You’ve probably seen families at the amusement park, out camping, skiing or doing other outdoor activities keeping in touch with portable walkie-talkies. Family Radio Service (FRS) and the devices that use it are a little more sophisticated than simple one-channel walkie-talkies. They have numerous channels, privacy codes, call functions and generally a much greater range than toy walkie-talkies. That said, under the Canadian Radio-television Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), they fall in to the same category as baby monitors and cordless phones – “low-power radiocommunication devices.”

FRS radios have been around for quite some time. At the low end, you can pick up a pair that run on standard batteries for as little as $40. These radios will be limited in range, likely won’t offer the full spectrum of designated FRS channels (there are 14 in all) and often won’t use privacy codes which lessen the odds of someone listening in on your communications.

This raises a good point: FRS is a license-free radio band. Treat all communications on FRS as inherently not secure… because they’re not. Anyone on the same channel or, on a radio equipped with privacy settings, using the same privacy code (from 1-38 in each band) can hear your communications.

A fairly recent standard (relative to FRS which has been around for some time) is General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS), approved in Canada in 2004. While a license is required by law in the United States, GMRS is open for public use in Canada though the allowed wattage of transmitters (2 watts) is less than the 5 watts allowed in the US for handheld radios with integrated antennas. That said, in the US there’s an $85 licensing fee to use the service. GMRS shares seven channels with existing FRS radio and includes eight GMRS-only bands.

FRS / GMRS radios are an ideal way to keep connected with family and friends while camping, hiking, visiting the fair or just about anywhere. They’re especially useful in outdoor situations; they allow kids freedom to explore around camp while affording parents a little peace of mind. Manufacturers often make bloated claims as to the range of their radios. As with all FRS or GMRS radios, your mileage will differ when used in the field; cut the range by about a quarter to get a more accurate idea… and even then, that calculation is for a “real world best-case scenario.” The best-case scenario in this case is a line-of-sight communication. Anything in the way of the line-of-sight will impact reception, sometimes significantly.

There are also radios that are incorporated with handheld GPS units – again, perfect for the outdoors – that allow users to not only maintain a voice link but also, can transmit location data between units and allow users to navigate toward each other using the on-screen map.

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