I just purchased a Baofeng UV-5R (8 watt) radio from Amazon. I noticed the user manual from the Baofeng website looks different than the one that was in my box. Also, the plastic packaging is embossed with UV 6R V0. Wondering if this is a fake…
Frankly, there is no real thing as a Baofeng - It’s a brand name that is sort of generic. There are as far as I’ve been able to discover, at least 3 factories making the same product - but there are lots of variables. The boxes and parts are also generic, so if you buy stock two months apart from the same supplier, as I do - you find different manuals, often with numbers that make no sense. They can have different firmware and different menu items. I’m currently selling a couple that I don;lt even know what they really are. Baofeng DM-760. The box and radio say DM-760, but the firmware seems to be a DM-X, which has an identical manual, but it won’t programme on anything other than a DM-1801 setting which has some differences. It looks very much like the factory stuck a random version of a different radio’s firmware in it. If it works and looks like a Baofeng, it IS a Baofeng, but the name really seems to be a generic term nowadays. Nobody would waste their time counterfeiting a dirt cheap product - you’d counterfeit an expensive one and make more money. What you have is a functional useful radio at McDonald Happy Meal price - have fun with it. It’s a bit like a few consumer ‘brands’ we have here in the UK. Bush, Alba, HMV, Ferguson - all old genuine well known brands, but the name is a sticker and means nothing at all. These arena;t counterfeits, but brandless imported value for money items. Your radio is a Baofeng. Maybe it’s come out of a different factory, or maybe the supplier bought all the bits? Maybe they bought 60 radios with no bits - factory over-run. They then sourced the manuals, accessories and box from somewhere else. It really doesn’t matter at that price. It’s 99.9% the same as the rest - but you might discover the antenna is from a different radio, as is the wrist strap. The manual is probably a similar radio with the same operating system. The charger and drop in unit might be different?