I bought this well known low cost radio out of curiosity. I wanted to know if the quality of the branded radio would be preserved at a price that could compete with cheap Chinese radios.
The same chip is used in both series. The FT-4X is built similarly to the Baofeng K61 on the SDR platform, so forget about a proper, honest superheterodyne. You can find it in the FT-70D model, for example. If I had to compare the radios, the K61 is bigger, heavier and quieter. The FT-4X is smaller, prettier and the main advantage is that filters are used at the input to the receiver. The FT-4X has a small display and it is not possible to have two frequencies tuned to it at the same time. That is probably the biggest visual difference.
 YAESU FT-4X |  BAOFENG K61 |
Yaesu has a really well-functioning and well-designed menu, I definitely like that much more than on the K61 where the menu seems totally chaotic.
The K61 has a much longer battery life, the FT-4X doesn’t have that long of a battery life, but it’s much better than the FT-70D. And finally, the most important thing. Yaesu tried to make a radio that should compete with cheap Chinese products. The price of the FT-4X climbed to somewhere just under 100 euros, which doesn’t make it much more competitive. For example, the FT-4X doesn’t have airband, which the K61 has, although it’s some kind of strange AM, but it works. The sound is a bit hoarse, but as a listening device it’s enough.
I like Yaesu radios, but if I had to choose between the FT-4X and the K61, I would choose the K61. Although it doesn’t have input filters and a nice menu like the FT-4X, the pleasure of operating the K61 is much greater.
