to be fair and, if you don't like the cost you don't have to pay it. Great instructional video as usual. Thank's.
Very interesting. Feature packed, with a good use of online data to do a lot of the programming work for you. However, at just shy of £1000 I very much doubt there will be many takers.
It's a bargain at any price ;) Working on update to 9 now! Annual Sub is about he cost of lunch for a day. Seriously LOL...and we use that to continue development, we make donations to radio societies, support youth in radio. And the Talkgroup documentation project which we share the TG/TS combos with EVERYONE.
@@bobofthedeep Still a £1000 though and for what it is, and with todays financial climate it just isn't worth it. I'll offer you no more than £350 Inc tax that's more realistic 🙂🙂
@@factcheckersbranch LOL it costs way more than that to manufacture...the older M1 and K1 units are reselling USED for more than that...its a great system and a great value...if its not for you its not for you...Cheers and 73's Bob
@@bobofthedeep I get all that, and to be honest I'm sure it's a fair price for your efforts. It's the context. The annual sub is a day's lunch - but that's up against so many others making the same argument. I used to pay $1/day for my newspaper and thought nothing of it, but today I baulk at a $30/yr subscription to the website. And there's no comparison with a $150 Android phone and a $100 dual-band DMR radio, but there's every comparison too. It's psychology, not numbers.
Great idea but at £1000 a non-starter as the phone is already outdated and will only become increasingly so .... for that money, you'd expect Android 10 at least and if you want it to replace two devices it really needs to excel at both. The app is a great idea but a yearly subscription does leave me a little worried about future proofing. Using Android 8/9.1 leaves me nervous for phone security updates..... For £170 I can pick up a Anytone 878, and for £300-400 pick up a Redmi or something similar phone. So that leaves me £500 for the integration side of it. And I don't think it's doing enough to justify that integration cost. Nearly half the price of the device is for the integration only. The integration is nice, and pretty well done, but I don't see £500 worth there. Sorry
A silly question but why worry about the Android version? I am still running an older erosion and my phone still makes calls and does SMS. What I am more interested in is the RFinder Tablet. It (apparently) has SDR capability. By the time I open my wallet, something else will arrive.
Will the version of the Android operating system be upgradable? The current version is about to be 4 releases old. That can cause problems with other software you might load on the phone/radio.
it's not a consumer device. Remember when the common price for most apple computers was roughly $3,000-5000 ? You get what you pay for. My wife bought an M1 and 8 months later the screen cracks. Meanwhile, my PowerBook G4 from 2005... Still working after 18 years, never had a problem with it besides needing to upgrade the failing hard disk with an SSD.
Can you still use the radio without a subscription? I undestand the cost for the up-to-date database but you should be able to use the other stuff without that
Omar s200 the POC I having trouble getting it to the windows part how do you reset or get it a power up it been down for the last couple days it just showing l n r i c o how do you or just do I need a software or taking someone to restore back to the settings
That's an interesting pruduct but not at that price. Yearly software licence is also a risk, if they shut the software down, your handpiese is a large cellular after that. Manually configurable dmr/fm radio with cellular would be a killer device to me, if at reasonable price and no dependency of licensing that may be not available in the future.. But that seems to fail both.
RFinder has been around for 13 years...its not going anywhere and will live on through my son Jesse W2EEO...the price is reasonable...its the price of a decent phone and we throw in a DMR/FM dual band that never needs programming and we provide support 365 days a year!
Consider getting some manners, trolling is so dull. For the same money I bought a 705, much better value and more versatile. I do just fine thanks this just isnt worth the £1150 its on sale in the UK for..
Nice unit - but it is a great shame the external antenna is not used for 3/4G also. I am currently looking for a good new device that uses an externall antenna to improve 4G reception.
I helped bring the Palm Pilot to market. When the wireless Palm VII arrived, I was a beta tester. Wireless email was a big deal but eventually, that went away and left us all with a useless wireless device. When I read comments about how some essential service will be around for decades to come, I tend to think about my past experiences with essential services. Never assume any service will be with us forever.
doesn't matter how good it is,the price is prohibitive. Sen videos with issues regarding the pl tones not present and not uploading to the cloud after manual entry.
Next radio in design is going to be 5G...not that it needs it but of course we keep up with advances in technology. Will keep N71 in mind when we come out with the next one...5G is not that widely available worldwide yet anyway....it just emerging in the W hemispher for instance. 4GLTE is more than sufficient even for the upcoming upgrade with DMR over IP.
@@bobofthedeep thanks for responding. I mentioned 5G not because of speeds but because of coverage. Believe it or not cell network coverage is still a big issue even here in SF Bay Area so 600Mhz low band 5G has potential another issue is availability of EXTERNAL ANTENNA CONNECTOR for the cell phone radio. It is also a big deal ! Do not overlook this ! Do not overlook 802.11a/c for decent wifi coverage on 5 Ghz either and also include external antenna connector ! The same way an external antenna connection is available for 2m/440. those things are essential and "make or break' a device in real life field use. Thanks
Fake news LOL there is long-term plans for support....generational plans...don't worry RFinder has been around for 14 years and will continue to exist for many decades more...My son W2EEO Jesse (4th gen ham) will take it over after my demise ;) he has been involved since he was a young teen....
You simply do not know this to be true. They could fail next year or month. Never assume something like this will last. The tech grave yard is filled with the dead and decaying bodies of tech that cannot fail.
So did you actually buy this?? Are they giving these away, because this has recently turned up on an UK RUclips channel for review??Pure gimmick, and a complete overkill...no thanks...don't even get me started on the price...
It's surely a nice bit of kit but I got my AnyTone AT-D878UV PLUS with the separate PTT button, Samsung A90 5G phone, Samsung Active 2 LTE watch, and my PI Star MMDVM with 3.5 inch Nextion screen, all for about the same price as that unit. Nice bit of kit but really lousy value.
Very nice! I thought it was a little pricy, but the last three cell phones I have purchased were over $1k USD each. This B1 blows them out of the water . I think its a good deal and will add to my collection soon. Thanks for sharing!
Exactly my thoughts, I'm interested in acquiring one too.
What a cracking radio Lewis...Love it! But, what a price lolololololol!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Too much or I’d have it 😂
Fantastic. This would be my ultimate phone.
Nice review. Even the new version of this, the B1+, only has Android v9. That's 4 years old! Most apps will no longer work or aren't optimized for these older versions. I'll wait for something much newer.
Which apps do not work on v9 of Android? I'm still using a Nexus 5x with Facebook Messenger, Telegram, Skype, Signal, Wechat, my online banking app, coinomai crypto wallet, VLC Player, etc.. etc..
not optimized? pfft. i use this phone as a daily driver and have since 2016. The battery is showing some wear, but it can mostly get through the day without needing to be recharged. This phone is 7 years old.
your thinking that Android v9 is too old to be used is bordering on highly autistic....
Great video as always! Bit of an eye watering price but this is probably the way forward.
I doubt they will sell many at £1000. I expect heavy discounts when they see the sales figures. So probably worth waiting around. My other concern is long term support for this product. Interesting product none the less. Look forward to seeing tests on air.
£1000? Are they having a laugh? Chinese phone and DMR radio combined bought separate would be 1/5th of that.
I might consider it if it was about £300-350 but that's about the limit. And only then if I then didn't have to have a running subscription to keep an app working.
Yea, but its not separate...its fully integrated and just works...pretty much anywhere on earth. Well, except maybe deepest darkest Mongolia...not many machines there....
@@bobofthedeep But it certainly isn't worth a thousand £ though 🙂🙂
it's actually £999!
@@dannn.l.slightvisual7656 As a round figure it's £1000, that's what he's saying fella 🙂
Yeah, it has a hefty price tag, but it will come down hopefully, but not to what I would pay for one! EDIT: Typo
Very impressive, also very expensive.
Though when you consider what you pay for the latest top-end iPhone not really and this radio/phone has more functionality.
Enjoy your videos and the very informative and professional presentation.
Very cool. Not only is it an advanced radio, but it is an advanced Android phone.
The "most advanced" HT that can't scan channels unfortunately.
I was hoping the rubber duck would be for LTE as well. That's a bummer. I would have ordered it on the spot.
I can't wait to hear what it sounds like in a future video.
Defocus transitions really disturb me.
Wanna see a device like this running KaiOS.
Or better yet, a pair of smartglasses with peer-to-peer radio!
Can frequencies be loaded manually. For example, i have many FM and DMR frequencies from Public Safety, Stores, Malls, Colleges, Hospitals, Air, and Railroads that i listen to on my scanner and on my Anytone Radio. Will the B1 allow me to input these frequencies?
Yes it's pricey but, it's helluva piece of kit to be fair and, if you don't like the cost you don't have to pay it. Great instructional video as usual. Thank's.
I like it when you say button 😊
just seen the price! great video lewis. :)
-dan s
Ideal if you travel for work around the uk, saves the evening programming a new code plug 🤔👍👏👏
Very interesting. Feature packed, with a good use of online data to do a lot of the programming work for you. However, at just shy of £1000 I very much doubt there will be many takers.
HOW MUCH???
Not so much DMR as FMR.
For which you get Android 8 and need to pay an annual sub.
It's a bargain at any price ;) Working on update to 9 now! Annual Sub is about he cost of lunch for a day. Seriously LOL...and we use that to continue development, we make donations to radio societies, support youth in radio. And the Talkgroup documentation project which we share the TG/TS combos with EVERYONE.
@@bobofthedeep Still a £1000 though and for what it is, and with todays financial climate it just isn't worth it. I'll offer you no more than £350 Inc tax that's more realistic 🙂🙂
@@factcheckersbranch LOL it costs way more than that to manufacture...the older M1 and K1 units are reselling USED for more than that...its a great system and a great value...if its not for you its not for you...Cheers and 73's Bob
@@bobofthedeep I get all that, and to be honest I'm sure it's a fair price for your efforts. It's the context. The annual sub is a day's lunch - but that's up against so many others making the same argument. I used to pay $1/day for my newspaper and thought nothing of it, but today I baulk at a $30/yr subscription to the website. And there's no comparison with a $150 Android phone and a $100 dual-band DMR radio, but there's every comparison too. It's psychology, not numbers.
@@bobofthedeep are you giving these away, they are popping up on RUclips in UK alot..
Great idea but at £1000 a non-starter as the phone is already outdated and will only become increasingly so .... for that money, you'd expect Android 10 at least and if you want it to replace two devices it really needs to excel at both. The app is a great idea but a yearly subscription does leave me a little worried about future proofing.
Using Android 8/9.1 leaves me nervous for phone security updates.....
For £170 I can pick up a Anytone 878, and for £300-400 pick up a Redmi or something similar phone. So that leaves me £500 for the integration side of it. And I don't think it's doing enough to justify that integration cost. Nearly half the price of the device is for the integration only. The integration is nice, and pretty well done, but I don't see £500 worth there. Sorry
A silly question but why worry about the Android version? I am still running an older erosion and my phone still makes calls and does SMS. What I am more interested in is the RFinder Tablet. It (apparently) has SDR capability. By the time I open my wallet, something else will arrive.
Will the version of the Android operating system be upgradable? The current version is about to be 4 releases old. That can cause problems with other software you might load on the phone/radio.
My question as well. I assume it will be upgradable, but that is just a guess. Does not matter to me, probably.
Nice product & a great idea, but absolutely stupidly overpriced.
Would be interesting to see a range test though Lewis!
It has a very sensitive reciever...have a look at the tests in the QST article Novemenber 2020!
it's not a consumer device. Remember when the common price for most apple computers was roughly $3,000-5000 ? You get what you pay for. My wife bought an M1 and 8 months later the screen cracks.
Meanwhile, my PowerBook G4 from 2005... Still working after 18 years, never had a problem with it besides needing to upgrade the failing hard disk with an SSD.
Very nice but for the price I'll stick with my Samsung galaxy and separate dual band handheld.
Can you still use the radio without a subscription? I undestand the cost for the up-to-date database but you should be able to use the other stuff without that
Omar s200 the POC I having trouble getting it to the windows part how do you reset or get it a power up it been down for the last couple days it just showing l n r i c o how do you or just do I need a software or taking someone to restore back to the settings
So my question is, can you update the Android 8 os?
That's an interesting pruduct but not at that price. Yearly software licence is also a risk, if they shut the software down, your handpiese is a large cellular after that.
Manually configurable dmr/fm radio with cellular would be a killer device to me, if at reasonable price and no dependency of licensing that may be not available in the future.. But that seems to fail both.
RFinder has been around for 13 years...its not going anywhere and will live on through my son Jesse W2EEO...the price is reasonable...its the price of a decent phone and we throw in a DMR/FM dual band that never needs programming and we provide support 365 days a year!
That’s ham scene tax if ever I saw it. I struggle with code plugs so this seemed a wonderful piece of kit but instant turn off at the price
consider getting a job?
Consider getting some manners, trolling is so dull. For the same money I bought a 705, much better value and more versatile. I do just fine thanks this just isnt worth the £1150 its on sale in the UK for..
and it was 2 years ago lol
Nice unit - but it is a great shame the external antenna is not used for 3/4G also. I am currently looking for a good new device that uses an externall antenna to improve 4G reception.
if only the Rfinder B1 plus had LoRa and satellite built in, it really would be the end game doomsday radio!
bloody amazing video and technology, way past my skill set but bloody impressive
It's made to be easy for newbees or not so technical users...but powerful for power users!
then upgrade your skill set.
do you know the effective range of an excuse? Zero Meters.
Amazing 👏
£999😂😂😂 absolutely not I'll stick to my dual bander and tyt 🤣🤣🤣
Can use VHF?
So am I right in thinking the main selling point of this is all based around one app that could crash or go down at any time like any other app.
I helped bring the Palm Pilot to market. When the wireless Palm VII arrived, I was a beta tester. Wireless email was a big deal but eventually, that went away and left us all with a useless wireless device. When I read comments about how some essential service will be around for decades to come, I tend to think about my past experiences with essential services. Never assume any service will be with us forever.
doesn't matter how good it is,the price is prohibitive. Sen videos with issues regarding the pl tones not present and not uploading to the cloud after manual entry.
is the app of PTT is exclusive to that phone only? Can be used Internationally that pHone?
Hey Lewis. Does this have non-uk repeaters in the database? Would it work in South Africa? DE ZS1CDG
Nice device but is it durable ?
Hi Lewis i will be doing the foundation licence in November what radio would you recommend for my car mobile set up.
Got my license a bit over a week ago, and went with the ftm400 xdr. I love it!
Hi Lewis D v7- vbm ( alex )
Philippines.
Do u . know any radio tx that covers 752.000 MHz
Looks good but not the price
I'm trying to find out more without success.can u help
world has moved on to 5G and you're limiting us to 4G and for a thousand dollars...
Bring one out with at least band N71 !!!
Next radio in design is going to be 5G...not that it needs it but of course we keep up with advances in technology. Will keep N71 in mind when we come out with the next one...5G is not that widely available worldwide yet anyway....it just emerging in the W hemispher for instance. 4GLTE is more than sufficient even for the upcoming upgrade with DMR over IP.
@@bobofthedeep thanks for responding. I mentioned 5G not because of speeds but because of coverage. Believe it or not cell network coverage is still a big issue even here in SF Bay Area so 600Mhz low band 5G has potential another issue is availability of EXTERNAL ANTENNA CONNECTOR for the cell phone radio. It is also a big deal ! Do not overlook this ! Do not overlook 802.11a/c for decent wifi coverage on 5 Ghz either and also include external antenna connector !
The same way an external antenna connection is available for 2m/440. those things are essential and "make or break' a device in real life field use. Thanks
Can we make with Zello App in Germany?
nice - but too expensive
Once the software is no longer up dated this item becomes trash. For those that dont know how to do code plugs you need to learn it.
Fake news LOL there is long-term plans for support....generational plans...don't worry RFinder has been around for 14 years and will continue to exist for many decades more...My son W2EEO Jesse (4th gen ham) will take it over after my demise ;) he has been involved since he was a young teen....
You simply do not know this to be true. They could fail next year or month. Never assume something like this will last. The tech grave yard is filled with the dead and decaying bodies of tech that cannot fail.
@@bobofthedeep this is also true.
£1000 and then an annual subscription on top? Jeeez. It seems great but not at that cost!
Subscription ? !! Really ? !!
That's a NO from me.
The price is already high to pay subscription too.
So did you actually buy this?? Are they giving these away, because this has recently turned up on an UK RUclips channel for review??Pure gimmick, and a complete overkill...no thanks...don't even get me started on the price...
Too expensive for my taste but amazing.
It is a nice radio/phone but at a £1000 price tag it’s just a little to much to spend
Cheap as chips....I'll buy two(NOT)
I'll pass on a £1000 I think there's plenty of cheaper alternatives
When you find another android phone that incorporate this radios features, post a link. Not sure I will be seeing too many links, however.
👍👊😎
It's surely a nice bit of kit but I got my AnyTone AT-D878UV PLUS with the separate PTT button, Samsung A90 5G phone, Samsung Active 2 LTE watch, and my PI Star MMDVM with 3.5 inch Nextion screen, all for about the same price as that unit. Nice bit of kit but really lousy value.
I don't like spendering money per month to use something I already bought
£999.95 wow
Way to much 999, how much is that in usa
$1290.00 USD, and in my country , its $1825.00 AUD... no thanks.
👋👋👋👍👍👍😉😎
$1200 :/
I buy me a real Ham Radio, like a Yaesu or a Icom,