RADIODDITY CS-47 "ONE HANDER" MOBILE CB RADIO
(REVIEW)
“Time flies,” as we often hear, and it’s hard to believe that this blog is now celebrating its 20th year! In all that time, I don’t think I’ve ever reviewed a non-SSB CB radio. Aside from last fall’s top ten AM/FM radio article, I’ve mostly focused on reviewing equipment I’ve owned or hoped to own. But this little CB radio caught my attention, and it’s hard to ignore its tiny design.
There are times when I’m traveling with my wife in her car, stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, and I find myself wishing I could get on Channel 19 for a traffic update, but she doesn't have a radio installation to use. Enter this Radioddity CB radio, which, when on sale for under $70, seems like a solid option. And if you pick it up in a bundle with a mag mount antenna, it becomes a portable solution you can stash in the trunk and forget about until your next road trip.
As well, for anyone who relies solely on AM radios and has limited space in their vehicle, this could be the perfect solution. It’s compact, effective, and worth considering for the price - but is it worth a hoot?
Lets find out!
I've perused a number of low cost AM or AM/FM CB radios, and for the most part, the ones in the $50-$70 price range, while small, lacked a way to change channels that wouldn't take my eyes off the road. Like any CB radio, the CS-47 has 40 channels, with features like:
- Automatic Squelch
- RF Gain
- Mic Gain
- Emergency channels (9 and 19)
- UP/DWN buttons for Volume and Channels, built into the hand unit
- 7 colors to pick for your display screen
- CTCSS
- VOX (Hand free transmit)
- Noise reduction on both receiver AND transmit
- Channel Scan
- Download the operation manual here
In addition to the above, this radio can be modified for various other frequencies around the world, and - higher power output (See photo below for location of jumper and white wire).
THIS TINY BOX HOLDS BOTH THE RADIO AND MICROPHONE CONTROL HEAD
THE MICROPHONE/SPEAKER CONTROL FITS COMFORTABLY IN MY HAND AS WELL
Compared to the one-hander CB radios from the 70s, the Radioddity CS-47 is really lightweight, and a pleasure to operate while driving (where it was a chore to hold the control mic for more than a few seconds back in those days).
The radio has a non-detachable power cord, with a cigarette lighter adapter already attached. You can mount the radio body very easily, in almost any vehicle, or, leave it in the trunk for those times an emergency radio could come in handy (don't forget to buy the antenna).
Functional buttons are easy to use, and backlit for any type of lighting situation.
This model has been around for a few years, so it's probably not something you haven't seen before (there are numerous reviews on YouTube about the CS-47), but the fact that it's still around has to tell you something. On the other hand, the Uniden 980SSB has been on the market for about a decade, and it's had issues for a good part of those years, so I guess I just contradicted myself...🤦♂️
For a radio like this, I don't think frequency modifications are worth the trouble, because all it takes is an accidental change to put you on a band of frequencies where you're hopelessly lost. This is a "Introduction-to-CB-2way-radio", not a transceiver for more seasoned operators, if it was, the CS-47 would have memory channels, a channel number readout + frequency display, and NOAA weather reception. But that's a decision to make for you and your own requirements.
CTCSS AND PRIVACY CHANNELS
When reading the manual you may notice a section that tells you how to set up tones for a "Privacy Channel". This doesn't add extra channels to the radio, nor is it truly private.
The idea behind this (used frequently on FRS/GMRS radios)is to quiet your receiver until someone using the same tone as you, begins to transmit. When this happens, your radio sees that tone as "trusted", and opens the receiver so you can hear that station and have a conversation, but it's not private at all - anyone can hear what you're saying. This feature is just a convenience that allows your receiver to remain quiet, without hearing the rest of the mambo-jumbo you might normally hear on any given channel, but it's definitely NOT "for your ears only".
OBSERVATIONS
- Out of the box I got 4 watts output. The modification will yield almost 15.
- Transmit audio was a little low, but once I adjusted the mic gain in the Menu, it was fine (set almost to full scale).
- The VOX feature was so-so, very often not toggling the transmit function until I was already 2 words into my transmission. It's adjustable in the Menu, but I found this to be a little tricky - Too low, and some words may be lost / too high, and it was triggered by noises inside and out of the vehicle. I managed to find a balance between the extremes, and it helped greatly, but not completely (results will vary due to noise conditions inside your car/truck).
- Noise reduction was excellent, one of the best I've encountered. This works on transmit as well, and each mode has its own strength adjustment in the Menu. I used the lowest setting on each (1), and I was satisfied with the results.
- There is an external speaker jack, mounted just above the power cord in the back of the radio, which should be considered for clearer (and louder) receive audio.
- With 7 colors to choose from, just pick the one you can see best, and go with it. I chose my usual color (CYAN), and didn't have a problem seeing the information on the screen.
- The two emergency channels between channel 9, 19, and back to the last channel used. Unlike some other radios, this didn't seem to be adjustable in the menu. Channel 9 has been useless for decades.
- The LOCK feature is advisable to avoid accidentally pushing another button while holding the mic in your hand.
- Build quality is excellent!
FINAL THOUGHTS
For anyone with a new vehicle, and little room to put a full size radio, this will keep you on-the-air outside the house. It's not designed to be a full featured transceiver, but with features like noise reduction on transmit and receive, the CS-47 is better than a CB radio without it. Thinking long term, my biggest concern would be how well it would hold up after the mod is done for higher output.
The bottom cover is lightweight and doesn't seem like it would effectively distribute the heat generated by the 15 watts within its small cavity, but time will tell. I do wish it had a few other features, like memory channels, NOAA weather reception, and programmable emergency channels, but if you can buy this for $75 or less - it's a good deal. I give this a rating of: 3.5 out of 5 stars
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Going out on the proverbial limb, I wonder why there isn't a walkie-talkie or "one-hander" CB radio transceiver, with AM/FM AND SSB. With todays tiny circuit boards and surface mount components, it should be a breeze to do this.
The new breed of sideband radios that we see today tend to be rock solid on frequency, so a very inexpensive no frills entry level Sideband handheld CB radio could get away with the use of a limited Clarifier (I'm thinking of a small thumb wheel, perhaps with a button to center the frequency). I broached this subject in 2010, suggesting the same solution, and while there's been a trend to shrink sideband radios, I've yet to see a new SSB handheld or one-hander.
It would be nice to see something like this, sooner than later, or at least before we see a President "Jerry V", or "Randy VI"...
Manufacturers will reply to inquiries that new products are driven by customer demand. How much demand is there for something like this? In IMHO - PLENTY...
Thanks for spending some of your precious free time reading this Blog Post. If there wasn't an audience for this content, I wouldn't have hit the 20-year mark!! As always - to shoot me an email, just click on my name.
73
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