Customer Reviews

Midland GXT710VP3 26-Mile 22-Channel FRS/GMRS Two-Way Radio (Pair)

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

A very good hand held radio for family communications at a reasonable distance of 3 to 4 miles,but if you are expecting to be able to communicate at the claimed 26 mile range,you will be disapointed, as you will be with any of these types of hand helds that claim over a 5 mile range, unless you can get access to a repeater, and that is a whole nother situation which requiers an FCC licence.
I bought these for there small size, ease of operation and solid construction, they perform as I expected and I am very satisfied.

We recently purchased the GXT710 rechargable 26 mile Midland GMRS radios through Amazon. This is the third set of Midland GRMS radios and the sixth set, including other brands we've purchased. We use the radios aboard cruise ships and find the GXT 710 to be the best we've owned. From ship to shore, the reception was great and on most places of Mariner of the Seas, the reception was also great. I've found the more powerful the radio, the better the signal penetrates the metal and other obstacles aboard ships and on hiking trails. The GXT710 is not necessairly more powerful than the previous models, however the antenna is longer on this model and appears to help.

We bought 5 pairs of the GTX710VP3. They are working very well, we're using them in a 6 story building in New York City. I had one person in the basement, while the other went a couple of blocks away and it worked fine.

Pros--

-If using NiMH rechargeable AA batteries, they will last several days
-Interface is simple to use once you have read the manual to understand what all of the menus do
-Adjustable transmit power to save battery when you are in close range
- 5 watt max so they probably go further than typical GMRS (since others seem to top out at 2 watts)
-Radios are smaller than other Motorola radios that also use 4 AA batteries
-Water resistant (although I would still be careful and try not to get them wet)
-The feature to scan through all of the channels has a dedicated button and is NOT buried deep in the menu!
-The belt clip seems pretty solid, unlike some of the Motorola GMRS radios


Cons--

-Battery charger is not automatic so it will not turn off when the batteries are full. I would recommend instead on using your own rechargeable AA NiMH batteries.
-The rechargeable battery that comes with them is only 700 mAH. You can get a ser of AA NiMH batteries that are 2700 mAH and will last much longer.
-If the batteries are removed from the radio, or they die completely, the settings (ie channel and privacy code, etc) get reset to the default.
-Audio quality is pretty good, although it is better on the Motorola T7400
-(minor) It is all plastic and does not have a non-slip grip. This may be more of an issue if your hands are wet.
-The privacy codes are separated into 'DCS' codes and 'CTCSS' codes. This is not a big deal if you are planning to only use Midland radios. But if you are trying to use say Midlands and Motorolas, then it may be hard to match the privacy codes on each one since the numbers likely will not match.

Overall I am very happy with these radios and do recommend them!

My 'tween son and I have long used two-way radios on cruises and when he goes out to play, but this is the first set of Midlands we have had. We have had great success previously with Motorola Talkabouts, and a short, horrid stint with a pair of Cobra's.

These Midlands are the best pair of radios we have had yet. We just got back from our most recent cruise, and they worked *beautifully.* His favorite hangout was deep down on deck 2, while mine was usually way up on 10, and it was very rare that we had a problem with the radios even with all that metal between us. The sound was clear, and we had no static or sub-channel crosstalk.

We never had one issue with battery life. I don't think we ever even fell below 3 bars of power. We put the radios back on the very compact and travel-friendly charger dock every night before bed.

I am *very* pleased with these radios, and recommend them highly!

I have been using 2 way GMRS radios for about 15 yrs from fishing in Alaska to bird hunting in Ohio. I have tried several brands recently and these have been the best for clarity of voice and distance, regardless of price. I first tried them in NW PA 2 weeks ago steelhead fishing in a twisting canyon for a distance slightly over a mile. They worked fine. What a blessing to have a charger to set them in at night so they are ready to go the next morning. I set them up with manual activation rather than voice. I like the "beep" feature when the transmit button is released, NOAA weather radio that really works, and a size that is not the smallest, but that might be why they work so well. The only negative is that they have so many features you can use, it takes a bit of practice setting them up so everyone is communicating the same. Four of us (2 sets)are using them and all comments were positive.

Rick in Ohio

These 2-way radios were a lifesaver for my wife and me as we traveled from Georgia to New Mexico in separate vehicles (UHAUL and car). The voice clarity and reliablity of this product allowed me to communicate with my wife along the journey with assurance and much more frequently than I anticipated!! We experienced car trouble along the way, so talking on the 2-way radios enabled us to make planned stops to recharge the car battery...despite tractor trailers whizzing by at high speeds throughout the day and night only a few feet away from us! The duration of the fully charged battery pack was about 16 hours (about 85% standby time). We remained within 1 mile of each other, so reception distance was never a concern. We both felt the quality of these radios saved us much grief and aggravation...and maybe even our marriage!...Hmmm...maybe I should reconsider...I mean getting a car charger for these fantastic radios!

I assumed the walkie talkies would work well after seeing good reviews.

I just used these on a cruise with 6 other people and 26 miles is not even close to what we got, the farthest we could use these were at most 1 mile over open water, fully charged.

Many times I couldnt even hear the others while on the same boat.

Only at about 300 feet or less you can hear the other person pretty good, anything beyond 300 feet it gets very staticy or you can't hear them at all.

Besides they are very bulky.

A few times after charging it for 6 hours the battery would die out right away.

The chargers are preety cool but they dont let you know when the walkie talkies are fully charged, you have to guess or look at the battery icon which is not the best indicator, considering it can show full and die an hour later.

I bought these radios thinking that they probably would probably end up being a toy, how wrong I was! We have NO cell coverage and I wanted to have some way to communicate when riding horse deep into the forest. These radios have a clear signal, even in tall pines for easily 3 miles. If you go to a high spot, the distance increases to about 12 miles(haven't gone any further). I was going to be happy if they only worked on our ranch(125 acres), which they do, but the added distance into the forest makes them invaluable.

I recently purchased two Midland GXT710VP3 22-Channel GMRS 2-way Radios. I find that they operate very well. They are easy to operate and communications is good. However dont expect the 26 mile range they advertise. Like any other GMRS radio, you can expect about a four mile range under perfect conditions and in nonperfect conditions a mile or less is common. Perfect conditions is straight line.