I have found Midland has always made a good product. I did find programming the repeaters was a little challenging at first, as the directions were not specific enough in that area.

Put in my jeep. Run its own power supply and don’t use the cigarette lighter. You may “be able” to but it draws more power than what the little wire supplies to your cigarette lighter can supply.Took me a hot minute to figure out how to program manually but once I figured it out it was smooth. Could not get any software to work with it. But that could be user error honestly.I talk on it daily.

This is a solid radio for intro into GMRS. The guts are small enough to mount just about anywhere and the head end allows complete control from the handset. The range appears to be pretty good with the provided antenna.

I am not going to bore you with stuff you don't care about because if you are looking at this radio you couldn't care less about programming this thing with your computer or splitting repeaters. You are new to the hobby and are looking to put a radio in your truck/jeep/vehicle.Transmission Distance:Simplex: This is communication from radio to radio without the use of repeater. I placed the supplied antenna smack in the middle of the roof of my truck and turned the high power on channel 24. I was able to clearly communicate with my brother with the identical radio and placement 7 miles away. Behind hills, trees, houses, and all the fatsos inside them.Repeater: I am able to "kerchunk" (look it up) my local big boy repeater from my house which is about 15 miles and speak with others all over the city on it. As you get more versed you will hear about splitting frequencies but for what it is worth, I have not felt the need to as most public repeaters transmit and receive with the same tone YMMV.You will need to read the manual as the functions are coded due to the limited ability of the display, but it is easy once you get the hang of it. You may look at the antenna and feel like...eh? This is a 100% motion of the ocean vs. size of the ship situation. However you can swap out for the big one if you feel so inclined. Also, put it on the roof, don't block half of its power by mounting to a truck bed or in front of the windshield, come on guys. Bang for the buck is phenomenal, I use it every day because you can scan and hear all the drama at your local grocery store, restaurant, pet spa, basically anyone using FRS in the first few channels. I am nosey and petty like that. Light years ahead of CB. You will need a license but it is like $30 bucks for 10 years, and you get a cool callsign to ID yourself, don't cheap out it is easy. Oh and the people I have met/listened to on the GMRS channels have been super cool. I guess that's it.Great radio, has the fars! DO NOT RUN THE ANNTENA THROUGH AN AUTOMATIC CARWASH, don't ask me how I know.

Well, like I said in the headline. Nobody is using GMRS yet so any GMRS radio purchase is really a targeted purchase so you can communicate with your family and friends whom you have coaxed into buying their own units. So, here are the general benefits of using a GMRS radio. Clear frequencies. Not full of a bunch of third graders catching joy from cussing over anyone talking and certainly not full of a bunch of truckers running 500 watt amplifiers and blowing out your gear every time you pass a truck. Most if not all of the equipment available for GMRS is new so there are really no "out of scope" electronic frankensteins causing unlimited static. Meaning, when you talk, its clear, when you hear, it's clear. Correct antenna installation not withstanding. Speaking of the antenna. You will be confused with the little mag mount that comes with the unit It works well but the size confuses most CB enthusiasts who are used to seeing 107" whips on Jeeps. While confusing, the size is directly related to wavelength which is a topic that doesn't really belong in this review. Suffice it to say, the short length is completely compatible with safe and efficient operation on the GMRS frequencies. Yes, GMRS is line of site and the taller antennas will provider better coverage (note, Midland does make a long 6db gain alternative antenna that works exceptionally well) but the small antenna that comes with the device has its own cable and can easily be placed on the hood or rood. In the case of a Wrangler, you can get fancy and use a mount or stick it directly to the hood and be up and operating in minutes. The small size allows you to store the antenna in the center console when not being used. What makes this a great buy for a Wrangler owner, or anyone that wants a clean radio install or is simply limited by cabin space is that the radio itself can be mounted under the seat, behind the dash wherever you want as all the controls are contained in the mic. In my case, I have this mounted in 2 Jeep Wranglers on the plastic face plate directly in front of the shift controls. Easy enough to take of the face plate, get rid of the mesh and permanently mount the unit right there. I've added one after market item, a retractable microphone mount to complete the install. In my installs I've attached the retracting mount to the center roof handle but you could really mount it anywhere, or not use one at all. My microphone hangs about dash level when I'm on the trails and either the driver or the passenger can easily take control of it and communicate. Additionally, I've purchased the 6db gain antennas so our installs are permanent. The negatives of this radio are not really specific to the radio. They are specific to the technology. First, in order to use GMRS one needs to be licensed by the FCC. Don't mistake this for amateur radio's. They are not. The lciense requires no testing, simply registering with the FCC and paying the fee. In return you get a GMRS call sign that can be used for the entire family and will be valid for 10 years. What's not to like about that? Well, its because like all federal government website registrations you really need to be patient when trying to find the right place to register and pay for the license. They make it way to difficult to find. The other negative to the radio is you will need to open up the repeater channels manually which is not intuitive. Thus, I highly recommend you break out your reading glasses and read the manual. Actually, the manual is micro sized so do yourself a favor and download a PDF copy from Midland. Overall is this awesome GMRS radio that really doesn't have a downside. Just keep in mind, GMRS is not widely implemented and used yet so if you buy one, you will really need to supply a second one or buy some handhelds and give them to your friends and family. That said, crystal clear communication and with the right antenna setup you can get great outdoor distance when compared to a standard CB. Its a great radio to recommend to all of your Jeep club members before your next overland trek.