We want something that is good for distance. But for sure the advertisements are misleading. If you buy one that says it is good for 35 miles, you can expect them to be good for maybe 1/4-1/2 mile unless you are really out in the open. That is not what we want. Our problem is that we live in the woods. We can not depend upon our cell phone because we just do not have decent coverage and in most spots on our property we can't get squat. We also have some good Midland radios and they work maybe up to 1/4 mile. We want some good 2 way radios that will work, say, up to a mile. Anyone have ideas?
I have been using Motorola MH series radios. They claim 23 mile range and I have used them at about 20 miles. I will admit that was line-of-sight, mountain top to mountain top in the middle of nowhere VT (there was little other radio interference). We have 4 units and use them when hiking, usually in Vermont around Ludlow. We will park the car and split up to explore, checking in about every half hour so we don't get too far separated. We use them to link up again for lunch or re-group to head home. We normally expect and are successful, in the hills, at about 5 miles. Occasionally, as described above, they have work well at longer distance line-of-sight. They came with re-chargeable battery packs but they only lasted two seasons before they wouldn't take a full charge. We now use good quality AAA alkaline and they last pretty well. Keeping a spare set of AAAs in your pack is easier than re-charging on a hillside. KaptJaq
I'm admittedly out of touch with the new models, but before cell service was decent in my hunting woods, the only radios worth even looking at were gmrs Motorola's. We used them religiously, and got about half the rated mileage in the woods with hills and hollers. I now know your supposed to have a fcc license to use that band.
We had motorola radios for quite some time but don't remember the model numbers. They were definitely better than the midland we have now. It seems the motorolas were rated around 10 miles but that was before all the manufacturers went to the wild numbers, like 35 mile ranges. Perhaps we'll get another set. I was actually hoping for a more commercial set but have been unable to find what I want so far. I remember during RAAM that we had a base in the vehicles and they were good for maybe 2 miles in wooded areas and 6-8 miles in more open areas.
