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GMRS Reviews
GMRS Radio
Reviews
While you
can't test each GMRS radio brand and model to see how they perform
under typical conditions, our reviews provide the results of our
hands-on tests of the features you want and need. We offer
our opinions of which radios really deliver and which ones offer basic
services. We test the maximum ranges that typically are
advertised to see if their claims are true.
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Audiovox GMRS862CH (Includes
batteries, charger)
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Range
Criteria:
Flat land sending and receiving, suburb setting.
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Clear
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0.5 miles
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Faint/Static
yet usable
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1 miles
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Signals lost
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1.5 miles
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We
don't hold GMRS radios to their advertised ranges.
Maximum ranges tend to be under ideal conditions
i.e on water, etc.. We prefer to hold radios to
real-world, less than ideal conditions. "GMRS
Reviews" employs a benchmark of 20% of advertised
ranges. This means that a reviewed GMRS radio
should be able to meet this typical use benchmark.
While
we were able to send and receive up to 1 full mile, the
GMRS862CH
didn't quite meet out
our
benchmark of 1.6 miles (20% of advertised) of usable
transmission/reception.
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Clarity
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Reasonably
clear speaker but not as clear as others. Medium to loud volume range.
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Features
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- 1 Watt
- Advertised as
having up to 8 mile range
- Twin Pack
- Dual Desktop
Charger
- Rechargeable
NiMh Batteries included
- Hands-Free
(VOX) Capable
- Full Electronic
Controls
- Swivel Belt
Clip with Quick Release
The features of
the GMRS862CH include 22x38
channels (as is typical of GMRS radios now), Roger beep and VOX
capabilities. The volume range is from 1-7 and is changed by
pushing the up or down keys. This radio would be great for noisy environments as it goes very loud, course if you're looking for
a quiet radio with quiet beeps, even the softest setting is still
relatively loud. The GMRS862CH has a single vox sensitivity and I found it to
work fine. Scan button is also the power
button, the difference is amount of time you press it - a feature that
saves buttons, but can cause unintentional functions.
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Ergonomics
Ease of use,
and general feel
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With a somewhat
pear shaped housing, the GMRS862CH
fits pretty well in your hand. Even though the plastic housing is
fairly slippery, it has 4 ridges on each side
bottom to assist with grip. This radio will stand up on its
own.
The PTT button is conveniently placed if not a
tad on the small side. The
monitor button is placed directly below the PTT button so it's possible
to inadvertently press this instead. Housing is
made of sturdy plastic and should hold up very well.
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Quality
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The GMRS862CH is put
together very well. Case and buttons are manufactured from
sturdy materials. Is slightly lighter and smaller
than the average radio.
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Overall
Impressions
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The GMRS862CH is an
decent
choice in lower range GMRS radios. It offers the standard set of features
which all function as expected. I'd prefer a softer
range of volume for quieter environments and separated
scan/power buttons, but an experienced user
should have no problem with those minor points.
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Rating (1
worst, 10 best)
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6.5
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