I bought two UV5R's and put some 18" whip antennas on them and the range is impressive. I may look into a hard vehicle mounted option to get some additional range. I like that I could program them with CHIRP and have some GMRS channels programmed along side Natl Weather with ease.
well, yes, usually you'd use them in a group or some other preset arrangement, but lots of people have them out wheeling and hiking, so chances are I think pretty decent that if you're in a non life threatening emergency you can reach someone that could come and help or send someone. For real emergencies I'll have the satellite communicator, just easier to talk than text and you might find somebody to meet up with on the radio too, a bit more communal, since everybody can hear you that's on the same channel. And during local emergencies like the ever growing fires here or earthquake, cellphones and power grid are gonna be gone, so good to have alternatives.
