GMRS-PRO 5W Long-Range GMRS Radio – IP67 Waterproof, Bluetooth VOX, GPS, Texting, NOAA, Compass, Dual-Band Scanner, Off-Grid Location Sharing, Two-Way Walkie Talkie

Holy toledo this radio has so many features. Coupling it with a cell phone completely opens up the doors to some amazing capabilities. This is approaching digital modes for some of the features it has. First off, just using the cell phone to program the radio and share configurations is probably worth the higher price than you get for similar performance with other radios, which are most easily programmed with a computer. Second, the added features that having that cell phone connect bring opens GMRS up to some really cool uses. Texting is a breeze. It is very easy to switch channels. You leave it running and it logs all the traffic. Your saved contact names are on the list so it is easy to review the saved received traffic and you can easily pick out and listen to traffic that you want to hear. For instance, my dad is "Boomer". Each one of his broadcasts has that name attached to it. If he wants to share his location (radio has GPS), he just sends it and it shows up on the map on my cell phone. It will scan for tones, code and decode morse code and a bunch of other random stuff. I just remembered that you can send a channel group by text. I did that for my dad when I had set up a few local repeaters and all I had to do was send him a text and it popped right onto the radio. My dad is super old. I had him get this radio and he can work it just fine. There is no other GMRS radio like this on the market right now at even close to this price. I'm looking forward to them putting out a mobile unit with similar features and I'm going to set it up at home for a base. As far as performance goes, I was able to hit a repeater about 20 miles away that I don't have line-of-sight to, and my signal was reported to be quite clear. Reception was also very clear. I had a chat with someone who was 30+ miles away. I definitely upgraded the antenna. That is a must. For pure performance, there are better radios out there, I'm sure. But for good performance with features that have raised the bar considerably, this radio is the one to get (with a Nagoya 771g). Its features put it in a class of its own. Garmin Rhino has a few more features for 4x the price and probably works a little better, but I don't know. Btech has priced this right and it is the radio to get unless you have a lot of money to spare or are just looking to have cheap point to point comms, like for kids to play with. For cheap GMRS comms Baofeng just released a Part 95 compliant UV-5R that go for about $25 each. For kids to play with I'd just get them a bubble wrap FRS radio. My battery failed after about 3 months and the replacement was pretty easy to arrange and took about 10 days. No complaints there.

I don't like fixed-radios in my side x sides...just something else for the thieves to eyeball when you sleep in your cabin at night. Then there is the convenience of being able to communicate with friends in your group that have gone in a store, in areas where there is no cellular service (a bunch of that in the mountain regions) If it's a well powered handheld, which these very definitely are, then they will more than suffice. Any number of other scenarios where a portable radio is preferred, and even mandatory. More specific to THESE radios, is as mentioned...great power to reach-out; we've communicated through obstructed situations with clear communications, for at least a mile or two, in Appalachia/Hatfield & McCoy Trails. The only folks we had issues communicating with, were friends using that other brand...M. And they were having issues talking to EVERYONE! I have not used the text feature, and not likely to, so I can't attest to that aspect. But the FM, and weather radio features BOTH were used repeatedly, and alone with the range would have me buying more of these...I currently have the two...one for my wife. Which is another huge use...when she had to use the lady facilities, at Ashland Resort in Hatfield...again, no cell-service. I had to very politely remind her how sensitive the mics are, and so pleases keep the farts to a muted minimal! :) Otherwise they were soaked several times and there was no water ingress, and remained working flawlessly. Easy to learn and use/program. The hardware feels very high-quality, the displays are good as any I've personally owned of late. The belt clip is a monster to install...use a magnetic driver to hold the tiny screws, and that will save you a bunch of expletives! There is a tiny thin raised ridge above where the clip naturally lands...use one thumb to force the clip to seat against that ridge, AND to mash the clip open at the same time, and use the magnetic driver to place that screw in the now properly aligned passage through the clip, and into the screw hole. Sound complicated?...thats because it is!...my one gripe! Not real crazy about the accessory options, or, the lack-thereof. Basically proprietary, as even the M accessories vs the kenwood, appear they would work, but they don't. Not enough to make me pass these by, but I bet it will be for a number of folks. So, you're stuck buying what I call their "Ransom Cord", to adapt other brands over, which leaves you with this big cumbersome wad of what should be unnecessary cord-bulk waiting to snag and be ripped out and possibly damage something...just plain looks goofy. They need to get it together with that one. Aside from those irritants, a radio well worth the money. Good quality, in build, and function. You really can safely use these in the rain, if they are consistently sealed. No issues with sound quality while wet, both in receiving, nor in transmitting. Add a whip...gets even better.

Hands down the best GMRS radio for someone who needs a serious reliable radio and values a very user friendly way to manage programming it (compared to anything else on the market). Also best GMRS radio for enthusiasts given it’s full feature set for those who want to tinker. It not the smallest or lightest GMRS radio but it’s not too heavy or bulky either. This isn’t your typical camping radio (a smaller much more simple unit would be better) it’s built for business or enthusiasts or those who have a specific want/need to communicate using Bluetooth accessories (motorcyclists for example). It’s waterproof features make it extremely durable. Throw it around, leave it outside and it’ll keep working. You’re paying for that durability. Range test in a dense suburban area yielded 1.5 miles on high power between two of these units. The text and GPS features are not worth the price alone. The app doesn’t alert you via iOS notifications if you get a text - you have to check the radio or the app proactively. In addition you can only text with someone who has the same radio. The location feature is nice though. This all said these features are a nice bonus if everyone in your party has this same radio. All in all, even without the text and GPS features this radio is all one could desire at this time, given what else is on the market. I only wish they made a HAM version of this radio because, we’ll, why not. They just need to unlock the frequencies and if they did it would be one of the best HAM radios in the price range for sure.