In 2021, the 15 best software-defined radios (SDRs) for any budget
Choosing a software-defined radio SDR device can be overwhelming due to the variety of products available. We searched online for 15 SDR devices to make your selection process easier!
So what are the best SDR receivers or transceivers of 2021? The answer is… complex! There are many factors at play when choosing an SDR radio. Frequency range, transmission/reception capabilities, complexity, available firmware and open-source projects, and of course, cost! Below is a list of outstanding SDR radio devices covering this diverse spectrum, and we hope anyone interested in software-defined radio can find something suitable for them.
No more delays, here is our list of the 15 software-defined radios released in 2021!
1. HackRF One Software Defined Radio (SDR), ANT500 and SMA Antenna Adapter Kit
HackRF One is one of the most powerful and well-supported SDRs on our list, which is why we list it first. The HackRF One software-defined radio is capable of transmitting and receiving (Tx/Rx) frequencies from 1MHz to 6GHz.
NooElec HackRF One Software Defined Radio (SDR), ANT500 and SMA Antenna Adapter Kit
Although HackRF One SDR can both transmit and receive, it is only half-duplex, meaning it can either send or receive, but not both simultaneously. This bundle includes everything you need to get your SDR up and running: adapters to connect various antennas to the HackRF One, including F connectors, N connectors, BNC, and PAL antennas. Here is additional information from the vendor describing the HackRF One SDR radio.
Great Scott Gadgets’ HackRF One is a software-defined radio peripheral capable of transmitting or receiving radio signals from 1 MHz to 6 GHz. HackRF One is designed to support the testing and development of modern and next-generation radio technologies; it is an open-source hardware platform that can be used as a USB peripheral or programmed for standalone operation.
Operating frequency from 1 MHz to 6 GHz
Half-duplex transceiver
Up to 20 million samples per second
8-bit quadrature sampling (8 bits I and 8 bits Q)
Compatible with GNU Radio, SDR# etc.
Software-configurable RX and TX gain and baseband filter
Software-controlled antenna port power (50 mA at 3.3 V)
SMA female antenna connector
SMA female clock input and output for synchronization
Convenient programming button
Internal expansion pins
High-speed USB 2.0
USB powered
Open-source hardware
2. Nooelec NESDR Smart HF Kit
Nooelec NESDR Smart HF Kit
The Nooelec NESDR Smart HF bundle is a complete and affordable toolkit that includes everything needed to receive HF bands.
The kit includes the Nooelec NESDR radio, Ham It Up converter, three different antennas, an impedance matching unbalanced transformer, and interconnect adapters. The Nooelec NESDR Smart SDR combined with the Ham It Up upconverter will give this device a working frequency range of 100kHz to 1.7GHz.
3. RTL-SDR BLOG V3 R820T2 RTL2832U 1PPM TCXO HF Calibrated Tee SMA Software Defined Radio with Dipole Antenna Kit
If HackRF One is the most feature-rich, then RTL-SDR is the most affordable. Followers are almost cult-like, and there are many forums and sites to help you quickly listen to RTL-SDR software-defined broadcasts. RTL-SDR can only receive and cannot transmit; it is based on the RTL2832U ADC chip. It also contains an R820T2 tuner, a 1PPM TCXO (with good stability), and an SMA connector for the antenna port.
RTL-SDR BLOG V3 R820T2 RTL2832U 1PPM TCXO HF Calibrated Tee SMA Software Defined Radio with Dipole Antenna Kit
RTL-SDR is the perfect budget software radio for many applications such as general radio scanning, air traffic control, public safety, ADS-B aircraft radar, ACARS, relay radio, P25 / MotoTRBO digital voice, POCSAG, weather balloons, APRS, NOAA APT / meteorological satellites, radio astronomy, DAB.
This RTL-SDR radio kit includes antennas and other useful peripherals. Depending on your familiarity with software radio, you may also want to get a copy of this informative RTL-SDR guide.
4. Nooelec NESDR Smart v4 with Aluminum Case
Nooelec NESDR Smart SDR with Aluminum Case
Nooelec NESDR Smart is an advanced SDR capable of receiving RF signals from 25MHz to 1.7GHz. The design of this SDR radio makes it almost immune to interference from adjacent USB-compatible devices (like Raspberry Pi) during operation.
This Nooelec Radio is similar to the bundle above but lacks the upconverter (and at a higher price). Another advantage of this budget SDR drill is that it includes a TCXO with ultra-low phase noise and 0.5PPM stability.
5. ADALM-Pluto SDR Software Defined Radio Active Learning Module PlutoSDR
Analog Devices ADALM-Pluto SDR Software Defined Radio Active Learning Module PlutoSDR
ADALM-Pluto SDR is a heavy hitter and a good option for those looking for a software radio that can transmit and receive. ADALM-Pluto is newer than some of the other SDRs on this list, so it does not yet have a rich ecosystem supporting this broadcast. Here are some features of the ADALM-Pluto SDR:
Based on ADI’s AD9363 – highly integrated RF agile transceiver and Xilinx Zynq Z-7010 FPGA
Portable standalone RF learning module with a cost-effective experimental platform
RF coverage from 325 MHz to 3.8 GHz. Up to 20 MHz instantaneous bandwidth. Flexible rates, 12-bit ADC and DAC. One transmitter and one receiver, half-duplex or full-duplex
MATLAB, Simulink support. GNU Radio receiver and source blocks. libiio, a C, C++, C#, and Python API
USB 2.0 powered interface with a Micro-USB 2.0 connector, high-quality plastic casing
6. SDRPlay RSPduo Dual Band 1kHz-2GHz SDR Receiver
SDRPlay RSPduo Software Defined Radio
SDRplay RSPduo is an excellent software-defined radio option for users looking for a radio that works in Windows environments. The RF frequency range of SDRplay is from 1kHz to 2GHz. It also has a 14-bit resolution. This model has three independent antenna inputs, each of which can be selected via software. SDRplay only receives but is very suitable for industrial, scientific, and educational purposes. With the available and documented APIs, software-defined radio developers can create their own demodulators. Speaking of good documentation, SDRplay is becoming increasingly popular, so there are also more and more users providing support.
Advantages of SDRplay:
Simultaneously receive any value from 1kHz to 2GHz on two completely independent 2MHz spectrum windows
Processing with two antennas simultaneously allows for direction finding, diversity, and noise reduction applications
Covers all frequencies from 1kHz to VLF, LF, MW, HF, VHF, UHF, and L band up to 2GHz without gaps
Receive, monitor, and record up to 10MHz of spectrum at once (monotuner mode)
External clock input and output for synchronization purposes, or connect to GPS reference clock
SDRuno calibrated S meter/RF power and SNR measurements (including the ability to log data to .CSV files)
Ideal choice for portable monitoring of ISM / IoT / telemetry bands <2GHz
7. Great Scott Ubertooth Kit
Great Scott Ubertooth
Great Scott Ubertooth One is a streamlined SDR, one of the smallest packages capable of receiving and transmitting RF signals up to 2.4GHz. The kit includes the radio, housing, and antenna.
The application software is intuitive and easy to use, and the native has excellent receiver sensitivity and transmission power. This microcontroller is based on ARM Cortex-M3 and supports full-speed USB 2.0. For users looking to develop custom Class 1 devices, Ubertooth One is a great development tool. Ubertooth is fully open-source (including hardware and software).
8. Original LimeSDR
Original LimeSDR Software Defined Radio Development Board with 61.44MHz Bandwidth
For those only pursuing basic functionality, the original LimeSDR is a very popular choice. The LimeSDR software-defined radio offers transmission and reception capabilities across a frequency range of 100kHz to 3.8GHz. LimeSDR has a wide frequency range and can transmit and receive UMTS, LTE, GSM, LoRa, Bluetooth, Zigbee, RFID, and digital broadcasting, to name a few.
LimeSDR is also very approachable, with a strong developer community and “apps” that can be installed, thanks to the Snappy Ubuntu Core running on this general-purpose software-defined radio.
9. LimeSDR Mini
Manufacturer’s instructions on the website
LimeSDR-USB and Mini_1
LimeSDR and LimeSDR Mini are members of the same series of software radios. One cannot replace the other. Instead, they are complementary.
In short, LimeSDR Mini is a smaller, cheaper version of the original LimeSDR. However, it still packs a punch – LimeSDR Mini uses the same radio transceiver as its larger counterpart, LMS7002M, at its core. The Mini has two channels instead of four and has SMA connectors instead of micro U.FL connectors, and features Intel’s MAX 10 FPGA based on general demand.
We have shipped thousands of LimeSDR Mini boards, as well as thousands of larger LimeSDR boards. Both are built on the same supply chain, development tools, and community, making software-defined radio more accessible than ever.
10. USRP B205mini-i Platform
USRP B205mini-i SDR Platform
USRP B205mini-i SDR platform is a high-performance SDR platform capable of transmitting and receiving signals up to 6GHz.
USRP B205mini-i has one transmit channel and one receive channel, with a frequency range of 70MHz to 6GHz. Up to 56MHz of instantaneous bandwidth allows for broadband operation of many different waveforms. For external synchronization, a 10MHz external reference clock or 1 PPS (pulse per second) reference can be used.
11. Ettus B200 SDR
Ettus B200 SDR Software Defined Radio
USRP B200 provides a fully integrated single-board general-purpose software radio peripheral platform with a continuous frequency coverage range of 70 MHz – 6 GHz. It is designed for low-cost experimentation, combining a fully integrated direct conversion transceiver that provides up to 56MHz of real-time bandwidth, an open and reprogrammable Spartan6 FPGA, and a fast and convenient bus-powered SuperSpeed USB 3.0 connection. Comprehensive support for UHD (USRP Hardware Driver) software allows you to get started using GNU Radio for development, prototype your own GSM base station with OpenBTS, and seamlessly transition code from B200 to higher-performance, industry-ready USRP platforms.
12. Ettus B210 SDR
USRP B210 (Mainboard Only)
USRP B210 provides a fully integrated single-board general-purpose software radio peripheral (USRP™) platform with a continuous frequency coverage range of 70 MHz – 6 GHz. It is designed for low-cost experimentation, combining an AD9361 RFIC direct conversion transceiver that provides up to 56MHz of real-time bandwidth, an open and reprogrammable Spartan6 FPGA, fast SuperSpeed USB 3.0 connection, and convenient bus power. Comprehensive support for USRP Hardware Driver (UHD) software allows you to get started using GNU Radio for development, prototype your own GSM base station with OpenBTS, and seamlessly transition code from USRP B210 to high-performance, industry-ready USRP platforms.
13. BladeRF X40 Software Defined Radio
BladeRF X40 Software Defined Radio
Out of the box, bladeRF can tune from 300MHz to 3.8GHz without additional boards. With open-source software like GNURadio (real-time imaging), bladeRF can be put to use immediately. With its flexible hardware and software, bladeRF can be configured to act as a custom RF modem, GSM and LTE microcell, GPS receiver, ATSC transmitter, or Bluetooth/WiFi combo client without any expansion cards. All BladeRF host software, firmware, and HDL are open-source and available on GitHub.
Highlights:
Full-duplex 40MSPS 12-bit quadrature sampling
Factory calibrated VCTCXO tuned to 1Hz range at 38.4 MHz
Removable cap RF shielding layer for improved system sensitivity and isolation
Flexible clock architecture for arbitrary sampling rates
GPIO expansion port
SPI flash memory for headless operation
Extended frequency coverage with the XB-200 adapter
Typical +6dBm TX power
14. YARD Stick One SDR USB Transceiver
YARD Stick One SDR
The YARD (Yet Another Radio Dongle) Stick One is a small bare-board SDR transceiver designed for frequencies below 1GHz. The unit has an integrated receiver amplifier and transmitter amplifier, as well as an integrated bias tee for powering antenna port attachments.
This specific bundle includes a 915MHz SMA antenna. If you are looking for a low-cost transceiver capable of transmitting and receiving popular unlicensed frequency bands.
15. Icom IC-7610 HF / 50MHz 100W Transceiver
Icom IC-7610 HF / 50MHz 100W Transceiver – the SDR everyone wants
The new IC-7610 makes weak signals no longer a challenge for DXers and competitors worldwide. The difference between logging a QSO or trying for a different time is the receiver’s capability. Even in the presence of stronger adjacent signals, the high-performance RMDR in the IC-7610 can pick out the faintest signals. The IC-7610 introduces a dual RF direct sampling receiver. These receivers can achieve 100dB RMDR, comparable to other top transceivers. The IC-7610 also features a high-speed, high-resolution, real-time spectral oscilloscope on a 7-inch color display.
Output power: 100W (25W AM)
Receiving frequency: 0.030-60.00MHz
Receiver type: direct sampling
RF direct sampling system
The IC-7610 utilizes an RF direct sampling system where RF signals are directly converted to digital data, which is then processed by an FPGA (field-programmable gate array). This process reduces distortion naturally occurring in the various mixer stages found in traditional superheterodyne receivers.
The RF direct sampling system in the IC-7610 has the capability of 110 dB * RMDR. This performance allows you to pull weak signals out of the noise from strong adjacent signals. When the desired signal comes out of the pile, you can actually hear the difference!
After reading this, do you have a clearer idea about choosing an SDR device?
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