Personally, I believe "Water Resistant" radios will usually function ok as long as they are kept dry, and maybe an occasional splash of water gets on them. If you get one good and wet, I think there is a good chance it will no longer function. For this reason, even though good "Water Proof" rated radios can cost twice a much as most "Water Resistant" radios, I believe it comes down to your safety. How much is that worth to you?? This model that I use is rated to be "Water Proof". It is rated as JIS7. This means the submersible rating is 1 Meter for 30 minutes continuously. In theory, this is how it can be submerged and still work. Personally, I don't see any reason to submerge a radio unless your in the water requesting assistance. HOWEVER, I don't think this is a wise place to try to save money. I believe you should get the best "Water Proof" radio you can afford.

As far as the radio goes, its "Top Notch" and easy to use. The battery lasts about 10 hours. It comes with 120VAC and 12VDC chargers, and one other battery feature I really like. It comes with a AA battery adapter you can use in a pinch. Really handy for a backup while traveling abroad!! Basically, you use 6 AA batteries in the adapter, and replace the standard battery pack with it. Claims are it can last for 5-12 hours depending on if the radio is used on High/Low power. Smaller radios are now using newer battery technology, but I don't know if they come with this feature or not. I think its something you need to consider.

The rotary dials for the power and squelch are conveniently located and easy to use. For keys, it has a channel 16/9 hot key, an A/B key that allows you to program two channels into memory for fast retrieval. It even has a weather key. The unit is not heavy, and comes with easy to understand instructions. It also comes with a 3 year warranty. Overall, I think its a very good radio, and would recommend them to anyone. PerryC