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4.7

455 product ratings

371 users rated this 5 out of 5 stars
48 users rated this 4 out of 5 stars
15 users rated this 3 out of 5 stars
9 users rated this 2 out of 5 stars
12 users rated this 1 out of 5 stars

Would recommend

Good value

Good quality

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See all 331 reviews

by n8xyn
Jul 31, 2016Top favorable review
Great performance for the price.
I have used a few of the rtl based dongles over the past couple years, I also own a Funcube Pro+. This is the best performing device of it's type I've used other then the Funcube which was $200.00. The only thing the Funcube does better is out of band rejection because it has switched filters and the low frequencies. I really like the band width and the metal housing seems to reduce the number of spurs also helps with heat dissipation. All in all a great value.
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
by fsfan350
Mar 05, 2019Top critical review
RTL-SDR radio good for a first step
Any illusion that this SDR would replace a dedicated communications radio, should be put to rest. Yes, the very low cost is attractive, but just understand that there's a reason why a good receiver costs many hundreds of dollars. For the curious, the RTL-SDR dongle is a nice place to start, plus there's several FREE software SDR programs out there that do a nice job. The most important thing that must be understood, it that these SDR's perform well, but MUST be paired with a good quality OUTSIDE antenna(s) to get its full potential (as limited as it may be) realized. Recommended for a first and (relatively) inexpensive step into the radio hobby.
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
by hboc2010
Aug 25, 2020
Awesome little jewel, RTLSDR V3 has a nice performance and better coverage than many brand receivers.
If you want a good reception using this dongle, invest in your antenna. For me, a long wire antenna is the secret to receive all sort of signals, from HF, VHF, UHF, FM, AM, hamradio, broacasting, police, firesquad, aviation, acars, ADS-B, satellites, etc. I use the RTL-SDR V3 with SDR Sharp program in my PC. It is easy to install and configure. All information is available on internet.
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
by 5091kelvin
Oct 31, 2019
Cheap gereral band radio allmodes
i was very pleased how well this worked and the ham bands it covered set up wasn't easy but also not hard. learning to use it was harder but the user guide was helpful once mastered it will be a very useful item as the yanks put it bangs per buck i would recomend it to anyone with a interest in radio.
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
by lmjc6802721
Jul 30, 2017
GREAT SDR RECEIVER
I bought 3 of these devices. Enclosed in an aluminum case they are very stable and are used for a local P25 trucked system and for aircraft plotting. They run off an internal window antenna since I live in an apartment and d well. These are far better than the early SDR dongles that needed offests set in the software. If you want to experiment with SDR (software defined radio) this is the SDR to purchase!
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
by drmcitw
Mar 18, 2018
Very cool
Software defined radio hardware has been refined with this unit. Any SDR dongle will get fairly warm while using. This one is aluminum, so it pulls heat away from the RTL chip. That being said, it gets warm. I’m using mine with an older Win7 laptop. 4 gIgs of RAM. Nothing fancy. I’ve tried HF with it, but have had almost no success. To be fair, I’m not using a converter either. Only a balun and longwire antenna. Most reception I’m finding is from the FM broadcast band to the upper 400’s. I scan around above that, but haven’t caught anything yet. I’m using an old RS discone antenna with RG-58U coax and a pigtail adapter. My antenna is about 30 feet up and I’m 25 miles away from Fort Worth Texas. This is a great dongle to start messing around with. The RTL-SDR website has a step by step quick start page with an FAQ and a troubleshooting guide. There’s a TON of information out there. There’s even a Reddit section called RTLSDR.
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
by 8455graeme
Jun 26, 2018
great entry level device
I bought this product to replace a version 2 rtlsdr which does not work anymore . The quality of this product is excellent. The bias-tee can be switched on-off using the software option which you could not do with version 2. This is handy if you want to power e.g a lna (low noise amplifier) through the rtl-sdr dongle. The version 3 runs 24/7 without any problems on the aviation band picking up acars on 131.725mhz. On the L Band there are no heat issues and the signal remains stable and does not drift. Overall this product is an excellent entry level rtl-sdr for all types of listening . Price is excellent too. If you want to get started in this hobby on a budget i would recommend this product .
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
by eduarbakke_0
Dec 07, 2021
Good working Device
At this moment I use this SDR for observing DAB radio in the west of the Netherlands (Randstad & Flevoland) for the stations I'm helping like Oldies Radio and Dance Radio. But I'm still looking for good working software to use this SDR as Spectrum Analyzer for Shortwave (connected to an ALA loop) and VHF observations (connected to a Log Per for 150 to 225 MHz). All reviews concerning the interfacing software are a bit confusing. So please send me some information where to find the right proper working software and interface dll's for Windows 10. More difficult will be finding the right software for a Samsung Tablet Tab S6 Lite with the newest Android installed. I'm also looking for the right OTG USB Cable to connect the Tab S 6 Lite to this RTL SDR. Please inform. Best Regards, Eduard Bakker
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
by aa0oiham
Apr 25, 2018
Windows ony, not for Pi
This works excellent BUT read carefully that this is a V2 and NOT a V3. This does not do well receiving the HF bands (Ham radio).. Buy the V3 if you want the ham bands. You can buy a "up converter" (39.95 that will change this to the ham bands. (even the V3 only does fair with the HF spectrum). If you are buying this for a Raspberry Pi (any) the performance is very poor.. can only receive FM radio and a little of the CB band. (and that's with a full wave dipole) other than that it is pretty much useless for SW listening) That's on the Pi and GQRX software. ON windows computer it will work excellent. The only other thing I can say is that its a little Heavy, pulls on the USB port and I'm sure after a while it will screw it up.
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
by 2013surgeon
Jan 17, 2018
Best value-4-money if you are a newbe radio amateur.,
Is to be recommend to anyone who does not have special requirements for high noise characteristics and high RF input signal behaviour. For a few box you get a radio that receives from considerable low to very high frequencies, with an excellent frequency stability. The possibilities (=RF specs) are enclosed in the SDR module. The limitations are embedded in the free accessible software.I use HDSDR. You can get better SDR radios but with a price tag of < fifty fold!!! > this purchsing price
Verified purchase: YesCondition: New

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RTL-SDR Blog V3 R820T2 RTL2832U 1PPM TCXO SMA Software Defined Radio

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Ratings and Reviews

Most relevant reviews

Great performance for the price.

RTL-SDR radio good for a first step

Awesome little jewel, RTLSDR V3 has a nice performance and better coverage than many brand receivers.

Cheap gereral band radio allmodes

GREAT SDR RECEIVER

Very cool

great entry level device

Good working Device

Windows ony, not for Pi

Best value-4-money if you are a newbe radio amateur.,

Best Selling in Ham Radio Receivers

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