iSCAN Post-Release Discussion Thread

[LiberaFan08]

But does it get Ohio MARCS ???

According to the information on the Wiki for this radio,it will receive Motorola Type II Smartzone Omnilink which is the type of system used for Ohio MARCS. Since this is supposedly a digtal system, how could this radio possibly receive it since the specs also state that the radio is ANALOG? To make matters even more confusing,I have heard it said that MARCS is "not a true digital system",whatever that means.At this point,it appears as if this radio is just an expensive paperweight because it isn't digital.

 

[jpunix]

What were the software issues that you think should be changed?

!. Everything is enabled using the included software interface. If you want to create a small custom talkgroup list you end up doing my disabling than enabling. A "uncheck all" would be helpful.

2. If you use the included software interface and want to create a new playlist all previous playlists get wiped. The software will only allow for all playlists to be created in one session. Bummer!

 

[rdale]

Since this is supposedly a digtal system, how could this radio possibly receive it since the specs also state that the radio is ANALOG?

It will track it, you'll just hear screeching in stead of audio.

At this point,it appears as if this radio is just an expensive paperweight because it isn't digital.

Huh? If you don't need to monitor digital, this works MUCH better than a paperweight. I've not heard the scanner yet, but if I put it up to my ear - I think I'll hear something different than if I put a paperweight up to my ear.

 

[DonS]

2. If you use the included software interface and want to create a new playlist all previous playlists get wiped. The software will only allow for all playlists to be created in one session. Bummer!

1. If you already have data on the SD Card, use the PC software's "Copy from SD Card" function to copy the radio's data to the PC
2. PC software now shows everything that the scanner contains
3. Make changes in PC software
4. Copy data back to SD Card
5. Put SD Card back in scanner

Basically, just keep your "master configuration" in one place - either on the SD Card or on the PC.

This is really no different from other GRE-made scanners, where you either do a read-modify-write of the scanner's data, or do a modify-write from data on the PC.

 

[DonS]

According to the information on the Wiki for this radio,it will receive Motorola Type II Smartzone Omnilink which is the type of system used for Ohio MARCS. Since this is supposedly a digtal system, how could this radio possibly receive it since the specs also state that the radio is ANALOG? To make matters even more confusing,I have heard it said that MARCS is "not a true digital system",whatever that means.At this point,it appears as if this radio is just an expensive paperweight because it isn't digital.

Pretty much like every other analog scanner out there (though this one does things no other analog scanner can do).

A quick look at the RR DB, though, shows that an analog-only scanner is hardly a paperweight... only 2% of the DB's "conventional channels" are P25, and only 31% of the talkgroups are flagged as digital (combined, about 15% of all talkgroups and conventional channels are digital).

Around here, for example, there is only one digital item that I might want to monitor: a dispatch frequency used by the Sheriff for part of each day for part of the county. In a relatively urban area (Santa Clara, CA, in the middle of Silicon Valley), almost everything is analog.

My PRO-107 is not a paperweight. It replaced my PSR-500 as my "carry-around scanner" several months ago.

 

[polaris12345678]

Pro-107 Can you delete all objects in a playlist with no Computer ?

Is it possible to empty a large playlist of all frequencies without using a computer ?
I found that you need to remove objects 1 at a time.
So a playlist of 100 objects would take a long time.

Software improvement I would make:

Allow users to import their own excel data, maybe into Playlist 01 only..
Some alpha tags in the database need better descriptions..

Hardware improvement :

Be able to erase an entire Playlist in one shot from the scanner itself.

 

[DonS]

Is it possible to empty a large playlist of all frequencies without using a computer ?
I found that you need to remove objects 1 at a time.
So a playlist of 100 objects would take a long time.

On the scanner, it's one at a time. So, in the "Browser", you'd have to repeat "MENU UP SEL SEL" several times (once for each object to delete).

Software improvement I would make:

Allow users to import their own excel data, maybe into Playlist 01 only..
Some alpha tags in the database need better descriptions..

The latter is a database issue. If you think tags need better descriptions, you can either submit them or suggest changes to DB admins (remember, the database info used by the scanner comes from RadioReference, and is only as good as what is contributed).

Hardware improvement :

Be able to erase an entire Playlist in one shot from the scanner itself.

That's a "scanner firmware" improvement, not "hardware", but I'll make sure it's "passed on".

 

[IEscanner]

Sanity check...

Could someone who has purchased a PRO-107 try the following... turn the unit ON and, while the "welcome" message is displayed, press the MENU key. What version number is shown for "uP App Ver" ? (I expect "RF1.1").

My 107 is RF 1.1 RR Lib Ver: 003 the serial # 003059

 

[hoser147]

According to the information on the Wiki for this radio,it will receive Motorola Type II Smartzone Omnilink which is the type of system used for Ohio MARCS. Since this is supposedly a digtal system, how could this radio possibly receive it since the specs also state that the radio is ANALOG? To make matters even more confusing,I have heard it said that MARCS is "not a true digital system",whatever that means.At this point,it appears as if this radio is just an expensive paperweight because it isn't digital.

In short No MARCS is digital voice. you are correct on the type system however.......

 

[scannerboy02]

Got one today, I do not see a way to lock the key pad.

 

[DaveIN]

Got one today, I do not see a way to lock the key pad.

I don't see a keypad :lol:

 

[DaveIN]

In short No MARCS is digital voice. you are correct on the type system however.......

SAFE-T is 90% digital voice also, but if it has analog talkgroups active, it should track them.

 

[scannerboy02]

I don't see a keypad :lol:

In all seriousness, being that the scanner has no belt clip I put it in my shirt pocket and when I took it out after arriving at my destination it was in hold mode and I found later that three objects had been placed in skip. Anyone know if the scanner has a way to lock the key pad?


Other than that it seems like a great radio. Had it up and running on the Sacramento Regional Radio Communications System in a matter of minutes.

Audio is great, reception on 800MHz is better than any other scanner I have, its very simple to operate, size is perfect for putting in a pocket.

 

[Trekker65]

Trouble writing to sd disc with iScan software.

I am having trouble using the iScan computer software to write to my sd disc.
The scanner has no problems programming the sd disc and when I started the software it had no problem reading the sd disc. The sd disc is not locked and I am able to read the contents and pull in the contents of the sd disc but simply can not write to it using the software.
I get an error message when trying to write, that indicates that program is unable to write to the cdat file.
Could this mean that my computer sd reader is simply a "reader" and not a "writer"? I have looked at all the documentation for my computer to see if it is just a reader but no luck.
How can I determine if the port is just a sd reader?
This is only the second time to use the card reader function of my computer. I have looked at the contents of a digital camera disk but have never attempted to write back to that disk. That may be the next logical step to see if that provides an answer.
Anyone else having difficulty writing to the sd disk with the iScan software and can provide some insight? Love the scanner but as someone else mentioned, it would be great to erase a whole playlist from the scanner without having to remove one object at a time or take out the sd disc.

 

[DaveIN]

You could try writing to the camera SD card to see, but I suspect the SD reader should also write to the card. What operating system and computer type are you using to read the SD card?

 

[Trekker65]

I am using a Dell laptop with Windows Vista Premium OS. 3 gb memory running at 1.2 gig.

 

[RadioDaze]

"Perceptual" size of iScan

I haven't seen the 107 at a store near me yet. To folks who now have their 107, and ALSO have either the Uniden 330 or 396 series scanner, how does the size of the iScan "seem" compared to the Uniden. I know that the dimensions in the specs don't always tell the whole story. Does it "feel" larger or smaller than the Uniden, or about the same?

Obviously, it's really tiny for anyone using a Pro-96 or Pro-106. But it would only duplicate the function of my 330T, and maybe not the best investment for me., unless it was more stealthy.

 

[Trekker65]

Got my iScan thru the RS website since did not find available in any store nearby. Serial number 591. I also have the Uniden 330. The iScan is 3/8 inch taller than the 330 and thinner by about 1/8 inch. Uniden 330 weighs 9 oz loaded with batteries and the iScan is 9.2 oz loaded. As far as "feel" they are about the same. iScan has bnc connector only instead of the sma adapter. I do not notice any difference in scan speed between the two. iScan has a clear full sounding speaker and reception seems to be sensitive. I have not encountered any cross mod.
As you know by now the iScan works more like a Ipod with playlists. Browsing the data base is a snap and even when selecting a large amount of material to include in the playlist takes very little time. Much less time to program than using ScanCat Lite on my Pro-97 or Pro-95. Had a little difficulty with the iScan program at first not recognizing my sd card but all began to work after checking to see if could access the sd card externally. Maybe just a temporary seating problem in my card reader.
iScan software makes it very easy to load the data and name the playlists on the sd card and then just insert it back into the scanner.

 

[Billknn]

got mine today, BUT ...

I got mine today but I may be returning it. It seems to work fine on conventional vhf freqs. but when I enter my local PD's Motorola 880 mhz trunking system, the audio is badly distorted, raspy, scratchy and almost motor-boating and sounds far off frequency. Most channels are not copyable at all. I tried manually searching for a "conventional" 800 mhz signal such as an SMR and they seem to sound just fine. I have another scanner nearby that I put a low-performance antenna on as a comparison and all channels were loud and clear on it - but mostly not there on the 107. I put an 800 mhz antenna on the 107 and it slightly helped but not enough to make a difference. This thing is really not that complicated to use after spending a little time with it. Because it's so "simple" I have run out of things to try.

Oh Well.

 

[polaris12345678]

Pro-107 Conventional Frequencies

Greetings,
I want to give more detail of what I mean by improving database from my last post.

Import Vermont State Police in a playlist and you will see alpha tags of 1,1,1,1,1,1,1, and so on. It also happens for frequencies in Westchester NY. Most of the different towns and city PD are tagged as POLICE. So when you are listening there is no way to tell which POLICE you are listening to (except for frequency). At that point why have alpha tags at all.
I know you can edit them via software, but that defeats the purpose of this scanner.
For trunk systems this is not a problem because the System Name and Talkgroup and Site are displayed. My suggestion if possible, is to replace CONV on the display with the city / town / agency name for Conventional channels. This would make it more useful when in unfamiliar areas.

Bill