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Reviews For: Connect Systems CS-750 radio

Category: Transceivers: VHF/UHF+ Amateur Hand-held

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Review Summary For : Connect Systems CS-750 radio
Reviews: 7MSRP: 239
Description:
UHF DMR and Conventional handheld radio
Product is in production
More Info: http://connectsystems.com/products/top/radios%20CS750.htm
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0072.3
K2TL Rating: 2022-01-10
Not bad at all..just too expensive. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I first bought a CS700 around 2013 and later had it upgraded to a CS750. It is till in use with no problems (so far). It is a very sturdy radio, nothing flimsy about it. Both transmit and receive audio is better than any other DMR rig I have used and I ALWAYS get great transmit audio reports. The external speaker/mic is actually quite good as well. Programming it has become much easier these days by using Contact Manager. Otherwise, it is a typical code plug requirement which nobody loves, regardless of the radio. I have upgraded the firmware to the latest without any issue at all, and I don't understand what the big deal is..it takes a few minutes and works perfectly. This is not a cheap MD-380 or any of the other HT's that have come along since the CS-750 was first marketed. Would I buy another one? Probably not only because for a much smaller cost you can get a very fine DMR HT from plenty of other manufacturers. There is nothing wrong with this rig except the price.
KG4OPX Rating: 2022-01-09
Terrible Radios Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have had problems with all the radios I bougt from CSI. I cannot key up any DMR repeaters. My CS8000D does not transmit either. It has hardly been used . A waste of hard earned money. If yoiu are looking for a DMR radio please avoid CSI. You will be glad you did. Go with AnyTone.
WB8NUT Rating: 2020-03-18
Hardware Great, Firmware a Disaster Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I purchased the CS-750 around the time it first came out. At that time it was a reasonably priced DMR handheld radio. Initial firmware was OK, but still had a ways to go. Over the years there have been many releases of the firmware, some releases good and some riddled with bugs. Up until recently, there were not any releases of firmware for two years. The most recent version is a cluster foxtrot. To get to version 4.00.06 you first had to load a new boot loader, then 4.00.00, then 4.00.06. Well for most people, when you load 4.00.06 it blanks out the display and the radio just will not work. You can easily roll back to 4.00.00, but the radio has all kinds of issues such as a messed up display and not being able to key up a DMR repeater unless you double-press the PTT switch, and audio that drops out on DMR. It has been almost two months since the 4.00.06 was released and we still do not have a corrected version and little to no communication from Connect Systems.

Some people have been able to go back to a 3.xx version of the firmware, but I was not able to get it to work.

The radio is currently useable on FM and I mostly use it to listen to the FM fire dispatches on the public service band. Frankly, at this point there are better dual-band radios out there that are more stable and provide greater value. For the price of this radio (single band), you can get a dual band DMR/FM radio WITH GPS from Alinco or Anytone and for about $100+ less than this radio from Connect Systems.

Another huge negative to this radio is that you have to have Excel on the same computer as the CPS if you want to import and export the DMR contact list. No other radio (except the mobile Connect Systems radios) require you to have Excel! This is a major issue as not everyone has Excel and you cannot use Open Office.
Also IF you are going to buy this radio, buy it directly from Connect Systems. They have dealers who are charging way more for the radio. One dealer sells them on Amazon for more than list. Another dealer charges over $100 additional just to load a code plug for you. In my opinion the dealers provide little additional value if any so buy direct from Connect Systems.

In my opinion, as of 2020, this is a radio to avoid as there are newer technology DMR radios out there that work much better at a much lower price.
KB4TXW Rating: 2019-04-23
Good Mono Band DMR Radio Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have had the CS750 for a number of years. It is a well built solid, quality HT for DMR and Analog. It has a good weight and feel, solid, not like the $100 radios that are everywhere now. It works very well with firmware v3.00.17, 2000 channels and 65,536 contacts is plenty for me. The RX and TX audio is smooth with good tone. The standard battery is a 2000mAh. The programming software (vR4.00.42), is solid and easy to use if you have programmed DMR type radios before. Also the support you get from Connect Systems is second to none. I have called and emailed many times and they are always willing to help. The dual band DMR radios are the thing now, but if you only need one band, this radio will serve you well.
KB2VUQ Rating: 2018-11-03
Update: Avoid like Plague Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Tytera MD-380=2+years, no issues.
Radioddity GD-77=1+years, no issues.
Anytone D868=1 month plus, no issues.
Can't Connect Systems CS-750=2 years, plenty of issues.

Besides the below mentioned problems with the radio suffering Grand Mal seizure like episodes of catatonic response to week digital signals (despite doing every firmware and software update recommended), the display no longer works. It slowly faded out while listening to a QSO only to come back on just once after that. It lights up, but stays completely green. Add the fact that Can't Connect Systems hasn't offered any updates to either the firmware or CPS after the run of "DO NOT USE THESE, THEY WILL BRICK THE RADIO" versions posted on their website. No product or customer support for a radio only 2 years old? I have the same receive issue on the CS-800 mobile I purchased new as well. Again, NO customer support, they just abandoned the product and introduced a dual band model with those issues resolved. Avoid CAN'T CONNECT SYSTEMS at all costs and save your money.


N1KDO Rating: 2018-03-14
bugs bugs and more bugs Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have a CS750, upgraded by CSI from the original CS700. It used to work reasonably OK. Never great. The promise has always been that new firmware would correct the problems and deliver the radio that was advertised. This has not happened. In fact, the radio firmware has grown increasingly unstable, to the point where many features don't work any more. If you review CSI's firmware page, almost every release has problems.
To make things even more frustrating, the programming software is difficult to use, and many of the messages are in poorly translated Chinese, in fact, some Chinese characters still show up on my Windows 10 system.
I had a lot of hope for this radio, but have been sorely disappointed. This radio truly "needs help."
FORMER_KC2FYA Rating: 2017-06-20
Good Starter for DMR Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I purchased the CS-750 on a friends recommendation for Amateur Radio DMR and I am pleased with this radio. I had my local Code Plug programmed into the radio and it works very well except on one item. The PTT Button has to be pushed in a certain way to ensure that I am actually transmitting.

The housing is solid and it fits great into my hand. The display is big enough and the backlight works well, even when a receiving station is transmitting (where I can see the station callsign). This is a good starter radio for someone looking to get into DMR and not pay a high price. It also is not a "cheap" radio in its construction.