Mobiles... Do they work?

[tony64]

Hi Kirstin Have a good trip
Alot of people buy walky talkies to keep in touch.
You can pick them up quiet cheap in Walmart and they can cover up to 12 miles.
Don't buy them in this country as we operate on a different radio frequentcy.

 

[carl_w]

Hi Kirstin Have a good trip
Alot of people buy walky talkies to keep in touch.
You can pick them up quiet cheap in Walmart and they can cover up to 12 miles.

Actually I think you missed the decimal point. 1.2 miles is more realistic.

 

[tony64]

no I mean 12 miles www.walmart.com/catalog/product.gsp?product_id=3984991


But you will cut down the area covered in and around buildings they should cover you and the same park without any problems which could save a fortune in phone bills

 

[Aceman88888]

I've just bought some fantastic walkie talkies from Ebuyer. Tiny in size with a 5km range which should be more than enough in the parks. All for just £21 plus a small delivery charge.

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/prod...2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=87493

 

[alisonbestford]

We texted to keep in touch with DH (with us in the US) and my parents (back in the UK).
At 35p a time this worked well for us

 

[carl_w]

I've just bought some fantastic walkie talkies from Ebuyer. Tiny in size with a 5km range which should be more than enough in the parks. All for just £21 plus a small delivery charge.

You could potentially be in trouble. PMR446 is licensed for use in the EU, but not in the USA. Their equivalent is FRS. FRS is around 462-468 MHz, but PMR446 is (as the name suggests) around 446 MHz. The 446 MHz band could potentially overlap with some other licensed (and critical!) services in the USA.

The FCC's table of frequency allocations is here

It says that 420-450 MHz is RADIOLOCATION US217 G2 G129 (whatever that means). It appears that Federal Rules "Private Land Mobile" (90) and "Amateur" (97), so if found out maybe a spell in a Federal Penitentiary

Seriously, though, I don't know what the likelihood of getting caught is.
Probably pretty low.

PS: I have a pair of Motorolas too. A mile range is the reality. Maybe two if you're lucky. The maximum radiated power in the PMR band is limited (presumably the same for FRS) and the antenna is fixed in design and non-removable. Ye cannae change the laws of physics.

 

[debbyLL]

how much are mobile phones in florida may be worth buying them rather than pagers to keep in touch with dd

debby ll

 

[arieliwish]

When I was looking last year they appeared to be similar in dollars to pounds - therefore cheaper than here. I found a lot of people complained (maybe on here?) about the channels being crowded as so many people are using them now in the parks. Also your conversation isn't private, anyone can be listening in.

We didn't buy any in the end, opted for texts instead on our uk pay as you go phones.

 

[carl_w]

We bought a couple of PAYG Cingular SIMs to go in our UK mobiles. $15 for the SIM plus however much you want to top it up. 10c a minute between callers, or $1 a day service charge and free between callers on the Cingular network.

 

[Frances999]

I've just bought some fantastic walkie talkies from Ebuyer. Tiny in size with a 5km range which should be more than enough in the parks. All for just £21 plus a small delivery charge.

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/prod...2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=87493

They look great However, are you still going to use them after Carl's advice? I really want to get some walkie talkies for our trip this year, but I want to make sure they are legal to use first. Is there anywhere online that sells walkie talkies which can be used in the US??

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

We took our Uk PMRs no problem.
in fact they being a different frequency, made the problems the Americans were getting in finding a clear channel not a problem for us.
The authorities don't have the rec=sources to track down a couple of radios in a theme park!

 

[Frances999]

The authorities don't have the rec=sources to track down a couple of radios in a theme park!

That's not the point. If it is "wrong" to use them, then it is wrong for whatever reasons. Is it actually "illegal" to use them if they are from England??

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

That's not the point. If it is "wrong" to use them, then it is wrong for whatever reasons. Is it actually "illegal" to use them if they are from England??

and so are many things you do in a day.
Are you telling me you stick religiously to the posteed speed limit, going not one mile over? have you never "borrowed" a pen or other items from work?

The matter is for everybody's own conscience, just because some pen pusher says it wrong does not make it the truth does it?

 

[Frances999]

and so are many things you do in a day.
Are you telling me you stick religiously to the posteed speed limit, going not one mile over? have you never "borrowed" a pen or other items from work?

The matter is for everybody's own conscience, just because some pen pusher says it wrong does not make it the truth does it?

What I am unsure about is how "wrong" it is to be using them in the USA. Like I said, is it actually illegal? Why is it "wrong" - does it interfere with some kind of communications equipment or something?? I have no problem using them if the regulation is not, in my opinion, justified.

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

ah, OK

 

[LeCras]

Why is it "wrong" - does it interfere with some kind of communications equipment or something??

The 446 mHz band is allocated to amateur radio in the US. If you choose to use UK walkie talkies over there I guess that would be the equivalent of driving in a bus lane...up to you whether you think that's "wrong" or not...

Charlotte

 

[Thea]

We bought a couple of PAYG Cingular SIMs to go in our UK mobiles. $15 for the SIM plus however much you want to top it up. 10c a minute between callers, or $1 a day service charge and free between callers on the Cingular network.

Where did you buy the sims ? We're going to take our triband phones with us this summer like always but this time we're planning to buy Sims and prepaid time.

Do anyone know if the prepaid phone packages (SIM and Phone) sold at Walmart or Target is Sim-locked ? They looks like at pretty good buy starting at $30 and up

Thea
Only 3 more days....

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

thea,
I take it your tri bands are unlocked?
If not they wont work with another sim card.

 

[carl_w]

Like I said, is it actually illegal? Why is it "wrong" - does it interfere with some kind of communications equipment or something??

No idea whether that part of the spectrum is licensed or not. In the UK you have to have a licence to operate on the amateur band. Actually it's worse the other way round -- I think the US FRS frequencies overlap with some sort of maritime emergency frequency in the EU. Broadcasting all over that might cause someone some problems.

Some discussion here.