List Price: $169.99
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Just to give you some background, I have been an Amateur radio enthusiast for about 3 decades now. I collect radios and I am a member of a Disaster volunteer radio group. I have 2 Base Stations and dozens of professional and consumer radios of all brands spanning 3 decades.
I really wanted to give you a very detailed comparison of these 2 radios. Prior to buying these radios I called up Motorola and Giant and got information from them about these MT352R handhelds. They told me that it is generally the same as the MR350 except that it is more forgiving to bad weather and has a much better battery. I ordered them and when they arrived I did a side by side comparison with my favorite consumer radio, the Motorola MR350. I have 4 of MR350s and I have had them for about 4 years now, and they are still working great. So when I did my field test I was expecting the same performance out of both radios in terms of distance and clarity.
Here is my side by side comparison between them:
1. Menu Features They have very similar features. Not much to write about there. The menus are the same as well. You can read about their features from Amazon. I will not waste time on this.
2. Battery The MT352 has a superior battery. Specs say it has 15 hours of battery life as compared to the MR350 which has 9 hours. But in the field, I have never been out longer than 9 hours, so I do not think this really matters as much.
3. Size The MR350 is hands down the better radio for carry. The MT532R is long and wide, whereas the MR350 is svelte and sleek. The MR350 design is excellent if you intend to put the radio in your pocket. You will not even know it is there.
4. Weather resistant The MT352R says that it is Weather resistant. It has an IP-54 rating. The "5" is the dust resistance and the "4" is the Water resistance. This just says it can withstand a dusty or rainy environment. Ingress of dust is not entirely prevented, but it must not enter in sufficient quantity to interfere with the satisfactory operation of the equipment; complete protection against contact. Water splashing against the enclosure from any direction shall have no harmful effect.
WARNING: It is only Weather Resistant. DO NOT IMMERSE IN WATER!!!
5. Distance see test below
******Range Comparison: MR350 vs MT352R********
Scenario: I had my daughter stand in the front of my house and she had an MR350 and a MT352R. I walked away from the house and would radio in every .1 miles. I also had an MR350 and a MT352R. I would transmit first on the MR350 which she will only use her MR350 to receive and transmit. Then we would try to transmit with the MT352R. I live in an LA neighborhood so there are many houses and trees. I believe this would be a typical scenario for most. We were also transmitting on a GMRS Channel pressing the High Power PTT button. I do have a GMRS license.
Test: 0.1 Mile
1. MR350 Crystal clear on send and receive on both ends.
2. MT352R Crystal clear on send and receive on both ends.
Test: 0.2 Miles
1. MR350 Crystal clear on send and receive on both ends.
2. MT352R Crystal clear on send and receive on both ends.
Test: 0.3 Miles
1. MR350 Crystal clear on send and receive on both ends.
2. MT352R Crystal clear on send and receive on both ends.
Test: 0.4 Miles
1. MR350 There was a little static. We could hear each other clearly.
2. MT352R Crystal clear on send and receive on both ends.
Test: 0.5 Miles
1. MR350 There was a little more static. We could hear each other. I had to ask her to repeat what she said. She heard me but asked me to repeat as well. Sporadic noise, but we could still communicate.
2. MT352R Crystal clear on send and receive on both ends.
Test: 0.6 Miles
1. MR350 Her transmission was getting a little choppy. It was choppy on both sides. We both had to repeat ourselves in order to understand.
2. MT352R There was a little noise in the background but it was still very clear on send and receive on both ends.
Test: 0.7 Miles
1. MR350 Our transmission was choppy. It was very choppy on both sides. We both had to repeat ourselves in order to understand. It was very difficult to understand what she was saying.
2. MT352R There was a little noise in the background but it was still very clear on send and receive on both ends.
Test: 0.8 Miles
1. MR350 We could barely understand each other. It was extremely choppy on both sides. I could hear her trying to transmit but could not understand anything she said. She said she heard me but it was very, very choppy.
2. MT352R There was a little noise in the background but it was still very clear on send and receive on both ends. I actually used the MT352R to check if she was having problems hearing me with the MR350.
Test: 0.9 Miles
1. MR350 The radio channel would open once in a while, but I could not hear anything anymore. It was the same for her.
2. MT352R There was a little noise in the background but it was still very clear on send and receive on both ends.
Test: 1 Mile
1. MR350 Cannot send or receive anymore.
2. MT352R There was more noise in the background but we can still communicate.
Test: 1.2 Miles
1. MR350 Cannot send or receive anymore.
2. MT352R Her transmission was choppy. The transmission was very noisy. It was choppy on both sides. We both had to repeat ourselves several times in order to understand.
Summary:
As far as features are concerned, there is not much difference between them. And if you are like me that prefer to use Alkaline, then there is no benefit to the better battery of the MT352R.
The MT352R had about a 30%-40% range improvement over the MR350. But considering that the MT352R costs about 40% to 50% more than the MR350, the MR350 is still a better bargain.
If you are going to use this around the neighborhood, camping or having in the car, then get the MT352R.
If you are going to use this for pocket carry in the mall or department store, or where size is important, and you want to carry something sleek that has enough power, get the MR350.
If you intend to use a radio for a cruise ship, then I would prefer the MR350 because it is not bulky to carry around.
I will not replace my MR350. Depending on the need, I will use the appropriate radio.
Don't get me wrong, I do like the MT352R very much. It is a full sized, weather resistant, more powerful version of the MR350R. Consider the MR350R the more portable version of the MT352R. It is like comparing the IPAD Mini and the IPOD Touch. I value portability over power because what use is the power if I cannot bring it with me everywhere I go(like the mall). And that is why I like the MR350R over any other radio, professional or consumer.
That being said, I prefer the MT352R over my ICOM, Kenwood, or Motorola Professional radios. These MT352R are Emergency radios and they are very, very good for that purpose. The only advantage of a professional radio over these MT352R is that they are practically indestructible. But feature, function and usability, the MT352R is better.
I hope this review helped you. Hope to talk to you on the air.
*******UPDATE December 21, 2012******
The price dropped on these to almost the same price as the MR350R, in which case there is no price advantage to the MR350R anymore.
*******UPDATE May 13, 2013*******
I liked these so much that I have been giving them away as gifts to family and friends. The battery of these are better than the MR350R and the MS350R. About double the capacity. They do last longer but I still prefer to use Alkaline. I notice that with light everyday use, I have had the same Energizers on these for the past 2 months. So at least for my usage, I do not see the need for using rechargeable.
We were on a convoy and we had no problems with car to car communication on the freeways. My brother-in-law already excited the freeway and I was still 2 exits behind him and we had no problems talking. That was more than 2 miles based on the distance mentioned on the freeway exit signs. We only started having problems when he was driving in downtown LA and I was till on the freeway. But once I exited, we were back in contact. It was the tall buildings that was blocking our transmissions.
My wife refuses to use the MT352R because it does not fit her purse, unlike the svelte MR350R. So my MR350R is still in daily use by my family.
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These radios are great for the price. We use them for camera crews working different areas of large convention centers. Fair communication indoors up to 1/2 mile, nothing beyond that. Still much better than other lesser distance radios. No interferance either way with pro audio equipment. I recommend you buy better headsets, the supplied units all only worked intermittantly, not dependable. battery life needed watching, would go from 2/3 down to zero. Seemed like the display was not refreshing often enough to help, just charge them daily for heavy use, every other day for random day use. great product for this semi-pro price range.
