On Tue, Jun 6, 2023 at 03:27 PM, Edward Stavin VE3VYT wrote:

Newbie here. I am interested in testing antennas for resonance and swr. 80m
to 70cm. Both indoors and outdoors. I was thinking of buying an entry level
antenna analyzer. Several helpful people suggested getting a nanovna instead
as it was said to have a cheap price ($60ish) and extensive capabilities.

I own several NanoVNA's, a RigExpert AA55-Zoom and a MFJ-259. They are listed according to ease of use.

If all you want to do is measure antennas and SWR up to 70 cm your best choice is a RigExpert product that goes to the maximum frequency that you are interested in. They are much easier to use than a NanoVNA (which has a much steeper learning curve), are more rugged and easier to read in sunlight. However they are much more expensive (3 to 4x) especially if you want to go up to 450 MHz.

The NanoVNA on the other hand has many more features and capability but takes a little effort to learn. It is also much lower cost. For what you want to do I suggest a NanoVNA-H4 from Amazon Canada. It has a 4" screen and for ten dollars more is much better option than the older 2.8" screen version. The -H4 is well supported in this group and the firmware is continually updated with new features. This one has good reviews. If you order it you can check it over to see if it is a genuine "Hugen" manufactured product and if not just return it.

https://www.amazon.ca/NanoVNA-H4-Analyzer-10KHz-1-5GHz-Measuring-Parameters/dp/B085CFHTBM/ref=sr_1_27?keywords=AURSINC&qid=1686093817&sr=8-27&th=1

Roger