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What Is The Ideal Range Of The Walkie-Talkies?
While scouting for Walkie Talkies, have you been baffled
by the tall claims made by the manufacturers on the range of the gadget?
There are walkie talkies of various ranges. In case you live in a crowded
street with tall buildings towers and other obstructions, in all likelihood the
range of the walkie talkie will only be as low as 300 yards. However, under
better conditions the range could be a mile or longer.
Skyscrapers often reflect or absorb radio signals resulting in poor
quality transmission. To ensure optimum performance these gadgets need to kept a
t a good height , so that the signals are not hampered
by the various barriers around.
Remember that the range claimed by the walkie talkie manufacturers are
only under near perfect test conditions in the flat lands of
It is recommended to buy radios that fall under the General Mobile Radio Service, which is licensed to use the maximum energy limit of 4 watts permitted by the Government. The other category of Family Radio Service radios has only 1/2 watt power that is not sufficient for hassle free communication. The third type includes radios that combine both GMRS/FRS. In this case also the walkie talkie automatically reduces the capacity to 1/2 watt even in GMRS channels.
A radio with GMRS has more power than any cell phone which works on about 500 milli watts. But the technology of both these gadgets is different in that the cell phones use an extensive and invisible network of powerful cell that boost the range of the signals of the cell phones. A walkie talkie on the other hand has no boost up of cell sites and transmission towers as these are solely powered by the battery power. Thus it uses a heavier and costly battery and other internal components, which add up to its sticker price on the whole.
Walkie talkies are still used as reliable communication devices in heavily wooded areas, rescue operations, remote areas and in cars and police patrol vehicles among others. In cities and crowded areas its transmission range will drop to a few hundred yards. However if you can add height, the range of the device will go up substantially as the signals are transmitted and received smoothly without any interruptions.
The golden rule for anyone who is using walkie talkies is that more the power greater will be its efficiency. So it is always better to spend a little more and invest on 4 watts models to ensure the best results. However do not bite the bait of anything that sounds too good to be true. For instance if you hear someone claiming that their walkie talkies have a range of 25 miles or more, dismiss it outright!