BCD436HP/BCD536HP: Negative Comments On Amazon and Elsewhere - Contemplating Purchase

[hotdjdave]

I currently have the 396T (love it, but realize P25 performance could be better). I am contemplating on getting the BCD436HP. I was reading some reviews on Amazon and elsewhere, and am concerned. Below are a few. Are they true and why (particularly numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4 for the "why")?

1. Comes with programing cable with serial port and not USB (almost no computers nowadays have a serial port, but all have a USB port).
2. Updates require a fee.
3. Additional fee to program.
4. Cannot charge batteries in the radio.
5. Memory card corruption issue (SD card failure).
6. Comes with no manual and DVD version is not helpful.
7. Android app is not yet developed or working.
8. Difficult to program (for personalized lineup, not zip code).
9. Audio speaker is not loud enough.
10. Poor or diminished sensitivity (compared to predecessor and competition models).

Should I just wait to see if Uniden comes out with a 396P2 (crossing my fingers, but not holding my breath) or get a 396XT? Note, this is not a rant, but valid concerns of mine.

PS. I live in Los Angeles and as far as I can tell there is no phase 2 planned for my area (I could be mistaken).

 

[WQPW689]

If you're relying on Amazon for your reviews, they have the worst possible scanner review system. They lump all scanner reviews in one section and you have to make sure you're reading a review on the model you're interested in. It's in small type "Style Name" above the review body. You may have been reading reviews on other scanners.

If that isn't the case, some of those issues you listed are flat out wrong.

The cable is USB, fees are not required for any updates, you can pay a vendor to program the thing, but why? The Sentinel software is free.

The batteries can be charged in the radio when the scanner is off.

Yes, there have been problems with the SD cards, and your best bet is to research the subject on these forums. Not all scanners were affected.

There's a 90+ page manual that comes with each and every X36 scanner.

The rest of the complaints are subjective or don't apply to me (Android app).

I've had no problems with mine at all. Best of luck.

 

[Haley]

I can answer some of them. Just got my 436 from Amazon last week. I can tell you a lot of people reviewing the 436 are talking about the Hp1 and Hp2 models. Mine came with printed manual, usb cable, sensitivity so far up against many of the models I own (see my signature line) is at the very top (for me and my location). There are no fees for anything I'm aware of. Programming was easy , by zip I was running in less than three minutes. Since you have the 396t you should have no problem navigating the menus. There are people with more knowledge and experience that will chime in. But that's what I know so far, hope it helps , Mike

 

[hotdjdave]

Thank You

If you're relying on Amazon for your reviews, they have the worst possible scanner review system. They lump all scanner reviews in one section and you have to make sure you're reading a review on the model you're interested in.

Thank you for that info. I wasn't relying on Amazon reviews only, but that makes sense. I was suspicious of some of the reviews, hence, my post here with my questions.

I did read many of the posts in the forums, but again, wanted to make sure.

Thank you for your reply - very helpful and makes me feel much better about the model.

 

[hotdjdave]

Thank You

I can answer some of them. Just got my 436 from Amazon last week. I can tell you a lot of people reviewing the 436 are talking about the Hp1 and Hp2 models. Mine came with printed manual, usb cable, sensitivity so far up against many of the models I own (see my signature line) is at the very top (for me and my location). There are no fees for anything I'm aware of. Programming was easy , by zip I was running in less than three minutes. Since you have the 396t you should have no problem navigating the menus. There are people with more knowledge and experience that will chime in. But that's what I know so far, hope it helps , Mike

Thank you for your reply. Much help.

 

[hotdjdave]

Amazon

It's in small type "Style Name" above the review body. You may have been reading reviews on other scanners.

I see that now. I never knew that. I suppose this is the case for most of the products they sell. Makes the rating system a bit useless. How lazy of Amazon.

 

[phask]

Keep your tongue firmly in your cheek when reading Amazon reviews.

I buy a lot from Amazon and I do use reviews, but it's usually easy to read between the lines and see the crap. I was "fooled" one time, and Amazon paid for the return.

I also submit reviews , or add corrections.

For technical items such as a scanner, it seems that 90% are someone who has not done their homework.

 

[UPMan]

1. Comes with programing cable with serial port and not USB (almost no computers nowadays have a serial port, but all have a USB port).
   THIS IS NOT TRUE.
2. Updates require a fee.
   THIS IS NOT TRUE.
3. Additional fee to program.
   THIS IS NOT TRUE.
4. Cannot charge batteries in the radio.
   THIS IS NOT TRUE.
5. Memory card corruption issue (SD card failure).
   THERE HAVE BEEN SOME REPORTS OF THIS FOR ALL DEVICES THAT USE SD CARDS.
6. Comes with no manual and DVD version is not helpful.
   THIS IS NOT TRUE.
7. Android app is not yet developed or working.
   NOT RELEVENT TO THIS MODEL.
8. Difficult to program (for personalized lineup, not zip code).
   THIS DEPENDS ON YOUR OWN KNOWLEDGEBASE.
9. Audio speaker is not loud enough.
   THIS DEPENDS ON YOUR LISTENING ENVIRONMENT.
10. Poor or diminished sensitivity (compared to predecessor and competition models).
    THIS IS NOT TRUE.

(Not yelling in the above, just differentiating my A from the original Q.)

 

[dave3825]

Below are my thoughts.

Comes with programing cable with serial port and not USB (almost no computers nowadays have a serial port, but all have a USB port).

Bcd436hp comes with a usb cable for programming and charging batteries. Charging is done via usb phone style plug or plugged into usb on a pc or laptop. It does not come with anything to plug into the wall to charge.

Updates require a fee.

No fee at all for any updates. If you use third party software like Butel you need to buy that software and a premium subscription to radioreference.com.

Additional fee to program.

Yes, if you choose the place your buying it from to program it for you.

Cannot charge batteries in the radio.

You can not charge the batteries in the radio if you are listening to it. It must be off for the batteries to charge. Many people buy a spare set and charge them in a battery charger to have a full set ready to go.

Memory card corruption issue (SD card failure).

I have read many issues about this but I myself have not had any trouble with the card. If you pull the card out alot the contacts will wear over time, common sense. Also not properly ejecting usb media is known to corrupt cards.

Comes with no manual and DVD version is not helpful.

The best manual is from marks scanners. Easy to read bcdx36hp manual
There is also a Sentinel manual there as well

Android app is not yet developed or working.

The 436 does not have wifi like the 536. I don't ever see an app for the 436.

Difficult to program (for personalized lineup, not zip code).

Sentinel is a bit tricky at first but I have only had my 436 for 3 months and its a piece of cake now.

Audio speaker is not loud enough.

In my opinion the audio is very low. If I am home, i run it thru my pc speakers and if I am on the road, I run it thru the aux input on my car stereo.

Poor or diminished sensitivity (compared to predecessor and competition models).

This is my first digital scanner so I cant compare digital sensitivity. I do find it a slight bit weak in the vhf range.

 

[Jay911]

Seems like the people posting the reviews have some kind of agenda. As others have said, the lion's share of them are untrue, and the ones that have any truth to them are relative, dependent on your experience with scanners and computer equipment.

 

[Triangulum]

7. Android app is not yet developed or working.
8. Difficult to program (for personalized lineup, not zip code).

7. As others have mentioned.... the Uniden Siren app is for the 536hp, not the 436hp. But, there are other ways around that. For example, there is a program called Scanner Monitor (not by Uniden) that will work with the 436hp. The setup is different than how Siren works with the 536hp, but it can provide a comparable experience depending on what you are trying to do. http://forums.radioreference.com/un...536-scanner-monitor-app-both-mac-windows.html

8. If you are programming the scanner on the computer then Sentinel is extremely simple on a basic level. Here is an example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECOUceSdVCo The main database is right in front of you. All you do is right click what you want and "Append Favorites List". In the Edit Favorites section, you can further edit the listings to your needs or manually add whatever you want. I don't think there is a more simplistic program to use if all you are doing is working with the database and editing/adding your own frequencies. There are some more in-depth settings like quick keys, number keys, etc....but you don't need to utilize that until you are more comfortable with the device.

Edit: Thanks torontokris. Sentinel was still on the mind.

 

[torontokris]

You mean Uniden SIREN app not Sentinal.
x36 Sentinal is for both the 436 and 536... the Siren App is for the 536 only

Not a big deal just making it clear

7. As others have mentioned.... the Uniden Sentinel app is for the 536hp, not the 436hp.

 

[hotdjdave]

Thank you everyone for your help. I believe I have all the answers I need.

 

[jeremyzone]

They lump all scanner reviews in one section and you have to make sure you're reading a review on the model you're interested in. It's in small type "Style Name" above the review body. You may have been reading reviews on other scanners.

This.

The BCD436HP page shares the same reviews at 3 completely different sacnners: the BC346XTC, BC75XLT, and BCD396XT.

In order to see ONLY the BCD436HP reviews, click on the link that says "See all # customer reviews" then make sure the "Style name" is set to BCD436HP. If it isn't, use the "All formats" option to change it to the right scanner.

 

[RogerH11]

I haven't charged batteries in a scanner in like 25 years! I even had a stand-alone charger back in the dreaded 235-245 telephone battery pack days. Uniden has come a long way since their cheesy radio's with horrible squelch tails, sucky selectivity, long delays between trunk/conv scanning, piss-poor audio days

 

[EmergencyOPS2]

Uniden BCD436HP

I have used the Home Patrol for travel and was happy with the device. With some of the updated systems I updated to the BCD436HP. On day 1 with the first power up I had an SD card failure. It turned out to be the card slot. I obtained an exchange and managed to get the program to load. It seemed that some of the features did not function as written. Tech support was unable to resolve the issue. The rep even stated that they were not fully trained on the model.

During a trip to Texas I visited the corporate office for Uniden US and was told no one could help but that the gave me an escalated e-mail address. I did managed to get better support albeit very slow.

After about 60 days I began finding database errors such as (Nevada) where the trunk ID's were valid but no sites were programmed (with the latest update). Uniden blamed Radio reference and I challenged Radio Reference which promptly set Uniden strait. Uniden since fixed the missing site issue . After about 90 days I began having issues with the clock battery not maintaining the clock which is an issue with power-up. Uniden stated they would have to repair the units with a defective battery, then after demanding a warranty replacement, they decided to not repair or replace the impacted units, so They updated the firmware to bypass the error.

The bottom line: I like the programming software and general concept of the unit, however the number of hardware and support failures lead me to NOT RECOMMEND the BCD436HP. The support failure(s) include a number of unanswered letters to the US Executive team and finally after a letter to the CEO in Japan, I received a response which failed to address the the ongoing hardware issues.

 

[XTS3000]

After updating my 436HP to the latest firmware, a few days later the speaker went bad and sounds distorted. Not saying the update caused the problem, but do find it odd. Oh well back to the 396XT that's worked flawlessly for close to 5 years.

 

[hotdjdave]

After begging the person at Uniden customer service, he finally agreed to send me a new replacement speaker (#BSPG0631001/BC125AT SPEAKER) at no cost, in order for me to replace it on my own. It was a 5-min job, no solder needed, it just pops in the unit and this fixed the problem. It appears that the tiny speakers used in the BCD436HP are very suspect, based on the postings.

Funny how they wanted to charge you $100 to replace a $5 speaker, that took 5 minutes.

 

[Voyager]

Base rate. They don't know if they will be changing a speaker or a microprocessor. Obviously, the latter is a job that is much more involved.

 

[bearcatrp]

I had the 396T. Sold it to buy the 436. I miss it. After tweaking it in the settings (manual p25) it picked up great. But you can't beat the simplicity of the x36 scanners. Punch in zip code, select services, select range, then listen. Since the update, picks up better now. If you have cash to spare for another scanner, the x36 is actually pretty good.