Do you still have to have a license for them?

@ZMAN : I've never heard of Amazon Vine.

@cbear : You have to be invited to participate, but its basically where they have a separate catalog of thousands of products you can choose from. They are free and you have to write a review. All items have a Estimated taxable value that counts as hobby income that you have to pay taxes on at the end of the year , but it works out to about 8% of the total cost.
When you first get admitted to the program you are limited to ordering 3 items per day (with a top value of $100), after you complete 100 reviews you get invited to the gold tier which allows order up to 8 items per day with no limit on value.
Its pretty awesome being part of it. We have already claimed and reviewed about 17k worth of free merch this year.
Lots of household goods, clothes, and tech stuff mostly is what we like to order.

@luannski : Yeah, Im not sure how all that works yet, but from what I read you have to have a license to transmit on certain channels, but you can receive anything you want.

@ZMAN : I wouldn't mind being invited to that party! LOL!

@cbear :
Best way to get invited is to be a Prime Member where you already order Amazon **** on a regular basis. Then review everything you order for about a year. That's how we got in to it

Ham Radio requires a license. You can get study guides online and in bookstores to help you learn and pass what you need to know, which includes some related legal knowledge, electronics knowledge, and stuff on radio wave propagation. You used to have to know morse code but I don't think that's required anymore. There is a small fee to take the exam and you know when you leave if you passed or not. The license itself is free and lasts for a decade.Once you pass, you will be issued a call sign -- or you can choose a vanity call sign for an extra fee.An interesting hobby with many different avenues to explore. The frequencies are less busy than they once were before internet and cell phones became ubiquitous... both a blessing and a curse.The American Radio Relay Leage (ARRL) is a good place to learn more: www.arrl.org/Good luck!

@ZMAN
OK Z, maybe do a test run ? Rig a small desk and chair and the radio in your game room and pretend you're on the Titanic screaming "SOS" for help and film it for us ?

@ZMAN : That sounds like a neat program.

@ZMAN :

@ZMAN : In all seriousness, some cool stuff, especially back in the day before the modern internet and such....I never did the "Ham Radio" thing but I did have a combo-radio that I got from Radio Shack in my teen years that had AM,FM, and several "Short-Wave" radio bands (along with cassette player)....I was able to catch many "Ham" conversations on the shortwave bands, especially late at night....Many were in foreign language....And you could literally hear the "wave" in the sound as the signal amplitude rose and fell....It was really fascinating to listen to....

@ZMAN : Thanks.

@ZMAN :
Thanks for posting. Ham radios are on the list to learn about for this year but haven't gotten around to it. What is the range as walkie talkie? After you have finished your evaluation, let us know if this model is worth it.

@Wiseowl : It came with 3 different sized antennas, one is about and inch long , the other is about 10 inches and the last one is about 2 feet long. I haven't tested them yet but supposedly you can get up to 20 miles with the longest one.

@ZMAN : The Bao Feng UV-5R is a dual band transceiver that covers the 144-148/420-450 MHz amateur radio frequencies. They're surprisingly good. I have one that I use and three in my emergency kit.Be aware that broadcasting on these bands requires an FCC license. Tests are given locally several times a month. You can listen all you want, but broadcasting is a gamble. The fines can be quite steep. There are a number of ham operators in Forest Cove, and all it takes is one complaint to start an investigation.The radio doesn't receive police, fire, aircraft, or other dedicated bands. There are receivers (scanners) that do and from Forest Cove, I could pick up Houston, Harris County, FBI/ICE/DEA (unencrypted), aircraft/tower/traffic control, retail stores like Costco, McDonalds, railroad conversations, and the electric company repair crews (which was interesting during storms and floods).With your electronic and tech abilities, you might really enjoy ham radio. Be aware it can be addictive and expensive (once the "bug" bites.