Equipment.

[BoxCar]

The short answer is the radios are not comparable, at least comparing Anytone or other low-cost radio to Motorola. Motorola radios are in the very top tier of two-way radios which includes brands like Tate, Codan, Harris, Kenwood and other manufacturers of commercial grade and public safety grade radios. All the low-cost Chinese brands fall near the bottom of the quality list ranking below commercial only units and most amateur units. Within the top tiers there are really only two grades, public safety and commercial. the two levels may be identical inside but differ in the case and ergonomics. There may also be differences between the components used even though the values are the same. ICs, resistors, transistors and all come with different abilities to handle heat and other stress factors. Public safety units will use the highest or military grade while commercial will not resulting in a unit that doesn't meet the operating range of the public safety unit. Low cost units use consumer grade components which is an even lower grade than those used by commercial units. In other words, you get what you pay for.

[WROZ437]

5 hours ago, Lscott said:

OK. The short answer is the Motorola radios, to mention the brand you seem to favor, are very likely to perform better. I'm partial to Kenwood, but that's just me.  There was a poster on this forum who was an avid Motorola guy. I exchanged numerous PM's with him and a few others. I have to admit he made his point about how the one model, which was his favorite, was a stellar performer. The test data he supplied left little doubt. That was the XPR-7550E. Unfortunately they are no longer manufactured. If you want one then buying used is the route to go.

As a general rule I would expect a commercial radio to perform better than Ham gear and better than a lot of the CCR's, Cheap Chinese Radios, for sale. The radios have to perform in hostile environments and just plain "work". That means the physical and electrical design is a step, or few, above the others, and why they tend to cost more.

Now while some of the CCR's may lack in some performance areas they have more "features" you typically won't find on a commercial radio. Remember commercial radios are marketed for business and first responder use. They are a program and use scenario, not aimed at frequent reprogramming. Contrast that to Ham gear where it's expected to be reprogrammed, possibility frequently, and from the front panel while in the field.

So, the trade-off is just how much do you want to spend and what features do you want, or require, in the radio. That will drive what choice you make. Some may have more than one and switch off depending on the current anticipated use. For example some people want one radio they can use as a base, mobile or as a hand portable. Others are happy to have a different radio for each. Believe it or not some also have several different mobile antennas they use when driving in the city, highway or out on the trail.

If you have any specific models in mind you can ask for opinions here and get some input from others who have used it. Remember questions and answers here are free.   

 

Thanks for the insight. I don’t really have a favorite brand. I have used both Moto and Kenwood HTs at work. Both seem to work equally great in our use case, which honestly isn’t very demanding. I merely used Motorola as a a brand that would be recognized as quality. Substitute Kenwood, or maybe even Yaesu or Icom as things that are accepted as quality when compared to the plethora of CCRs that are pretty mainstream. As was mentioned earlier there was a prominent member here who was all about the XPR7550e radio. I understand the reasons why and agree with the logic 100% but it seems the reality is that a lot of people end up on Baofengs and Wouxuns because the “feature” sets are more robust, including front panel programming, and all at an affordable price point.

As you mentioned answers here are free so I just figured I’d ask if there was a quality stand out radio that fit the bill. Something along the lines of surplus government or comercial gear that can be easily programed for VHF and UHF stuff like MURS, 2m, 70cm, GMRS. I get why there isn’t. There isn’t a market of people willing to pay for the features (and support of those features) on a radio made by a top tier manufacturer and appropriately certified by the FCC.

[SteveShannon]

1 minute ago, WROZ437 said:

comercial gear that can be easily programed for VHF and UHF stuff like MURS, 2m, 70cm, GMRS. I get why there isn’t. There isn’t a market of people willing to pay for the features (and support of those features) on a radio made by a top tier manufacturer and appropriately certified by the FCC.

Regulations prohibit certifying a radio for GMRS that’s capable of being easily programmed for ham frequencies. 

[WROZ437]

13 hours ago, Sshannon said:

Regulations prohibit certifying a radio for GMRS that’s capable of being easily programmed for ham frequencies. 

I understand the regs. I left them out of the discussion since I know what I am talking about doesn't fit within them. You know, I am just asking hypothetical questions about what radios might be capable of certain things.  

13 hours ago, WRXE944 said:

Looks like @WROZ437is back to the $109 Radioddity DB20-G certified for GMRS 18 watt mini-mobile and easily restored to certified status if/when “opened” for Ham and MURS use. 

Eh. for the same performance I can stick with my Midland MXT-275 mobile unit and Wouxun KG-UV9PX HT. Maybe I'll get ambitious and run coax and an external antenna for the Wouxun when I'm in my Jeep. If I'm going to spend more money there needs to be a benefit like improved performance or the ability reduce clutter. 

These are fun thought experiments, though. I appreciate the responses and insight.

[Lscott]

15 hours ago, WROZ437 said:

Thanks for the insight. I don’t really have a favorite brand.

Good. Maybe I can make you a hardcore Kenwood guy yet.

[WRXB215]

38 minutes ago, Lscott said:

Good. Maybe I can make you a hardcore Kenwood guy yet.

The company my wife works for is Kenwood only. They sell, lease, and provide repeater access.