Walkie Talkies/Radios

[Melody80]

We will be cruising on the Ecstacy April 06.

I was reading on another forum about people using walkie talkies. It seems some are for it and some are against it. I dont own radios (yet) But was considering buying them for our cruise. Now I dont know if its a good idea, I dont want to upset a bunch of folks!

 

Those that do use them I have a few quesitons on how they work. Can diffrant brands work together. We are going with a group and I was wondering if we would be able to reach everyone even though we dont all have the same brand radio. Also if they do work between brands, are you always listening to other people talk? I understand they have diffrent channels but if lost of people on board are using them it would seem to me it would hard to find a 'clear' channel.

 

Im sorry If Im being dingy about this, Ive never used a radio.

[crazidude1400]

yes-you will able to use other brands as long as all of the walkie talkies are on the SAME channel.:)

[cleacat]

We rented them on the Caribbean Princess last year. The problem is a lot of people will be on the same frequency as you are. If you are buying, go for ones that have the most channel settings, and use the higher numbers. There may not be as many people on those frequencies.

Cleacat

[serene56]

When we cruise with ALL our family memebers we all had diffrent walkie/talkie radios. (Make sure you get the kind with rechargeable batteries or you will go through a lot of them) get a radio with a 2 mile radius. (ya dont really need any more) sub channels. You will find a lot of kids use them during the week. If they are for your kids--pick a differnt name other then mom. Listen when someone calls mom and all the moms answer..lol

 

The radios wont bother people if you use them discretly. You dont want to be a public showroom shouting to your party about where you are. (yes it does happen) and turn them off when you are watching a show or eating dinner.

[born_to_cruise]

DH just purchased some today for our July 24, 2005 cruise on Elation. We have done several cruises before - just us - and this will be the first time taking our 2 DS's (10 & 8 yrs. old). Since 10 yr. old will be able to check himself out of Camp, we want to be able for him to reach us anywhere on the ship & vice versa. Saw several being used on prior cruises. Would be even better if our Nextel phone would work as we would have a secure channel.

[serene56]

Would be even better if our Nextel phone would work as we would have a secure channel.

 

 

 

Using the Nextels woulda been really good for us...but as soon as we left the port in Tampa the signal was lost until we got back to tampa. Not in one port were we ever to get a signal.

[Runner Girl]

We have found them very helpful when on vacation. They don't always work from the cabin to the pool, though. At least ours don't.

[djk]

I'm wondering how much it costs to rent the walkie talkies onboard?

 

Thanks,

djk

[Nonesuch]

I'm wondering how much it costs to rent the walkie talkies onboard?

 

There was a sign at the excursion desk on the Conquest stating that walkie-talkie rentals were $39, supplies are limited. You can get a pair of low-end FRS radios at Costco for about that much.

 

They don't always work from the cabin to the pool, though. At least ours don't.

 

Nearly all of the FRS radios have the same 0.5 watt transmit power, but the real limitation on range is actually the antenna. Regardless, the FRS radios are pretty weak to get a signal through all of that metal.

 

The more powerful GMRS models are just a little bigger, cost about twice as much, and can pump out 2 watts. They are also backwards-compatible with the FRS channels, so you can still talk to your friends who have FRS, but when using the FRS channels, they are limited to the same 0.5 watt transmit power. :(

 

are you always listening to other people talk? I understand they have diffrent channels but if lost of people on board are using them it would seem to me it would hard to find a 'clear' channel.

 

All FRS radios should be inter-compatible, and all GMRS radios are inter-compatible with both GMRS and FRS. The one exception is "privacy codes", some brands offer additional codes beyond the standard 38 codes.

 

FRS and GMRS radios have a misleadingly named "privacy code" (really CTCSS) which only turns on your speaker when somebody transmits using not only the same channel, but also the same code as you have set. So unless you put your radio into monitor mode (so much for "privacy") you won't always be listening to other people talk.

 

Yes, it can be difficult to find a clear channel -- I didn't have any issues with this, but I was using Motorola GMRS radios with the extra 8 seldom-used channels. :D

 

Would be even better if our Nextel phone would work as we would have a secure channel.

Nextel would make a killing if they could install a private "cell" supporting their PTT functionality for cruisers (no connectivity off the ship) when away from port (In foreign ports they would need to be in compliance with the local equivalent of the FCC).

 

Knowing what little I do about iDEN, I wouldn't put much stock into that "secure channel" marketing speak.