So, you may have read that I am old. I have finally come to terms with the fact that I ain’t a kid no more. It pains me to admit this (and to write that last sentence as I did) but it is true.
As I am “of a certain age” as they say I have had a lot of experience to learn from as well as many experiences that I should have learned from but didn’t. That goes along well with today’s topic: How do current scanners compare in value to those we enjoyed when I was younger. To do this I am going to compare what I believe are the trend setters. I am purposely avoiding the specialty communications receivers (Icom, AOR etc.) and more obscure brands like Yupitero etc.
These are scanners that were commonly available to the public from various retailers and were, for better or worse, the top of the game when they came out. Of course, this is extremely subjective and your opinion (however misguided it may be) may differ.
Here they are in reverse chronological order. I have owned at least one of each except for the MS-1.
Notes:
Bearcat BC-1:
Actually, the BC-1 was a retronym, it was just the Model BC when it was introduced, the BC-1 name was applied after a newer version came out that was named the BC-2. The BC-1 was pretty much a basic 8-channel crystal scanner, single band, with no really special features. It was, however, widely available and took the scanner community by storm. It was this scanner that was found in every gas station, living room, police or fire station and newsroom during the day. It made Bearcat a household name. There were other brands, but it was the scanner that everyone wanted. Kind of like Apple is today: others may have done it first, better and cheaper but Bearcat was the eye-candy everyone wanted.
Regency ACT-R20/6:
The ACT-R20/6 (Action Receiver, 20 channels, 6 bands) was introduced when 4 channel scanners were common, 8-channels were the high-end and anything beyond 8 was luxuries that only the wealthy or crazy could afford. Then along came Regency with a 20-channel scanner that was reasonably priced for the time.
I wrote an entire Scanner Tale about the ACT-R20/6 back in July 2024 but in summary it was a monster. It was long and lean (in that it was really wide and deep but short in height) and had 20 channels that should keep one occupied for decades, or so we thought.
It wasn’t particularly good at anything other than capacity, but it had that by the bucketful. There were a couple competitors with 16 channels but AFAIK this was the first 20-channel scanner. I had 2 of them and spent almost as much on crystals as I did for the scanner it seemed.
Tennelec MS-1
Another retronym, the Tennelec Memory Scan (“MS”) was renamed the MS-1 after the newer MS-2 was introduced. This was the first widely available internally programmable scanner. While there were scanners that were programmed by cards or combs, the MS-1 was programmed by setting a binary code with the channel lockout switches. It was a great concept, no more crystals, combs, or cards. While it was tedious it was much more efficient than the other methods of the time. I jonesed after one of these but just couldn’t afford to buy one when I was making $1.25 an hour at Dairy Queen after school.
Electra Bearcat 210:
Wow, what a concept! Entering frequencies from a numeric keyboard with no crystals, cards, combs or even a binary lookup sheet. If you knew the frequency you just programmed it in! Don’t know the frequency? Just program in 2 freqs and search between them! Back in the late 70’s my friend at work had one of these and I played with it as often as he would let me until I got a programmable scanner of my own.
By today’s standards of course it was really basic but at the time it was revolutionary, high-tech and the cream of the crop. It was the scanner everyone wanted, me included. It was the first of a line of programmable scanners by Bearcat in the iconic wedge shape, followed by the BC220, BC250 and many others.
Radio Shack PRO-2004:
Like the BC210 before it, the PRO2004 set the scanner world on fire. It combined easy programming, huge channel capacity (300 channels when 16-20 was common and 50 was luxurious), wide coverage (25-550, 760-1300 MHz.) and easy opening of the cellular band. It was purposely designed for cellular reception as it had the proper channel spacing. Even though they added a cellular band block it was so easy to reverse it that there was little point in including it. This was the radio that made cellular monitoring easy and popular with the masses.
Beyond that it was a great scanner overall. It was sensitive (especially on aircraft band) and much more immune to overload and intermod than other scanners of the day. The wide frequency range allowed users to listen to all kinds of things one would never have thought to before. One could even expand the memory capacity to 400 channels with a different diode cut. It spawned several successors like the PRO2005, PRO2006, PRO2035 and PRO2042.
Uniden BC780XLT:
This was the radio that re-established Uniden’s place at the top of the hill in the scanner community. It also created a cottage industry in modifications, accessories and upgrades for it and successor models like the BC785D, BC796D, BC250D and BC296D.
It combined 3 forms of trunking (Motorola, EDACS and LTR) with high channel capacity (500 channels) and a form factor that resonated with the community. It was the radio that EVERYONE wanted before they even knew they wanted it.
Uniden BCD396T and BCD396XT:
Take a BC296D, shrink it to half the size, add capacity, import the new user interface introduced with the BC246T and improve the display and you have the BCD396T. With P25 trunking, great performance and add in a true pocket-scanner size and you have a great scanner. While not perfect (that would come later with the upgraded BCD396XT) it was a great radio. While the later XT version added better trunking scanning by allowing multiple Sites within a system among other improvements like GPS Site and System selection, the BCD396T introduced a size vs. performance value to the community.
Uniden Home Patrol:
The Home Patrol, later known as the Home Patrol 1 (HP1) after the newer HP2 came out, introduced the scanner world to Location Based Scanning. With the entire Radio Reference Database contained on a micro-SD Card one could punch up a ZIP Code and select whatever Service Codes they wanted to listen to and off you go. The HP2 added the ability to monitor Phase 2 P25 systems. You could even do your own programming but that really required one to do that on a computer. The later BCD436HP/BCD536HP took the Location Based Scanning concept and merged it with the 396/996 series programming but the HP1 and HP2’s simplicity and form factor keep it relevant to this day.
Uniden SDS100:
The SDS100, along with its desktop/mobile mate, the SDS200, took the scanner community by storm some 7 years ago. By then digital P25 simulcast systems were becoming common around the US and Canada. Scanners just could not properly decode these systems well, if at all. Then along came the SDS100. Not only did it have all the features of the BCD436HP it also have a customizable color display and water-resistant case. The real treat however was the simulcast performance. It was designed from the ground up around an SDR (Software Defined Receiver) for premier performance on simulcast systems.
The SDS100 was the most expensive scanner when it was introduced, eclipsed only later by the companion SDS200 desktop/mobile. Amazingly to this day, some 7 years later, it is still at the same price, even with the inflation that has occurred since then.
Conclusion:
The first thing that leapt out at me is that the SDS100 appears to have been not only the most advanced scanner in the list but also the cheapest in comparable dollars. That said, each of these scanners were at the top of the technology (and price) pile for its time.
The MS-1 was the most expensive, at about $2600 in today’s dollars. One can buy an Icom R8600 for that, or perhaps, if you prefer, 3 SDS200’s along with some DMR or NXDN upgrades for the same price as one MS-1. While the same is true for most technology, in that one can get much more for the money these days, it is still amazing to me how true that is for scanners. Scanner capabilities has far outpaced inflation, just like computers or TV sets. When one could usually afford a scanner, laptop or a TV back in the day, these days people can often afford several of each. Most people who had scanners in the 70’s and 80’s had *A* scanner. Same for TV’s and later, computers. Now people have a TV in every room, a desktop as well as a laptop or two and many scanner enthusiasts have multiple scanners. Look at the Photos Forum at Radio Reference, 5, 10, 20 and even 30 or more are not uncommon. While I currently have “only” 8 scanners in my shack, I have about 25 Uniden scanners overall as well as 4 Icom receivers and several dozen other radios in my shack, car or garage. Just this week a member of RadioReference posted a shack photo of his rack with 30 scanners and mentioned he has many more not shown.
While guys with 20 or 30 radios are the exception for sure, the economics of today allow for the average person to have multiple scanners, even the high-end ones. That was not the case back in the 70’s when I really got interested in scanners. My uncle, with 3, was an outlier. Scanners are just more affordable these days, believe it or not.
As I am “of a certain age” as they say I have had a lot of experience to learn from as well as many experiences that I should have learned from but didn’t. That goes along well with today’s topic: How do current scanners compare in value to those we enjoyed when I was younger. To do this I am going to compare what I believe are the trend setters. I am purposely avoiding the specialty communications receivers (Icom, AOR etc.) and more obscure brands like Yupitero etc.
These are scanners that were commonly available to the public from various retailers and were, for better or worse, the top of the game when they came out. Of course, this is extremely subjective and your opinion (however misguided it may be) may differ.
Here they are in reverse chronological order. I have owned at least one of each except for the MS-1.
| Model | Company | Year Introduced | Price at introduction * | Current * adjusted price |
| SDS100* | Uniden | 2018 | 650 | 650 |
| HomePatrol 1 | Uniden | 2010 | 500 | 700 |
| BCD396T | Uniden | 2005 | 520 | 850 |
| BC780XLT | Uniden | 2001 | 400 | 700 |
| PRO2004 | RadioShack | 1986 | 420 | 1200 |
| BC210 | Electra | 1977 | 250 | 1300 |
| MS-1 | Tennelec | 1974 | 400 | 2600 |
| ACT-R20/6 | Regency | 1975 | 250 | 1500 |
| BC-1 | Electra | 1969 | 140 | 1200 |
Notes:
- “Price at Introduction” is from ads and catalogs of the time. Often the radio could have been purchased new for less later in its life or from alternative retailers.
- “Current Adjusted Price” approximates the current value of the price compared to the introduction year listed. Data is from online sources and is subject to variations.
- The SDS100 price remains the same today as it did at introduction and is still in production.
- All prices are in US dollars.
Bearcat BC-1:
Actually, the BC-1 was a retronym, it was just the Model BC when it was introduced, the BC-1 name was applied after a newer version came out that was named the BC-2. The BC-1 was pretty much a basic 8-channel crystal scanner, single band, with no really special features. It was, however, widely available and took the scanner community by storm. It was this scanner that was found in every gas station, living room, police or fire station and newsroom during the day. It made Bearcat a household name. There were other brands, but it was the scanner that everyone wanted. Kind of like Apple is today: others may have done it first, better and cheaper but Bearcat was the eye-candy everyone wanted.
Regency ACT-R20/6:
The ACT-R20/6 (Action Receiver, 20 channels, 6 bands) was introduced when 4 channel scanners were common, 8-channels were the high-end and anything beyond 8 was luxuries that only the wealthy or crazy could afford. Then along came Regency with a 20-channel scanner that was reasonably priced for the time.
I wrote an entire Scanner Tale about the ACT-R20/6 back in July 2024 but in summary it was a monster. It was long and lean (in that it was really wide and deep but short in height) and had 20 channels that should keep one occupied for decades, or so we thought.
It wasn’t particularly good at anything other than capacity, but it had that by the bucketful. There were a couple competitors with 16 channels but AFAIK this was the first 20-channel scanner. I had 2 of them and spent almost as much on crystals as I did for the scanner it seemed.
Tennelec MS-1
Another retronym, the Tennelec Memory Scan (“MS”) was renamed the MS-1 after the newer MS-2 was introduced. This was the first widely available internally programmable scanner. While there were scanners that were programmed by cards or combs, the MS-1 was programmed by setting a binary code with the channel lockout switches. It was a great concept, no more crystals, combs, or cards. While it was tedious it was much more efficient than the other methods of the time. I jonesed after one of these but just couldn’t afford to buy one when I was making $1.25 an hour at Dairy Queen after school.
Electra Bearcat 210:
Wow, what a concept! Entering frequencies from a numeric keyboard with no crystals, cards, combs or even a binary lookup sheet. If you knew the frequency you just programmed it in! Don’t know the frequency? Just program in 2 freqs and search between them! Back in the late 70’s my friend at work had one of these and I played with it as often as he would let me until I got a programmable scanner of my own.
By today’s standards of course it was really basic but at the time it was revolutionary, high-tech and the cream of the crop. It was the scanner everyone wanted, me included. It was the first of a line of programmable scanners by Bearcat in the iconic wedge shape, followed by the BC220, BC250 and many others.
Radio Shack PRO-2004:
Like the BC210 before it, the PRO2004 set the scanner world on fire. It combined easy programming, huge channel capacity (300 channels when 16-20 was common and 50 was luxurious), wide coverage (25-550, 760-1300 MHz.) and easy opening of the cellular band. It was purposely designed for cellular reception as it had the proper channel spacing. Even though they added a cellular band block it was so easy to reverse it that there was little point in including it. This was the radio that made cellular monitoring easy and popular with the masses.
Beyond that it was a great scanner overall. It was sensitive (especially on aircraft band) and much more immune to overload and intermod than other scanners of the day. The wide frequency range allowed users to listen to all kinds of things one would never have thought to before. One could even expand the memory capacity to 400 channels with a different diode cut. It spawned several successors like the PRO2005, PRO2006, PRO2035 and PRO2042.
Uniden BC780XLT:
This was the radio that re-established Uniden’s place at the top of the hill in the scanner community. It also created a cottage industry in modifications, accessories and upgrades for it and successor models like the BC785D, BC796D, BC250D and BC296D.
It combined 3 forms of trunking (Motorola, EDACS and LTR) with high channel capacity (500 channels) and a form factor that resonated with the community. It was the radio that EVERYONE wanted before they even knew they wanted it.
Uniden BCD396T and BCD396XT:
Take a BC296D, shrink it to half the size, add capacity, import the new user interface introduced with the BC246T and improve the display and you have the BCD396T. With P25 trunking, great performance and add in a true pocket-scanner size and you have a great scanner. While not perfect (that would come later with the upgraded BCD396XT) it was a great radio. While the later XT version added better trunking scanning by allowing multiple Sites within a system among other improvements like GPS Site and System selection, the BCD396T introduced a size vs. performance value to the community.
Uniden Home Patrol:
The Home Patrol, later known as the Home Patrol 1 (HP1) after the newer HP2 came out, introduced the scanner world to Location Based Scanning. With the entire Radio Reference Database contained on a micro-SD Card one could punch up a ZIP Code and select whatever Service Codes they wanted to listen to and off you go. The HP2 added the ability to monitor Phase 2 P25 systems. You could even do your own programming but that really required one to do that on a computer. The later BCD436HP/BCD536HP took the Location Based Scanning concept and merged it with the 396/996 series programming but the HP1 and HP2’s simplicity and form factor keep it relevant to this day.
Uniden SDS100:
The SDS100, along with its desktop/mobile mate, the SDS200, took the scanner community by storm some 7 years ago. By then digital P25 simulcast systems were becoming common around the US and Canada. Scanners just could not properly decode these systems well, if at all. Then along came the SDS100. Not only did it have all the features of the BCD436HP it also have a customizable color display and water-resistant case. The real treat however was the simulcast performance. It was designed from the ground up around an SDR (Software Defined Receiver) for premier performance on simulcast systems.
The SDS100 was the most expensive scanner when it was introduced, eclipsed only later by the companion SDS200 desktop/mobile. Amazingly to this day, some 7 years later, it is still at the same price, even with the inflation that has occurred since then.
Conclusion:
The first thing that leapt out at me is that the SDS100 appears to have been not only the most advanced scanner in the list but also the cheapest in comparable dollars. That said, each of these scanners were at the top of the technology (and price) pile for its time.
The MS-1 was the most expensive, at about $2600 in today’s dollars. One can buy an Icom R8600 for that, or perhaps, if you prefer, 3 SDS200’s along with some DMR or NXDN upgrades for the same price as one MS-1. While the same is true for most technology, in that one can get much more for the money these days, it is still amazing to me how true that is for scanners. Scanner capabilities has far outpaced inflation, just like computers or TV sets. When one could usually afford a scanner, laptop or a TV back in the day, these days people can often afford several of each. Most people who had scanners in the 70’s and 80’s had *A* scanner. Same for TV’s and later, computers. Now people have a TV in every room, a desktop as well as a laptop or two and many scanner enthusiasts have multiple scanners. Look at the Photos Forum at Radio Reference, 5, 10, 20 and even 30 or more are not uncommon. While I currently have “only” 8 scanners in my shack, I have about 25 Uniden scanners overall as well as 4 Icom receivers and several dozen other radios in my shack, car or garage. Just this week a member of RadioReference posted a shack photo of his rack with 30 scanners and mentioned he has many more not shown.
While guys with 20 or 30 radios are the exception for sure, the economics of today allow for the average person to have multiple scanners, even the high-end ones. That was not the case back in the 70’s when I really got interested in scanners. My uncle, with 3, was an outlier. Scanners are just more affordable these days, believe it or not.
