Uniden · Budget
A compact analog handheld scanner with 500 alpha-tagged channels that covers the VHF high band, where North American railroads operate.
Recommended by the radio community · RadioReference forums, Mar 2012
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We have not tested it ourselves: strengths and weaknesses below come from the tests cited.
North American railroads work on conventional analog channels in the VHF high band, and the BC125AT receives 137–174 MHz, as well as 25–54 MHz, the 108–137 MHz civil air band, 225–380 MHz military air and 400–512 MHz. A Railroad service type lets a listener scan by service instead of programming every frequency by hand. Forum members use it for train and dispatch channels and for defect detectors, and one Amtrak passenger reported that it kept up with crew radio traffic during a trip. In a head-to-head comparison with an SDS100 using the same scan list, one member reported that the BC125AT locked onto the frequency sooner, held the lock better and gave clearer audio.
The scanner runs on two AA batteries, alkaline or Ni-MH, or from a USB cable, and weighs 6.2 oz without antenna and batteries. Forum members report about nine hours with the backlight off and about five with it on; the original reviewer saw four to six hours with it on. The supplied antenna is short: listeners report better results with an aftermarket VHF antenna such as the Diamond RH77CA. Members also advise programming both the train and the dispatch channel of a line and keeping the channel list to what the local railroad actually uses, since most channels stay silent. Programming is done on a computer with free Uniden software.
Recommended by the radio community · RadioReference forums: A forum member who ran it beside two other scanners called himself very impressed and concluded you cannot go wrong with it, while noting a cheap-feeling case, short battery life with the backlight on and no attenuator; a 2023 railroad thread reports it keeping up with Amtrak crew radios, while in a 2022 thread a member heard nothing on a Union Pacific subdivision and two replies suspected a move to digital. Read the review
Strengths
Weaknesses
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Size | 2.6 x 1.3 x 4.5 in (W x D x H) |
| Modes | Analog only; no P25, DMR or NXDN |
| Power | 2 AA batteries (alkaline or Ni-MH) or USB 5 V |
| Weight | 6.2 oz without antenna and batteries |
| Channels | 500 alpha-tagged channels in 10 banks of 50 |
| Close Call | Close Call RF capture with Do-Not-Disturb |
| Programming | Free PC software over USB |
| Frequency coverage | 25–27.995, 28–54, 108–136.9916, 137–174, 225–380, 400–512 MHz (USA band plan) |
Suits a listener who wants analog railroad, air band and marine coverage in a pocketable unit and is comfortable programming channels from a computer. Anyone whose railroad has moved to digital NXDN, or who also wants to follow trunked public-safety systems, should look at a digital model.
The Uniden SDS100 adds P25 and trunked-system decoding in a much higher price tier, although one forum member who compared the two on the same scan list found the BC125AT locked on conventional channels sooner. The Uniden BCD436HP adds digital decoding and a built-in database in a mid-range handheld.
Photo: Anthonyramos1 / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Uniden · Mid-range
A digital handheld scanner with a built-in database of U.S. and Canadian systems that also receives conventional analog channels, including the VHF bands.
Recommended by the radio community · RadioReference forums, May 2014
Uniden · Premium
A rugged, water-resistant True I/Q handheld scanner that decodes P25 and trunked systems and also receives conventional analog channels.
Recommended by the radio community · RadioReference forums, Jun 2018
Uniden · Premium
A True I/Q base and mobile scanner with a 3.5-inch color display that decodes P25 and trunked systems and receives conventional analog channels.
Recommended by the radio community · RadioReference forums, Feb 2019
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