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Best Canadian GMRS Radio?
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Hello!

I'm new to the whole radio world and would appreciate some opinions on which radio to purchase. I've done some reading and understand that since I'm in Canada (located in Ontario), I don't need a license to use a GMRS radio as long it is limited to 2W. And since I'm also new to this world, I'd like to be cost-efficient. My main uses with a radio are:

1) Skiing - Communicating with friends who may be using FRS radios (ex. I have a pair of old Motorola T9500 that I'd like to be able to communicate with)

2) Hiking - Same as above

3) Emergency situations - I'd like the potential to be able to use this radio to communicate with emergency responders or SAR in the worse case emergency scenarios while out adventuring

4) Additional bonus is to use these radios on vacation in another country with family to keep tabs on each other.

And with the reading I've done so far, three radios come to mind:

A) Wouxun KG-935G

- I heard this was supposedly the "best GMRS radio" that is on the market right now. However, I can't find it on Amazon and it does seem pricier than all other options. I also think I read somewhere that this radio is not allowed in Canada? I'm not sure if this is correct so would appreciate if someone can confirm.

B) BaoFeng UV5R

- I am not currently licensed, but may pursue the relevant license in the future if I become more interested in the whole hobby. Why I'm interested in this radio is that it's: cheaper (I know quality will not be great but for my purposes, I don't need top-notch stuff), it has the capability to receive on a lot of frequencies (and if I get my license, I can transmit on amateur radio), and I figured I might be able to transmit on GMRS frequencies as long as I keep the power at 1W.

- I believe this radio now has an IC number as well: 25962-P51UV. Does that mean it is now legal to use on FRS/GMRS frequencies?

C) Motorola T800

- I think the best pro for this radio is that it allows for off-the-grid texting and location tracking which is really helpful. Especially for uses 1,2, & 4 above.

After doing a bit of reading, I never realized that the world of radios was so complex yet so fascinating. Thanks everyone for your input!

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1 year ago