pcradio

Proposal [1] is a good request. The others don't personally interest me. Radio has been so strangled by HAM restrictions that it maybe too late to fix it. Hence the desire to turn GMRS into what people want, which is a way to send off grid messages to family and friends who are not radio freaks. That has always been the problem with HAM, it is a club of people who like to talk about radios but don't actually use them. The people who actually use radio for important things are GMRS users or Public safety, etc. But as more HAMS use GMRS, naturally, they make it about saying your callsign 10 times a minute, talking about radios, yadda yadda.

Wow, now that is a big load folks!

This could be it.

Well that model of Hytera is only 3watt and has a very small antenna. Probably not even transmitting 3w with battery age/use. In any event they will be outclassed by a 5watt radio with a bigger antenna like what the UV-9G has. So, the test result you've seen has plausibility. The real question is what type of building & topographical interference is in the area that is causing the need for larger radios? GMRS is a licensed service. So, as long as everyone gets a license, you have some GMRS radio options out there, but really a full keypad radio is not a good option in your setting and end users. Thus, here are some business radios that make sense for you. Look at the Hytera TC-508 (dual band), PD402i-U1 or BD502i-U1 which are much better alternatives for your environment. Also look at Motorola CP100D, Motorola RM RMU2080, Icom F4001, Kenwood NX-P1302AU.

I also vote for demonstrating what happens when a 50 watt radio is transmitting next to an HT. Does it "burn up the finals" in the receiver? Does it make some radios go deaf? And my favorite, "Why do Motorala XPR/APX/XTS radios get an approved pass for GMRS usage but various Yaesu Ham radio models does not"

It is really such a personal thing and based on what you like and your use case. What constitutes "family use"? GMRS is a family or "group" based service, so that would be a given. But I think that even if you got very specific, it would still be a very personal decision. I had that HT for a while and it transmitted when I pushed the PTT button. Nothing special about it. As you move up market, you get more organizational features, easier to program in the field, maybe water resistance features, charging features. In other words, a lot of things beyond mere speaking. Something to think about. Why not get the UV-5R or the KG-S88G? If you could form an opinion about those two radios, it might make things more clear for you.

Everything turn out okay?

A benefit to the Yaeus brand. Parts are available for repair.

You maybe experience intermod. Some frequency combos can cause this. Try another frequency on the B side (or A) and as the incoming transmission is received, see if it still does this.

Wow, that's awesome. Thank you.

Back on topic ... anyone here have HF and can hear any transmissions out of the area?

No way I'd would expect to use a regular (cheapy FRS) radio in an event like this. Better to be taking good radios and helping folks.

Don't want to detract from the real story which is, "have a radio". Just pointing out that if you're a ham, you won't be able to help regular folks with radios. Hams are rare. Most people have FRS radios.

Looks bad in Hawaii right now. Quote from the news link. I don't know if hams could help, but personal radios with friends could at least coordinate with each other. Good reason to always have your radio mars/cap modded. Another news link.

Yes, because these two are very different, and also these two. So grateful that hardware manufactures have helped newbies to not make that mistake.

Sorry, just get a little passionate sometimes.

The UV-5R and the UV-5R are the same radio. Do you have a brain? Hello! Hello in there! Scenario: Deep in the hundred acre wood, Christopher Robin reaches for his trusty radio to call Piglet and confirm that Eeyore is doing okay. "Why do you have two identical radios?", asks Pooh Bear who was standing nearby eating some honey. "Well, Pooh while it is true that both radios are technically identical, they have been configured differently to ensure I do the right thing on HAM and GMRS frequencies." "Couldn't you configure one radio yourself to be in compliance with both services?", asks Pooh bear innocently. "Yes, but then I would be thinking. I'm not allowed to think", scolds Christopher Robin while taking the honey pot from Pooh and smashing it over his head. "And I believe you've had enough honey too!"

Hard to say. Would depend on usage I suppose. Wouxun is well liked. Retevis are well packaged. Then there is Anytone. Then the Big Three. Others might have a different view of the landscape. What's casual to you and how that matches up with a feature set might take you a while to sort all that out.

I can always return it to GMRS specifications.

The UV-5R is type approved for both HAM & GMRS use! Woo-hoo! This paves the way for ham radio operators everywhere to hope & dream that they too can use their lowly Yaesu,Icom,Kenwood radios on both services. Afterall, it turns out, it is merely firmware that separates the two radio services. If the elite Baofeng corporation, that employees some of the most sophisticated electrical engineers in the world, can create this amazing technological masterpiece, surly our Big Three can eek out an offering too. I wonder, could HAM radio operators be entrusted to program their radios correctly? Would they be able to press the buttons on their radios to operate in a GMRS style fashion? Maybe we need a separate certification. A license type that proves they can do this? I would call it: GMRHAMSTR.

Exactly. If a repeater is advertising itself, its obviously available. Its like a water fountain, its public use. If you don't want anyone using your repeater, then don't put it out there, make the tones non-standard, etc.

The UV-5R is uber low cost. I have one and it is neat. Play around with it, send back the bad one and order a new one. If you like radio and or have a good utility use for it (I use it while hiking), then there are some cool tech out there. I'm enjoying my Yaesu and I appreciate the features it has.

GMRS is definitely becoming ham-lite in my area. I will say that they are extremely courteous here. We also have a massive state wide linked system, more coverage than HAM as far as that goes. But I do wonder what the end-game will be? Observation: I use GMRS/FRS for my local hiking group because they can't get on HAM. I personally use HAM for the long range aspects of VHF, but GMRS might fulfill that if they keep filling in the gaps everywhere. Personally, I wish the services were organized around close coms and then long range coms (vhf, aprs). Then add the other layer of HAM or GMRS on top to manage those two camps. The problem with HAM is that it does not really get used by people needing off grid coms. Yet, it has all the tech to do that well. So, when I try to get my people into off grid coms, there is this hurdle of everything HAM which makes no sense to them. They only want to communicate. Yet GMRS is lacking. So, would be cool to have something in GMRS that closes the gap. Regular people need to stay far away from HAM! But they need good radios like the Yaesu VX-6R,7R with just a little bit of the tech and frequency behavior of HAM. Because of this the simplicity of GMRS is being blurred. Its why I argue so much to use my Yaesu VX-7R on GMRS. I don't want to use a UV-5G. I'm being dragged downward.

Yeah, the Tera lists MURS operation. So, GMRS and MURS can live together on the same radio. That's why you really have to wonder how these "rules" get interpreted? Whatever is dividing us, putting us against each other, is certainly not in the best interest of the Public, of HAM, or of the GMRS communities.

It is not hard to do.