RadioRanked verdict
ABBREE
ABBREE AR-805S Stubby (SMA-Female)
Buy this for size, not signal. It is a legitimate stubby for pocket carry, but the gain claim is fiction and it will underperform even the antenna that came with your radio.
Proprietary RR score
How we scored it
Performance is derived from the antenna's length in wavelengths on each band it covers, not from the advertised gain. How we score →
Length versus wavelength
What 50 mm Buys You
An antenna radiates according to its length measured in wavelengths, not according to the number on the packaging. Here is where this one lands on each band it covers.
| Band | Wavelength | This antenna | Works out as |
|---|---|---|---|
| VHF146 MHz | 2053 mm | 0.02 λ | electrically short |
| UHF435 MHz | 689 mm | 0.07 λ | electrically short |
On the advertised gain. This listing claims 3 dBi. An element of 50 mm can support roughly -4.9 dBi on its best band, so the claim runs about 7.9 dB ahead of what the dimensions allow.
Vendors quote peak figures under favourable assumptions and often copy a supplier's number, so treat this as a reason to ignore the gain figure rather than to distrust the antenna.
Decision helper
Is this antenna right for you?
Yes, if you're…
- ✓Short-range simplex chat where bulk matters more than reach
- ✓Keeping a handheld compact for everyday carry
Skip it, if you're…
- ✕Anyone trying to improve range over a stock antenna
- ✕Repeater work at the edge of coverage
Tradeoffs
The good and the bad
What we like
- Extremely compact, barely protrudes from the radio
- Cheap
- Comfortable for everyday carry or a pocket
What we don't
- Real-world range is well below a standard rubber duck, let alone an upgrade whip
- The advertised 3 dBi gain is not physically supportable at this length
- Weak on both 2m and 70cm
Ready to buy?
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Overview
The AR-805S is a 2-inch stubby whip with an SMA-Female connector, built for Baofeng-style handhelds. At 50mm long it is one of the shortest antennas we carry data for, roughly a quarter the length of a standard 15-inch whip, and it currently sells for under $7.
The physics here are not kind. At 50mm, this antenna measures about 0.02 wavelengths on 2m and 0.07 wavelengths on 70cm, both well inside the range where an antenna is electrically short and genuinely lossy; the model puts realistic gain around -9 dBi on 2m and roughly -5 dBi on 70cm. The listing's 3 dBi gain claim is not something a whip this short can produce, by a wide margin, so treat it as marketing copy rather than a spec. This is a convenience antenna: buy it to keep a radio compact on a belt or in a bag for line-of-sight chatter, not to extend your range.
Specifications
| Frequency bands | VHF, UHF |
| Gain | 3.00 dBi |
| Connector | SMA-Female |
| Length | 50 mm |
| Antenna type | whip |
| Flexible | Yes |
| color | Black |
| unitCount | 2 |
Fits These Radios
Radios we track that take a SMA-Female antenna and cover this antenna's bands. Top-scoring picks first.
Key Features
- No Distance Worry: High Gain Long Range Antenna to increase the communication distance and make your conversation smoother.
- More Features:Frequency: 144/430MHz，Gain(MAX): 2.15dBi/3.0dBi；Max Power: 10W；Color: Black；Inpedance: 50 OHM；Connector: SMA-Female
- Mini Size:The length 1.96Inch of the mini size design allows you to carry it easily；
- Applicable Model:Compatible with Ham Radio Baofeng UV5R 5RM BF-F8HP PRO,AR-152,K5 PLUS,BF-888S,GM-15 PRO,UV-21R,GM21,UV-K5 TD-H8,TD-H3 Two Way Radio
- Package Includel:2XAR-805S Antenna