Hello fellow family adventurers!
Today I would like to share and review the Motorola Talkabout Two-Way Radios we received as gifts this year. I would have to say as a family that has a very active outdoor lifestyle, tools such as these make family time more enjoyable.
I would like to say I'm a "mother-bear" at heart. What I mean by this is, when out with the family I always need to know where the kiddies are at all times. That being said, you can already guess that before the walkie talkies the kids explorations were limited. Now, with these in hand, they are enjoying new found independence. Unfortunately for me the childrens new found independence comes with a price. That price would be the cost to replace a water logged radio. Note to anyone buying electronics and giving them to children, explain the limitations of the equipment before handing them out! I learned the hard way.
On with my review. We have four blue Motorola Radios, I like the color but I feel when it comes to kids the brighter the better. That way the chances of them being forgotten or left behind is minimal. So Motorola, if your listening, maybe you could consider a bright yellow or even a glow in the dark casing. Kids love ANYTHING that glows in the dark.
Practicality. They come standard with a clip for attaching them to backpack straps, pants, or shorts. What's nice are these clips are easily removable with just a squeeze, with the clip removed these radios are small enough to be put in a pocket of a vest or jacket as well as an exterior pocket in a backpack. I would not recommend attaching these to the neck of a shirt. My eldest daughter had it clipped to her t-shirt collar and as she bent over to catch a frog it fell into the water. Bummer! As for being waterproof, not so much however Motorola says they are weather-resisant.
Radius. The radios have a 16 mile radius but I don't think we'll ever let the kids stray that far! We have yet to fully test them to this extent but we do know they work at least a couple of miles in heavily treed and mountainous terrain. We have also tested them around town a bit with shopping trips and they met our expectations with this as well.
Convenience. I will have to say this, the kids sure enjoy having more freedom exploring. Independence is a wonderful thing. These make calling the kids for meal time a snap. I also like the fact that there are many channels to use, this comes in handy when there are other families using FRS radios in the same area. On the same note, this feature is also great when the kids make friends with other campers that have FRS radios; all they have to do is turn their radios to the same channel to keep in contact.
After using these radios on a couple of trips I cannot see us without them. I'm working up a list of gear that is essential for setting up a kids backpack, these are now on the list. I've been doing some research on adult radios trying to find a handheld GPS device that can work in conjunction with the kids radios. There are a many available from different manufacturers and when I pull the trigger I'll share my experience with you.
As for recommending these, oh heck yes! Go get yourselves some Motorola Talkabouts and enjoy your time outdoors with the family a little more. And what's really great is that they are sold at most stores that carry camping/outdoor gear plus there are many accessories that can be paired with them.
Pros:
Durable
Convenient
Easy to use
Compact
Good/Clear reception
Rechargeable
Price ($20-$30/Pair)
Cons:
Color- brighter would be better
Not Waterproof
Happy Camping,
Uncle Leo and Camping Girl
Thanks for the info. I always debate about carrying them while hiking,and found it really important to have when kids are out in the woods with you.
Posted by: Joe D. | 10/31/2011 at 11:24 AM