New 'Replacement' for FRS and Bubblepack GMRS?

[KD8DVR]

My tests on the eXRS radios were done in a typical suburban environment. Houses.. trees, so forth.

I got about 1.25 miles point to point. This is comparable to a GMRS radio with slightly higher power on the GMRS radio.

On a trip, indoors we had no problems talking from a third floor room to the lobby, and parking lot.

Sound quality all around was superb.

During my tests, at the limits of range the radios would lose synch with one another and lose communications. It'd take a minute or so for them to re-acquire, once back in range.

The alphanumeric display is great, and channel assignments can be done in text.

Text messaging wasn't tested too much... no error correction or handshaking, so messages are sent in the blind. My one test indicated texting range is at least half of that of voice..... odd since digital is digital.... voice and text are interpreted the same...

Much more convenient than an FRS radio. No kids with annoying call tones and intentional jamming. I hope they do well.... this is an ideal replacement for FRS.

It will also take the heat off GMRS and get the pirates off GMRS.

 

[rescuecomm]

I noticed that the price of these radios has dropped below $75.00 on ebay. I am going to try to pick up a set of the model 300 units.

Bob

 

[b52hbuff]

They've got about a watt ERP. I'm putting a set thru their paces now. Definitely first-gen product. A few bugs.

Bugs:
No handshaking.... radios can lose synch with each other.

What happens when you lose sync? How do you resync?

 

[N1SQB]

Hmmm!

Im seriously looking into getting a pair of these! I'm a bit on the balance line here though. I mean they seem nice but what can they do better than the FRS/GMRS radios? I mean I suppose that the secure conversations and all are cool but I dont say anythinng on the air, that needs to be THAT private or is THAT sensitive. So these would be for fun around the house and the parks with the family. I just wonder about the range. I dont know, I may just end up getting them anyway!

Manny

 

[b52hbuff]

Im seriously looking into getting a pair of these! I'm a bit on the balance line here though. I mean they seem nice but what can they do better than the FRS/GMRS radios? I mean I suppose that the secure conversations and all are cool but I dont say anythinng on the air, that needs to be THAT private or is THAT sensitive. So these would be for fun around the house and the parks with the family. I just wonder about the range. I dont know, I may just end up getting them anyway!

Manny

You can check out the user's manual here:
http://www.trisquare.us/images/TSX300_TR000022-052 Rev A.pdf

Here is the product sheet:
http://www.trisquare.us/images/TSX300 Trisquare eXRS LR.pdf

I'm still trying to coe up to speed on the radios, but it looks like they have the ability to send text messages. The radios send out an ID, so you have a CallerID of sourts. You can monitor two 'channels' at once. So you can communicate on a 'group' channel, and then if you want to chat privately with someone you can contact them via their 'CallerID'. There is the ability to 'call' the other radio (similar to text messaging).

And don't overlook the advantage of private communications. I know that interference from other users was a BIG reason I couldn't get the wife into ham radio or FRS/GMRS. It's very convenient to have a totally clear channel that you know is dedicated for *YOU*.

The one disadvantage is that until proliferation and popularity increase, there's noone else to talk with. I'd really like to be able to meetup with folks at airshows and other events. But I'm guessing I'll be the only one with an XRS there...

 

[SkipSanders]

I would NOT get one of these if you want to 'chat' to random others. Oh, sure, a gentlemen's aggreement could be made that channels 1-10 would be used for open chat, channel 1 being a calling channel, etc... but no one's going to know that who just buys them from a store.

The channels aren't 'secure', as such, they're just a matter of 'how likely is it that someone will be flipping thrugh 10,000 (or 1,000,000) 'channels' and happen across yours.

If you're on channel 1541245, and someone tunes their radio to 1541245, they'll hear you, and can talk to you.

 

[prcguy]

Damm! How did you guess my channel number 1541245?
Seriously, I just ordered a pair for $46 and will give them a workout.
prcguy

I would NOT get one of these if you want to 'chat' to random others. Oh, sure, a gentlemen's aggreement could be made that channels 1-10 would be used for open chat, channel 1 being a calling channel, etc... but no one's going to know that who just buys them from a store.

The channels aren't 'secure', as such, they're just a matter of 'how likely is it that someone will be flipping thrugh 10,000 (or 1,000,000) 'channels' and happen across yours.

If you're on channel 1541245, and someone tunes their radio to 1541245, they'll hear you, and can talk to you.

 

[b52hbuff]

The channels aren't 'secure', as such, they're just a matter of 'how likely is it that someone will be flipping thrugh 10,000 (or 1,000,000) 'channels' and happen across yours.

0-9,999,999,999 is the channel numbering.

I'll take my chances.

 

[rescuecomm]

I have been on a cruise ship that put into Cozumel with two other ships. One was the Mickey Mouse boat. The FRS/GMRS freqs were jammed with kids yaking about nothing and parents calling for their children. Some of our people had FRS with no PL capablility and they just shut them off. The TriSquare radios would have been priceless on that day.

Bob

 

[b52hbuff]

The FRS/GMRS freqs were jammed with kids yaking about nothing and parents calling for their children. The TriSquare radios would have been priceless on that day.
Bob

Yup. This is the exact scenario I am looking at. And since California is so crowded anyway, it's not like it's easy to have a free channel.

 

[tuttleje]

Nice radios for a small homeowners association

I bought two TriSquare TSX-300 radios and love them. I purchased them to test in a homeowners association for use in disaster control and other events. We live in a major tourist area and there is frequent use of FRS radios. We wanted a radio that would not have "interference" from other radios.

The TriSquare coverage in our neighbor with small hills is appx 1/2 of a mile. I really like the idea of setting up talk groups and having "private calls". The text messaging is a very nice feature. You can preprogram "canned" messages for quick transmission. Although they are not "encrypted", they are about as secure as you would need. I would feel very comfortable discussing sensitive issues (who is out of town/medical problems/damage to residents) on these radios.

I had previously tested FRS radios in the area. The TriSquare radios have about the same range....with the added benefit of 10 billion channels, caller ID, private calls, etc.

I am recommending that my homeowners association purchase 10 of these radios. Obviously, I really like them. You get a lot of bang for the buck!

 

[JASII]

I agree that these will work quite well for many applications. I have been an amateur radio operator for a few years and have had Nextel through work for a number of years. As an aside, another amateur radio operator and I compared a pair of Nextels on Direct Talk to a pair of Motorolas on 800 Astro P25 simplex. So we are comparing .6 watt vs. 3 watts and FHSS to straight up digital simplex. Anyway, the Nextels on Direct Talk did almost a mile in a very suburban environment and the Motorolas did about two blocks more. I was sort of surprised that the Motorolas didn't do a little better, but simplex is simplex. As an aside, in addition to the two Nextels that my wife and I use, I bought a couple of Nextel i315s just for Direct Talk for my two sons. A couple of advantages that these have over TriSquare is:

-The accessories I already have (like chargers) are compatible

-The i315s can still call 911 in an emergency even though they aren't currently subscribed to a plan

-They are inter-operable with my Nextels

I like the fact that there are now more choices than ever for legal, license free communications for the average consumer. Think about it, without a license you can legally buy and use:

-FRS

-MURS

-Nextel Direct Talk

-TriSquare

With a license you can legally buy and use GMRS.

We are also seeing some neat additional features like the Garmin Rino series https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=146&pID=8523 where you can transmit your position to another unit and see it displayed on a map or chart.

 

[N1SQB]

I will say this, Garmin makes very nice radios with the rhino series and all but I cant touch them with those prices! My God! I know technology is not cheap but I could buy 2 ham portables for the price of just one of these. I believe the Trisquare radios are a bargain as long as you do the research before you buy and know what you are getting. Im dfinitely getting a pair.

Manny

 

[iMONITOR]

I will say this, Garmin makes very nice radios with the rhino series and all but I cant touch them with those prices! My God! I know technology is not cheap but I could buy 2 ham portables for the price of just one of these. I believe the Trisquare radios are a bargain as long as you do the research before you buy and know what you are getting. Im dfinitely getting a pair.

Manny

They're expensive because in addition to being a two-way radio, they are also a GPS device, with GPS data integration to the radio. Considering they cost about the same a GPS device by itself, they are a bargain.

 

[N1SQB]

Great Lakes, I agree with you 100%!
However, in purchasing a pair( @$500) one has to ask him/herself, how many times am I going to actualy use these to justify the price? I for one, can not justify it. As nice as they are and I do wish I had a pair, I just will not get THAT much use out of them on a daily basis to justify the price. If others can, awesome,go for it. I guess when you really think about it, they are pretty cheap considering you get a radio and a GPS. I just cant do it personaly. I need something that is field programable and with different bands like Ham portables. However I will say that the idea of radio and GPS being one in the same package, I think is very cool!

Manny

 

[SkipSanders]

Just for some comparison, I looked up the directions for Nextel 'Direct talk'.

They are configured as 10 'channels' with 25 'codes', anyone set to a channel with the same code will be able to hear and speak to all others, and you can set to receive all users regardless of 'code' on a given 'channel'.

So, very like FRS, and not at all 'secure', to anyone else with a Nextel phone. You do not have to have phone service to use Direct Talk, just the physical phone capable of it. Though they're not cheap, you might find used, etc.

The xRS stuff gives much more 'secure' comms by having massively more channels, which someone has to guess to find you. If 'common' channels are wanted, I guess everyone would just have to agree to use channels 1-10 for that purpose, or somesuch.

 

[cubn]

My eXRS TSX-100 findings

I ordered a pair of TriSquare eXRS TSX-100 900 MHz digital spread spectrum radios from BestBuy for just over $100.00 including tax and shipping. I had previously used Cobra MicroTalk 2 and MicroTalk 3 style FRS radios with the voice inversion scrambling. I always used the voice inversion (especially around home), but I felt like it cut down the range of the radios when out on the highway (any truth to that?). Ever since I heard about these new eXRS radios, I knew I'd have to try them out. These eXRS radios are cool for various reasons, but also have some setbacks:

PROBLEMS:
*range is very close, but just slightly not as good as FRS in my initial tests in residential areas
*signal is digital and even at close range it has a little crackling/flutter in it like an analog TRS when you are outside optimum range. Doesn't sound as good as analog FRS, but it's still quite intelligible (more like the Pro96 digital than the BCD396T digital audio)
*no keypad lock (what were they thinking??)
*can't communicate with your friends' FRS radios (basically if you want more radios, you are stuck buying TriSquare products)

ADVANTAGES:
*1000 (more in the more expensive models) channels so less chance of other people interfering on your channel
*no eavesdropping from scanners, nosey neighbors, or neighborhood kids
*built in VOX function
*transmit button is disabled when receiving a signal to keep you from talking on top of someone
*comes with rechargeable batteries and drop-in charger (I know most decent FRS/GMRS radios come with these nowadays, but my old Cobra's didn't)
*no squelch tail, no interference from computers, etc.

It's neat to transmit one of these units next to a frequency counter and watch it constantly jump around 900-920 MHz.

RANGE:
TriSquare purposely doesn't claim a range in miles in their documentation. All they state is "the TriSuare eXRS radios useable range is equal to or greater than that of other portable UHF (including FRS/GRMS) 2-way radios." I found these things are almost equivalent to FRS, certainly not as good as you'd get on the GRMS side of those radios. In a residential area, I was getting reliable transmissions in a .3 mile range (roughly 2000 feet). Once I got out to .5 miles it was breaking up so much I couldn't hold a conversation. At the same location, I grabbed my old FRS radio (with voice inversion off) and it was breaking up considerably too but still readable. I haven't had a chance to try them out on the highway in an open, flat area yet.

VERDICT:
My advice is that if range in an urban area is critical, don't count on these radios since they have slightly less range than FRS. I'll still use them as my primary radios because I like the pretense of security that nobody else can listen unless they have a TriSquare radio tuned to the same channel. I hope they will work far enough for caravan car trips, and I believe they will once you get away from buildings, trees, and elevation changes found in a subdivision. These were my own findings and opinions--your results may very. Hope this helps in your purchasing decisions.

 

[tuttleje]

The TRS-300 radios have a keypad lock. Further, they have text messaging capability, although it's somewhat clumsy to use the "telephone" style keypad. However, you can generate and save text messages frequently used. I bought two radios, charger, batteries, and headsets for a little over $82.00.

The range is limited. However, they are a bunch of fun to play with in and around the neighborhood.

The other really nice feature is that they have over the air cloning. I can set up one radio, and transmit the contact list and radio parameters to all the other radios.

The reception on the NOAA radio frequencies leave a lot to be desired. The Motorola FRS radios I own have better reception of weather channels.

But for limited range, and the intended purpose, these are great radios.

 

[N1SQB]

Ok!
At the risk of sounding clueless on this subject ( I am), is there an FCC regulation preventing these units from having more wattage? I mean maybe a 2 or 3 watt bump would help the range issue. 900 MHZ is a tough band.

Manny

 

[SkipSanders]

They are limited to under 1 watt, with a 50% duty cycle maximum.

No, making it 3 watts wouldn't matter much. You'd probably have to move up to 10 watts to help much, and that still wouldn't give you any real range. Line of Sight.

Antennas at 5' (handheld) have a 'horizon' of 2.5-5 miles, and in most areas will be shooting through buildings, trees, etc., which severely degrades the signals. Over water, you might get two units to work at 5-10 miles. Most likely, 7-8 miles in the absence of ducting. In urban areas, 1/2 to 1 mile is the expected 'real' usable range for handie-talkies not using a high elevation repeater, or not themselves up on a hill.

And 10 watts at 900 MHz is NOT something you want radiating next to your ear... and eyes... and brain.