GT-22

I wanted some inexpensive, simple FRS radios for use with my family when doing outdoor activities, and with the kids' scout group. I'm a licensed Extra-class ham with several Baofeng UV-5R and GT-5R radios that I've been satisfied with, so I figured these would be a good bet. Turns out I was right, with a few caveats: they came ready-to-go on US FRS channels 1-16 (other comments saying they came programmed for European PMR446 frequencies concerned me, but seem to have been a mix-up that's since been resolved). Audio is clear, transmit strength and reception are good, and they're extremely easy to use. The radios charge easily from the included USB cable (or could use any standard microUSB cable.) They have the typical K-type socket for programming and using headset/microphones. Programming is a cinch: you can use CHIRP or the GT-22 software provided by Baofeng on their website. Setting up tone or digital squelch codes and adjusting power levels in CHIRP and the GT-22 software is easy: just tell CHIRP the radio is a Baofeng 888S or a Retevis RT22 (they have essentially the same guts) and it'll work fine. A few things to be aware of: - The plastic is textured ABS, but still comes across as feeling a bit "cheap". The battery panel pops off with a spudger or flat screwdriver but isn't water-resistant at all, nor held on with screws. The belt clip is satisfactory, but a bit underwhelming. It'd be nice to have a semi-permanently attached belt clip rather than a clip-on one. The UV-5Rs felt a bit more robust in the hand. Still, they seem to be holding up well with the kids and scouts. - There's no key lock. The channel-select buttons are easy to press accidentally and get off-channel. The only feedback is an audio announcement of what channel number one is on, which is easy to miss. It'd be nice to have it where one would need to hold down both channel buttons for a few seconds to enable channel changes would be nice. - The out-of-the-box power levels are not legal. By default the radios come set to transmit at 2W on FRS channels 1-16. However, FCC regulations only allow FRS radios to transmit at 2W on channels 1-7 and 15-16 (and 17-22 for radios that support channels 17-22, which these do not). Channels 8-14 are required to be limited to 0.5 W on FRS but the GT-22 is set to transmit on 2W on those frequencies. This should be corrected at the factory, and users should ensure they set Tx Power to "low" for those channels. - Oddly, the radio is not locked to the specific, legal FRS channels and one can easily program it to transmit on frequencies on which it is not legally allowed to operate. It comes out of the box with its 16 channel slots programmed with FRS channels 1-16, but users can rearrange the channel order (e.g. Channel 1 on the radio corresponds to FRS channel 12 or something) if they wish for some reason. However, the radios also allow users to enter any frequency in the 446-447 MHz or 462-467.999 MHz range even though it is explicitly forbidden and illegal to transmit with this radio on the 446-447 MHz range and on any of the 462-467.999 MHz range except for the specific FRS frequencies allocated by the FCC. Be warned: you must not program your radio to operate on channels it is not allowed to use. The fact that the radio is programmable to use non-FRS frequencies appears to violate 47 CFR 95.587(a), which states "FRS transmitter types must not be capable of transmitting on any frequency or channel other than those listed in § 95.563.", where § 95.563 lists the 22 FRS frequencies. In short, the radios are compact, lightweight, powerful, and work well. Until Baofeng fixes the crucial issues above (i.e., default transmit power and ability to transmit on non-FRS frequencies), purchasers would do well to purchase a programming cable and use the GT-22 software or CHIRP to adjust the power levels and verify that they're using legal frequencies.

These walkie-talkies are not going to change the world or win world wars. But they work great for $20-$25 price range, and work as advertised. Much better than the toy walkie-talkies that are about the same price range. Good clarity, easy to understand and use, even for my 9-year old son. Range will depend on geography/topography/buildings/hills/interference, of course. We use them a central-city environment with mostly closely-built two story homes in a mildly-hilly area, with lots of potential radio interference, none of which has affected us. The radios have caught a few blips of conversations from other radios, but nothing horrible: if it were horrible, we can just change the channel. I use them to keep in touch with my 9-year old son when he is out n the neighborhood with neighbor kids within a five-ten block radius. There is some static beyond a half mile, but we can still understand each other fine. He has not yet gone far enough to test or exceeded the maximum range. Perfect for our use in the neighborhood. The battery life is as advertised, if not longer. One charge suffices for the entire day. Battery life will vary with use, but I have gotten more than the 20-hour life on standby. They do emit an annoying "Battery Low" audible warning that repeats itself constantly whenever the battery gets low (including in the middle of the night) (in an odd non-English speaking accent, to boot). But the warning only happens when turned "on." I have not tried re-programming them, which requires additional equipment I do not have. No need to do so for us.

These radios cannot be used legally as they come out of the box. (Possibly legal only with a HAM technician license.) You have to program these, so get a decent programming cable (one with the FTDI works great), and use your research and engineering skills. It is possible to program these to 2 Watt FRS frequencies. (Use some "privacy" codes if you don't want to listen to other people's conversations, but don't expect actual privacy.) If you program these for a business (with the proper license for that), these are quite nice to use: size, sound, easy to recharge with a USB phone charger. (USB-C would have been nicer, instead of micro-USB.) It would have been nice to be able to program these with a USB cable, without the extra expense/hassle of another cable. Despite these issues, these are good radios. Even considering the unexpected extra expense for a programming cable. Update, after a few years of very occasional use: both batteries are visibly swollen, pushing out through the back cover. These need to be recycled in order to avoid explosion and fire.

Broadly speaking, these seem to be good radios. I bought these radios primarily for my kids and their friends in the neighborhood to play with. The simple design of the radios was a factor for me buying them, as there is just the one on/off/volume knob on the top, the push to talk button and the up/down channel selector buttons on the side. The ports on the other side of the radios for the headset has so far gone unnoticed by my kids as to them, it doesn't do anything. Because these were for use by kids, I also liked the idea of having the antenna contained within the hard plastic housing. The boxes I received (ordered four radios total) each came with two radios, two ear pieces and one USB charger with a split to charge both radios at the same time. The radios and the charger seem acceptable, however I didn't even attempt to use the earpieces as 1) I'm not giving them to kids & 2) I wouldn't expect them to last a day of use with kids. The radios can be used out of the box, as the batteries had some charge, but be aware the power setting comes pre programmed on high power which technically, as many others have said, is a violation of the FRS rules though is acceptable for GMRS use if you have an FCC license. Once I downloaded the Baofeng GT-22 software I was able to view and modify several settings such as the frequencies, power levels and tones. It seems possible to do split frequency operations with these radios with the software, as I was able to program separate transmit and receive frequencies on individual channels. Because I'm a licensed ameture radio operator I tried programming a 70cm repeater into the radios, but the software didn't allow me to. The audio output and receive is easily understood and the plastic housing seems durable enough, especially with the added belt clip. For $22 per pair of radios, I'm happy with the purchase and I'm not going to be heartbroken if my kids lose a radio or it is otherwise damaged. The frequencies which came programmed in the radios are as follows: Channel 1 - 446.00625 Rx & Tx PL 114.8 Channel 2 - 446.01875 Rx & Tx PL 114.8 Channel 3 - 446.03125 Rx & Tx PL 114.8 Channel 4 - 446.04375 Rx & Tx PL 114.8 Channel 5 - 446.05625 Rx & Tx PL 114.8 Channel 6 - 446.06875 Rx & Tx PL 114.8 Channel 7 - 446.08125 Rx & Tx PL 114.8 Channel 8 - 446.09375 Rx & Tx PL 114.8 Channel 9 - 446.10625 Rx & Tx DCS D026N Channel 10 - 446.11875 Rx & Tx DCS D026N Channel 11 - 446.13125 Rx & Tx DCS D026N Channel 12 - 446.14375 Rx & Tx DCS D026N Channel 13 - 446.15625 Rx & Tx DCS D026N Channel 14 - 446.16875 Rx & Tx DCS D026N Channel 15 - 446.18125 Rx & Tx DCS D026N Channel 16 - 446.19375 Rx & Tx DCS D026N

After reading some of the other reviews, I figured I would need to progam these radios right away to set them to FRS frequencies. I've used CHIRP before for my ham radio, so I wasn't worried about having to do so, but upon opening them, I realized that they are already set to 16 FRS frequencies out of the box. I did end up programming them anyway, so I could set up so-called "private" communication using DCS tones (FYI this does not make it anywhere near private, as anyone else can listen to the channel if they configure the same tone; what it does do is make it so you don't hear someone else's chatter on the same channel and vice-versa (provided they don't choose the same tone as you do.) All of that out of the way, these are very solid little radios for the price range; this is my third set of cheap two-way radios, and so far they seem to be the most robust. - I found the NXGKET set to be completely unacceptable out of the box (the plastic feels like it's going to snap, and sure enough, it does on a single drop.) - The Retevis RT-388 set is far better, but the antenna can break off if it falls in just the right way. Also, I have one of those units that no longer stays on reliably (likely the battery contacts are no longer seated quite right inside, because squeezing it causes it to turn back on.) Also, these not being rechargeable (or requiring removal of rechargeable AAA batteries in order to charge them) is a downside of these ones. All of that backstory said, I am impressed with the GT-22s so far. - The plastic has a good feel (doesn't feel cheap or like it will snap; rather, it feels like it will bend if stressed.) This applies to both the handsets themselves and the belt clips. - They are rechargeable (including via a base, if purchased separately, in which case no cables are required.) - The range is quite good; on day 1 of having them, I was about 1/4 mile away with the crest of the hill between two units, and things were still mostly clear (some background hiss was starting to be audible.) I haven't gone far enough to find the end of range yet, so time will tell. When programming, there is a High or Low power option (presumably, these set the output to either 2W or 500mW respectively, but i haven't confirmed the actual output power.) In order to go about 2W legally, you would need to have a GMRS license ($70 to the FCC,) at which point you would need to buy more expensive radios and announce your call sign every 15 minutes while using them; not exactly as convenient or cheap as staying within the bounds of FRS legality. I've only had these for a few days, but so far, I'm impressed with everything. I wish they had a screen so changing settings (VOX, power level, DCS tones, etc.) without having to hook them up to a computer, but for this price point, that's definitely not a deal breaker for me.

Despite what the product listing says, both here on Amazon and on the manufacturer's own website, there isn't a way to turn on VOX without the programming software (Windows-only) and a special cable (costs more than the radios). So these were useless for my purpose and I returned them. Other than that, the quality was better than I expected for the price. This is a very bare bones radio, but it seems to send clear audio. I didn't check the range.

Great sound quality, range, and compact size. It does not get much simpler than this for a 16 channel FRS walkie talkie. We used these on the water while boating about 2 miles apart and had great audio clarity. Similar performance around the neighborhood and campground. Kids love it. The thin size and lightweight design makes it easy to hang around your neck with the included strap. They also include belt clips. Some features that are not clear in the item description are that the channel number you are on is announced over the speaker as you power it in, and as you press up or down. One of the kids didn’t know how to use it and changed the channel on us. There is no LCD readout, so you have to click a button or power it off/on to know what channel is active. A minor nuisance, but worth it for this price and lithium battery. I also use the Baofeng ham radios and picked up the transmission on all the right frequencies for FRS. I think this model is great for those without a license trying to just communicate with your group. Update 7/21/2020: One radio was dropped in the pool, and after drying out overnight, it works!

I use these for dirt biking with friends. At about $10 a pop, if we lose one or break one no big deal. So far have not lost or broken any. And although not waterproof, they've dealt with some harsh off road motorcycle conditions and come through fine. Battery life is great. Controls are super simple. Basically on/off/volume and channel up/down. If you want FRS squelch codes you need to use a cable and computer to setup. Honestly in our usage model just using channel 1 with no squelch works great. It announces the channel when you turn it on or hit up/down. No display. They also support Kenwood pinouts so if i want to setup a helmet mic/earphone and a handlebar mounted PTT button, i can. The most popular bad review says they don't come preprogrammed for US FRS, but I found that to be false when I used the cable to check/program them. Now, possible older release that was true so I'm not accusing anyone of lying, but I would say it is not likely an issue for any current purchasers.

Vivo en un rancho algo grande, y mis hijos de 6 y 4 años a veces salen a jugar mientras su mamá y yo estamos en casa. Compré los walkie talkies para poder comunicarme con ellos en esos momentos. Funcionan muy bien para ese propósito. Son sencillos y tienen pocos controles, por lo que los niños pueden ocuparlos con facilidad. El rango es bueno, aunque no lo he medido. En todo momento se escuchan con claridad. Son ligeros y compactos, por lo que no es difícil que los niños los traigan en la ropa aún cuando están jugando con los animales y los árboles. Yo cargo el otro en un bolsillo del pantalón y se me olvida que está ahí. No sé que tanto dure la batería. La realidad es que sólo los cargué cuando llegaron hace tres semanas, y de ahí en adelante tal vez se hayan utilizado unas 8 horas. No se ha encendido el led de batería baja, o no ha dado señales de haber bajado suficiente como para requerir una nueva carga. No carga especialmente rápido o lento, lo cual a mi no me molesta. Como la batería es extraíble supongo que puedes comprar una adicional si le darás un uso pesado. No he ocupado los auriculares, pero es bueno que los traiga. Los recomiendo para un uso similar, pues han soportado la tierra, la mugre y los abusos de mis niños y no se ve que les haya afectado hasta ahora, además de servir muy bien para la aplicación que les doy.