Motorola Talkabout T800
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| Frequency | 462.5625-467.7125 MHz (22 FRS channels) |
| TX power | 0.5 / 2 W (FCC-tested ~0.75W max (the lowest of the 35-mile Talkabouts). FRS - no license required.) |
| Modes | FM |
| Weight | 200 g (7.1 oz) - Approximate. |
| Connector | fixed (non-removable) |
| Year | 2018 |
| antenna | fixed |
| accessory | headset jack |
| charging | micro-USB (T802/T803: USB-C) |
| power req | NiMH rechargeable (included) OR 3×AA alkaline. Charging dock with Y-cable included. |
Estimated (unverified): FRS radio - NO license required; actual TX ~0.75W (FCC-measured). Bluetooth + Talkabout app send text/GPS radio-to-radio over FRS with NO cell service (Bluetooth is data-only, not voice). IPX4 (splash-resistant, NOT submersible, does NOT float). '35-mile voice / 20-mile data' ranges are marketing. App is widely reported as buggy. Introduced 2018.
One of the few consumer FRS radios with real off-grid messaging and location sharing. Bluetooth plus the Talkabout app lets the radio send texts, share GPS locations (using what3words 3-word addresses), and track group members without cell service. The hidden blue display is clean, and it is IPX4 weatherproof with NOAA weather, iVOX, VibraCall, and a flashlight. It keeps all standard FRS features and adds smart connectivity. The T802/T803 add USB-C and Bluetooth 5.2 audio.
App features require a T800 on both ends (messaging does not work with non-Motorola radios). FCC-tested power is only 750 mW, less than the 2 W FRS maximum. IPX4 is splash-only (the T600 is IP67). Bluetooth drains the battery faster. The app has mixed reviews. $55-100 is premium for FRS. The original T800 uses micro-USB (the T802/T803 add USB-C).
An FRS radio with off-grid messaging. The T800 adds Bluetooth and a free Talkabout app that turns the radio into a modem for off-grid texting, location sharing (with what3words), and group tracking, all without cell service. For hiking groups, ski teams, and outdoor families who want more than voice, it adds a capability no other consumer radio in this class offers.
The Motorola Talkabout T800 is the off-grid one. It is a license-free FRS radio sold in pairs, but its defining trick is a Bluetooth link to a phone app that lets you send text messages and share GPS locations radio-to-radio, with no cell service involved at all. The radio acts as a modem: your phone hands data to the radio over Bluetooth, the radio transmits it over the FRS airwaves to other T800s, and their phones display it. For a group spread across a backcountry valley with no signal, that is genuinely useful.
As a voice radio it is conventional FRS: 22 channels, 121 privacy codes, NOAA weather, an emergency button, a flashlight, and a distinctive hidden blue display that vanishes when the radio is off. Two honest caveats: its actual transmit power is only about three-quarters of a watt, the lowest of the 35-mile-claim Talkabouts, so range is modest, and it is rated only IPX4, splash-resistant, not waterproof, and it does not float. The off-grid app, while clever, is widely described as buggy.
It runs on a rechargeable NiMH pack or three AA alkalines, charged over micro-USB. It has been discontinued, succeeded by the IP54-rated T802 and T803. If you want a waterproof, floating radio for the water instead of app messaging, the Motorola T600 is the marine-focused sibling, and Midland's T77VP5 is a comparable accessory-packed FRS bundle.