Hello, I have been looking for a radio that covers all the needs. It must pick up all seven of the NOAA stations, FM and Am. Has anyone ever seen the movie Resident Evil 3? The radio that the chararcter Alice has, a scene shows her closing it before she goes into the radio station to see if anybody is alive. That radio would be nice, if it is real. I have been looking for it and have not found it. I have tried to contact the movie company and have not recieved a reply. If anybody knows the brand , please let me know. Thank you for your time.

Thanks, IzzyJG99, My girl friend bought me that radio for an early birthday present. I like it, but I would like to get something smaller.

See if you can find a pic of her radio on images.google.com and post it. Check out Midland.com also for radios.

Another option is a scanner, most scanners can tune the 7 us NOAA bands and the three canada ones as well as many other things.

That is what I was going to say. My Radio Shack scanner is the 1000 channel model, with trunking (haven't figured that out yet), and isn't all that large...

And you don't even need trunking to pick up the NOAA channels, a cheap $80 scanner will do, plus you can pick up CB, HAM, etc.

Why just receive NOAA, AM/FM HAM... Why not spend a little time and $14 to get an Amateur (HAM) Technician license? Yeah, a HAM hand-held costs more money, but even $400 isn't too much for the advantages and something I can use and enjoy not just in an emergency. The license is easy to get, with numerous resources to prepare for the test (there is no longer any Morse code requirement).

I got mine when I started commuting in a van pool and wouldn't always have my car handy. I have a 2 hour, 84 mile, urban and rural commute each way. A Yaesu VX-7R is now my most used piece of EDC. I carry it, extra batteries, spare antenna, and other accessories in an old soft RhinoSkin in my laptop bag with other essentials.

Advantages -

1. Two way communication, even when cell towers are down. My cell was useless in the 2002 black-out. HAMs are active in almost every emergency. Even with a low power HT, your chances of talking are better than none. Get your spouse and kids licensed at the same time and you can use HAM HT on the road, camping, hunting...
2. Skywarn - I monitor the local Skywarn repeaters during hazardous weather and often know what is coming ahead of NOAA broadcasts. I have also had the Skywarn training and participate in Skywarn nets.
3. Many modern HAM HTs are broadband receivers, NOAA (dedicated channels), AM FM SW broadcast, local police, fire. Maybe not as many receive functions as a dedicated scanner, but still nice.
4. Reliability - My HT is rugged and water resistant (rain, splash, etc.) I've even hosed it down. Do that with most NOAA receivers.
5. Yes, it uses a rechargeable battery, but will also work with AAAs. I carry a set of Lithium AAAs. Receive works the same as with the rechargeable, transmit is lower power. And there are a multitude of alternate power sources available, car or boat battery, solar panels... use your imagination.

I can think of many more. The cost is $150-$500, depending on what you want, but well worth it in my book.

Doug

I went through over hundred and eighty pages of pivtures on that google images. I did not see it at all. The HAM radio would be cool to have. You say that it is easy to get? What happens if you have one of those HAM handhelds and not a license? Is it jail time? I have been talking to the guys in the unit today, we don't have much to do, just go to docter apptionments and such. So we surf the internet a lot. I looked at the midland website and I don't know. I like my gear to be able to have rain fall on it. I have a personnal radio that I bought at wal-mart for $15 dollars. This little thing has been kicked around, dropped in water and survived three deployments to the box. I wish it had the features I want now. I will still keep on looking. Thanks guys.

I'll second and third that, and add in that in New York at least, it keeps you legal, because you're not really allowed to USE a scanner in NY, but with a Ham license, you can.

I carry a Yaesu VX-5 and it gets NOAA, FM Broadcast, Police, Fire, EMS, Marine, Aviation, plus of course, the 2-way ham bands (which I never actually use, but I could if I wanted to).

I have it programmed with 200 channels (use your computer to program it, much easier) and it's been a great asset when I'm just wondering what the heck is going on in front of the office when 14 fire trucks roll up.

I'll 4th it...still working on getting my HAM ticket but I've already got my antenna mounted on the car and pretty much know what portable I'll be putting in it.

Yaesu makes a great little handheld radio the VX-7R, the newest version, Vx-9R is supposed to be even better, stronger, faster, etc. than the last one, it's submersible, dust proof, magnesium case, etc.

You can buy one without a license but given that it's so cheap and easy to get a license now, why not go all the way?

Once I get my portable working in the car, I'll be adding the Yaesu handheld to my kit.

John E