I don't have a license yet, but I went ahead and bought a UV-5R to see what kind of stuff I could pick up and hopefully motivate me to keep studying so I can push the PTT button at some point.
I went ahead and bought a Nagoya NA-771 whip antenna to go with it at the suggestion of a couple articles I read and reviews on Amazon. From what I can tell so far, the longer antenna doesn't seem to make any difference. I haven't done any really scientific testing with it, but if I hear someone talking, I'll swap the antennas back and forth and I don't seem to get any clearer reception with the upgraded one. I've also noticed it doesn't screw in as far as the stock antenna, although it definitely makes a connection, because the reception will disappear if I start to unscrew it.
Supposedly there are counterfeit versions, but it looks like I got the real thing.
Does anybody have experience with this antenna or have any advice on whether I should keep it? Trying to get this figured out before the return window closes on Amazon.
Thanks!