What Budget Police Scanner Should I Buy? 

Now this is the type of review I like. Quick, short, comparison, & a chart. Thanks. Loved it.

I am so glad I found your channel, I find all this stuff fascinating.

Alpha tagging is a GAME CHANGER. I can't remember more than 10 frequencies in my head. It's nice to see the name of the agency I'm listening to!

I just got my Uniden Bc125at, and I absolutely love how I can program it both manually and from pc and that it has NOAA weather alert

Nicely done! Enjoyed the 'to the point' review as others have also said. Thanks!

Great and informative breakdown! Thanks for sharing the video.

BC125AT owner. Love it. Primary use: racing and monitoring SkyWarn

Thank you for your time and info.

outer bank Brew-Thru sounds good! Ape thanks for clearing this up a lot of others just skate over the real points on how to use.

Here in Pittsburgh,PA Almost EVERY thing is still non trunked UHF FM. The BC125AT is MORE than adequate AND since it supports AM, Aircraft & CB are in the mix. I have 3 of them programmed identically (1 stays at home, 1 in the car (legal in PA, YMMV) and 1 "knock about" that I carry (I got a shorty UHF antenna for it). I even got BC125ATs for my sister and niece. (LOL) A great little radio if your area is non trunked and analog! I have of course also scanned with my Baofeng UV-5R. If you live in an untrunked analog area AND you are really on a tight budget a UV-54 is a option, It's no where near as fast as the Bearcat or have as many channels (since it's primary use is NOT as a scanner) But It can work.

Just got a BC125AT. Loving it so far. Used to have a BC 300 XLT.

Thank you for this video it helped me pick what scanner to go with which is the 125C

My day has been made, Ape is wearing an OBX Brew Thru shirt! That’s just minutes down the road from me. Great video!

Great job! You do great scanner content. I would like to see more scanner stuff from you if you have it on your creation list. :-)

Started using a scanner in my ham shack about a year ago to support my receive capabilities. It’s the original Uniden Home Patrol. Even though a lot of the public service stuff has gone digital I primarily use my analog scanner for monitoring band openings on 6m & 10m FM, the ISS repeater when it’s overhead, local analog repeater traffic, GMRS, FRS & MURS frequencies. With all of that programmed in there mine is constantly receiving something….. it practically never shuts up. (funny thing is this scanner was given to me because the original owner said there was nothing to listen to any more)

You're AWESOME...... Thank you!!!😊

I have the whistler WS 1010WA 400 channel memory very happy with it.

Another good, informative video. Thanks, Ape. I can get the BC125AT here for just under ₱13,933 including shipping. A bit spendy for a scanner, more than a Yaesu FT-70DR, but I can see how it would be useful plus would let me monitor the VHF airband which I'm interested in, not to mention keep an ear on the 2m & 70cm bands while I'm listening to HF.

I have a lot of scanners. I have the USDS100 just the Australian version of the SDS100 and I find that it is quite “deaf” on close call. Even a very old scanner from the 1980:90 that had close call performs better. Usually on digital modes. I was trying to interrogate a commercial DMR radio and on the USDS100 just wouldn’t work. Eventually I did a range scan and found the freq but maybe they would be a good thing for you to do a comparison or test ?

That was very helpful

Good info. It would be helpful to have a follow up video which compares receiver performance … sensitivity and selectivity, etc. I’m a ham geek and if I was shopping a scanner, I’d care less about how memories it has and more about how well it receives.

You should totally make a video like this on handheld Digital Scanners. I'm new to scanning and starting to learn more and more. I could really use an informative video going into the details of mainline digital scanners comparing features/capabilities and prices.

I have both the BC 75 and the BC 125 . had them years . work very well . can charge USB . and PC program. runs all day on 2 AA NiMH battery's Japan 2100 MAH I got. the stock antenna is ok. but longer ones really help a lot ! The 42 in Abbree CB BNC one really helps on 25-50 MHz . the winter months I get WWV on 25 MHz . yes WWV is back on 25 1! . I find scanners at yard sales all the time. mostly the old ones. My Alinco DJ-X11 is full coverage RX . but over that $100 mark. That close call on BC 125/75 you can select bands on that. 73's

I'm curious about low cost trunking scanners are there any good ones? Perhaps another video idea 💡

I just purchased the BC-125. I'm just waiting for the programming software to arrive.

The BC75xlt seems to leave out the Rail Road bands! I just ordered the BC125AT because of the fact that you can scan service frequencies independently. I like that. I also have a sds100 and a bct15x plus about 40 ham and gmrs radios. My dream radio now is the unication G5 pager. Cost is about the same as the sds100. So it mite be a while. Thanks for a great video. I'm Roger KK7KLD and WRQZ243 in mid utah.

I have several 20+ year old scanners in near new condition in my closet. My main reason for having a scanner was to listen to various police and fire departments. I think that is why most people bought scanners. That is no longer possible where I live. Voice transmissions are encrypted, and most information is sent as data, which just sounds like an old fax machine. I live near Phoenix, AZ, and there is no need for weather channels here. The weather is always the same. It's either hot or damn hot.

I’m looking to get into scanning especially for when I’m on the go I’m still trying to really wrap my head around this but the video was extremely helpful but I was wondering what other resources I should look at to get to know the hobby

Thank you

I was looking for an easy to understand and informative video and am happy I found yours. I will be a first-time scanner purchaser and will definitely look into BC125AT. I am looking for one that will include police, fire and possibly air traffic - will this one do that? Is there such a scanner? Thanks for any input for this newbie!

anybody know what kind of hand held scanner to use or to buy i live in utica ny and my county is oneida and they said digital scanner you can hear and get all the county and they said the analog scanner you can't hear the police or they block or fade out where you can't hear anything is that true for the Analog scanner. and they was tryng to sell me a digital scanner because you can get every and they wanted $400 dollars plus they charge for programming the scanner. i told them that to much and i can't afford it.

Nice review. Are these all essentially line of sight scanners? 2 meters and above?

One thing I try to find in all my gear is that the batteries follow a non-proprietary form factor. I prefer rigs that take standard AA batteries that can be bought almost any place on earth. The proprietary rechargeable packs are a bummer in that if the battery dies in the field you are done. Just can't walk into a convenience store and pick up more AA cells and be on your way. I am also not thrilled with "battery alarms". Especially if they are an audible beep. I say this because if you do use rechargeables it detects the lower voltage and will sound the low battery alarm when in truth you have more hours of operation at the lower voltage levels of rechargeable batteries. Some of these scanners use proprietary batteries yet others use standard AA batteries.

TYVM for the info. What is the importance of the mfg date? 125 is in 2011 and the SR30 is 2019. Seems like the newer date is better. Help me out

Unifen Bc 75 I got one used in box at flea market $40 it's compact and you can see the freq display clearly bigger numbers

Thanks for the review. I’m using a uv5r I received as a gift until I can upgrade.

So am I understanding correctly these are all digital trunking scanners that can handle project 25 phase 2 police/fire/etc?

What are you missing if your scanner doesn't have the 800. bands? Thanks - good vid.

You said on the BC125 it had alpha numeric taging but the chart you posted had a no check-mark. Is your statement correct or is the chart correct?

Got to buy a new scanner because my old Bear cat XL 144 (16 ch) won't pick up anything but the weather. What is the cheapest scanner that will also pick up the 800MHZ range? .🙏

Hey SmokinApe, thank you for sharing this video. If I wasn't on a buget and I wanted a scanner so that I could listen to police, fire and emergencies, for trunked, digital, and non trunked frequencies, what would you suggest? I am really unsure what I need to buy for my area in order to listen. Thank You

Hi SA, what software do you use to keep you in the shot with the dynamic background? Very nicely done bro

Good video Ape. I have not looked much yet but got scared off by the prices of the SDS100 and SDS200!💰💰😮😮 That BC125AT seems to be the go unless you sell me your SDS100 for $100👌🙏🤪

I need some help/direction. Please & thank you. I would like to find a scanner that's digital trunking but within budget. Any help, info. and links are appreciated. Thank you.

I have an old old "Realistic 400 channel Pro 2006". I also have the user's manual (instructions) I've tried some different frequencies, but I am afraid the frequencies I found are "dated/old". So far all I can get is the National Weather Service. Is this hopeless because the scanner is so old?? Or can I possibly find the current frequency numbers for my area and program them in *WITHOUT* getting some kind of "paid subscription"?? Thanks and God bless.

Ape, my last scanner was about 1974. I just recently thought about getting one and haven't done any research. The SDS 100 is about 6 times the cost of these. What does it do that these others can't., and since you have it already, is it worth it? Thanks Chuck KE0PTI

The new Alinco is going to make scanning easy

I’m looking for a scanner in the 30-76 mhz range for my military radios.

I am interested in getting a scanner but I don’t know anything about on how to use them and the terminology used in the video about them. It would be great for a video on scanning 101

Is the 125 able to pick up digital signal? Or is it analog only?

Question: Can you UNLOCK the scanner for the 800MHz? You have any videos on this?

Forgive me ignorance but could I just use a baofeng uv-5r as a scanner, just be sure not to broadcast? What would be the drawbacks from that?

Are there even any budget trunked scanners? I have a BCD436HP. Maybe that one IS the budget one. I really want an SDS100 like you have........ and I want an SDS 200 as long as I'm dreaming. LOL

You made a good choice Ape ! I have the BC125AT and love it. It’s been problem free for about 10 years ! I’m also an extra class ham. K5EGD I still love my little scanner !

Great

I have a Uniden desk top I purchased back in 1990 that still works. It has a fantastic receive. With that being said, I hope Unidens quality is still the same. Thanks for the info Ape. :)

Over all thumbs up though thank you

Does baofeng make a wideband receiver?

Nice...........

Im at an air show being like, I should really get a scanner so I can listen to the aircraft. Then you post this lol

Great review ape, thanks, but no 70 megs,? modern day scanners are nothing like the 80s gave us, ahh reminiscing, the bearcat 200xlt was best HH, and the realistic Tandy scanners, pro 2004/2006, I'm still mega pissed I lost mine due to lightning a few years back, ripped case off and nearly cried :) way too far gone to repair. Thankfully most my ham gear has wideband receive, far better than any scanner, albeit at a price range that does not cut it for scanner only users and doesnt handle trunking. my 'ol yaesu vx2 and icom 208H are my "scanners" today, pity the baofeng's dont do AM in the airband, but at 50 bux (in this country anyway) you cant complain :)

You have no product links from the video in description, other than that good video.

If you don’t need digital, the Bc-125AT is the workhorse.

Can these scanners hear emergency services? Police, fire, and so on?

Wish I had watched this sooner. I just purchased the SR30C by accident (hit the wrong order on Amazon) what I really wanted was the BC75XLT, however after setting up and using the SR30 today I'm quite happy with it. Easy to program, the audio is pretty good, even better with ear buds it's reminiscent of my old RadioShack Pro26 scanner. Paid $128 for the SR30C (after shipping) still a great price for someone who's paid a considerable amount of bucks on scanners. Good reviews here, have to subscribe now. WRZE723

I have the 125. love it although the sound could be better .Its a bit on the high pitched side. only down side to me.

Are any triple conversion? Or just double conversion?

can you do a Budget Police Scanner options for P25

temu has some good prices

I need to find a good one under $300 everything in my area is P25 phase 2

Before you buy a scanner make sure your police/fire department aren't truncated, it keeps you from picking up their frequencies on your scanners. That's why I took mine back.

@TheSmokinApe Hey which is the cheapest best digital police scanner?

Do any of these do apco-25 unencrypted?

If you can not listen to cop,fire and/or ambulance is there any reason to still get one?

Even the dang school bus radios are digitally trunked in my area lol, analog scanner would be a paperweight in my area sadly.

It sucks , where I live almost everything is p25 encryption. There are about 4 non encrypted , but still on p25 . I used to enjoy scanning . now I can't get nothing but ham convos .

The push here in Connecticut is to get everyone onto the state owned digital system. I'm not sure if they will be 100 percent successful. But, I do think everyone will be digital sooner than later.

Aren’t most frequencies police/fire encrypted?

Tangential note: granularity of the frequencies able to be stored. This refers to the "steps" that a scanner recognizes. Rather than a complex explanation, I'll cite an example. For the amateur 440-450 MHz repeater band in Southern California, the coordinating agency (SCCRBA) used to specify repeaters on 25 KHz channels. That is, on 44X.025, 44X.050, 44X.075, and 44X.100, etc. or four repeaters for each 1 MHz. There came to be so many repeaters that they designated a shift FOR ALL REPEATERS to 20 KHz channels which means 44X.020, 44X.040, 44X.060, 44X.080, and 44X.100, etc. or five repeaters per 1 Mhz. The older - and even some recent scanners' firmware - allowed 12.5 Khz steps to pick up the 25 Khz repeaters but you would miss out on some of the 20 Khz channels meaning that the scanner would land 5 or 10 Khz away causing the reception to be distorted. If the channel granularity were 5 Khz, then this problem would not exist. But also note that some agencies' channels are even more granular such as GMRS at, say, 462.6875 and, while you may not be able to program that _exact_ frequency, landing on an adjacent programmable frequency would not cause the same annoying distortion. Just a thought before you buy.

I can't get anything on 800 mhz so I returned my scanner Today. It's an Analog.

Whats really the benefit of scanners now adays when most public services have went digital and are scrambled- such as police.

Close call is a fun feature but it can also get mad annoying in certain areas that have high digital traffic. It could just be mine but it will lock on to the digital signal and not unlock

BC125AT is 170$ on Uniden's website now 😢

A police scanner is the only way to really know what is going on in your area.

Them homepatol scanner are extremely expensive i have all realistic 800mhz scanners trunked and running 4 at a time never miss a beat

I cannot recommend enough for scanners the use of a Ham band to 1.6 Ghz DISCONE STYLE Antenna for general purposes. You can also install a cheap remote antenna switch with those small relays to LMR400 or better cable. Use cheap coax and your scanner is deaf to most long range stuff. You can use quad shield RG11 or even your common RG6u for recieving on any rig. The 75 ohm match is nothing for a reciever and the higher velocity factor really enhances signal transmission that most RG58 or RG8u looses to 66.5 velocity rates. Twin lead is good too but 300 ohms does require a 10 to 1 transformer match. I'm building a remote switch so I can add some specialty antennas for ADS-B and Satellites for my SDR scanner. 73 brothers !

heard you can turn a bofang into a scanner

Sucks I need a 600 dollar plus scanner to listen to the good stuff in my area.

Why is it so confusing to find a good scanner . My dad is 70 and we want something simple .

So folks in Orlando and other areas where police use encryption are completely out of luck with no possibility of monitoring what's going on? Frustrating but at least saves me the time and money of buying a worthless (to me) scanner. I don't care about the other activity...

NOPE, the BEST budget Police scanner is the ICOM R6. its Continious coverage SCANNER from 100 khz - 1309.995 ZERO gaps in Coverage excipt CELLULAR band is locked. and its ALL BAND , ALL MODE , all the time. 100 Channel / second high speed Scanning. AUTOMATIC Scanning & NEW Frequcency search w/ Automatic memory write. built in Ferrite bar antenna for Superior AM.

Unlucky us , our emergency services in Australia, are all encrypted.

I just need one to listen to my local police which one is good?💀

Dude.. if you don't have a digital or p25 capabilities then you aren't hearing anything. Really?

You did disclaim that you own an SDS1 hundred, but you should have mentioned that for anyone who has a problem with uniden might not want to watch this video. Uniden uniden uniden...

KD2QOJ. Great information. Thanks

No matter how encrypted public saftey will become, ham will always be the unencrypted way to hear what's going on around you.

i have a 4 year old nephew interested in this. i ain't got time for this shit. he's getting something else.

Thanks for the great infor, my scanners are worn out, I've been buying from only RADIO SHACK, UNFORTUNATELY THEIR GONE, BUT I JUST recently LEARNED AND NOTICED THEIR BACK, in a different small town from where I live, UNFORTUNATELY, they have VERY, VERY, POOR QUALITY OF SCANNERS, TO MAKE MATTERS WORST, THEY (DO NOT EVEN HAVE NOT A SINGLE ONE ON DISPLAY NOR ON HAND FOR SALE, BUT THIS TOWN IS A BIT SMALLER THAN MY TOWN, MY LOCAL SHACK HAD ON IN THE STORE SHELVES 4 DIFFERENT ONES WORKN AT THE SANE TIME, THEY EVEN HAD SEVERAL HAND HELD PORTABLE SCANNERS FOR SALE IN THE STORE, GOOD GREIF EVERTHING IS JUS GOING TO HELL,😭😭 THE NEW SHACK HAS TO ORDER A HAND SCANNER FOR THEY SAY IS $610.00 DOLLARS, IM LIKE BULLSHI*. And ITS NOT A SHACK BRAND EITHER, ITS A WHISTLER, THEY SAY THEY CANT GET MINE, SO I SAID FORGET IT, THEY CAN ONLY ORDER THE WHISTLER BRAND, THEY CANT GET MINES EVEN THO ITS GOT THE 800 MHZ AND OUR POLICE FORCE SYSTEMS/SHERIFF'S DEPTS ARE DIGITAL/TRUNKING WITH SCANNING FREQUENICES STARTING AT 860.2160, INCLUDING FIRE, AMBULANCE/ HOSPITALS, STATE ROAD DEPT, CNTY ROADS DEPT, PARKS DEPT, GAME WARRDEN DEPT, AIRPORT, MARINE, RRS, ECT. I SEE THEY'VE GOT SOME USED ONES ON THE INTERNET FOR SALE STARTN AT $40.00 TO $150.00 BUT THEYRE NOT EVEN SURE IF IT WORKS (AS IS), PLUS THEY LOOK ABUSED, NOT ALL ACCESSORIES INCLUDED NO POWER CORD, NO ANTENNA, NO CHARGER, NO BATTERY PACK/CASE ECT. THANKS FOR SHARING THIS WITH ME,👍

GOOD VIDEO, Where can you buy one and they will program it for you? 73. KV5P