New Whistler Scanners
- Thread starter don333
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No, nothing at all has been announced by Whistler. The upcoming release of the WS1095 within the next few days is essentially the Whistler completion of the GRE PSR900 that was never released by GRE.
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DJ11DLN
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Sure would be nice if they took a cue from Uniden and developed a p.2 version of the 1040/1065 series...
scosgt
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After the Radio Shack fiasco, don't expect very much more from them. The market is flooded with surplus Radio Shack radios, and they lost their biggest contract sales outlet. I don't see any money in R&D for new models for a long time for them, if ever.
The 1040/1065 are the same generation as the Uniden BCD396XT and like the Uniden do not have the hardware capability to be upgraded to phase 2. The 1080 and desktop that is coming have that capability included.
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troymail
Silent Key
Let's hope this isn't true.
This is what he said:
If you haven't been paying attention, Uniden recently released the BCD996P2 and the BCD325P2 which are phase 2 capable versions of the BCD996XT and BCD396XT, so it is quite possible for Whistler to develop a phase 2 capable version on these platforms. He's hoping for development, not a hardware upgrade.
BCD996P2 and BCD325P2 are the next generation of the 396xt. I am sure they did not just change a chip or two to move it to phase 2 capability. Have you checked a schematic to see the differences? The 396 and 396xt looked the same but the xt had greater capabilities.
Let's try this again.....
his statement (emphasis added by me)
Your answer (once again, emphasis added by me)
You seem to understand the concept:
But you do not seem to understand that your dismissive answer to him was not even an answer to his statement. Development of a P2 capable radio on the platform is different than providing an upgrade. Nowhere in his statement is the word upgrade used.
his statement (emphasis added by me)
Your answer (once again, emphasis added by me)
You seem to understand the concept:
But you do not seem to understand that your dismissive answer to him was not even an answer to his statement. Development of a P2 capable radio on the platform is different than providing an upgrade. Nowhere in his statement is the word upgrade used.
I personally would like to see a P2 version of the WS1040/1065. Don't change anything but the vocoder and firmware code for P2 and I'd be happy.
stingray327
Member
Isn't the 1080 the same scanner as the 1090 except 1090 is base/mobile? The 1080 is a handheld with the same specs? You can get a 1080 at less the cost of the 1090.
If the market is flooded with Radio Shack radios doesn't that mean people aren't buying them? And didn't Radio Shack go down because of diminished sales, which would prompt the question "how substantial was RS as a dealer for Whistler?" Could they not easily be replaced by Walmart and Amazon? I'm not a CEO nor a CFO of anything but if I were Whistler contemplating buying rights to GRE in 2013 even then I would have considered the prospect of RS not being alive long-term.
DJ11DLN
Member
Slow down...
Just to clarify, a suitably-upgraded 1065/652-type radio is an item on my wish list. So is $0.99/gallon gasoline. I don't really expect to see that either, but either of these items would be a pleasant surprise. And I'm sure the platform would need more than a vocoder upgrade and new firmware to make that happen. I imagine that Uniden did quite a bit more than that to the 996 to make it decode p.2.
My point was that not everybody likes the 1080-type interface. I've got a Pro-18 and a -668 and I'm not fond of it, and though they're good radios, I know that a lot of people, and I'm one of them, consider the old GRE 500 platform, and all of its clones and cousins, superior for p.1 decode and all-around audio quality. But the user interface is the biggest gripe target. So whether an all-new platform (direct challenge to the X36hp series) or an updated 1065 (counterpart to the 996P2), a p.2-capable radio with a traditional user interface would help retain customers who would otherwise migrate to Uniden when they need something to decode Phase 2. And I have nothing against Uniden. But I want Whistler to stay in the scanner business to retain some vestiges of competition. Just how badly the RS mess affected them and whether they'll be able to do more than keep producing the current models, only they know.
Sorry for setting off a debate.
Just to clarify, a suitably-upgraded 1065/652-type radio is an item on my wish list. So is $0.99/gallon gasoline. I don't really expect to see that either, but either of these items would be a pleasant surprise. And I'm sure the platform would need more than a vocoder upgrade and new firmware to make that happen. I imagine that Uniden did quite a bit more than that to the 996 to make it decode p.2.
My point was that not everybody likes the 1080-type interface. I've got a Pro-18 and a -668 and I'm not fond of it, and though they're good radios, I know that a lot of people, and I'm one of them, consider the old GRE 500 platform, and all of its clones and cousins, superior for p.1 decode and all-around audio quality. But the user interface is the biggest gripe target. So whether an all-new platform (direct challenge to the X36hp series) or an updated 1065 (counterpart to the 996P2), a p.2-capable radio with a traditional user interface would help retain customers who would otherwise migrate to Uniden when they need something to decode Phase 2. And I have nothing against Uniden. But I want Whistler to stay in the scanner business to retain some vestiges of competition. Just how badly the RS mess affected them and whether they'll be able to do more than keep producing the current models, only they know.
Sorry for setting off a debate.
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stingray327
Member
Just to clarify, a suitably-upgraded 1065/652-type radio is an item on my wish list. So is $0.99/gallon gasoline. I don't really expect to see that either, but either of these items would be a pleasant surprise. And I'm sure the platform would need more than a vocoder upgrade and new firmware to make that happen. I imagine that Uniden did quite a bit more than that to the 996 to make it decode p.2.
My point was that not everybody likes the 1080-type interface. I've got a Pro-18 and a -668 and I'm not fond of it, and though they're good radios, I know that a lot of people, and I'm one of them, consider the old GRE 500 platform, and all of its clones and cousins, superior for p.1 decode and all-around audio quality. But the user interface is the biggest gripe target. So whether an all-new platform (direct challenge to the X36hp series) or an updated 1065 (counterpart to the 996P2), a p.2-capable radio with a traditional user interface would help retain customers who would otherwise migrate to Uniden when they need something to decode Phase 2. And I have nothing against Uniden. But I want Whistler to stay in the scanner business to retain some vestiges of competition. Just how badly the RS mess affected them and whether they'll be able to do more than keep producing the current models, only they know.
Sorry for setting off a debate.
Do most people still prefer the 1080 interface over the BCD 436?
I would think one would at a minimum need sales figures and a survey of proper sample size to define who prefers what.
I would love a 436hp with a 1080 screen (expanded of course to fit the 436 form, with color/font options), and the best parts of
Sentinel/EZScan to program with. I'd like to wake up next to Jessica Alba, too.
WQPW689
Member
I have both radios, and I don't.
Both are fine scanners in my view. I particularly like the 436's GPS function with the puck and the 1080's built in discriminator tap. With DSD+ it's been revelatory listening to the various digital outputs.
However, I much prefer the 436's keypad for ease of use and quick switching. It's really much easier and safer in my view than the 1080 button scrolling while driving.
Strictly my preference though. As I said, both fine radios without much difference in audio reception for me, including P25 Phase II up here in NJ, where I happen to be now.
Money spent on either will be money well spent.
I have a 1080 and a 436 and prefer the Interface of the 1080. The 436 requires you to memorize the QK assignments or carry a sheet of paper. With the 1080 I can enable/disable scan lists without memorization or cheat sheet.
scosgt
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Nope. The new offering has a combo VFO/function knob, and the squelch is digital, not linear like on the 1080/800/668.
There may be other internal changes as well.
Also, it only runs off 12 volt, the USB port is to charge the backup battery,
The 800/1080 are IMHO better scanners than the 436 overall but there are 2 good things about the 436 that I wish I still had. However, overall .. the 436 just couldn't compare and I sold mine mostly cause of the terrible display layout and need to memorize quick keys.
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