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write your own review of the Radio Shack PRO-106.
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W9SFA
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Rating: 4/5
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Oct 13, 2009 21:51
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Great radio, few drawbacks.
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have owned the PRO-106 (Radio Shack's version of GRE's PSR-500) for about a year now, and it gets a lot of use monitoring the Illinois Starcom21 digital statewide system. It is by far the best scanner I have ever owned, it put my 396t to such shame that I sold it on eBay.
The receive audio, receive sensitivity and features of the pro-106 allows it to leave the Uniden 396t in its dust. I program my 106 using Don Starr's WIN500 programmer in conjunction with the radioreference.com data import feature. The software makes programming quick and simple - even when programming large systems like the entire State of Illinois Starcom21 System with nearly 1000 talkgroups.
The biggest drawback is the unit's case, it is certainly not a rugged build. If you plan on carrying it on your belt expect it to look beat to hell in a short period of time. Come on Radio Shack... at least make a textured case that doesn't amplify every swirl and scratch. I used my 396t on my belt for 6 months and it still looked new; the 106 showed signs of wear after a week.
The pro-106 retails at $499, although I came across mine during last year's pre-Christmas sale for $199. For $499 one would think they could include a programming cable and rechargeable battery (like the Uniden 396t) but the cable must be purchased separately for about $35 and you have your choice of 4xAA rechargeables.
The pro-106 would earn a 5 rating had it come with the cable, been more rugged and had a reasonable regular price. I think the $500 price is a complete ripoff, but if you come across a sale price under $300, it's a good deal to jump at.
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W4AIJ
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Rating: 5/5
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Oct 6, 2009 12:57
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PRO-106 ADDENDUM TO ABOVE
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Upon further review ( Calling the company ) of the competitor, they had Failed to PROGRAM the radio . Only installed updated Firmware. no wonder it did not trunk correctly . Very apologetic and radio was returned for proper programming. Bought a PRO-197 while they're still on sale, as my thought was ... What am I going to listen to while the Handhelds are Charging ? The NIMH Battery take over 12 hours to charge usually.
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W4AIJ
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Rating: 5/5
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Oct 5, 2009 20:55
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Great Scanner
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Well I see no one else has written a review of this radio yet . Granted it's slightly larger than it's smaller competitor , the 396 , but i will say the receive performance and ease of operation are much easier . Of course that's after programming it correctly , which is quite difficult, as i had to send mine off to a good friend who has been programming trunking scanners for years, but admitted, he never ran into one this difficult. BUT He got it done correctly , has all the talk groupsc separated so I can sit on one AGENCY If I like , VERY Convenient if something's going on . I received a different scanner back from the Uniden recommended Programmers in Mass today and they LUMPED all the talk groups together , on another scanner so you cannot listen to one agency. Very disappointed in their "programming." The audio sound of the PRO-106 is far superior to the competitor. I've never programmed a scanner with software, and knew it would be too much for myself to handle, but thouight an experienced company could do it correctly. They couldnt , locks up on the control channels , breaks squelch constantly ..must have worked on it for a full ten minutes.. The key to this new design of trunking scanner is to get it programmed correctly, which i've found can be extremely difficult to find someone competent to do so.
Had a bad experience with an Ebay programmer who did absolutely nothing ! BUT the good news is once the PRO-106 is programmed to your liking, its one sweet digital scanner. I am still very much amazed - as the sound reminds me of my older analog scanners, It does not have the roboticy digital sound. I'm going to buy 2 more
and clone off this one...Wont fit in your shirt pocket, but performance makes up for the 1980s type size by a mile .
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