Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

Nice little radio, leave it on while out fishing battery stays fully charged for 6-7 hrs. Speakers nice and loud. Like using at the house to listen to weather forecast's. Had it 4 month's, no issues with the battery like some of the other's.

Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

Great little radio. Use it on my main boat, my dingy when going ashore, and i'll keep it under my vest when sailing my sunfish in the bay. Great when anchored out. Have dropped it on the deck, in the water, on the street, on the rocks in the parking lot, on the dock and accidentially kicked it once (long story). Still works perfectly.

Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

The battery lasted only 9 months, and it cost almost the half of the handy.
My order is from August 2011.

Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

The battery lasted only 9 month.

Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

This unit is an incredible lil power hitter. With US, INTL, And Canada selections this unit is a great safety and communication tool. The only down fall is that sales staff should advise that if using in or around dirty or deep waters, you should upgrade to a floating unit. My purchase is at the bottom of the lake after the clip slid off its railing and the unit flew into the water... I'm sure itd still work as they said it is submersible, however it is a little heavy and sank quick

Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

Bought this radio for use on my Laser sailboat. Range was an important factor for me, unfortunately, most reviews never mention range.Note to others - if you're 'reviewing' a radio, please include actual usage/range figures!Yesterday I got out on the water and communicated back to shore (my neighbor) at a true distance of 7 nautical miles.I started out on 5 watts, the report from shore was crystal clear. I then dropped to 2.5 watts - same report. I then dropped to 1 watt and it was reported that there was no difference. I thought that was excellent performance, keep in mind, my radio is about 3 feet off the water (max) so doing 7 nautical miles on the lowest power setting (1 watt) was very good.The radio is small, inexpensive and carries a 3 year warranty from West Marine - that's excellent. It will run for a FULL day on a single charge. It's also quite waterproof. Short antenna means it's not in the way and yet, the range was still excellent. Having actual volume and squelch knobs means it's easy to use on a moment's notice. When it comes right down to it, it's as simple as volume/squelch and the talk button. That's important for me as both of my hands are usually busy and I don't have time to safely play with buttons etc when someone calls in or I call out. I need to be able to simply and quickly get a message through - not spend time trying to figure out buttons/features.If there's one thing wrong with it it's only that it won't float. It comes with a car charger and A/C charger so you're covered there. There were reports that the tabs break off in the charger adapter - I can't really see it happening. They look pretty solid to me (perhaps re-designed?).I had a great experience with West Marine, I was thinking of getting a more expensive iCom radio, and while they are reported to be the best I'm sure happy with this little unit. It's also almost entirely die-cast metal so I doubt you can break it. Having said that, I don't find it to be heavy at all. The inlcuded belt clip works well on my life jacket - I'm not worried about loosing it (I also attached the lanyard).Highly recommended - it's great, it's small, it's powerful and it's inexpensive. I'll update my review if/when I get out further then 7 nautical miles :-)I did cover all exposed screws with silicon though as I know most manufacturers haven't realized that stainless screws are important when they are exposed to salt water. Having said that, I don't think there are any water-proof issues here. The contacts on the exposed battery terminals appear to be stainless, so I doubt that the battery will need to be replaced due to rusted out terminals as with other radios.A great buy - if only it floted and was bright yellow it would be perfect! On the other and, at [$] it's probably the best value out there. And I like the fact that it's branded West Marine. I had a great experience with them and am sure that will continue. I don't mind advertising for them at all. Way to go guys - you got a winner here!

Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

They wont give me a new battery because I don't have my recept anymore.

Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

use in sailing boat as hand set radio

Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

This is a great handheld for use in a dinghy or an emergency. The only drawback is the charging cord. The clips that retain the radio in the charger break too easily. When I bought the radio, one clip was broken right out of the box. I exchanged it at the store for another, which was used all last season with no issues. I took the radio out recently to charge it up for the coming season and discovered the charger clips on this one were broken too. Repair has been unsuccessful so far. It looks like I'll have to use tape to hold the charger on. :(

Comments about VHF85 Handheld VHF Radio:

Purchased as a Christmas gift for my son, he's thrilled to have his own, dependable radio to use while on and off the water! It's waterproof and will be used frequestly throughout the boating season. A back-up to run sailing races and regattas!