Product Comparisons
Our commercial and public safety 2-way radios are available with your choice of Analog, FDMA, TDMA, and P25 technology. Choose the one that is right for YOU!
This is where we discuss the basic technology choices. Surprisingly, the purchase of communications is NOT all about cost. Fundamentally, we start on the premise that the equipment purchased will meet current and future requirements. Dollar store radios (our term for cheap license free consumer type radios) are designed to sell for less than fifty dollars (FRS), one hundred dollars (GMRS), or two hundred dollars (MURS and Color Dot "Business Band" radios). We don't offer these radios to public safety users. Dime store radios mostly use analog technology since it is cheaper to build analog radios based on mature technology and high volume production.
This is not to say that all analog technology is bad - to the contrary, the majority of all public safety and industrial grade radios used today employ analog technology. ICOM builds VHF and UHF analog radios - lots of them, and they have the features that public safety users demand such as MIL-SPEC construction, a high level of dust and moisture protection (IP54 or better), high capacity memory free batteries, "smart" chargers, all available tone options including 2-tone paging, CTCSS, DCS, and MDC-1200 signaling. Our users generally require an LCD channel display, a good selection of accessories and extended warranty service for up to five years.
We designate these full featured analog radios as Professional Grade Analog or PGA (not to be confused with the golfing folks). Our PGA offerings include the F33 and F44 military grade radios similar to those used by the U.S. Military in the Middle East. These radios are ideally suited for law enforcement use. The F50V and F60V, is a pager/radio designed to combine all the function of a pager (including vibrate alert and message record/playback) as well as submersible capability, high RF power output and considerably more audio power than other radios. It probably goes without saying that this is a favorite by volunteer firefighters. Our recommended mobile is the F121/221 series and our preferred choice for base/repeater stations is the FR3000/4000. Additional information on our analog radios is available at www.the-end-of-confusion.us.
All of our PGA radios (remember - Professional Grade Analog) are very affordable and quite suitable for many users. However, keep in mind that most of these radios do NOT have the capability to be upgraded to digital operation. However, some of our analog models CAN be upgraded to digital operation. Additional information is available at www.info4u.us/Analog_Planner.pdf. The next step up is to consider the purchase of a radio that can be purchased as an analog radio with the capability of being upgraded to digital operation at a later time. Or, you can purchase a radio that is designed for digital operation, yet being capable of backwards compatibility with analog radios. One of the better known products in this category is a Motorola offering known as MotoTRBO.
You may be wondering why we are discussing a Motorola product on a web page that features ICOM products. The reason is that the technology (2-Slot TDMA) used in the MotoTRBO and by Hytera is a viable competitive technology to ICOM. The generic name for this technology is DMR (Digital Mobile Radio).
MotoTRBO radios (known as the XPR series) were designed from the ground up to be DIGITAL radios with all of the benefits associated with digital radios such as lighter weight, longer battery life, group and individual messaging (both voice and text), privacy, and optional built in GPS tracking. The price can be less than most P25 digital radios and comparable to the IDAS system by ICOM.
There are some unique features such as a repeater station that can split a 12.5 kHz channel into two operating segments. The most common application is to use one channel for voice and the other for GPS, text messaging, or other data applications. This is a great application for school buses, taxis, and delivery services. However, there is always a dark side, and there is a dark side for the XPR series radios when considered for public safety applications.
The DMR system completely ignores the need for interoperability as defined by APCO, the Department of Homeland Security, FEMA, and SAFECOM. While we are impressed with the functionality of a dual function repeater station plus portable and mobile radios that can have built in GPS, we have to conclude that MotoTRBO is not a good alternative for public safety mission critical users. Technically, and operationally, we like MotoTRBO, but for public safety use, there are better alternatives for those who wish to migrate to digital.
The Hytera DMR radios are compatible with MotoTRBO and offer some unique features that would be of interest to those interested in this technogy. Hytera is also less expensive. If you would like to know more about DMR technology with offerings by both Motorola and Hytera, please visit www.info4u.us/DMR.pdf.
Of all the digital technologies, P25 is the best known, in particular for public safety use. P25 is the ONLY acceptable technology for agencies of the U.S. Government including the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Park Service, and the Department of the Interior among others. P25 is an evolving technology based on open standards. Any manufacturer desiring to produce P25 compatible equipment can do so by meeting just two mandatory requirements. For more info on these requirements are, go to www.info4u.us/P25_components.pdf. This common standard equates to a major benefit to users of this technology in the form of assurance that you will not be locked into a proprietary standard.
In addition, you don't have to worry about changing technical standards. To the contrary, you can expect additional features, planned consideration and resolution of changing technical standards, plus lower prices as production volume and competition in a free market increases.
ICOM is now into the second generation of P25 products. The original F70 and F80 series portables and F1721/2721 mobiles are available with standard P25 capability at prices competitive to both IDAS and DMR. Call us at 800-489-2611 or email sales@falcondirect.com for more information or check out our P25 Planning Guide at www.info4u.us/P25Guide.pdf. An Intrinsically safe version is optionally available. Some agencies require high level encryption that is generally of little interest for State, County, Municipal, or Volunteer public safety users. You may hear terms like AES, DES, and FIPS. ICOM offers FIPS certified P25 models for those who need such capability. If you would like to know more about FIPS (Federal Information Processing Standards), please click here. FIPS is available only for P25 type radios. It is NOT available for other digital technologies.
P25 is backwards compatible with legacy analog systems, both 25 and 12.5 kHz. The new ICOM digital trunking repeater coupled with second generation F9011 and F9015 portables and mobiles will be ready to serve your needs, whatever they may be. These are the most powerful portables available with 6 watts of RF power in VHF and 1 watt of audio (twice the audio power of most portables). There are a lot of reasons for considering P25, and with ICOM, P25 is affordable. Also unlike MotoTRBO, you can start with an analog version of an ICOM P25 portable or mobile radio and upgrade to digital when desired. We like this technology!
As an item of interest, Motorola DOES make analog radios that can be upgraded from analog to P25 digital capability. The PR860 portable and PM1500 mobile can both be upgraded to P25. In our opinion, any public safety user prefering Motorola would be well advised to consider the PR860 and PM1500 products as a superior alternative to MotoTRBO. More information is available at www.motosbest.com.
One word of caution - there are some manufacturers offering "enhanced" versions of P25 radios that are NOT compatible with other P25 radios. Be VERY careful in the selection of your vendor and be sure that the radios you choose have open standard capability. If you have questions, give us a call. We are here to help! In the meantime, if you would like additional information on P25 radios, please visit our P25 web site at www.the-end-confusion.com.
This web page deals with an open standard offered by ICOM, Kenwood and Ritron. This technology is the most advanced of all our offerings and is the only one offering 6.25 kHz channel spacing which will be required of all manufacturers in 2011 and the only one that meets the original 2018 FCC proposed operational requirements.
Even though the technology was jointly developed by ICOM and Kenwood, ICOM was first to market over a year ago and has now moved to the second generation products with significant enhancements to the original offerings. This new system is known as IDAS (ICOM Digital Advanced System). Additional information is available at www.info4u.us/dcom.pdf.
We offer many brands and models of professional 2-way radios ranging from under two hundred dollars to well over two thousand dollars each. The brand and model type recommended depends on the users needs. This web page is specifically for commercial, institutional, and governmental users who want the lowest total cost of operation, freedom from obsolescence, and most importantly - the ability to communicate when needed! Information on our lower priced analog radios is available at www.the-end-of-confusion.us. One topic often overlooked in the radio selection process is maintenance. Sooner or later this becomes an issue that must be addressed. We prefer to review the available options BEFORE the purchase. We hate surprises - we think you may as well. To get the full story on the issues that most of our counterparts choose to ignore, please visit www.UltraCarePlus.com. Lastly, if you would like a specfic price quotation on any of our radios, just drop us an email to sales@falcondirect.com. You'll be glad you did!