Motorola MR350 35-Mile Range 22-Channel FRS/GMRS Two-Way Radio (Pair)

It's what I expected, am not sorry for purchase.
Bought it to communicate with spouse when vacationing out of the country.
In congested areas you will only have reception for 1.5 miles which is good enough.
I would purchase this radio again.

I would URGE you to read WILFREDO M VIRAY'S ("Wally") EXCELLENT, THOROUGH and THOUGHTFUL review. There's not much more I can say.

However, a few friends have asked "why would anyone use a two-way radio when cell phones do the 'same' thing?" I live direcly under a bluff in the midwest. Cross country ski, walking and bike trails, and one of our country clubs are there as well. Cell phones don't work very well in these areas.

This can also be true when you're traveling. A two-way radio can put you in touch with a LOT of sources you cannot reach with a cell phone... truckers, for example. Forget the stereotype - these guys can be lifesavers on the open road. Two way radios are free of roaming charges, and they'll work ANYWHERE - NO cell phone network can make that claim.

We also use these radios (and their "predecessor," the Motorola T9500XLR) EXTENSIVELY at work. (We now have TEN pair.) The building is concrete and steel, and no matter where you are, you can communicate CLEARLY with these radios. (Incidentally, we're talking about a 200,000+ square foot... that's a fairly large building.) Using two-way radios is a VAST time saver compared to paging someone on the intercom, then waiting for the "callee" to find a phone and get back to you!

Another NICE feature: Although these radios are supplied with a comparatively expensive 3.6 volt rechargeable battery, YOU CAN USE (3) AA's INSTEAD.

Again, I refer you to Wilfredo "Wally" Viray's excellent review for some non-biased technical data.

Good job, Motorola!

I recently bought the MR350 Two-way radios and also bought the optional Motorola Talkabout Remote Speaker Microphones. We mainly use them for snow skiing and they usually get great coverage on the entire resort. For example, Mammoth Mountain, our family can be inside our hotel room (Mammoth Mountain Main Inn) and we can clearly talk from nearly every lift on the mountain.

Of course the 35 mile range is unrealistic, but 2 miles in mountain terrain is pretty good.

The Motorola remote speaker microphones are the only way to go for skiing. You can keep the radio inside your jacket while the mic is firmly clipped on your jacket lapel. The mic is very loud and clear. Loud enough that I can clearly hear the call alert tone while wearing my helmet and ipod headphones.

Customer complaints of garbled sound quality are usually a result of talking to closely to the mic... Try holding the mic a few more inches away from your mouth while speaking. Wind noise can be a problem, but that will happen with with even the highest quality mic/radios.

Another tip that will help with reception... Try to keep the radios upright (antenna straight up) while communicating at longer distances. Holding the radio sideways causes the range to be significantly diminished.

I used this on a vacation to keep in touch with the rest of the family. It worked great, but the range in an urban setting is much less than advertised.

I read a lot of reviews prior to purchase and thought that the higher the range the better service. The distance in town is horrible on the family channels. And at disneyland wasn't impressed. Did read the directions and locked our freq and never received any interference. The vibe is cool and choosing the tone but still wasn't enough in noisy crowds. Haven't paid for the license but with my prior talk abouts from 1995 I never got busted. They reach above and beyond the rating in open area and in town. This radio is great for kids and i will continue working with the channels to make if more functionable.