I was debating about spending a lot more for GPS and way point capabilities or go with a less expensive unit. I decided since I have a Fish Finder with GPS I would go with the less expensive option. I chose a West marine radio because they support everything they sell.

The radio and accessories came well packaged and with no damage. There is a well laid out easy to follow instruction manual with an included Customer Service number. I charged the unit before attempting to use it. I also tested the unit with the included alkaline back-up pack. I tested the unit functions and programing options.

The VHF channels are labeled and available on screen information includes transmit strength, channel type (Commercial, Coast Guard, etc.), etc.

The Weather Channel and Weather Alert worked perfectly.

The GMRS/FPR channels also worked as expected. I tested out to 1.5 miles with excellent reception and very good transmit strength.

The battery life with reasonable transmit usage was over 11 hours. Two hours greater than advertised.

The unit does float high in the water. The SOS LED feature also worked well. It was bright enough to see 1/4 mile away at night.

All in all I am very satisfied with the unit. It is a very nice handheld VHF radio. Also like that it switches to the weather warning frequencies and to the FRS/GMRS channels very easily.

Additional Features
• Full Dot-Matrix Display
• Dual & Triple Watch
• Strobe Light
• All Marine VHF Channels
• NOAA Emergency / Weather Alert with S.A.M.E.
• Memory Channel Scan
• Up to 9 hour battery life
• Waterproof, Submersible

If you're looking for a reasonably priced unit that offers a lot of features I recommend this radio. PS - I only paid $129.00 for the radio on sale at West Marine. That's a lot of value for the money.