Thinking of buying a set of two-way radios to stay in touch with the wife when we are out riding. Since we aren’t exactly the same speed, it is sometimes hard to stay in touch with directions, particularly for on-the-fly changes in plans.
Has anyone used two-ways when riding? Which brand is best? What are the key characteristics I should look for?
ccy
im gonna classify this as tri-geek. at least try to get hands-free
I think it is pretty standard to get an ear bud for riding use.
ccy
Go with Motorola talkabouts. There are many different versions with different features, depending on what you’re looking for. Get the GMRS version (5 milers). You’ll pay a few extra bucks for the Motorolas, but after using these and other, cheaper brands skiing out west, the quality difference is very noticable. When it comes to basic engineering functionality, and especially reception (both for phones and for two ways), Motorola is one of the best in my opinion. Also, their rechargable ones are really nice (no recurring battery cost)
Just make sure that when you use them you’re not interfering with other people’s channels… Not sure on the FCC laws, but technically GMRS radios are legal for family use and for company use (I think…) - I’m not positive, but I think you are ‘technically’ supposed to get a FCC license to use them. However, as long as you’re not interfering with other people’s channels (and thus making them mad), I’ve heard you should be OK… (again, not positive, this is just what i’ve heard from folks who tend to use these things regularly…)
This is the unit most of the pro bike teams use. The best, period, and not much more money than the toy units you find in REI and such. It’s the size of a credit card.
http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/ht/0058.html
Very, very cool radio!
I am curious about something - obviously I am about to illustrate my lack of understanding of radio communications - the specs list the Alinco’s power output at 300 mW! The wife’s parents gave us Motorolla GMRS/FRS radios for Christmas that are rated at 7-watts (requiring an FCC license for use) and are supposedly capable of broadcasting up to 7-miles although of all the times we have used them on rides together, we rarely get more than 300-500 feet ahead. So, seeing that the Alinco can operate on both VHF and UHF frequencies, based on the 300mW power output, how does the range of the Alinco compare to a 7-watt GMRS radio?
Michael