So I was researching scanners that I wanted to put in my car. It had to be a Uniden so I could use FTO to limit the amount of traffic to what I wanted to hear. I've got a 536HP at home and have been pretty satisfied with it. Someone suggested the 436HP because the programming would be interchangeable. I was pretty jazzed about the idea as it would be portable, and the latest model. These things have all turned out to be true.
Then I started asking questions about installing in my car. That's when the wheels came off the cart.
First problem with the 436HP is that you would have to turn it on and off each time you got in your car for the following reasons:
1. having it plugged into switched USB power will generate a serial/mass storage menu every time the power cycles and won't continue till you answer the question.
2. Removing power will eventually corrupt your SD card and send you back to your computer or worse, best buy for new SDHC cards.
Trying to install a 536HP in your car will result in #2 above.
So it's become painfully obvious to me that Uniden did not think this through very well. Especially with the 536HP considering they provide the car mounting bracket and 12V wiring harness. They neglected to include the part about corrupting your SD card by pulling power from the scanner without turning it off first. Even if it's in the manual some place. Is that really a satisfactory auto installation? Park the car, start shutting down your equipment? No!. Turn the key, close the door and go...
Now, will the new BCD996P2 Fair any better? No SD card right? How about the older BCD396XT No SD card there either? But what gotcha's lurk in those devices from keeping it simple?
I guess I have to ask the question since my perception of an auto installation is dramatically different than what Uniden envisioned.
Is it possible to set a scanner (you tell me what model) and install it in your car via a 12v switched circuit (that means power when car is running, no power when it's not), and have the scanner come on when the car is running, and go off when it's not. and not have to intervene or interact with the device. Just start the car and drive and it's on, just stop the car and it's off. Nothing more. The scanner would be set to either FTO mode or to scan a small portion of my P25 county system (a few TG's, the rest avoided), Plus a county analog fire dispatch.
Back when everything was analog this was much simpler to accomplish. Now, not so much.
What say you...
Thanks,
Roveer
Then I started asking questions about installing in my car. That's when the wheels came off the cart.
First problem with the 436HP is that you would have to turn it on and off each time you got in your car for the following reasons:
1. having it plugged into switched USB power will generate a serial/mass storage menu every time the power cycles and won't continue till you answer the question.
2. Removing power will eventually corrupt your SD card and send you back to your computer or worse, best buy for new SDHC cards.
Trying to install a 536HP in your car will result in #2 above.
So it's become painfully obvious to me that Uniden did not think this through very well. Especially with the 536HP considering they provide the car mounting bracket and 12V wiring harness. They neglected to include the part about corrupting your SD card by pulling power from the scanner without turning it off first. Even if it's in the manual some place. Is that really a satisfactory auto installation? Park the car, start shutting down your equipment? No!. Turn the key, close the door and go...
Now, will the new BCD996P2 Fair any better? No SD card right? How about the older BCD396XT No SD card there either? But what gotcha's lurk in those devices from keeping it simple?
I guess I have to ask the question since my perception of an auto installation is dramatically different than what Uniden envisioned.
Is it possible to set a scanner (you tell me what model) and install it in your car via a 12v switched circuit (that means power when car is running, no power when it's not), and have the scanner come on when the car is running, and go off when it's not. and not have to intervene or interact with the device. Just start the car and drive and it's on, just stop the car and it's off. Nothing more. The scanner would be set to either FTO mode or to scan a small portion of my P25 county system (a few TG's, the rest avoided), Plus a county analog fire dispatch.
Back when everything was analog this was much simpler to accomplish. Now, not so much.
What say you...
Thanks,
Roveer