FRS/GMRS Buyers Guide

The choice of a FRS or GMRS radio can be bewildering.  Manufacturers do not help the situation.  Here are a few tips to help you get started.

 Shopping Guide for FRS/GMRS radios

• Don’t pay much attention to claims about transmission distance.  These claims are for perfect conditions, such as over water and from mountain peak to mountain (line-of-sight).  NET members are rarely so lucky.  For the highest power GMRS radio, plan on a range of between ½ mile to 2 miles at best in an urban environment.  Remember, transmission power is not as important as using a good location and proper operating technique.
• Plan on paying as much if not more for necessary accessories as for the radio.  Most radios come with a charging station, a single rechargeable battery, and an earphone.  Here are some other accessories you will want to add.  Count on paying about $15-$20 for each one of these.
  • An acoustic earphone/microphone – The earpieces that come with the radios are typically not very good.  You need a good earphone/microphone to operate hands-free in search and rescue situations.
  • Extra rechargeable battery and possibly an additional charger.
  • An adapter for AA batteries if the radio does not accommodate AA batteries.
  • A “battery eliminator,” which permits you to run your radio off of a cigarette lighter or automobile battery.
  • If you have a GMRS radio, you may need an adapter from your radio’s antenna connector to the standard PL-259 UHF connector to use an external antenna.

The Ideal Radio

Manufacturers offer a range of FRS and GMRS radios. The selection seems to change monthly as models come and go. Prices range from $25 to $150. How to choose? While Portland NET program cannot officially recommend any particular radio, the RTLs (Radio Training Liaisons) have come up with the following suggested feature set and a list of radios that come close to meeting them.

Questions to consider:

• Supports both low and high power, to provide battery demand flexibility?
• Weather resistant or waterproof?
• Supports multiple battery options, particularly AAs, rechargeable as well as alkaline?
• Includes earbud/mic and desktop charger?
• Supports FM and NOAA weather reception?
• How good is its receiver?  Some inexpensive radios become relatively deaf when they are operated within a few miles of a commercial broadcast tower.
• Is it FRS or GMRS?  FRS radios don’t require a license but you cannot upgrade their antennas  GMRS radios can be upgraded and offer higher power on some channels but require a family license although there is no test required to obtain one.
• If it is a GMRS radio, does it allow using repeaters?  When repeaters are used transmissions go farther, particularly in hilly areas but thre are very few GMRS repeaters in the Portland area.