Im needing a set of radios for my rural property, I'm often working up to 1km away from the house on my own and the mobile phone is unreliable. What are my options?
Cheapest 2 Way Radios for 1Km?
figarow on 03/04/2014 - 09:57
Comments
Buy a good 2w handheld 0.5W can do 1km in a straight line but just buy a 2W to keep it safe.
How about this one: Uniden (good brand), up to 3km. $49 (currently on special at Dick Smith, offer ends 09-Apr)
http://www.dicksmith.com.au/radios-scanners/uniden-uh405sx-2…
pao2x said it's best to get 2W. These are 500mW, would they be ok?
Not sure…I don't even know what 0.5W or 2W mean. Sorry.
500mW is 0.5W… they usually go for $29 on a sale and the sales are quite frequent. It doesn't hurt to try it out since it is only 29 bucks. The 2W radios usually go for over $100
It's $49. If you know where I can get if for $29 please show me :)
Cheers I'm seriously considering the Uniden thanks NancyCat. We live about 1km from a repeater station so that should help with reception also if using them over longer distance like in the car?
The UH405SX-2NB has a range of up to 3km and with its Range Extender (Duplex) Capability the unit can achieve even further range depending on the location of your local repeater station and topographical conditions.
Cars are terrible for radios. It's like putting them in a a big metal box. If you need one to use while in the car you better get an external antenna even a small magnet mounted one that you can hang over the window
Cheers will likely not even use in car
http://catalogue.supercheapauto.com.au/catalogue/supercheap-…
here ya go $29 for 0.5W.. there is a 2W for $100 and they have built in rechargeables unlike most cheap 0.5W, they use AAA batts
My 0.5W usually has 500-700M range over a valley and some foliage/small structures.
SOLD!!! thanks so much, better price than I thought. Will pick them up today.
We got these at Jaycar - 2 for $39:
http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=DC1017&form=CAT2…
Fine for me and the kids around a lake when we go riding. Also 0.5W.
I bought some on eBay a couple of years ago. 1w output, fully programmable if you want to mess about with the frequencies or change/program in some custom freqs. It even came with throat mikes if you want to keep your hands free whilst working and talking on them at the same time. Rechargeable batteries as well. Very nice bits of kit, came from china (obviously), a much higher power unit with better specs than what I was seeing from the local name brand stuff. They were cheaper as well, bought a pair for myself and a few guys at the office bought them for boats/racecars etc at the same time.
BTW, power output can be less important than the efficiency (gain) of the antenna, most of these things have very inefficient antennae. Hard to judge when buying but in general, don't assume that power output is a definitive gauge of radio range. Also, I don't know the terrain on your property, without running you through the free space loss formula, hills and 'clutter' (tightly packed trees/buildings) in the path of the radio shot will degrade the signal. If you have Mt Everest between you and home it wont matter which type of UHF/VHF radio you use, none would work!
Don't know much about radios, but have a look at http://www.andrewscom.com.au/
I buy my astronomy gear from them (by far the cheapest and best service)…