I posted the below review in the review area after a bad experience with the Motorola 5000. What radio/brand has clarity as the #1 feature? I don’t need anything fancy, just FRS, but these will be used on a motorcycle where clarity is critical.
PPilot
I was underwhelmed by the Motorola 5000 and really disappointed at the audio quality to the point I don’t believe they are even functional at the most basic level.
Scenario: The 5000 was purchased along with the motorcycle helmet inserts (mic/speakers/ptt) for the purpose of bike to bike communication. I attached the helmet system and plugged it into my PDA Phone and the speaker quality was stellar! In addition, people whom I called via cell phone said the audio quality from the mic was also good. I am certain the helmet inserts did not contribute to my opinion of the audio quality, but rest assured, I tested the units in silence without the optional helmet mic and with, on and off the motorcycle. The results were the same. I can only describe the audio quality as tinney, distant, and severely lacks clarity. I might as well have a dozen marbles in my mouth. My friend was a radio DJ, if anyone can speak clearly and annunciate it is he and well, he was almost unintelligable at a normal speaking rate. When we slowed down the speaking rate, things were intelligable, but you had to “squint” with your ears to clearly understand. In all this testing, turning up/down the volume, just made bad quality louder/softer.
On the positive side is price, dual-power, and descent feature set. The user manual was wrong and had numerous misprints. For example, the manual said the ROGER BEEP can be turned off from the menu. Not so! A quick internet search shows that you must turn the unit off, press and hold the + key, and turn the unit on. That toggles the roger beep, contrary to what the manual said, this worked!
They work, they have features, but really makes a walkietalkie functional is the ability to communicate, something this unit doesn’t do well. I have 4 for sale…cheap…only used for an hour.