HRO - Radio Recommendations

If you're thinking about getting a ham radio here are some inexpensive recommendations. I preferred to make my first radio a mobile (so I can use in my car with high output power). Also, presumably a charged car battery is ALWAYS available in an emergency (not always the case with handheld AA batteries, unless you store them somewhere).

The price range is from $109-300 that I've quoted. You can probably find them online used through e-bay, craiglist, or some hamfest swapmeet type of thing for as low as $25.00 (I would recommend a 2m band radio at least, dual band is nice but not needed).

-- Adam
Radio recommendations:

You have 4 main options:
1) a single band (2m only)
2) a dual band (2m/440 MHz)

Then, two sub-options from that:
1a) 2m Handheld Transmitter (HT) - (up to 5 Watts power)
1b) 2m Mobile - (50-75 Watts power)

2a) 2m/440 Handheld Transmitter (HT) - (up to 5 Watts power)
2b) 2m/440 Mobile - (50-75 Watts power)

Recommendations by price and feature:
Both Yaesu and Icom are good brands (Kenwood and others are also good brands), but I prefer one of the first two.

I prefer one that has not only the frequency but a programmable Call Sign Indicator (i.e. KC0QZS)
for easy repeater identification of programmed frequencies.

1a) 2m Handheld Transmitter (HT) - Yaesu, or Icom
Yaesu VX-150 - $117.95 - 5 Watts
Yaesu VX-170 - $114.95 - 5 Watts

Icom IC-V82 - $139.95 - 7 Watts
Icom IC-V8-SPORT - $109.95 - 5 Watts

1b) 2m Mobile - Icom (or Yaesu)
Icom IC-2200H - $169.95 - 65 Watts, 2m
Icom IC-V8000 - $249.95 - 75 Watts, 2m

Yaesu FT-1802M - $134.95 - 50 Watts, 2m
Yaesu FT-2800M - $129.95 - 65 Watts, 2m

2a) 2m/440 Handheld Transmitter (HT) - Yaesu, or Icom
Yaesu FT-60R - $189.95 - 5 Watts
Yaesu VX-3R - $164.95 - 5 Watts
Yaesu VX-6R - $244.95 - 5 Watts (2m/ 220MHz / 440 MHz)

Icom IC-T7H-SPORT - $174.95 - 5 Watts
Icom IC-P7A - $239.95 - 5 Watts

2b) 2m/440 Mobile - Icom, or Yaesu

Yaesu FTM-10R - $299.95 - 50W/40W
Icom IC-208H - $309.95 - 50 Watts