"We" meaning you represent Motorola, Vertex, Icom, and Kenwood. Companies who could, but choose to not design and provide a dual band VHF/UHF public safety radio in an affordable $500 to $600 range. Talk about companies tracking other companies product lines!
Bob
I need to address that. No, my part of "we" has not represented any of the above in at least 20 years. For the player I did work for back then, it was a different time and a vastly different corporate philosophy, one that neither the new organization nor I share any longer. So, no, my part of "we" is me.
I have some good idea about why a dualband product has not been made that fits within the price range. A lot of it is due to marketing and the desire to sell infrastructure. Some of it is due to indemnification in a public safety environment. Some of it is due to extensive third party testing something has to undergo when it is declared to have a certain capability.
I would feel comfortable using one of these as a scanner. I would be comfortable handing one to my son so we can talk on 2 meters or 440 (or my Part 90 business channel). But we have to be careful about what can follow. I would not feel comfortable being on a fire district board of directors and using the low price to justify buying all of the volunteers in the district one if it can possibly be used for voice communication in a hazardous zone (never mind performance, have you ever seen a lithium battery burn?). I would not feel comfortable handing one to a patrol deputy for use during a shift. That's if they meet spec and are type accepted or not. But that's just me. It's a fine basic radio for basic needs, kind of like the Ritron warehouse portables were back in the day.
