Uniden’s HomePatrol is a new, very different kind of scanner.
It’s got a touch-screen, for starters. It also comes pre-loaded with a dump of the Radio Reference database making setup ridiculously easy for anyone not well-versed in such matters.
You turn it on for the first time, tell it your zip code, and in less than two minutes you’re auto-programmed and listening to whatever’s around you. Regular updates will be made available online and you can of course program in your own systems if they’re not already included.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3AFlGTh7G8
Form factor and interface aside, this is just another digital trunking scanner, basically an audio-recording BCD396XT:
It certainly looks slick with that fancy LCD touchscreen and should be a big hit with the Wal-Mart crowd, especially if they can do something about the 396XT’s sky-high pricing, which generally hovers around $500.
The “HomePatrol-1” is pending FCC approval and should hit retail this October.
This is much more interesting than some new iPhone!