radtelRT-493 GMRS Radio 10W IP67 Waterproof Handheld, 199 CH Long Range Two Way Radio for Adults, GMRS Repeater Capable, UHF Scanning & Receiving, 2800mAh Type-C Charging

This radio is well built, simple to use and preprogrammed on the GMRS frequencies. It is not chirp compatible as of now, but you can download the CPS from the manufacturer's website. It puts out about 9 watts and has the range that most handheld have. The battery seems to be of good quality. The simplicity of single channel watch and a lack of a keypad makes it functional for those with limited radio skills. It is rated at IP67 but it does not have a cover on the charge port, but that is directly on the battery and may not impact it.

Good simple GMRS radio! Simple to operate for non radio type people. 1 button scan feature is nice. Signal output ranges from 8.5w to 10.9w from 462 to 468mhz tested on a Spectrum Analyzer. Programming is done through Radtels software. The software is not very robust but doesnt have to be. I mostly used it to see what frequencies were factory programed. You could program in other frequencies outside the GMRS band(UHF), but im not advocating breaking FCC rules! I ordered 2 radios but only received 1 cable. I bought these for family members to use due to the simple operation. It took me 3 minutes to explain it to them. If you are looking for a FRS/GMRS radio with good performance, durable, waterproof and ease of use this is a good HT.

Great radio, have 2 of them. Would I buy again, yes.

Simple, SMA Female Removable Antenna, IP67 Waterproof, 2800mAh Battery with 5 day standby...etc.!

You can customize the frequency range, but apparently only UHF or VHF, not both. The default range is 400-480 (RX and TX), which covers GMRS and some business frequencies.There is no VFO mode or keypad, and no channel name display...just the channel number.Programming is pretty much non-existent on the radio itself, other than a few things that can be changed by holding a button or two while powering it on. The programming software (Windows) is limited, but enough to do the basics. The software will install and run on Linux in Wine, but reading from and writing to the radio may take a few tries to succeed.Power is close to the 10W it advertises; it's more like 7W at 467MHz.Abbree tactical antenna doesn't fit well; the channel knob presses hard against it.There's no visual indication of the power setting. It's just a long-press of the SK1 button, and requires the beep to be enabled to tell you if it's high or low power.Overall, it will be good for use at work, and in places where water and dust are a problem, but it will probably not be my go-to handheld.EDIT: Today i discovered the receive frequency of one of my repeater channels had changed. I have no idea how that happened, so it might be user error, but considering you can't accidentally change frequencies directly on this handheld, i dunno.

RadTel's website doesn't show a specific link for any RT-493 programming software as of January 2025. I do have a Baofeng compatible data cable that does work with the RT-493 as far as I can tell but no success gaining access to the radio with any software. Perhaps someone can share what link he/she has used to download and load in channel settings. ??

No no software to program the radio.

Love it.