I was thinking / wondering the same. Many new HAM operators get handheld radios that use the 144MHz (2 meter) and 440MHz (70 cm) bands. Both of these seem to be within range of this device. You can also build a dipole antenna for these frequencies for a few dollars. That would allow many of us to listen to repeaters in our local area. RepeaterBook.com (or the mobile app) is a good resource for listing repeaters near you.

I haven't had time to write much detail about this but here's an antenna I built recently. A quick google search will bring up dozens of other designs.

https://www.joeldare.com/topics/amateur-radio/#gift-card-dip...