A Buyer’s Guide to Portable Two-Way Radios

With this new era of cell phones and TV, radio might seem like a thing of the past. After all, didn’t video kill the radio star?

Not so fast. If you’ve ever seen a park ranger, bodyguard, or construction worker on the job, you might have noticed that radio communication is still alive and well in these professions. And why’s that?

Well, a portable two-way radio can provide better security and efficiency than other forms of keeping each other in the loop. And you don’t need to have a special job to benefit from a good radio. Whether you like to go on long fishing trips or you’re putting together a big outdoor art piece, radio communication could be right for you.

So, if you’re interested in what two-way radios could do for you, here are our top things to look for when you’re shopping around:

Security Features

Who can hear your transmission? If you’re dealing with sensitive work or you just don’t want people being nosy, security is a great reason to have two-way radios in the first place.

When you’re looking into communication devices, make sure you don’t mix up walkie talkies (which some people also call two-way radios, confusingly) with real two-way radios, also called a business radio system. A big difference here is that two-way radios encrypt the communication in a way that walkie talkies don’t.

Unlicensed radios might also share transmission frequencies with other radio users, which can lead to situations where wires get crossed and different conversations bleed into each other. If you need high security levels, you’ll want to go for licensed radio systems, which operate on their own frequency.

Range

How far do you need to be able to travel and still communicate? Try to choose a two-way radio system that gives you more than the maximum amount of range you’re going to need. This is for two reasons.

First, you’re going to want to be safer than you think you need to be. Especially for something high stakes like construction, you want to prevent situations where people travel farther than expected and the signal cuts out.

And second, the range advertised on the box (or website) might not be the range you’ll see in real life. This could be due to environmental factors, wear and tear on the device, or possibly a bit of marketing magic. Whatever the case may be, take the advertised range with a grain of salt and aim higher than your needs if you can.

Number of Sets

You might want to consider how many pieces will come with your two-way radio system. Just because it’s two-way doesn’t mean it has to be limited to two people.

If you’ve got a team larger than two and you want to have a way to be on the same page at the same time, it’s a good idea to get a two-way radio system that has enough sets for all of you.

Portable Two-Way Radio Accessories

For extra radio security, you might want to get a radio that comes with an in-ear accessory. This way, you’ll be able to listen to the transmission without the people around you hearing.

You can also get a small microphone that detaches from the main radio set so you can speak without bringing the radio to your face. This is a great option if you know your hands are going to be busy.

Weatherproofing

Something you might not have considered is how well your radios will stand up to rain, wind, and storms. Investing in a two-way radio with a high level of weatherproofing can help keep your team safe and save money in the end.

Replacing a radio that’s been damaged by the weather can be a huge headache, especially if you didn’t budget for this possibility. And when you’re working on outdoor projects, bad weather situations are often the times when it’s most important to have a working radio system. You’ll need to communicate to keep each other safe and informed.

Some radio sets are completely waterproof, which makes them great for communicating in a wide variety of outdoor settings. Besides rain, these sets can hold up well to moisture and wet surfaces.

Battery Life

The usefulness of your two-way radio will depend partly on how long it can go without needing another charge or a battery replacement. If the length of time you’ll need to use the radio is longer than the amount of time it can go without a recharge, you’ll be limited by whether you have access to a power source.

For example, if you’re working on an outdoor project where your closest power source for charging is an indoor space a mile away, you might have to time your work around whether you can take a break to recharge. This can become a big hassle if your battery life is short.

Protecting Yourself

One thing you might be concerned about is high exposure to radio frequencies. It’s not a huge problem for most people, since frequencies we encounter on a day-to-day basis are generally low enough that they won’t cause any harm to our bodies.

If you’re using a high-powered radio all the time though, you’d have more exposure than usual, and you might some safeguards. Some people link radio frequency exposure to diseases like cancer, but no one has proved this yet. The health risk we know of for sure is heating of tissue.

When you cook food in a microwave, the microwave radiation causes water particles to move around more quickly, heating up the food. On a much less dramatic level, high exposure to radio waves might cause tissue damage over time – for example, in the eyes.

For this reason, it might be good to check how a particular two-way radio measures up against federal safety recommendations. Sometimes a company will do the research for you and limit radio frequency exposure to the appropriate regulations.

Roger – Over!

Getting a portable two-way radio is the start of a journey into a communication system that remains the gold standard in many important fields. Once you’ve figured out the features you’re looking for and found the perfect radio for you, it’s time to give it a try.

So good luck, and happy radio-ing! And if you want to learn more about the tech that keeps our world moving, check out the rest of our site.