Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Gareth Buxton, who writes:
I “watch” the Anon-Co new additions page for changes and this morning I received an update that the PL-365 has been added. I think they only used to stock the non-usb Pl-360 version.
Click here to view the PL-365 page at Anon-Co.
Thanks for the tip, Gareth! The PL-365 is a very sensitive portable receiver and one of the least expensive with a proper SSB mode. I’m happy Anon-Co has added them to their inventory.
I purchased the PL-365 just as everyone was going into hiding during the Covid quarantine. During the ensuing months of ownership it has not particularly impressed me. The vendors would do well to place a reference by the side of the unit so dimensioning is more apparent. The big attraction was the SSB mode as I was hoping to use the unit for listening to adjacent frequencies of interest in the same band of operation with a transceiver.
So here are my complaints about the radio:
Small buttons – just about the right size for a two year old kid.
Small lettering for labels. Carry around a magnifying glass or memorize the buttons.
To many nested functions requiring multiple key presses. It is not a radio that you place on the shelf
for a month and return to use without a re-learning curve.
Setting frequency steps and quickly changing from one step to another is cumbersome.
Its a battery killer. In the few months of ownership I have replaced the batteries three times and maybe used the radio a total of three hours.
Telescoping whip antenna is a child’s toy. Has no resistance to bending. Mine is still in excellent condition but it is not something you dare leave extended when idle.
Sensitivity is fair and given the antenna it seems like it is doing as well as can be expected.
S-meter is disabled in Single Sideband mode.
On my scale of 1 to 10 with 1 being the lowest possible rating I give the radio a 2.5. It works. But in my opinion it is more a Mattel toy than a receiver.
I have the exact same radio badged under the “County Comm” name , model GP-5/SSB and its a stellar receiver. Solid on shortwave and ssb but i found where it really hits its stride is in MW DX’ing. The ETM function is a godsend. For about $100 you just can’t go wrong.