Specs & Ratings
Bottom Line
The Yaesu VX-6R is THE radio for durable outdoor waterproof sumbersible use. Nothing is stronger and more capable than this radio. It's also a very old UI and lacks USB-C. It remains the champion for outdoor extreme use... but it wouldn't be hard to upstage this radio in the 2020s and beyond.
Pros
- Legitimately submersible, waterproof and impact resistant
- One of the most compact radios on the market
- Surprisingly good RX and TX for it's tiny form factor
Cons
- No USB-C
- Graphic calculator-esque interface
- Somehow the UI is even worse than the cheapest offering from Baofeng.
Who This Is For
We found this radio near irreplaceable for whitewater activities where we would genuinely find ourselves upside and underwater for moderate durations of time. While this radio would also shine for other outdoor activites such as skiing, mountain biking and the like... if you don't need the waterproof functionality, you might as well just buy a UV-5R mini.
Testing Notes
We judge nearly all handheld radios by their ability to operate outdoors. This radio though is truly only about outdoor usage, and in "extreme" situations. So we took it whitewater kayaking, flipped over in the water with it, swam around with it, and then tramsitted while floating around in the water.
Detailed Review
The famed Yaesu VX-6R is renowned for it's durability, waterproofing, and submersible rating. As fairly active outdoor enthusiasts, it seemed only inevitable that we came to own this radio... and unfortunately that much of a bummer when we were really just let down by the UI on the radio.
The VX-6R was released in the early 2000's, and even by those standards the UI was pretty long in the tooth. The menu interface involves combinations of buttons, and the keypad is littered with a variety of combinations you can press to accomplish anything. Want to lock the radio? Push the strange nuclear logo in the bottom right, for some reason a keypaid lock wouldn't do. It gets odder from there.
So enough whining about the old UI... and the lack of USB-C... the Yaesu VX-6R is purpose built to do one thing: Be rugged and survive in an extreme environment. Yaesu definitely hit the hammer on the head with that, and created and unparalleled radio at it. While their FT-5DR offering is also similar in rating, I definitely wouldn't trust it the same as I would trust this radio on the river.
Where this radio has ultimately found it's spot with us is as a primary radio for the lead licensed guide in a whitewater situation. The user can operate the radio and handle all communication for the group, and also reach out to nearby repeaters in the event of an emergency when cell phone signal isn't available. While we've yet to need to make an emergency contact, we have had decent enough luck reaching repeaters, and having on river comms has been great for us.
Final Verdict
This radio is a one trick pony in the 2020s: it's submersible.
Don't expect to be underwater? This radio probably isn't for you.
Need a radio that will work after you get dunked underwater? Congrats this is your only option!