My reviews of these two radios were very exciting as always.
The Motorolas generally performed similar to my reviews of the 2007 models. Battery life and range were similar, as was received audio. There were no real design improvements, other than increased power output, which didn’t seem to affect range too much. THe new options, the flashlight, emergency alarm/transmitter, and USB charger were interesting.
The Cobras were indeed interesting. Range was excellent for a consumer-grade radio and the battery life was phenominal! The very high capacity lithium Ion batteries lasted over 2 days on scan before requiring a charge. Leaving these radios on the charger will do not damage to the batteries, as the chargers, batteries, or radio will make sure the sensitive LiOn batteries do not get overcharged.
Comparisons:
The Motorolas had a scan lockout feature, that allows you to lock out annoying channels. Also, the Motorolas displayed any CTCSS/DCS code discovered on scan.
The Cobras did not have this feature, which I consider a drawback.
The Cobras had better range, sound quality, and battery life.
Both radios are effective and will do well.
In this review, I give the Cobras the highest overall score.
Personal preferences this year are tough. I prefer the Cobras on performance; but prefer the Motorolas on how their features are implimented.
How would you update this recommendation 2 years later, if at all? Is there a better model by either Motorola or Cobra that has come out since with regard to range, battery life, sound quality, the way some features are “implemented”, etc?
The later reviews of newer equipment are more up to date. These models were replaced by some newer models. Nonetheless, the performance of the newer models closely match those of the older ones.
THank you so much for the info. I guess the 7200 is too old to be listed on your comparison chart in order to compare that one to the newer 900 or 925. Based on what you know/have heard from others, is there any real benefit to paying more for this newer model? Thanks again for being so helpful!
You are very welcome and no, honestly, there will really be no benefit. All in all, they just toss in some new features, or change the case design.
They don’t have much to work with, due to FCC regulations and such.
My two 7200’s died within two years, but then again we use them a lot in very demanding environments. Our friends bought the newer version 900’s a year ago, they are now having issues as well. They were great until we killed them, but keep in mind we wore these on the straps of our hydration packs riding dirt bikes in inclement weather (at times) in the mountains, and desert riding, also on our dual sport bikes to communicate through our Moto-Com’s, and also while riding snowmobiles, keeping them in a pocket of our coat or bibs. Not the best way to treat electronics, but hey, that’s what we bought them for. We are now looking at the JIS4 rated Midland GXT 1000 radios. Still looking however…advise gladly considered from all.
and no, honestly, there will really be no benefit. All in all, they just toss in some new features, or change the case design.