In this review I’ll be sharing my impressions of the AnyTone AT-D878UVII Plus. I’ve carried this radio every day for a little over six months now, so I feel like I’ve got a good idea for its capabilities. I’ve also completed four SOTA activations using only this radio – paired with a Diamond RH-205 antenna: G/NP-004, G/SP-013, G/SP-015, and G/SP-004. So I’ve used it in “less than perfect” conditions too. The version I have of this radio has GPS and Bluetooth, and advertises 7 watts on VHF and 6 watts on UHF. I’ve also somewhat “modified” my version of this radio, with a battery swap that gives me USB-C charging (My battery is marked as a model “QB-44HL”, 3100 mAh battery, but has a USB-C socket at the bottom) and I’ve attached a BNC adapter to the radio which I pretty much never take off.
Before I dig into the things that I don’t like about this radio, there’s a lot going for it and if you’re looking for a cost efficient DMR radio, it’s worth a look. First of all, I’ve dropped this radio a dozen times on SOTA activations, often from chest height onto rocky ground and other than a few scuffs on the case, it’s still going strong. It’s also got a bright, easy to read screen that I’ve never had a problem working with whilst outdoors – even in bright sunlight. It’s also a loud radio, or at least, I’ve never had a problem hearing it whilst operating on summits. I also find the radio very ergonomic; I’m not a fan of really large handhelds, but I find this one fits well in my pack, in my pocket, and in my hand.
A major plus point for this radio however, is its promiscuous DMR capability and scanning function. If you’re looking for a radio that can scan for nearby signals – including being able to listen to any timeslot, colour code, or talk group – this radio makes that really easy.
There are some things that I really don’t like about this radio though. The first is the fact that it doesn’t support USB-C charging out of the box. That very easily solved with a battery swap, but you’ll need to budget a little more to make sure you can get that feature. Mine cost about £25/$32 and has been working well for at least six months.
The second frustration is with the analogue squelch, I always feel that it’s set too high. Even at SQL level 1 I feel there are signals that I could work that the radio doesn’t let through. You could get around this by holding the II button down, below the PTT, which opens the squelch manually – but it’s a little annoying. Perhaps this is just a SOTA thing since I’m usually operating with a really low noise floor.
Finally, the radio is not rated as waterproof. It’s well built so it’s not going to have any problems with water splashes or the occasional light rain – but when compared to something like the Yaesu VX6R which is JIS7 rated, or the ICOM ID-50 which is IPX7 rated – both of which include submersion, it just feels like a missing feature on the AnyTone. I’ve seen people online say things like “The Kenwood connector is IP54 rated”, but I’ve not seen any reliable evidence that the radio body itself is rated as waterproof. Plus, the waterproof rating IP54 is just “splash proof”.
If you’re looking to upgrade your Baofeng UV5R, or you’re looking for a low cost but feature rich DMR handheld, or you’re looking for a decent radio that won’t bankrupt you to keep around “just in case” – then the AnyTone AT-D878 UVII Plus is a great choice.
If you’re looking to keep the DMR capability but need to add a waterproof rating, then consider the Ailunce HD1 as an alternative. If you don’t need the DMR capability then your options are a lot wider, but check out the discontinued Yaesu VX6R as a rugged waterproof alternative. If you’re happy to spend a little more to get a more capable receiver, then check out the Yaesu FT5D or ICOM ID-50.