Simple Question about GRE PSR-800

[Sydney472]

I have ordered this scanner and haven't received it yet, so I"m not sure where this question will fall and did not see an answer in the "programming related threads". I recently sold my Uniden HP-1. Whereas you could just type in a zip and hone in on a location with pre-loaded frequencies right out of the box with the HP-1 without hooking up to a computer first, are you able to do this with the GRE PSR-800? I have only Mac products in my home and I know the EZ Scan software will not work with Apple Mac computers. With that being said, If its' a requirement that I can only get started with the GRE- PSR-800 by first preloading frequencies via EZ Scan than I guess I will have to get a cheap laptop real soon so I can begin using my scanner. Any comments appreciated.

 

[acyddrop]

I have ordered this scanner and haven't received it yet, so I"m not sure where this question will fall and did not see an answer in the "programming related threads". I recently sold my Uniden HP-1. Whereas you could just type in a zip and hone in on a location with pre-loaded frequencies right out of the box with the HP-1 without hooking up to a computer first, are you able to do this with the GRE PSR-800? I have only Mac products in my home and I know the EZ Scan software will not work with Apple Mac computers. With that being said, If its' a requirement that I can only get started with the GRE- PSR-800 by first preloading frequencies via EZ Scan than I guess I will have to get a cheap laptop real soon so I can begin using my scanner. Any comments appreciated.

I'm new to the scanner having just got mine just a few days ago, but I'll take a crack at this question.

You can setup your scanner without needing to install and use the software, I didn't see a simple zip code entry (or if I did I ignored it stupidly). But you can select your State then County and search for systems in your area that way and they are all on the SDCard. With that being said, my PSR-800 came with the 1.3 firmware and an out of date frequency database to upgrade those (so far as I can tell) you need the software installed on a computer. The software has the zip code thing and it's possible the 1.5 firmware in the scanner does as well.

 

[JonDickson]

It would help

I got my scanner a few days ago and love it. It came with everything ready to go out of the box but the firmware/library were old. That means the scanner did not have the Set Location feature and the RR library was something like 100 versions old. Even with those shortcomings, you could still have plenty to keep you interested without the new stuff. I found the Set Location feature very interesting, especially while thinking about traveling, but quickly realized that in my home zone importing from the library is the way to go. It is possible to do this directly on the scanner but the EZscan software really is great. It is so easy to use and works great. So, that being said, I would highly reccomend finding a way to run the software. Before buying a PC maybe you should check into something like Parallels Desktop 7 for Mac - #1 rated utility to run Windows and Windows Applications on your Mac I have never used any thing like it as I own a little HP to supplement my iMac but it might be worth a shot. On the other hand, I don't see how the EZscan software would need alot to run and would probably do fine on one of those $199 netbooks you can find around. Good hunting! Let's us know what you think of the 800. I am in love with mine.

--Jon

 

[mikev]

As with most things these days, connecting to your computer to make sure everything is up-to-date would be a good idea. You don't need to program anything while it's connected, but updating the firmware, RRDB, and Location DB would not be a bad idea for a new, out-of-the-box scanner before you start playing with it.

 

[jackj]

I don't understand why GRE doesn't include Apple software but they don't so....

You will really need EZScan software to update the data base as well as the scanner's firmware. Maybe not today but 4 or 5 yrs down the road there will have been major changes in the frequencies for some of the agencies you want to monitor. It's true that you CAN program the scanner manually but that is a major hassle and that programing isn't applied to the data base contained on the microSD card.

You might as well make the changes you will need to make today and take advantage of the updates you probably already need. I wouldn't depend on GRE deciding to supply EZScan for Apple, if they were going to do it they would already have done it.