This is the third year I have been using this handheld radio and I like it very much:
Yaesu FTA-450L Airband VHF Comm
It uses a lithium rechargeable battery that has very low self-discharge so it can sit on the shelf for a long time and seldom needs a charge, but also comes with a tray for AA alkalines you can switch out if needed. I think I paid $219 for it. It is a transceiver.
What I did is buy a headset adapter to 3.5mm jack and I hook up a small lithium battery powered bluetooth transmitter to that. So I can literally clip the radio/bluetooth transmitter on my hip and walk anywhere while having an AirPod or earbud in one ear to listen in on air comms, meanwhile listening for approaching aircraft or anything else. I have tried having the radio on over its own speaker but if you turn it up enough so that you can hear talking on it, the static interferes with hearing other things nearby.
Last month I started a new construction progress project about 1500 ft due north of a small non-towered airport where they have skydiving services. I phoned the airport manager prior and got communications established with him. For all upcoming flights I offered to leave a voice mail prior to launching and an estimate of time in the air and he accepted. Several ultralights are based there so he said he will be able to give them heads up to my ops and altitude.
The first drone flight I dialed up the CTAF/UNICOM to 122.8 and put in one AirPod. In the middle of my very first flight I heard a pilot announce take-off, and it was definitely a twin otter when it ran up! A little later he announced his altitude and jumpers in the air and one thing I remember he said was please other aircraft do not fly over the center of the runway. Low and behold, there they were, 9 jumpers floating down. Because of the using the radio it was great to know what was going on the whole time and be able to visually verify safe distances between drone and aircraft and jumpers and that's how our system is supposed to work.