What is the FRS?
The Family Radio Service (FRS) is a service created by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission that is for short-range, family communication. The FRS has 14 channels, some of which are shared with the General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS). Most commonly, the channels are accessed through a walkie talkie unit, which is a type of short-range radio. The main advantage of the FRS is it does not require any license, unlike operating on the GMRS. No license is required despite the fact the FRS shares the first seven channels with the GMRS. However, the difference is that FRS radios only have a maximum power of half a watt. Generally, this limits the range to not much more than one mile (1.6 km). Many walkie talkie systems that access the FRS are also capable of accessing GMRS at higher wattages. This will significantly increase the range of the units. In some cases, a license is required to operate the radio at those more powerful rates. It is up to the individual to understand whether they
