UNIDEN BC-246T Compact Hand Held Scanner
by Uniden
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List Price: Our Price: $249.99 You Save: $149.96 (37%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of UNIDEN BC-246T Compact Hand Held Scanner
Customer Review: A Scan for All Seasons
Summary: 5 Stars
The bc246t is one of the most intelligently designed radios I have ever owned. It is compact, light, and equipped with a friendly keyboard. It is a technological leap forward in its features, including a large number of programming menus with keyboard hotkey alternatives. I cannot vouch for the many conventional scanning features, because I trunk scan exclusively, but they look good on paper. As for trunk scanning, this scanner does what I have missed in many other choices-it allows me to switch between talk groups by direct access rather than by frantic scanning until I hit the target talk group. The design of the bc246t is user-flexible: the non-techie can take advantage of the PC Control and cloning features to have the frequencies, talk groups, and alpha-tags (i.e. display name tags identifying the broadcast source) programmed into the radio for him or her; the old-school techies like me can grab a bottle of aspirin and do it all by hand. The small size of the bc246t requires a smaller speaker and a slight loss of sound quality which is acceptable in return for all the other advantages this unit offers. You can be lazy and like this radio, but if you put the work into learning how to run it, you'll admire the thought that went into its design. Uniden includes a belt clip, wrist strap, PC cable, an AC adapter/charger and 2 AA batteries, and of course, a manual and frequency list. Demo software is available at Uniden's website. Be sure to download the firmware update if nothing else.Customer Review: still love bc246t after 2 years of daily use
Summary: 5 Stars
Being a long time scanner enthusiast, but not an expert by any means, I purchased the BC 246T scanner in November of 2007 (over 2 years ago). At that time I was a bit hesitant to jump to a trunk tracker scanner, since I've always used a conventional scanner. It took a bit of time and RTFM and interet research, to figure out the different types of trunking systems out there (Motorola Types I II and III.EDACS,LTR,I-Call).
I absolutely love the scanner even after 2 years of constant use. I take it with me in my car for use while driving to and from work, and on weekends while out and about, and bring it in the house at night to keep on my nightstand, plugged into the charger.
I would hightly recommened buying the software and programming the scanner with your pc as, programming with the scanner itself is a bit difficult. Once programmed you can go in and add, change, delete channels that fit your need.
The 2 AA rechargable batteries in the scanner are the original ones that came with the scanner, although after over 700 days of frequent daily use, they don't hold a chage as long as they once did and I may have to break down and buy 2 more. :) The car charger is also a must IMHO, although you can always keep 2 regular AA batteries in the glove compartment and they'll work perfectly for days.
If you're on the fence about purchasing the BC146T, buy it. You won't be sorry.
Customer Review: Take your time...
Summary: 3 Stars
For me, I wanted to be able to program some of my local frequencies and listen. It takes a bit more than this. If you have a chance, review the owners manual to different scanners before you buy. There are a number of .pdf files out there that will allow you to do this. I have never owned a scanner before and that knowledge may have led me to a a different model. Since I'm new to this arena, understanding the different concepts that go along with technology, can take some time. But in the long run is worth.
Having said that, programming this is not logical unless you understand the princeples and, should be easier for someone who is newer to this field.
It does come with multiple channels pre-programmed with popular channels from all over the U.S. This is annoying since most of them are useless. They take up more space then they are worth and since different systems share the same freqs, you'll have to edit the name anyway. WHy not just do it from scratch. Do the research to make sure this is the right scnner for you needs.
Customer Review: Excellent Choice For The Serious Scanner User
Summary: 5 Stars
I received my Uniden BC-246T Scanner about a week ago. I have already become very familiar with it's System Management Structure and I really like the simplicity and power of this unit.
Novice users and experienced scanner programmers will really save countless hours and confusion by purchasing software such as ARC246.
I used it to enter hundreds of local frequencies in a well organized manner. The software makes the setup and management of Systems a real snap.
You can setup an endless number of systems of various types, each with many groups of frequencies ...... all for which you enter a name of your choice. It's hard to make mistakes since the program does not allow you to enter the wrong kind of frequencies for the type of system selected.
If you are a serious user, or wish to become serious about scanning .... this unit will not disappoint you. If you prefer a simple but less powerful unit however, the Radio Shack in your area will help you set up a simple unit for under 100 bucks.
Customer Review: This is no joke. Its the real thing!
Summary: 5 Stars
This scanner is amazing. I must warn all of the people that aren't good with electronics, programming this thing will be almost impossible. It took me about 8 hours to get the hang of this scanner and I am and electronic freak. To me the instructions were BS and I did better free handing it. RadioReference.com is a really good site for finding trunked systems and their frequencies for your area. I love this scanner. The only cons with this scanner is that it only holds two AA batteries and the battery level goes down much quicker than their 4 AA scanners. Also the signal is great but compared to the bigger older handheld scanners, its not the same. I like the scanner, its size is great. After programming this scanner it is so easy to use. I like to be as lazy as possible and after properly programming this, finding stuff is a breeze. It comes preprogrammed and its in group 9. If your not in a major town thats on that list, I recommend turning that group off and starting another group from scratch.