This scanner is the top of the line for scanning enthusiasts. It is, hands-down, the best scanner ever made. That's a pretty big compliment, I know. But in more than 40 years of "monitoring", this is the most usable, flexible and featured radio I have ever had. It includes digital (P25) capability.However if you are expecting instant results or plug-and-play operation, this is not for you. This radio has a learning curve and is truly a hobbyist radio. Having said that, if you are willing to invest the time in learning how the radio works, you will be rewarded with an excellent and enjoyable experience.
For folks new to the hobby, or those who just want to listen to things without programming and details get Uniden's Home Patrol. It's as simple as putting in your zip code and you'll be listening. For the BCD996XT (and its handheld relative, the BCD396XT), it will require programming, using the included cable to connect to a computer. You will have to get the software for it which ranges from Freescan (absolutely free) or Proscan and other paid-for programs. You will also need a source of information RadioReference.com is the best place to get it.
Once you do get the programming down, it's a joy to operate and listen to. One of the limitations modern scanners used to have was bank and channel everything had to fit in the "blocks" of channels. The DMA (Direct Memory Access) architechture blows those limitations away. Once you have the concept of "systems" and "groups" down, it makes scanning ridiculously flexible. The downside is that you can have so much programmed in your radio that you need a printed guide to remember what is where for the less used things (and the software allows you to print those guides).
I do not use the GPS capabilities, but it's a brilliant concept. Once programmed, the radio can turn systems on and off based on the location your GPS provides. For folks travelling a regular route or commute, for instance, this would switch things on an off according to where they are travelling, such as different highway patrol channels, county sheriff departments or city fire and police. The possibilities are endless (and this is all available in the handheld BCD396XT as well).
If you have deep pockets, do add the handheld BCD396XT to your collection also having two radios programmed exactly the same is a great sanity saver they are nearly identical in function, having only slight differences on the keypads.
Either way, this is the best scanner type radio available. There are Radio Shack models that come close, but the Uniden edges them out because of a less complex display. If you don't need the digital capabilities, you can go with the non-digital BCT15X for about 300 cheaper. But when digital comes to your locality, you will be buying a new scanner.
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This scanner is Great!! I would advise you to get programing software for it and a Radio Reference account.. It took a little time to figure it out but READ THE USERS GUIDE!!! The reception is great even with the stock antenna. I would give this scanner a 5 out of 5......I'm a newbie, so this is written from that point of view to help anyone who may have also never owned a scanner. Forgive the length but I've tried to include things I wasn't sure about when I was shopping.First, I suggest going back to read some of the early reviews. Those are what I read during the summer of 2012 when I was shopping. After playing with the iPhone scanner radio apps, I thought it'd be fun to have a "real" one that gives you control and that allows you to hear ALL the local law enforcement and EMS channels.
From what I've read in these reviews and on scanner forums, those who have no experience (like me) as well as those who have decades of experience with many scanners, all can get frustrated with these advanced, programmable radios. The most valuable thing I can say here is this: Be patient. As mentioned in an earlier review, this model is not plug-and-play.
No, the manual isn't the most user-friendly read. No, there are few computers today with serial ports. But there are solutions.
There is much help online for navigating this thing that will help you get started regardless of the manual. I believe others have mentioned this website: radioreference.com. It's a world of help. You've got info on local frequencies, an overview of different makes and models, forums with experienced people who are willing to answer questions and even help with going into Windows to troubleshoot cases of your computer and scanner not communicating. Before I ordered the radio, I took a few days and read through quite a bit of that website. Doing that prepared me more than anything else for when I eventually took it out of the box.
I'm sure there are other sites out there...this just seems to be the one that comes up most often. There's a free and a paid membership option. It's not a huge outlay of money ($15/6 months, $30/year). If you're going to spend hundreds of dollars for this radio, I'd recommend going with the paid membership for at least a few months to help get started. It'll give you access to download the database of frequencies for your area. That's a huge shortcut.
To download that database into your radio, you'll need software. There are several out there, including a free one that I've been using, Freescan. It'll let you control and program this from your PC. That's another shortcut and much easier (as opposed to programming it directly from the radio's keypad).
Back to the serial port issue: Your modern PC probably doesn't have them. If you're going to spend several hundred dollars on this radio, the $15-$30 for a Serial/USB adapter isn't a huge deal. In all of the complaints I've read concerning this radio, this is the easiest problem to solve. To me, it's the same thing as having to buy an HDMI cable to hook up a video component to your TV.
I'd like to say it's going to go smoothly from the get-go but you might run into issues. When those come up, you're going to have to be patient. This receiver is not simple but that doesn't make it a bad receiver. When setting mine up, I had to step away for a few minutes when I became frustrated and then come back with fresh eyes. But once you've set up the frequencies you want, you're done.
I've owned it for about six months and have enjoyed hours listening to local calls, from responses to people barricading themselves inside their homes to weather-related accidents. The iPhone app I mentioned earlier...I only thought I was hearing a lot of stuff. Now I'm not limited to what frequencies those apps provide. I live in a small metro with two cities in two different counties. I now hear two sheriff's depts., two police depts. and two fire/EMS depts. That's not to mention the airport, municipal and industrial radio traffic that's out there. Generally, when I see one of the local TV stations make a Facebook post about a situation, I can turn this thing on, hear it in real time and learn much more than from news reports.
I've also taken it on the road and plugged it into the cigarette lighter. It's a great alternative when you get tired of listening to music while driving.
One last thing. I live in an apartment but I went ahead and bought a small, outdoor antenna with my radio order. I made a quick trip to a local supply house and bought a short mast and tripod stand to set it up on the balcony. The included antenna is adequate but the small, external antenna made a world of difference. You'll want to pay attention to detail and make sure you buy any coax-to-radio adapter you might need (if one is not included with the antenna).
Radio, antenna, adapters, website membership...it's not cheap but if you like this kind of thing, I think you'll find it worth the money. Since this is my first scanner, I don't have anything to compare it to. But I'll tell you that with my little setup, the reception and audio are both great and I feel like it's giving me everything that's available to the public in my area.
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The online documentation/manual is an embarrassment for a high end product like this. Online documentation is a valid medium today, but the content and organization for this product are quite poor.Having said that, this is a very powerful scanner, and I have no regrets about buying it.
The preloaded frequencies may be of little use to anyone. Bearcat loads a minimum of frequencies with the hope that you will be able to hear something out of the box, but don't count on it.
The easiest and most efficient way to program the frequencies for your area is to download the free software FreeScan and buy a premium membership to ($15 for six months) that allows you to download groups of frequencies for every area and then upload that data to the scanner. The free programming software works great with the Radio Reference database, and you can upload to the scanner in a few seconds. Customizing how you want the scanner to operate is a challenge in itself, but with FreeScan you can save various configurations and always be able to "go back" without losing your data. With FreeScan, most of the buttons on the scanner are not needed as you can do everything much quicker and easier using the software.
While I have not experienced any significant intermod, others report that this scanner has a pretty hot front end with minimal selectivity and can produce intermod in urban areas and especially with an outside antenna. I'm using a discone antenna at about 30 feet with no problem, and I need this over the telescoping whip that comes with the unit to be able to receive some of the 800 MHz police systems in my area. Don't shy away from a decent outside antenna if that's what you need to hear the systems you want to monitor.
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