Home > Consumer Reviews > Audiovox GMRS1535 5 Mile GMRS Radio

I had hoped for a dramatic range improvement over the standard FRS radios. Output wattage for this unit is listed as 1.8 watts, while the FRS radios are limited to .5 watts. I compared this unit directly to a set of Motorola 6200's (FRS) while in the small community of DeQuincy. In several instances, the Motorolas were actually slightly clearer with less interference. I tracked the distance I was getting by using a gps and found that both units seemed to lose contact at 1.2 miles. My words of advice are as follows, if you are expecting to get a vast improvement of range in the city by going with GMRS you will be disappointed.

This is a great product. The range is much better than any of the FRS radios (just remember to get your FCC license before using). It would be a shame to rate this product lower than 5 stars just because batteries aren't included. And, regardless of the range you get with this product, you can be assured that it is better than any of the FRS radios (I have done a side-by-side comparison, even comparing it to a 5 watt UHF ham radio). The size, performance and features make this a "best buy".

... I was down at Disney in Orlando, Fl all last week & they worked great wherever I used them. The lower channels (FRS 1-7) were busy, but the upper channels (GMRS 8-15) were free & clear with nobody using them. They are compact units & are easy to store in your shirt pocket. The 1% complaint was getting use to the controls (up & down butttons for volume control / to change channels you must go into the program); but once you got use to the method on the how to, it is a great little radio at a good buy.

I have used two-way radios for many years and bought the first Motorola FRS radios in 1998 which still work very well but have no features such as call function, etc. The 1535's have both high and low power settings which is a must since operating at high UHF power over long periods of time is unhealthy (just look at the amateur radio license test if you don't believe me.) These units are small, very lightweight, and have all the features which can be turned on or off or can be adjusted (we hate Roger Beep so it' off). These also have good voice tone which is another improvement over the older Motorolas. High power gives you more range but does NOT have the range of my old Motorola FRS's at .5 watts. I decided to return these and try the Motorola T6400 GMRS. If your'e going to pay for a GMRS license, you should get the real performance. If you can find these radios cheap enough, their small size, miserly battery use, and features make these a decent altough not a high performing buy. I also had trouble using these with Motorola FRS radios - don't know which manufacturer is to blame.

I bought one of these a few months ago, and found it to be an o.k. radio. A license, which I already had, is required as mentioned- or should be mentioned, everywhere GMRS radio equipment is sold. It has good WX reception even with the stock antenna, and has o.k. audio sound. Compared to my FR140s, this radio is less. Range from any consumer grade radio, regardless of TX power, will give you no more range than an FRS radio. So, if you were considering a GMRS radio over an FRS radio because of claimed added range, then you might as well just stick with FRS because it will work better than most of these.