Uniden SDS100 True I/Q Digital Handheld Scanner, Designed for Improved Digital Performance in Weak-Signal and Simulcast Areas, Rugged / Weather Resistant JIS 4 Construction

This is an AWESOME scanner and a worthy upgrade. Is it perfect? Nope. Uniden should have included some features that would have added significant value to the user. A few of those things are 1) Bluetooth 2) Ability to lockout keypad (seriously?) and 3) Ability to use AA batteries as a backup if needed. Are those all of them? Nope. But they are a few of them that irk me at the moment. The scanner overall is wonderful and amazing. The speaker is loud and clear, the reception is really great, and I pick up neighboring counties that I have never been able to pick up previously, and that’s just using the stock antenna that came with it. The programming of this scanner is extremely easy. I had considered purchasing from another retailer as they had me scared to death about the complexities of setting up the programming. It’s no sweat. Everything is pretty much already set up in the scanner. Just set up your favorites list, then enter your zip code location (in that order as one reviewer pointed out) and your set! There are a lot of customizable settings, pretty much everything by system, and it’s fun to play around with all the different settings and screen colors. The reason I ended up purchasing on Amazon was for the extended warranty. I have enough experience to know, that you never know with Uniden what you will get long-term, and it was an inexpensive peace of mind to add that warranty through Amazon. I trust that if they ever need to make good on it, they will.I did not really need to utilize the Sentinnel software... well because everything is pretty much already databased in the scanner, and it’s easy to get it set up the way you want it. My concern with Sentinnel is that we have all Mac’s, which it won’t run on. I downloaded the parallel stuff and spent hours getting it all set up, but just couldn’t get it to work. I ended up finding a super easy solution that worked easily and perfectly on my Mac, which I’ll paste below if it would be helpful to someone else. It’s important to note once again, that I really didn’t need to do anything with the Sentinnel software, but I guess it’s nice to know I have a backup of all my settings now. The instructions below may look intimidating at first, but trust me it’s really quite easy and pain-free.Here it is:1. Go to WineBottler |*Run Windows-based Programs on a Mac and download WineBottler. I used the 1.6.1 Stable on Mavericks. It will pop up an ADFly Page. Just give it 5 seconds then click the “SKIP AD” button in the top right. (If you get any more ad pop ups just give it a few seconds and it will start downloading.)Once finished: Move “Wine.app” and “Winebotter.app” to you applications folder.2. Download the latest Sentinel Version. BCD536HP < UnidenMan4 < TWiki and unzip it to your desktop. (or where you fell comfortable)3. Launch “Winebottler” from you applications folder. Follow prompts for install. This will install any needed files to run the apps later.a. Click “Advanced” in the top bar.b. Select “new prefix” defaultc. Program to install: “select File…” and select the “Setup_BCDx36HP.msi” in the Sentinel folder on your desktop.d. check “This is an installer, execute it.e. in the “Winetricks” section, click in the search field and search for “dotnet20”. Check the MS .NET 2.0. (this will install the .net for the Sentinel to install)f. Click “Install” button. Save to your desk top as Sentinel.This is now creating a windows app that will run on your mac using “wine”. It will install the Dot Net files and you will have to agree to terms and tell it where to install. Defaults will be fine. That will finish and then Sentinel will star the install. Again, agree and save to defaults. This part does take some time so bear with it. (HINT: sometimes the installers will pop up in the background. You may have to click the doc to bring it forward to agree to the DOT NET terms etc…) Once the files are installed, the last step is to “Select Startfile” leave it on Program Files/Uniden/BCDX…… and when you click the “Sentinel” app it will launch the app. Hit OK and your done. Now double click the newly created app and your ready to run Sentinel on your mac.

The SDS 100 is truly a gem. It has capabilities far in excess of any other radio in its class. It was surprisingly easy to setup and use with few quirks in its operation. it's screen is very bright and the clarity of the characters is amazing.All in all this radio can't be beat. It is not cheap, but if you need this much performance, it is worth the money.

I have had this guy a month and I'm fairly certain that I have barley scratched the surface of it capabilities. Any true scanner enthusiasts will tell you, it is getting increasingly harder to enjoy this hobby because of all the new ways to encrypt the radio traffic we love to listen to. That said, in my humble opinion, the SDS100 makes it about as simple as it can get. Tell it what zip code you are currently in and it's SD card stored data base will load all the frequencies in the area...PROGRAMMING COMPLETE ! IT'S THAT SIMPLE !! The stored data base contains pretty much every licensed radio system in the US and I think a good bit of Canada. What used to take hours now takes seconds. Uniden even updates the data base weekly. These updates are free to download. There are a few downloadable encryption upgrades you will need to purchase to make the SDS100 as workable as possible. There are several other "user programable features". Too many to name here. Overall "ease of use" gets an "A" ! The unit is lightweight and more ergonomic then any I have ever owned. The ONLY low scores I would give this unit are in battery life and belt clip. This guy can use up some battery especially with higher volume settings. In all fairness though, it is basically a small computer running a program. It shuts down before the battery is completely dead to preserve any user memory. It does have a power port separate from the charging port to help with this. Also,The battery pack is kinda odd. I give the battery a "B-". The other low grade goes to the belt clip (at least the one one my unit). The swivel style clip on mine doesn't stay locked in place very well. So much so that I choose to carry the scanner in my pocket. I don't trust the clip. Belt clip is a generous "C-". Still learning what else it can do, so maybe another review later.