VHF hands down, don't even joke or screw around and get a 3w radio just invest in a 25w. Why you ask? Example being we've had an extraordinary amount of missing boaters the past year.. well, not really considering we're getting 26000 people a year move into our area, but thats aside the point. On several of these boats they had hand helds which, when checked, were found to contain dead batteries. Also, the range at which people realized they were lost (no compass or GPS and appearently dont remember the sun/moon rise in the east and set in the west, and if your in the Gulf, FL is in the east!) they were well outside the 3 mile range of a hand held.
In my own experience growing up and having had multiple boats since long before I could drive cars, I would never trust a hand held. That was fun to leave with folks on the beach when the rest of us went to a nearby artificial reef to fish, however, I've also witnessed this peice of hardware barely making the range on open water and had I not had a taller antenna with my fixed mount radio, we'd have never recieved the calls. I've even been the relay for a group of boaters who had jumped off his boat in shallow water and broken his neck and was being supported by his friends in the water while one was trying in vain to radio the USCG 2.5 miles away (and visible via line of sight) and not recieving any response... well, until I keyed up my trusty VHF and lit up USCG with a medical emergency call. I should mention there was a weather factor as well - but this just vividly demonstrates how an effective tool on clear days and open water can be dramatically cut down under less than perfect circumstances.
Why no cell phone? Well, the phone is only good for a few miles off shore at best, the phone is very susceptable to salt water moisture, and you can't talk to a CG boat or helicopter real well with a cell phone.
In my own experience growing up and having had multiple boats since long before I could drive cars, I would never trust a hand held. That was fun to leave with folks on the beach when the rest of us went to a nearby artificial reef to fish, however, I've also witnessed this peice of hardware barely making the range on open water and had I not had a taller antenna with my fixed mount radio, we'd have never recieved the calls. I've even been the relay for a group of boaters who had jumped off his boat in shallow water and broken his neck and was being supported by his friends in the water while one was trying in vain to radio the USCG 2.5 miles away (and visible via line of sight) and not recieving any response... well, until I keyed up my trusty VHF and lit up USCG with a medical emergency call. I should mention there was a weather factor as well - but this just vividly demonstrates how an effective tool on clear days and open water can be dramatically cut down under less than perfect circumstances.
Why no cell phone? Well, the phone is only good for a few miles off shore at best, the phone is very susceptable to salt water moisture, and you can't talk to a CG boat or helicopter real well with a cell phone.
