Top 3 Best Bluetooth Marine Radios In 2025

 

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Searching for the best Bluetooth marine radio?

In this guide, we’re exploring the top 3 Bluetooth marine radios, focusing on their connectivity, features, durability, and value for money. Tailored for both boating enthusiasts and maritime professionals, we aim to help you choose the perfect model for your boating adventures.

Stay tuned as we kick things off with our best budget-friendly option, moving through to our top pick.

Let’s dive right in!

Number 3. Uniden MHS335BT – Best Budget Bluetooth Marine Radio

Uniden MHS335BT is a well-regarded and established marine radio. It’s also one of the few available HTs that allow texting and have a Bluetooth connection to work with your smartphone.

At the surface level, the Bluetooth implementation here is more related to texting. Once your smartphone and radio are paired, you can use the companion app to send texts to compatible radios. The main purpose of the smartphone in this sense is the convenience it brings in typing texts.

Texts have a 150 character limit. Once ready, you can choose the desired and compatible channel and the DSC contact intended to receive the text. These are transmitted through the VDSMS system and don’t need a cellular network.

Convenient as this system is, it has a downside. The Bluetooth connectivity can be flaky and there is a notable rate of failure with texting. On the other hand, texting directly through the radio menu has a better success rate, but isn’t convenient considering the limited keypad options for typing.

Another possible use for Bluetooth connection here is firmware updates for the transceiver. These are usually more successful and convenient than the texting feature.

As you may have already surmised from these features, the radio has a built-in GPS that supports Class D Industry Standard DSC. The GPS locks on quickly and the location data is visible on the display.

The device has a large, backlit display that easily displays a fair amount of information. It has good contrast and remains visible under the sun, though a more crisp and sharper resolution would have made it much more likable.

The maximum transmit power on this transceiver is 6W, with other options at 2.5W and 1W. Its higher power output helps with range and is backed by a capable Li-ion battery. Uniden makes it easier to manage charging options by shipping the radio with relevant accessories like an AC adapter, a DC adapter, and a charging cradle. Where needed, you could also use an alkaline battery tray to power the device with disposable batteries.

Its VHF texting capabilities set it apart from most VHF marine radios. It’s also one of the few handhelds that can work with an NMEA 0183 Interface for output. These qualities, along with GPS and DSC put it ahead of lower-placed Uniden models like the MHS75 and Atlantis 275.

Apart from these features, it does pretty well in terms of general aesthetics and casing quality. The casing is convenient and feels good in the hands, underlining a good radio heft. It’s also IPX8 waterproof, and can survive being submerged up to a depth of 5 feet for 30 minutes. It helps that this radio floats, making it much easier to retrieve should it fall overboard.

Additionally, it can receive NOAA channels and is compatible with SAME location alerts from the weather service.

Overall, Uniden MHS335BT is a well-priced and feature-rich device. It’s especially useful for those who find a benefit in texting over the marine band, and its general feature set and profile are likable for most users.

To sum up, what we like is the…
Good form factor and build quality
GPS and DSC
Bluetooth connectivity with smartphones
Allows texting over VHF
Rated IPX8 waterproof, and it can float.

On the downside…
Bluetooth connectivity and texting with smartphone can have high failure rate
Buying additional accessories can be difficult.

Our Ratings
Build Quality: 8/10
Audio Quality: 8/10
Features: 8.5/10
Value for Money: 8/10
Overall Rating: 8/10

Number 2: Cobra MR HH600 FLT – Best Premium Bluetooth Marine Radio

Cobra MR HH600 FLT offers an impressive feature set and remarkable performance mated with decent pricing. It feels like Cobra has thought of almost everything while building this radio!

The color options and design help this radio look good. The hourglass shape is a bit unusual, but it adds to the design and helps keep a better grip on the radio, especially with wet or slippery hands. Its casing and body are well-made and it fits nicely into the hands with some heft that gives it a more satisfying feel.

The quality casing contributes to the radio conforming to IPX8 and JIS8 standards. That means it is waterproof and can survive being submerged in water up to a depth of 1.5 meters however it also floats and even has an orange core to be more easily visible.

Its display is a backlit LCD that remains fairly visible in the sun. It also has a good resolution and can show a decent amount of detail, including information like the channel, time, date, GPS coordinates, and a few more.

Yes, the radio has a built-in GPS that shows your exact location and also works with DSC calls. The GPS data is automatically included with all DSC calls. This works well for normal use and emergency situations.

A “Distress” button is located on the side of the radio. Hitting this button will transmit a distress call to the maximum range of the radio, with appended information on the boat’s location, registration number, and name.

Of course, some of this information has to be set up separately.

Since the distress button is just a simple button, anyone with access to the radio can press it, even if they don’t know how to operate the device. It can come in handy in emergencies, though it also means that you should be more careful so that the button isn’t pressed by mistake.

Speaking of emergencies, it can receive all NOAA weather channels and can sound visual and audio alerts. Another great feature here is rewind-say-again, which records the last 20 seconds of incoming transmissions, so you don’t lose important information, even in noisy surroundings.

The transmit power is pretty good, and you can choose between 1, 3, and 6 Watt RF output. The power levels help with range and battery use, though the audio quality is average at best.

Apart from all those features, it also has Bluetooth, which allows it to connect to your smartphone. Once paired, you can use the radio to make phone calls from the smartphone, thus keeping your phone safe from the tougher environment or water risk on the boat.

The feature-rich radio also comes with quite a few accessories. These include a drop-in charger, car charger, and conventional AC charger for the battery. There’s also an included alkaline battery tray for more flexibility of use which is strong enough to keep the radio going for 6-8 hours of normal use.

In a way, this differentiates it from similarly priced competitors like the Standard Horizon HX890BK.

Overall, Cobra MR HH600 FLT is a great pick for those who want a more serious handheld bluetooth marine radio and are willing to pay for more advanced features and performance.

Our Ratings
Build Quality: 8.5/10
Audio Quality: 8/10
Features: 9/10
Value for Money: 9/10
Overall Rating: 9/10

Number 1. Standard Horizon HX320 – Our Top Choice

Standard Horizon HX320 handheld radio is our top choice for a Bluetooth Marine Radio, mostly thanks to its capability of striking a balance between price, quality, and features.

When held in the hands, there is a clear heft to this radio and its high-quality build and body are very apparent. The finesse to the build also shows itself in features like the spring-loaded cover for the USB-C charging port, the attached screw for the microphone connector, and the waterproofing seal along the body.

Many of these features have their origin in the IPX7 waterproofing rating, which means that this radio can spend 30 minutes submerged in up to 1 meter of water. While that is nice, the radio can just float on the surface. It even has water-activated strobe lights, which make it easier to spot it over water in the dark. These features make it easy to retrieve the radio should it fall overboard.

Its charging connector is a USB-C port, which makes charging the device convenient for the modern user. Yet, the classic touch hasn’t been ignored. You can still use the cradle charger included in the box to power the radio.
It might take longer to charge the 2100mAh Li-Polymer battery on the cradle, but it is generally considered a better option for battery health and longevity. The claimed operating time on a full charge is 17 hours, but that happens only with minimal use.

If the situation warrants most of the use of this radio at high power of 6W, the battery will drain a lot quicker. However, most situations can be handled reasonably well with lower power levels at 2.5W and 1W.

The Tx is pretty good and the receiver sensitivity and quality are fairly good as well. Additionally, the 700 mW speaker ensures that you get crisp and loud audio.

Incidentally, the sensitivity of the receiver and its quality is what differentiates this radio from competing models like the Cobra HH600 marine radio. It also lacks GPS and DSC, both of which are available in the Cobra radio.

Another differentiating factor is the implementation of Bluetooth.
Cobra’s radio uses Bluetooth to connect with a smartphone and allow making phone calls through the radio. Standard Horizon HX320 takes a more conventional approach and uses Bluetooth to connect to a headset for hands-free operation.

However, the headset isn’t available with the radio and will have to be purchased separately. The company recommends using their offering of SSM-BT10 or SSM-BT20 headsets. The headset allows some control over radio operations, including transmitting on set channels and using VOX.

The radio also shares a fair bit of features with the lower-priced model, the HX210. This radio is relatively smaller in size, has a lower battery capacity, doesn’t support USB-C charging, and lacks Bluetooth. On the other hand, it has good receiver quality and sensitivity, and can receive commercial FM, much like the HX320.

Overall, Standard Horizon HX320 is a great pick for those who put a premium on audio quality and ease of use. Its Bluetooth qualities are good, though not impressive, and add more capabilities and convenience when using this handheld transceiver.

To sum up, what we like is the…
Excellent build quality
Crystal clear Tx and Rx audio
IPX7 waterproof and can float
Supports USB-C and conventional cradle charging
Convenient implementation of Bluetooth.

On the downside…
Extra accessories must be purchased to use Bluetooth features
No built-in GPS and DSC capabilities.

Our Ratings
Build Quality: 9/10
Audio Quality: 9.5/10
Features: 8.5/10
Value for Money: 8/10
Overall Rating: 9/10

  • October 23, 2024
Paul