Here’s the difference between FRS, GMRS, and Ham

FRS

Generally, the cheapest walkie talkies are FRS type. FRS stands for family radio Service and FRS only walkie talkies will generally give you the lowest power, shortest range, and cheapest price. For all these reasons, I generally do not recommend FRS. Remember cheapest price is not the first, second, or third criterion when shopping for emergency hardware that you or your family may someday need to depend on for their life.

GMRS

Instead of frs, gmrs is more powerful, has a longer range, and commonly associated with better built radio hardware.

Gmrs functions essentially the same as frs, but uses different channels. A gmrs radio will usually work with an FRS radio, but not vice versa. A key difference between gmrs and FRS is that you need to have a license for gmrs. But the license is not as rigorous as a ham license. In fact it's not rigorous at all. They just want you to register and pay a small fee to keep track of who is using the gmrs radio frequencies. If you Google how to get a gmrs license, I have no doubt you can take it from there and have the registration completed within minutes.

Ham radio

Ham radio will get you a farther range than FRS or gmrs well, or even both of them combined. The reason is due to the international network of repeater stations which beam your ham radio transmission from one repeater station to the next. This is basically how cell phones work by leapfrogging from repeater station to repeater station, you can communicate with your kids whether they are at your house at college or at a safe house all while other forms of communication have failed you. Ham radio is like the Cockroach of communications, and that's not an insult. Cockroaches can survive most challenging environments. Same with ham radio which rely on line of sight communication and repeaters that generally have battery, solar, or fuel power backups to keep them going when the power has been out for days.

Satellite Communicator

The Garmin inReach satellite communicator is an off grid satellite communicator and navigator. Because it works by satellite, it can be used in a situation where you are not expecting cell service to be available or operable. It also has an emergency beacon in it. It requires a $12 monthly subscription which gives you access to a 24 hr emergency response center.

It is designed to be used often by adventure seekers and not merely valuable as an emergency prep tool. It is useful when going camping in the mountains, backpacking or skiing or in other situations where you have no cell service. The mini version is about the size of a pager. It is durable, chargeable and waterproof. With multiple devices, you can communicate across the country. It connects to your phone via Bluetooth to allow you to send a message to your family members. 

Whatever communication device you choose, make sure it’s rechargeable, preferably USB-rechargeable. Many rechargeable walkie talkies come with rechargeable batteries but they can also recharge regular Li-ion batteries.

Even an old cellphone can be used to dial 911, but it may not be useful in extreme conditions.

You should consider adding an app such as Life360 or Google Maps to your phone. When the power and cell signal does go back on, it  allows you to share your real time location with specific individuals,such as family members or other people you love and trust, rather than trying to describe their location.