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| Alinco DJ-MD5TGP |
The Alinco DJ-MD5T is a dual band 2M/70cm 5W analog and digital DMR handheld transceiver that is compact, lightweight and quite capable. This radio ships with one 1700mAh rechargeable battery, an OEM "high gain antenna", a charging cradle and adapter, USB programming cable, belt clip and wrist lanyard. It is FCC Part 90 approved. Frequency ranges are listed as 136.000 MHz thru 174.000 MHz, and 400.000 MHz thru 480.000 MHz. It also receives FM radio broadcasts ranging from 76.00 MHz to 108.00 MHz. A complete features listing may be found at Alinco.com, DJ-MD5T.
OVERVIEW: Please feel free to watch my basic overview video for this radio, found here. I purchased the DJ-MD5T (with GPS) shortly after it was released in the US, late August 2018. At that time, there were virtually no reviews or user-made reference materials available. This prompted me to write my own product review. Only slightly heavier and thicker than my analog Alinco DJ-500T, it's become my new everyday carry radio. PLEASE NOTE that I've mounted a Comet SMA209J sma-female antenna in place of the OEM antenna (see below photos). The Comet is a three inch 2M/70cm flexible rubber duck antenna... it's 1/4 wave on 2 meters and a 5/8 wave on 70cm. It's gain is 2.15/3.5 dBi respectively and it can handle up to 5 watts. I find it very functional, less obstructive to belt-clip carry, more cosmetically appealing and an affordable add-on to this radio.
All scores are rated 1 through 5.
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| w/ Comet SMA209J |
BUILD QUALITY (score 4): The Alinco DJ-MD5T body is comprised of a durable black plastic outer case. Seam lines are fitted together snugly and uniformly. The unit is not referenced as waterproof or water-resistant. The speaker is embedded behind the keypad panel, emitting audio through six small slots. Front panel buttons are semi-soft opaque plastic material with alpha-numerics printed onto them. Four menu navigation buttons are seated above these. The display screen is a clear plastic. The unit that I was shipped came with that same plastic screen cover slightly detached at the left lower corner. I gently removed this screen from the body (held in-place by a tacky retaining strip inside) and applied a very small dab of superglue on each inside corner and re-seated into the front panel. This seemingly fixed the issue. Top dials (channel/volume) turn and rest well and are firmly seated. The OEM antenna sits securely onto the radio, no gap or looseness to speak of. The PTT button works smoothly under ordinary pressure, as do the programmable P1 and P2 keys beneath it. The mic/programming port cover also secures snugly to the body with almost no dust entry. The battery pack is equally durable, made of the same case material and clicks neatly into place. The battery has never come detached without my pressing the battery release. The included belt clip is an optional attachment, screwed onto the battery itself. It clips firmly onto even my heaviest leather belt and it's retention spring has remained firm. I find the overall build-quality good to excellent for this affordable radio.
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| Right side DJ-MD5T |
PROGRAMMING (score 4): You may find my video tutorial
here for programming the DJ-MD5T radio via PC software. For those with an existing understanding of DMR, programming the MD5T is fairly standard and straight forward. DJ-MD5T owners may download the free OEM programming software (CPS V1.01 Utility), USB drivers and operations manuals at this
Remtronix.com page found within it's
Downloads tab. Unzipping the CPS 1.01 Utility folder reveals the clone utility .exe file (Windows only) and it's PC software guidance manual. The guidance manual offers basic instructions on software programming this radio via your PC. It does not discuss FFP (front panel programming) or DMR principals for those who are new to DMR.
A good video resource for learning about DMR basics may be found here, DMR Programming for Amateur Radio. Thank you, Mike K0NGA! For those who've purchased the DJ-MD5T, it's software is almost identical to the Anytone AT-868UV. You can easily reference many programming videos for the Anytone model on Youtube.com. One great video example comes from Chuck K0XM, How to Create a DMR Codeplug. Thank you, Chuck! I should comment that programming may be entered by either software or FFP, though front panel entry is more time consuming. When programming channels for a repeater, I do not assign a Receive Group List to my individual channels. This allows for receiving audio from any full-time or keyed-up part-time talk group on that repeater. Any DMR contacts that you may save upon your radio will later transfer to your software's Talk Groups list, rather than your Digital Contacts List (DCL), when you Read From Radio transfer to your PC. The Talk Group list is for connect to and communicating with users or groups. The software's Digital Contacts List is used simply for creating/importing/exporting a database of registered DMR user's information that will only display their personal information on-screen during their transmissions (ID number, name, callsign, location, etc). Those operators listed under your DCL do not appear in your Contacts list within the radio's menu. As such, any contacts that you wish to select for QSOs within your HT menu's Contact list (for private or group calls) should be added to your Talk Groups list in your software when transferring back to your radio via Write To Radio. You can FPP talk groups into your radio via the radio's Contact menu option. Be sure that when you add a TG this way (Menu > Contacts > New Cont > ID) that you toggle from Private ID to Group ID using the "#" hash-key on the front panel.
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| Left side DJ-MD5T |
FUNCTIONALITY (score 5): The DJ-MD5T's transmit audio quality in both analog and digital have been reported as excellent. TX power can be adjusted to four levels; 0.2W, 1W, 2.5W and 5W. On 5W setting, I can generally hit repeaters in my area up to about 25 miles away on 5W. I have not tested radio-to-radio simplex ranges in either analog or digital mode, or operated this radio via a hotspot. Receive audio quality is also quite good. Though the MD5T does not have superheterodyne, it's RX sensitivity parameters exceed my personal expectations. I've noticed that when receiving transmissions in analog-mode I hear a soft clicking in the background of the received signal, which turns out to be the tempo of the display clock ticking off seconds. It's barely noticable (though odd) and no reports of this clicking in any TX reports. This soft clicking does not arise in digital mode. The 1W built-in speaker sound is clear and well-rounded. Volume may be adjusted incrementally from 0 though 8. It's actually quite loud at maximum volume 8 with only about ~10% or less distortion. At volume setting 1, it remains fairly audible in a quiet room or area. The display is a full color 1.77" enclosed screen. The programming software allows you customize your on-screen boot-up to your name/callsign (or whatever fits) or to a custom image, roughly 520 x 760 (found under Tool>Boot Image). You can adjust the display's duration and back-lighting level. Programming can be done though software and FPP (see Programming section above). This radio stores up to 250 zones and scan lists, 250 user ID numbers, 250 receive groups, 4,000 channels in any combination of analog/digital VHF/UHF, 10,000 talk groups, 160,000 digital contacts, 100 prefabbed/customized text messages and 100 programmable FM radio broadcast channels. On-screen channel names may be customized to taste, within the limits of the display size. The DJ-MD5T can operate in dual-watch mode in combinations of analog or digital Memory/VFO/FM Music. It also allows for DigiMoni (aka promiscous) mode settings for either TS1/TS2 or both slots. Internal VOX works well, should you care for that option, and has no notable depreciation of audio quality in my experience. Scan mode runs through stored channels at about three per second, and has adjustable scan-pause-time options. VFO scan mode can be adjusted by setting the steps increments from 2.5k up to 50k. I do not bother with digital (DMR) scan lists on repeaters.
Power is provide by the OEM LI-ion 1700mAh rechargeable battery, good for 300+ recharge cycles (and more with partial discharge uses only). It is not necessary to completely deplete (condition) the LI-ion battery during it's first uses. I've operated this radio nearly 48 hours in always-on monitor mode with light to moderate QSOs and retained about 25% battery life at the end. This radio also comes with 32 encryption encode adjustable presets, though I remind operators that encrypted HAM transmissions are unlawful on amateur bands. The variation I own is a DJ-MD5TGP, which has GPS, which simply triangulates and can display radio position but does not connect to networks in any way.
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| Back of DJ-MD5T |
VALUE (score 5): At the time I'd purchased the Alinco DJ-MD5TGP, it was priced at $169.95 on Ham Radio Outlet's website. There is a variation that does not possess GPS, the DJ-MD5T, which was/is priced at $149.95. You don't need GPS to operate DMR networks. It's merely an option should you wish. Of course, there are other respected vendor sources for this radio, such as DXEnginering.com, Remtronix.com and Gigapart.com where prices and availability may vary. I feel this an excellent value for a dual-band analog/digital DMR HT for it's many features... compact size, attractive appearance, sturdy case, great battery life, a full-color screen, free user-friendly software, great performance. Consumer availability seems spotty at the time of this post, perhaps due to an unexpected demand versus initial production numbers. I can understand why. It's an excellent radio overall. It has much to offer at it's current price point and, as it is Japanese assembled, the MD5T may avoid the added tariff costs that it's Chinese manufactured competitors have begun to endure. As of 2018, just two months after it's initial release, I would have to say that it's a worthy competitor in a growing DMR marketplace.
CONCLUSION: My overall score is 4.5. I do recommend the Alinco DJ-MD5T, and DJ-MD5TGP. It's exceeded my expectations for an affordable analog/DMR HT radio. For those new to and veterans of amateur radio, this HT is an affordable, capable and attractive radio. Alinco has earned my respect with two excellent HT radios and has made me a fan of the Alinco product line in general. Should you purchase this radio, I hope that you enjoy it as much as I have. I'm glad to have shared my user experience with you here and wish you all the best. Please check back for updates and upcoming videos related to products reviewed on this site.
73,
Patrick, K3NYJ
Disclaimer: All content presented on this site are subjective and solely representative of personal ownership experience and individual understanding of said products and related subject matter described herein. Any and all representations, descriptions and commentaries posted herein are offered from opinion and should not be regarded as expert affidavit or testimony, or as a manufacturer's statement in any way. Please consult with product manufacturers and their approved sources for complete details, specifications and applicable warranties of all products described herein. All photos presented herein are property of this site's moderator and are not public domain.
