 "Good product" | 2009-11-03 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1MC4013WKDABW |
| The radio works as advertised and I enjoy it very much. The main reason I ordered it was because you can use it as a portable radio and as an in-auto cb. With the external whip antenna it works excellent in the truck. It also is a good price. If you read the specs and know what you are ordering, then you will not be sorry. |
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 "Midland 75-822 - Pros & Cons" | 2009-10-04 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1GACZO8MIN43U |
The Midland 75-822 is a neat little device, it comes with everything for both HT & mobile use except, a hand microphone, mobile antenna & batteries. External hand microphone, external antenna, & both rechargeable & alkaline cells are each purchased separately. Rechargeable & alkaline cell battery cases, plus cigar lighter power cable with an external antenna adapter are included (Type BNC & SO239/PL259 HF antenna connector) They really thought of almost everything in this package. The one drawback I found was the build was cheap. One of the screws came from the factory cross threaded into the bottom of the unit. The screw was crooked and caused difficulty, impairing the battery pack's ability to slide on and off the radio. There was evidence that the internal wires were pinched causing case/frame misalignment during assembly and when examined the internal frame was slightly bent. As a result someone had forced the screw into the slot and stripped all of the threads on both surfaces. The radio is still usable after clearing the pinched wires except the threads are damaged and the screw may come loose (only use & time will tell). I don't think I should have to repair a radio's defects brand new from the factory, and I feel it's just another example of the cheap, inferior quality of Chinese gear pouring across borders everywhere. Also want to state two (2) radios were purchased. Be aware when you purchase an inferior Chinese product, you might be stuck with the Status Quo. Amateur radio & GMRS/FRS gear is slightly more expensive in most cases but, in this case would have been a better purchase as it is engineered to higher quality standards. Decided to purchase two Yaesu HT's to replace them. These Midland radios are still as new in their boxes sitting on the shelf. They will likely play an emergency backup role to the new Yaesu radios. Caveat Emptor! (Let the Buyer Beware)
The Midland 75-822 would have received 5 stars had they both been 100%. However, sometimes Chinese gear is sub standard so, in this case it receives 3 stars (because it's just ok under the circumstances). IF there is any change I will update this review appropriately.
I hope this saves somebody a headache (check the build very carefully prior to posting your review). I hope Midland and Amazon are listening.
Thank you for reading |
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 "midland 75-822 (and squeal fix)" | 2009-09-30 |
| - Reviewed By User: A5THRKFO1IPEL |
| I ordered this, and signed up for the free trial of Prime, which allowed me to have free 2 day shipping, i ordered on a sat. so it took an extra day but i had it when promised (thats extra day was because of a sunday, not amazon, i checked and they had it shipped 5-6 hours after i ordered it) I had an issue with it at first, because when i tried to use the car adapter i had the same high pitched sound some have complained about that came over everyone elses radio and they couldnt hear me. a quick call to Midland solved the problem. If your useing the rubber ducky antenna as i have to, (no way to run wires to mount a regualr one in my convertable, not to mention limited real estate to mount it to) you have to take a piece of electric tape and place it over the antenna contact on the bottom of the radio. if you dont then its trying to put out through both the short antenna, AND the enternal antenna wire, which, and im no electronice expert, i would guess causes some kind of feed back. one little square of tape and my problem was solved. i searched all day looking for a fix online and found nothing, so i hope this helps some people. over all i am satisfied with it, the range is short, but better for me because of the soft top (not as much metal to get in the way) but i only wanted it for short range line of sight to friends with mobiles and the occational trucker i work with on way to and from work. |
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| "Well done Midland. Well done." | 2009-09-13 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2RFTBRH31MZDR |
This CB has earned Midland my respect. If you want a good radio that you can clip to your belt then plug into your car, this is for you. I love the NOAA weather stations (very handy for a motorcycle rider) because I can know the weather at my destination while I am driving there. The updates from the truckers on channel 19 have been quite valuable as they let me avoid heavy traffic.
However, a note of caution to anyone intending to listen to police or other emergency vehicle stations. THEY DO NOT USE CB STATIONS ANYMORE. Channel 9 can be used in cases of GREAT EMERGENCY to get aid, but not to listen in to a cop's conversations.
DO NOT expect great coverage from this radio's whip antenna. These antennas are made for portability, not extended range. If you want great range, buy an external antenna to plug into the CB. They are very easy to find. Just go to your local truck stop or Radio Shack and ask about CB accessories.
If you need help with your new CB, go to the source, your local truck stop's CB shop. These guys might be rough around the edges (and on the inside), but they are willing to help. |
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| "Versatile and capable..." | 2009-07-16 |
| - Reviewed By User: A7UIRWNE7KW |
I purchased this item for two reasons, road trips and communicating while off-road. It is my first CB transceiver and although I do not have anything to compare it to I am thoroughly impressed. The key feature that drew me to this specific item was the ability to use it as both a mobile and a portable. Some of the features have proven quite useful, such as the scan and memory scan functions, last channel recall, dual watch, and backlight. I have only had the unit for a few days but have already made good use of all the features it offers and all have performed flawlessly.
Living near a highway interchange that sees a lot of commercial traffic I have been picking up signals almost constantly when scanning. I can't give exact distances on the receive and transmit ranges of this item because they will vary, but I did receive signals from the highway (approximately 1.5 miles) while indoors with the included antenna. I also purchased the Cobra HA-TA Hand-Held CB Antenna to go with this radio and it appears to extend the range somewhat. As previously mentioned I do not know exact distances, but after switching to the Cobra HA-TA antenna I picked up weak signals clearly enough to understand on channels that had only given static with the included antenna just moments before. When transmitting I've been told I'm coming through both "loud and clear" and "crystal clear". The only downside is that when inside a vehicle I cannot appear to receive much more than static with either antenna and no one can hear me very well. I had known this would happen prior to trying it and plan to purchase an external antenna for my vehicle to solve this problem. Since the mobile adapter already has a connection for the external antenna this can be fixed easily.
The only slightly negative comments I can think of would have to do with the volume and the mobile adapter. While the audio is spectacular, and by that I mean the clarity of it when you are receiving a good signal, the volume is slightly lacking when on the highway. This is easily solved by using the speaker jack to hook up to an external speaker or your vehicle's audio if you have an aux jack. For handheld use and anything under 55-60 I think the volume on the handset itself is great. The only gripe about the mobile adapter is the length of the cord. It is still new and is wound rather tight, and although I have a power source on the driver's side of my dash I am going to try and stretch the cord a little before really using it in my vehicle. I doubt it will have any problems reaching from the power source and I wouldn't want a loose cord swinging around every time I grabbed the handset anyway. This second complaint doesn't apply to me currently so I am not holding it against the product because I think the versatility makes up for this minor complaint. I just know if I still had my old pick-up I would be wishing for a slightly longer cord.
Last but not least, despite numerous references to the Midland 75-820 on the product page, the item I received was indeed the Midland 75-822. |
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 "Do not use this in case of an emergency!" | 2009-03-23 |
| - Reviewed By User: ATRILC1HTTIMD |
| Most disappointing. Works, but does not work well. Coverage is minimal and frequencies are hardly used any more by anyone. I bought this for a specific use so it's OK for me, but don't use it on the basis of " safety ". Use your cellular instead. |
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Expedited Available
