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Well, after watching many reviews on this radio, I decided to get one, actually two of them. Both radios arrived intact, but oddly enough one (radio) box was moderately damaged, yet the bigger box that the two radios were shipped in was undamaged. I can only surmise that somebody at the dealer packed a damaged, or actually damaged, the one radio box. Enough about that, the radio itself was again, undamaged (Thankfully). Shipping issues aside, my first impression of this radio is "WOW". I have owned many different radios in my days, but this one is extremely nice. So much so, I wanted to see if Wouxun makes a version of this radio for amateur radio (they do!) and I am thinking about it. To be sure, I have not been a fan of Chinese radios, but this one is, IMHO, a standout exception. I dunno, perhaps after the big FCC stink about Chinese radios, Wouxun at least, seems to have their act together on this one. I did do a power output check, but rather than say something stupid that isn't true, I'm going to rerun the test with better equipment before saying anything, as I don't trust the meter I used at the time. Programming is straightforward using either the menu system on the radio or the software. I did however, find some quirks with programming. Some items, such as the programmable function (side) buttons can be changed through the menu system on the radio. However, those changes only seem to take with the PC software. Some did take, but then could not be reverted back to their previous settings via the menu system. Not all the settings to be sure and, it isn't (to me) a big deal as I prefer the PC software to the menu. But it is a quirk just the same IMHO. Additionally, and perhaps it is something with Windows, the PC software only recognizes/lets the user select com port 1, despite having a listing of choices of com port. I don't know if it the software, or yet another Microsoft bug. Nevertheless, this issue was easily overcome by manually changing the assigned com port in windows. All that said, this is a damn good radio for the price! I wanted a 'legal' GMRS radio, but this one's features leave me wishing it could transmit throughout the receiving range! It really is that nice. ?

Ok, this is not a review per se. I can review some Alinco ham radios if you like, since I currently have them in VHF/UHF mobile, VHF handheld, and HF/6M mobile form. Suffice to say that Alinco makes some great radios. They really don't get the respect they deserve. Having said that, the point of this thread is to let you guys know about some radios you might not be aware of. They are Part 90; AFAIK they don't carry Part 95. What you do with that is up to you; I think that subject has been pretty well hashed and thrashed. Also, with either of these two rigs you will have to buy the programming cable and software. That will cost you an additional $45 or so. HRO (Ham Radio Outlet) has both of these. Probably some other sellers do as well. The DJ-A40T is a 5 watt, 128 channel handheld. It is currently about $90. The DR-438 is a 45 watt, 200 channel mobile rig. Its price is about $250. If you check them out at the Alinco USA website, you can download pdf brochures, owner's manuals and even (in the case of some of the amateur radios) service manuals, free of charge! Note that the DR-438 is about the same price as the MXT400, and it absolutely blows it out of the water. Of course, like I said you do have to buy the programming cable and software, and there's the whole Part 90 thing. Note that I'm not recommending that you use Part 90 radios on GMRS. Refer to the sticky notification at the top of this section, if you have any questions about that. Btw, no I don't work for Alinco. I used to be in the radio business, but no longer.