Radios

Recent Radio Reviews

Motorola Talkabout GMRS /FRS Radio with DPS Option

These radios were great. Used them as a scoutmaster and for broadcast radio service. Now trying to find a couple more. The one I'm looking for has the AA battery back OEM rechargeable battery pack, gray with black top panel, black stock antenna w/o desk charger option. Used them for years on the day job and weekend scout trips. What was great—no computer needed to program them. Got one from a scanner shop in San Carlos, CA, the other at REI. Worked in the radio broadcast field in the SF Bay area… Full review

Midland GXT1000VP4 2-Way Radios

These “walkie talkie” and their headsets are wonderful. As a member of another website, I sometimes get the opportunity to test out products in exchange for a review. The transmit audio was robust and loud. Whisper mode was interesting, as it really amplified quiet "whispered".  I got over 8 hours of use on a full charge, and they seemed to charge pretty fast on the desk charger. My main (minor) complaint is that you have to use the charging base with the proprietary adapter plugs, either the… Full review

Kaito SB-1059 Mini Hand Crank AM/FM Weather Radio

Good radio, could use a stronger antennae. The large solar panel grabbed any available sun to charge it and I rarely needed to crank it to have a charge. That being said, we could not pick up any WB signals until we were almost back out of the BWCA on an eight-day loop near Sea Gull Lake. We were able to get an FM station near the Canadian border and listened to some of the MN Twins game, which also gave a forecast update and made my night. If using in a less remote locale, this little radio does… Full review

Etón FRX3 Radio

Great for outdoor activities, picnics, lakeside, power outages. This is a great, compact radio for the little moment you want to add music to and not worry about where the power is coming from. The volume gets pretty loud and the sound is pretty good. A super useful tool for power outages and natural disaster issues, a great comfort to know I can charge my phone in an emergency.  This is not a backpacking radio. It may be splash proof, but I wouldn't test it. The knobs for adjusting tuning and… Full review

Grundig Mini400

Lightweight, good reception, and shortwave. I love this little radio! I was carrying a Sony Walkman, but this beats it hands down for reception, plus it gets shortwave; a nice plus in the backcountry when reception is otherwise poor. Tuning is easy, and it has an external speaker for use around camp. And runs on two AAA batteries, the same as everything else I carry. Full review

Motorola Talkabout MR350R 2-Way Radios

Much more complicated setup than the old Radio Shack walkie-talkies. I'd like to know what alternative, rechargeable batteries with extended capacity others are using successfully. Full review

Grundig Aviator G6

This is a tough little radio with pretty good reception for its size (3" x just under 5"). It has a great feature set with the ability to pick up Air (Aviation) Band (from 117 to 137MHz), Short Wave (2000 KHz to 29999KHz), FM stations, AM Stations, LW Stations, as well as the ability to tune in SSB and listen to some HAM Operators. I received this radio as a gift several years ago.  It has been very durable during that time.  It basically is as good today as the day I received it.   It is a very… Full review

Etón Scorpion

I am a beginner in the world of hiking gear so I had to do a little research to find that "all in one" device to fit our needs. At first glance the unit is impressive. Solar, dynamo and D/C power options, cool. When I opened the package and held it for the first time I could tell this thing was DURABLE.  The screen for the clock/am-fm-weather is backlit so you can see it at night, a plus. The flashlight is just FANTASTIC! It has a VERY bright and clean beam that is non-adjustable but a great median… Full review

Etón Scorpion

So far so good for this little unit. Overall unit is exactly as advertised and comes equipped with a solar panel for charging, as well as a hand crank. The unit comes with 3 bands, AM/FM and NOAA Weather Band. Uses a digital tuning source for all. The buttons are rubberized or should say rubber sealed and can be a little tricky, but I can see why the unit is claimed to be splash proof. Overall the unit is built rather well, and doesn't feel cheap. The bottle opener could have been something a little… Full review