Myself and 6 friends all went on a snowboarding trip this past weekend. some carried cell phones with them, most didn’t for fear of falling on them and breaking them (we’re all new to snowboarding). we all quickly realized it was going to be very difficult to stay with one another or even know where the others were.
i’ve looked into quite a few two way radios. i think i’ve narrowed my decision to the the motorola mr350 and the cobra cxr800. what do you guys think of each and which would you recommend? the only times these radios would be put to use is on snowboard trips on the mountain. or is there a better option for ski slopes?
The Cobra is a smaller radio so it will be lighter to carry but the range is a little better with the Motorola MR350R.
In addition to range, the Motorola has larger selection of accessories such as headsets and earpieces. This is important to consider if you are wearing gloves while snowboarding as you generally won’t have as much dexterity and operating the radios could get awkward at times. In such situations a headset and earpiece is recommended and it will give you more freedom as well.
The both Uniden radios are a good choice for durability and range, however there are fewer accessories available for them than the Motorola and as far as I know there are no third party headsets available for those radios.
accessories aren’t really an issue. the two way radio will be used lightly just to check on others locations when ready to meet up. so taking it out of my pocket and maybe taking a glove off wont be a problem.
i like gadgets and such, so i like the features that they all offer. i like the design and looks of the cobra the most, but it seems to have the least range of the others. i like the caller id feature of the uniden, and the ability to only contact only one person in my group (not sure if this feature is available on the others). the motorola seems to be the best bet and has nice features and good range, but the design is lacking a little in my opinion. not a big issue since looks and design are useless if others in your group can’t hear or get a hold of you.
i know obstructions kill the range of a two way radio. my biggest fear is that with all the trees and such on a ski slope, the range wont be what i need. are ski slopes really hard on the range? or does the open trails help? the slope we all went to last weekend wasn’t incredibly big. the longest trail was 1 1/2 miles. not sure how big the resort itself is.
Place radio in plastic baggie and seal… Keeps them dry and you can still hit the PTT and do your thang… Learned that after dropping one in the drink while out on the Jet Ski’s…
Oh, but wait… You snowboarders don’t get wet, right?
thanks for the plastic bag tip. we snowboarders dont get wet, unless we keep falling and the snow melts on us. lol.
what kind of range could i expect at a ski slope since there are hardly any buildings, power lines, etc? i think that i like the cobra cxr725 the best, but it doesn’t have the range of the motorola. the motorola has a few features i would like to have (emergency alert, monitor channel, battery indicator), but i think the cxr725 would be the most comfortable in my coat pocket while snowboarding. but i want to make sure others can hear me when i need to use it.
Don’t reallly have either radio mentioned above but have the Motorola MR355R and Cobra LI-7200. Personally, I find the Cobra to be a bit better in terms of receiver sensitivity (equals more communicating range) and longer battery life (lithium vs Nimh). I also believe that the Cobra would be better suited- smaller profile, button for volume setting (set and forget) vs knob turning- which could move with body movement…just my opinion…also-same pin configuration for either radio
i had the same feelings on the volume knob of the mr350r. i was afraid it would turn up and down while in my coat pocket. it could turn itself all the way down or off even and i wouldn’t know it until i took it out to use it.
i decided to pull the trigger and get the cobra 725’s. i couldn’t find the 800’s for sale at many places, and the only difference is the weather bands. amazon had a good deal on the 725’s and there were only 4 left in stock, so i ordered 2 sets. the other pair is for a friend. we’re planning another snowboarding trip in a week or two, so if they arrive in time, i will test them on the slopes. by the way…anyone know if these cobras have an out of range alert?
on another note, how secure are the channels with privacy codes entered? it seems to me like they would be fairly secure, but i have read that they are a joke. i wont be exchanging personal information or anything. just curious if i will be able to talk to my group without having to sort through other conversations.
Privacy codes work so that the squelch opens up and lets you llisten to others with the same privacy codes ONLY. If someone on the same channel uses no privacy code- they can listen to all others broadcasting on the channel.
