By John Ghysels, Special to Technology-Report.com

Like barrels of oil, good pairs of long range Walkie Talkies continue their plunge into and even under the $50 dollar range. It’s good to keep an eye out for bargains, even when you are not thinking about outdoors family adventures just yet. 

Motorola T9500XLR

This radio has decent power and the audio to get out. I highly recommend radios with good power like these for the outdoors, rather that weak .5 watt FRS radios, with are better than toys, but frustrating to use in challenging conditions. I found these units larger than many in this class and a bit under powered at only 2 watts max, but OK.

However, it should be noted that this walkie talkie tends to show up in the “remanufactured” sale list quite often. I suspect this as something to do with the audio problems that others have commented on, or it could be something else. If lots of any electronic product gets returned and resold, it usually means something is systemically wrong with either the design or manufacturing process. In any case, buy with caution.

John Ghysels, 12/20/2008

2 Way Radio, Uncategorized, Walkie Talkies, gadgets, search and rescue FRS, Gmrs radios, walkie talkie reviews, Walkie Talkies

By John Ghysels, Special to Technology-Report.com

We’ve already offered plenty of advice on the best Walkie Talkies. More than ever before, consumers have the same power as professional users. However, professional units often cost $300 and up, per unit, while consumer units can now be had for $40 to $80, for a pair.  

The surprising thing about what’s out there for consumers, however, is that the higher prices don’t necessarily buy you extra range or durability.  All the units here are all rated for about “30 miles”, the maximum range you can buy. Here is a quick round up of some of the very best buys: 

Max Power, for about $50, US.

These Midland GXT-720VP3 radios retail for just over $53, USD, at the the time of writing, a significant bargain over more expensive units that offer no more power.  Indeed, the extra features of the pricer models in this line offer only minor enhancements that few users would ever use or appreciate.  However, if you do want something just a little more impressive, you could consider these units:

Camo Fun, for about $60.

The Midland gxt-775vp3’s add a Camoflage finish, with a few extra features that are fun for kids and hunters alike, including “animal” sound calls and a silent vibration mode for calling other radios discretely.  However, if you want something that stands out a little more in the wilderness, and has the impressive Motorola brand name, you could consider the following:

The Motorola 9500XLR is available for about $70 for a pair. It has a bold look and rugged exterior. However, some users have reported quality issues with these units and quite a few are available in the refurbished market.  Still, it is hard to beat Motorola, who manufactures most the radios used by fire and police.  These no non-sense rigs should do the job for most.

If you are a hardcore hobbiest with a bit of technical knowledge, however, you may want to consider the next step up value priced radios: 

Hobbiest Radio, PX777

This Chinese made radio goes for the surprisingly low price of about $62, for a single unit. For those with technical knowledge, this provides the flexibility to operate on Ham Radio and commerical frequencies, as well as GMRS channels. For those with the licenses and knowledge to use them legally, this is a remarkably flexible unit for a very low price. 

Whatever you decide, there is little reason to overbuy in consumer walkie talkies. Go for maximum power and range, and stay with the features you understand. Most people rarely use the high-end features of the most expensive units. $50 now buys some excellent radios that will entertain you and your family for years to come. 

John Ghysels

2 Way Radio, Outdoors, Product Reviews, Safety, Walkie Talkies, gadgets, search and rescue 2 way radios, Family Radios, FRS, GMRS, Walkie Talkies

Midland GXT900vp4

Product Review: High Power, but unexpectedly  cuts off chatter boxes. 

By John R. Ghysels, Special to Technology-Report.com

On paper, these Midland GXT900 Walkie Talkies should be the finest, most powerful Walkie Talkies made. In fact, they exceed the features and power of most commercial sets selling for much more. Sadly, in actual performance, they have a fatal flaw that impairs their performance in the field. 

Note that radios like these with digital (DCS) and analog “privacy codes” (CTCSS) would make them a good choice for Disneyland, Las Vegas, (such as during CES) and other public, RF soaked hotspots, where other users can interfere on the regular channels.  This particular model also allows the user to switch in regular AA cells for the rechargable battery pack, which is a real help when you drain your batteries or forget to top off your rechargeables before a trip.

2 way radio: Safety and Fun

These are great safety tools too. The author knows from experience that more families and groups should use them outdoors. Rangers appreciate smart campers and hikers that bring them, and some backpacking groups now require them. Someone getting ‘lost’ from a group is a common reason for search and rescue.

Fatal Flaw:

2 way radio is way fun on the road, and powerful radios really help get beyond the limitations of the basic toys sold in most stores. However, in the final review, the engineering flaw of these Midland radios keeps Tech-Report from offering it’s coveted “recommended” rating.  It seems that in their haste to hit the price point, Midland did not build the radio to withstand the “high power” setting for more than a few seconds. The unit overheats internally and quickly and quietly shuts off your signal about about 5 seconds, leaving your listeners baffled and frustrated.  This can be solved by setting the radios to the mid-power setting (about 2 watts), but what fun is that!? (Max is 4 watts). In any case, TechGhy thinks that Cobra outperforms Midland radios in field tests anyway, in both transmit and reciever performance. 

Let’s see if Midland corrects this error in the High Power setting in future models.

John Ghysels, 11/15/2008

2 Way Radio, CES, Uncategorized, Walkie Talkies, gadgets, search and rescue, technology CES Las Vegas, Family Radios, FRS, GMRS, Most Powerful Walkie Talkies, two-way radio, Walkie Talkies