Motorola MR350 35-Mile Range 22-Channel FRS/GMRS Two-Way Radio (Pair)
- Pair of two-way radios with up to 35 mile range
- 22 channels each with 121 privacy codes for superior interference protection
- iVOX hands-free communication without the need for an audio accessory
- 11 weather channels (7 NOAA) with alert features
- VibraCall vibration alert or 20 different call tones
- Up to 35-mile range- iVOX hands-free communication- 11 NOAA weather channel with alert- PTT powerboost- Flashlight-Emergency alert button- Emergency preparedness checklist- Rechargeable- Battery save feature- Mini-USB charging portThe Motorola Talkabout MR350, with its range of up to 35 miles and bundle of great features, is a great communication tool for the serious outdoor enthusiast. Lightweight and rugged, with extra large buttons to help you operate even with gloves on, the MR350 is built to handle any challenge without weighing you down. The MR350 includes an emergency alert feature, to inform others should any dangers come your way. The MR350 also features a built-in LED flashlight for peace of mind during evening adventures or unexpected emergencies and power outages. Weather alerts will provide your group with warnings of incoming storms or dangerous conditions. And, by tuning in to one of 7 NOAA channels, you’ll always know what to pack. This radio also features the VibraCa
Rating: 
(out of 40 reviews)
List Price: $ 79.99
Our Price: $ 50.38
Click Here For Info About Motorola MR350 35-Mile Range 22-Channel FRS/GMRS Two-Way Radio (Pair)
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Tags: 22Channel, 35Mile, Batteries, FRS/GMRS, Motorola, MR350, Pair, Radio, Range, Twoway
Review by Wilfredo M. Viray
Rating:
First of all, all the distances advertised on any walkie talkie like this is based on mountain top to mountain top communication, where the valley increases the range, and no obstruction. That is where they based the 35 miles. For city use, in malls, house to house and areas with trees will be between .5 to 1 mile at most. Since I have been using Motorola Walkie talkies all my life so I knew what I was buying.
I experimented with 3 different models of Walkie talkies in the mall with my wife. First we tried the 5 mile Motorola. I was on one end of the mall inside Macy’s and she was on the other side in Nordstrom. She could not even hear me.
We tried the 10 mile Motorola. This time she could hear me press the talk button and a few garbled words, but that was it. We could not communicate.
We tried these 35 mile ones last. We were able to hear each other just fine. Not bad considering the distance and the number of obstructions.
I have also tried this on the open road for car to car communication and it can reach the horizon. If you want more power, you will need to get a license and buy a 5 watt radio.
This Radio has many nice features you would normally find in Professional Radios 5 times the price of this.
UPDATE SEPT 25, 2009-
This radio has a really nice feature I just discovered. It has the hands free iVOX capability. It will broadcast when it hears a sound. There are 3 levels of sensitivity. I tried it as a baby monitor. I left my wife and baby while they were asleep and turned on the radio to High power on one of the GMRS channels(I have an FCC license by the way, so I can use this channel). I drove about 1 mile to my brother-in-laws house. The Radio worked as a long range baby monitor! It was impressive considering that the radio was indoors and I was not line-of-site, and it reached a mile. Very amusing.
I would advice getting an FCC license so that you can use the High power GMRS channels legally. With these radios, it is about 1.5 to 2 watts. If you use the FRS channels 8 to 14, all walkie talkies including this will only use 0.5 watts. Channels 1 to 7 are GMRS/FRS channels. You cannot legally use the high power PTT button if you do not have an FCC license. Channels 15 to 22 are GMRS channels where you can use the High power mode exclusive to GMRS radios. Go to the FCC website and pay the fee for a GMRS radio license, it is good for your immediate family for 5 years. It is worth it if you use it all the time.
****Update October 26, 2009****
I will now detail what I have found out about my Motorola:
Pros:
1. In door range – This is the mall slayer. Go to any mall and give your kids one and you will be able to talke to them pretty much anywhere they are.
2. Audio Quality – Very clear and very loud.
3. Outdoor Range – It has almost the same range as my Icom professional radio which has 3 times the power. That is basically because outdoor range is more about antenna height rather than power.
4. Flashlight – Very useful when you go camping. You dont have to bring an extra flashlight. It is bright. Excellent for emergencies.
5. iVox – Hands free operation. Very useful as a 1 mile baby monitor.
6. Call button – I can call the other radio so that they know I am trying to call them so they can pick up the radio.
7. Emergency button – It will send an alert so that the other person knows you are in trouble.
8. Weather channels – I use it to find out the weather, specially before going Kayaking.
9. Privacy Codes – it has so many Privacy codes so you will never be disturbed by other radios.
10. QT – You can restrict the radios that you hear to only Motorolas.
11. Scan – well most other radios have this too.
12. 2 power settings – You can either transmit on .5 watts or 1.5 watts, depending on the button you press. Unless you are using FRS channels 8 to 14 which are hardcoded to use .5 watts.
13. Vibrate feature – In case you are in a noisy place, this is useful.
14. Ease of use – It does not get easier. Instructions are clear and it is intuitive.
CONS:
1. I am still trying to find one.
********UPDATE December 27,2009*********
I conducted another Distance and clarity test:
Equipment:
1. My Icom F21 UHF 4 watt Professional Handheld Radio(same one Police/Sheriff use. $380 for a pair)
2. My Motorola MR350($59 a pair)
Parameters of the Test:
I have a 40 Watt GMRS Base Station at home. My Home is by the Beach Blvd. I will drive North on beach Blvd and at every quarter mile, I will get down from the car, and transmit. I will transmit first with the Icom, then the Motorola. I will also note down if I can hear a reply back and how clear the reply was.
Result of the test:
Distance
1. Icom- was able to transmit and receive clearly up till 3 1/4 miles. It then started to become choppy from that point.
2. Motorola – was able to transmit and receive clearly till 2 3/4 miles. It then started to become choppy from that point.
Clarity
1. Icom – There were times I had to ask my wife to repeat herself because it sounded a little muffled.
2. Motorola – Just like listening to an FM radio. Loud and crystal clear.
Conclusion
Although the extra power of the Icom gave it a slight advantage in range, about 20%, you can buy 8 pairs of these Motorolas for the price of the Icom. Let the result speak for itself.
Note: This test was meant to show that the Professional Radios only have a slight advantage over the Motorola. The distances were that far because I have a base station with a 10 foot mast and an external J-pole GMRS tuned antenna. Hand held to hand held still follows the laws of physics so it is the same as I mentioned at the beginning of the review, .5 to 1 mile in the city. Completely different story if you are on an elevated position. Distance in miles = Square root of the Height(in feet) x 1.4.
*****UPDATE FEB. 04,2010******
I would like to now discuss the Cost savings of this MR350 over Professional Radios.
My Motorola MR350 is still going strong. I have since bought more Professional Icoms and have had to go through the hassle of tweaking them and programming them manually to get them to function the way this Motorola does when you first take it out of the packaging. I had to buy these Icoms because I am a member of a GMRS Radio Group here in Orange County and Los Angeles and I need the repeater functionality and external antenna.
If you buy a professional radio, you will have to pay to have it programmed. It can cost from between $20 to $80 each time you need to have something programmed. I bought the software and equipment to program my Icoms and they were very expensive. Again, this is something you will never have to do with the MR350.
Batteries on my Icoms cost about $60. That is even more than the cost of this MOTOROLA!!! Not to mention that I had to buy an external battery pack for my Icoms costing $45 so that I can use Energizer AA batteries. The Motorola can use the included rechargeable battery, or you can use Energizer.
I have my Motorolas fully charged all the time so if ever the big earthquake hits LA, this will be my primary survival gear together with my Swiss Army Knife.
Conclusion:
In a cost perspective, the Motorola MR350 wins hands down. You will easily spend about $650-700(hardware and software) to equip a pair(2) of Professional Radios to have some(not all) of the features of this Motorola MR350. At the end of the day, cost will always be a factor when we purchase anything.
Hope to talk to you on the air.
******UPDATE APRIL 19,2010*******
I just bought another set of Motorola MR350 radios. I leave a pair in my car for emergencies where I cannot use my car mounted Mobile UHF radio. I still think these are the best deal on any UHF radio.
******UPDATE OCTOBER 26,2010*******
I just wanted to update all of you since it has been 1 year since my original post. The 4 Radios and the batteries are still working great. That being said, one of the nice people to comment, mentioned that one or both of his new units were defective. Unfortunately, that is not unique with Consumer radios. Once you receive your radio, whatever you buy, please test it right away. If you find that something is not right, tell Amazon that the unit is defective, then exchange it for a new set. That is the nice thing about Amazon. And if you have more issues, drop me a comment, and I can point you to other radios that you may like. I collect radios and I have tried most of them already so I can save you the trouble of deciding.
Also, he mentioned that there is a site that you can get a free replacement faceplate for the MR355 which has the Repeater capability and all of the features of the MR350. The catch is the original faceplate of the MR355 is camo. The free replacement faceplate will make the MR355 look much more discreet. Look into that radio as well. From what I hear, they are almost the same price. Oh, and I also have that MR355 radio, but never take it out because I have not replaced the faceplate yet. I will eventually.
Review by Richard Boulware
Rating:
After purchasisng the Motorola MR-350 via Amazon, radios were tested in a residential area in my city.
To my surprise and amazement the MR-350 units were able to clearly communicate over a distance of one and one half miles, having to punch the signal clearly through homes, trees, steel, wood and many line of site obstructions.
Clearly, this is an amazing pair of radios, and the claim of an unobstructed range of many miles is highly likely.
Delighted with the Amazon purchase and this is an excellent value, demonstrating a lot of radio muscle power in a tiny package.
Richard – Denver.
Review by Mark Michener
Rating:
I would URGE you to read WILFREDO M VIRAY’S (“Wally”) EXCELLENT, THOROUGH and THOUGHTFUL review. There’s not much more I can say.
However, a few friends have asked “why would anyone use a two-way radio when cell phones do the ‘same’ thing?” I live direcly under a bluff in the midwest. Cross country ski, walking and bike trails, and one of our country clubs are there as well. Cell phones don’t work very well in these areas.
This can also be true when you’re traveling. A two-way radio can put you in touch with a LOT of sources you cannot reach with a cell phone… truckers, for example. Forget the stereotype – these guys can be lifesavers on the open road. Two way radios are free of roaming charges, and they’ll work ANYWHERE – NO cell phone network can make that claim.
We also use these radios (and their “predecessor,” the Motorola T9500XLR) EXTENSIVELY at work. (We now have TEN pair.) The building is concrete and steel, and no matter where you are, you can communicate CLEARLY with these radios. (Incidentally, we’re talking about a 200,000+ square foot… that’s a fairly large building.) Using two-way radios is a VAST time saver compared to paging someone on the intercom, then waiting for the “callee” to find a phone and get back to you!
Another NICE feature: Although these radios are supplied with a comparatively expensive 3.6 volt rechargeable battery, YOU CAN USE (3) AA’s INSTEAD.
Again, I refer you to Wilfredo “Wally” Viray’s excellent review for some non-biased technical data.
Good job, Motorola!
Review by R. Lenahrt
Rating:
Quite the distance with these little guys. Crystal clear two way. Don’t settle for any other brand, no matter the price, these are the ones to get. There is a normal talk button and a high power output button, which you can go the distance with. Ohh and the hands free option is a bonus.
Review by Jeffrey A. Lohmann
Rating:
I recently bought the MR350 Two-way radios and also bought the optional Motorola Talkabout Remote Speaker Microphones. We mainly use them for snow skiing and they usually get great coverage on the entire resort. For example, Mammoth Mountain, our family can be inside our hotel room (Mammoth Mountain Main Inn) and we can clearly talk from nearly every lift on the mountain.
Of course the 35 mile range is unrealistic, but 2 miles in mountain terrain is pretty good.
The Motorola remote speaker microphones are the only way to go for skiing. You can keep the radio inside your jacket while the mic is firmly clipped on your jacket lapel. The mic is very loud and clear. Loud enough that I can clearly hear the call alert tone while wearing my helmet and ipod headphones.
Customer complaints of garbled sound quality are usually a result of talking to closely to the mic… Try holding the mic a few more inches away from your mouth while speaking. Wind noise can be a problem, but that will happen with with even the highest quality mic/radios.
Another tip that will help with reception… Try to keep the radios upright (antenna straight up) while communicating at longer distances. Holding the radio sideways causes the range to be significantly diminished.