A Two-Way Radio Buying Guide for Businesses or Personal Use
Businesses have significantly benefited from two-way radios. These are simple and cost-effective ways to enhance their communication systems. Efficiency is an added benefit as operating costs continue to fall. Businesses can interact more easily between departments with the help of these tools. These radios play a vital role in communication between office and field executives.
When choosing the best radio, operating environments vary greatly from one customer to another. While they might be costly, two-way radios are a useful and cost-effective piece of communication equipment to have.
Things to Consider When Purchasing Two-Way Radios
Getting two-way radios for personal or commercial use can be a wise investment for anyone seeking a reliable, low-cost communication system. However, choosing which radio is best for you needs a thorough study. Here are the essential things you must consider before you buy one:
1. Frequency: UHF or VHF?
Understanding the frequency differences offered is essential for communication to be reliable and as interference-free as possible, depending on the radios’ surroundings. VHF (Very High Frequency) radios operate on frequencies between 136 and 174 MHz and are best used outside on the open ground or rolling hills with few trees.UHF
UHF (Ultra High Frequencies) operate on frequencies between 450 and 470 MHz and are more popular than VHF because they give a better range within steel or concrete structures and crowded cities. Learn more about network booster right here.
2. Licensed or Licensed-Free?
Budget, operational environment, and security all contribute to determining whether to invest in licensed or license-free radios. License-free (PMR-446) radios use the same frequencies as conventional PMR-446 radios and operate on 8 general channels.
The only disadvantage is that anyone within range of you who is using a PMR446 radio might listen to your conversation or disrupt your signal. However, license-free radios do not require a license, a network, call charges, or a contract. As a result, they’re great entry-level radios for anyone looking to operate within a line of vision up to a range of about 3 kilometers. Check this out to know more about two-way radios.
3. Analog or Digital?
The way a radio signal is transmitted and received is determined by whether it is digital or analog. Analog radios are less complicated than digital radios, and they can interact better when the received signal is weak or loud. However, on each channel, the analog operation only allows for one conversation at a time.
Enhanced speech quality, security, direct calling, channels, higher range, text messaging, and longer battery life benefit digital radios. However, digital radios are more complicated, need the same design and programming to be suitable, and are more expensive. You can check this Motorola 2 way radios for more details.
4. Required Channels
Each model of two-way radio has a different number of channels. One channel works great if all of your staff need to speak with one another. However, if you own a business like a hotel, you’ll need many channels. Then, your kitchen, housekeeping, and valet service can then connect with security and hotel management over one channel.
5. Environment
You need to think about the environment in which the radio will be used. ATEX radios should be considered if radio communication is required in potentially dangerous situations (such as oil refineries, chemical factories, and flour mills), where combustible gases or explosive dust pose a danger to standard radio or electrical devices. High electric fields, intermittent electrical connections, and other factors can cause sparks, hence ATEX-approved or Intrinsically Safe (IS) radios are created to avoid this.
Conclusion
The best radio for you is determined by a variety of aspects. Many features, such as Man Down, GPS, Lone Worker, Voice Activation (VOX), and others, must be addressed in addition to the factors listed above.
It is really easy to determine the type of radio necessary, but it is more difficult to decide on the most suitable make and model for your needs without testing in the field. Many radio companies give free on-site demonstrations and testing, and also radios that can be rented.