What Are Mobile Ham Radios?

A mobile ham radio, despite the name, is not a radio you give to a flying pig.

Instead, it’s a halfway-point between handheld amateur radios and amateur radio stations.

“Ham” is the name amateur radio operators have taken for themselves, so any non-commercial radio that’s not an FRS, GMRS, or marine radio is a ham radio.

Mobile radios are two-way radio transmitters and receivers, or transceivers, that are designed to be mounted to a vehicle.

So, they’re mobile but require too much power to be a handheld unit.

This extra power gives them a potential boost to range that is realized when you put a long, high-quality antenna atop your vehicle. This can give you 50 miles of range, if not 100 or more!