A few questions from someone who knows next to nothing on the subject, and was planning on buying a much cheaper
BaoFeng UV-5R (after passing the FCC Ham test and getting my licence, of course):
1) do these radios require a ham licence, or passing any tests?
2) I don't plan on expending any significant time on water (I'm more of a desert guy), perhaps just a kayaking session every now and then. Is the DSC/GPS functionality useful in such circumstances, ie, if I buy such a radio, register it as kayaker, break a leg in the middle of the Mojave and activate the DSC, will I get rescued?
3) how would you guys compare these VHF radios to more "general purpose" radios like the Baofeng?