They're fine if you buy from the standard place on Amazon... I've never seen any review saying they are fake.
https://www.amazon.com/Authentic-NA-771-15-6-Inch-SMA-Female-BaoFeng/dp/B00KC4PWQQ
Anything sold by BaoFeng Tech on Amazon is genuine.
Authentic Genuine Nagoya NA-771 15.6-Inch Whip VHF/UHF (144/430Mhz) Antenna SMA-Female for AnyTone, BaoFeng, and Yaesu https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KC4PWQQ/
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Just match the connector that is on your radio to the antenna connector.
Assuming a consistent SWR, the two biggest considerations are 1) force applied to the antenna connector, and 2) shape of propagation. Baofengs are cheap radios, so putting a heavier antenna on the connector can risks causing damage inside. So just be extra careful if you get a long one.
And if you think of propagation like a donut, longer antennas will squish the donut flat. That means you'll have more gain directly perpendicular to the antenna, and less gain at angles above and below perpendicular. This isn't "good" or "bad," but it might be a consideration if you live along the front range of some mountains and want to have consistent coverage at ground level and to repeaters up on the peaks.
Overall though, I'm not sure there's any practical difference in getting the longer tactical ones over the shorter ones, unless you're going for a certain look. I have a couple of those just to play with, but I end up taking the NA-771 more often when I'm out and about.
As the other guy said, they would improve your reception, but they can also improve your broadcasting. This one mounts right onto the radio and is pretty good. This one is something that you can mount up high, outside your vehicle, or strapped to a pole on your house. It requires an adapter but significantly improves reception. You can get generic ones for less. Sometimes they work, sometimes they fry your radio when you try to broadcast. I’d stick with name brand.
PS, you can’t broadcast without a license, so don’t try. You can get a GMRS license for like $60 and it’s good for ten years. No test required, but a little education will increase your enjoyment by a lot. A ham license will require a test and covers different frequencies.
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I think the flightaware dongles block everything that isn't 1090mhz.
You could try buying a nagoya antenna with a suitable sma cable which would be pretty good for public safety, ametuer, business, aircraft and broadcast fm. You could also get something like this where you can adjust the antenna for the target frequency.
If you get poor results try taping to antenna to the side of your apartment and run the coax through a window. That or put it on your balcony, (if you have one).