When people talk about a “mobile” radio, they don’t just mean a radio that can be easily transported, but rather a radio that is designed to be mounted or used in a vehicle. A radio that can be carried with you would generally be an HT (Handheld Transceiver). Mobile rigs are a mid-sized radio, designed to be able to be mounted in a vehicle, powered by the 12 volt battery in the vehicle, have between 25 – 50 watts of RF output power, a handheld microphone, and the ability to connect to an external antenna. Most will also allow you to connect an external speaker, and some even allow you to mount the body of the radio out of the way and mount the face and microphone on your dash or other convenient location. This makes it much easier to fit a radio in your car without having to mount it under the dash, or try to fit it in your console or somewhere else. By using cables to remotely connect the face to the main radio body mounted somewhere else where there is more room.
Some of the advantages of a true mobile radio over an HT:
- You don’t have to charge a separate battery between uses (your auto handles this on its own).
- You can get a lot more RF power output since you have a much higher amperage battery with a larger capacity that will give you a much longer time to operate.
- The built-in speaker is larger, so you will get a better quality audio output.
- It is also more practical to attach an external speaker for even better sound quality.
- The microphone will also usually sound better than the ones built into a HT, and possible a DTMF keypad and functions keys for fast access to commonly used functions.
- The display is larger, and can show more information and be easier to read.
- You may have more dedicated buttons for quick access to features.
- There is usually a larger VFO knob that allows a faster way to dial in a frequency than using the up/down arrows on an HT.
- Since the mobile radio housing has more room, there is room for more circuits which can give you additional features or better selectivity or signal quality.
Obviously, all of these benefits will most likely come at a higher cost than that of most HT’s. However, keep in mind that most mobile radios also make great base station, POTA or Field Day radio for all of these reasons.
When it comes to buying a mobile radio, there are a lot of important factors you will want to consider before making a purchase. For a more detailed explanation of these factors, take a look at our Radio Buying Guide article for a deep dive into some important considerations and recommendations.
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