Radioddity GD-77 DMR Dual Band Radio Review

The Radioddity GD-77 is a dual-band DMR radio that looks like a copy of the Baofeng DM-1801. Is it worth the extra money? Let’s see!

There are several DMR radios under $100 so the competition is pretty fierce. While the Radioddity GD-77 is at the high end of the spectrum facing competition from the TYT MD380, Baofeng DM-1801, and even the Baofeng DM-1701, it does hold its own in many respects.

As far as I can tell, the Radioddity GD-77 is in my eye just a copy of the Baofeng DM-1701 with a nicer feeling shell and far better support for an extra $20-$30.

Let’s start with the nicer shell on the Radioddity GD-77, and keep in mind, this is how it feels in my hand, you may experience a completely different feeling. It just feels, I don’t know, stiffer, thicker, more solid. It could just be the texture on the plastic, I can’t pinpoint it, but it feels nicer and I like it.

The keys on the front of the Radioddity GD-77 also have a nicer feel although the button on the side, the dial on top, and cover over the right side ports all feel about the same.

Removing the Radioddity GD-77 battery looks exactly the same on both radios until you stop and look close. On both radios there are two tabs that fit into two slots on the battery to secure it. The difference is that on the Radioddity GD-77 they extended the silver metal backing down to make those tabs, on the Baofeng they used plastic from the case. It’s the little things.

Unfortunately, the one thing on the Radioddity GD-77 that they needed to upgrade and they did not was the belt clip, it is just as bad as the one on the Baofeng and although it works just fine, scares me that it will break. I have used it quite a while, and it has had several attempts to be ripped off my belt by corners of walls and the occasionally grabby seatbelt, and yet it survives intact.

Programming the Radioddity GD-77 from the radio is either not practical or just impossible. I played with it a little and gave up. This is common for DMR radios though so that isn’t a big deal. Setting up a simplex analog frequency is not a big deal though, only the DMR aspect is pretty impossible. As easy as it is to just connect it to a computer I wouldn’t spend a lot of time fiddling with the front panel.

The Radioddity GD-77 software for programming is functional and reasonable but not the best I have seen. They are all different and yet all the same so with very few exceptions this is not something to worry about.

Using the Radioddity GD-77 in DMR mode is pretty straight forward and has both good transmit and receive audio. Where the radio has issues is in analog modes and splatters a wide swath of the spectrum when you transmit. This results in less than stellar transmit audio, particularly at long range.

The Radioddity GD-77 antenna is pretty good and is easily as good as most of the other radios out there.

I have been asked several times who makes Radioddity radios, and while I am not certain, my guess is that Radioditty purchases unbranded radios from companies such as Baofeng and rebrands them. They also sometimes add nice things like upgraded manuals, extra antennas, etc. You can often find radios like the Radioddity GD-77 for sale on Amazon and eBay.

Photos

Radioddity GD-77 Test Results:

Screen readability	Very Good
In-hand feel	OK
Included antenna	Very Good
Construction quality	OK
Belt clip	OK
Programmability	Very Good
Transmit audio	CLICK TO LISTEN
Maximum power output (2m/70cm)	3.3 watts / 1.6 watts
Size	275 * 64 * 45 mm
Actual weight	9.6 oz
Radioddity GD-77 manual	CLICK TO DOWNLOAD
Programming software	CLICK TO DOWNLOAD
Radioddity GD-77 Overall score

Radioddity GD-77 VNA spec

Radioddity GD-77 SRD spectrum analysis – Click to enlarge

If you are interested, click here for an article on how I test radios.

FEATURES:
Programmable CTSS/DCS, Squelch, Busy Lock, TOT, VOX, Encrypt, Password Lock, Radio ID, Scan Up to 250 zones, Message, Contact, Emergency Alarm Up to 128 received groups, Dual Ban, Side Keys ADD VFO, Contact ID(expanded from 256 to 1000), Scan list (expanded from 16 to 64) Channel list(expanded from 16 to 31), Supports Digital & Analogue Mode Dual-Band, Frequency Range in VHF/UHF, Support DMR repeater function: both DMR Tier I and Tier II. Fantastic Customer Service & Technical Support (so they say and I have no reason to doubt them)
PROS:	CONS:
Good screen Good support website Good in-hand feel Well made Good digital sound	Software is not great Analog transmissions are all over the spectrum

Conclusions

The Radioddity GD-77 is actually a decent little radio for the price and if you are looking for an affordable DMR radio that can also do both 2m and 70cm, it is absolutely worth considering. If I had the money I would opt for the Alinco DJ-MD5 as it is clearly superior in pretty much any metric you want to use, but it is also twice the price of the Radioddity GD-77.

On the other side, the BaoFeng DM-1801 is virtually the same radio for almost $30 cheaper. Yes, the Radioddity GD-77 feels a little better made but that may not matter to you.

Overall this is a good DMR radio and you probably will not be upset if you purchase it. The superior support for the Radioddity GD-77 including easy access to manuals, faqs, and software from Radioddity certainly makes it appealing.