XTS Vs. APX & Buy Vs. Lease
Posted: Sat May 18, 2013 7:37 am
I am looking for some thoughts here to help me make a recommendations at work. We currently have some Motorola XTS2500s on a statewide P25, simulcast 800 MHz trunked radio system. Out primary system is actually UHF 400 mHz MOTO TRBO and I am aware that there is currently NO single radio that will handle both P25 AND MOTO TRBO in one unit. Anyway, we are seeking to get additional portable transceivers for the 800 mHz system. It looks like I will be making a recommendation soon. Some of the considerations are:
Leasing: If we lease, the nearby city has the option to get additional portables from them. I guess the obvious pros and cons are they pretty much take care of everything and the cons are cost related and we get little to no choice over what transceivers are used. For example, we have Type II XTS2500s, but under the lease it would be Type I.
Buying: Certainly there are more decisions to be made if we buy. One the one hand, I might be inclined to get additional XTS2500s because that is what we are already using. The accessories, like Impress chargers and speaker microphones, are interchangeable.
I also like the XTS5000s and having the option to get some XTVA units for vehicles would be very attractive. I also realize that both the XTS2500 and XTS5000 and reaching end of life soon. They also are not capable of Phase II P25.
I like the idea of the APX4000. They would give us a unit that is capable of Phase II P25. I suspect the cost is significantly more than either XTS2500 or 5000s. I also understand that there is no XTVA available and none is likely to be available in the future. I have also been told that some people have an issue with the "one button" concentric volume/channel selector switch.
Finally, it looks like the APX6000 would also be a good choice. It, too, is ready for Phase II P25, but is likely the most expensive of the units mentioned. Again, the lack of an XTVA device is disappointing. It looks like the APX6000 has separate volume and channel selectors.
Anyway, what are some other things that I should consider? Obviously, cost is always a factor. What would my fellow BatLabbers here be inclined to do? Would you buy or lease? If you decided to purchase, would you go XTS2500, XTS5000, APX4000 or APX6000? Also, encryption is not something we are ever likely to want or need. Scanning, however, is a desired feature. I am sure that our users would prefer to have a display like the Type II or Type III units have. Also, it looks like the Type 1 of either the XTS2500 or 5000 might not have enough channels for us.
Leasing: If we lease, the nearby city has the option to get additional portables from them. I guess the obvious pros and cons are they pretty much take care of everything and the cons are cost related and we get little to no choice over what transceivers are used. For example, we have Type II XTS2500s, but under the lease it would be Type I.
Buying: Certainly there are more decisions to be made if we buy. One the one hand, I might be inclined to get additional XTS2500s because that is what we are already using. The accessories, like Impress chargers and speaker microphones, are interchangeable.
I also like the XTS5000s and having the option to get some XTVA units for vehicles would be very attractive. I also realize that both the XTS2500 and XTS5000 and reaching end of life soon. They also are not capable of Phase II P25.
I like the idea of the APX4000. They would give us a unit that is capable of Phase II P25. I suspect the cost is significantly more than either XTS2500 or 5000s. I also understand that there is no XTVA available and none is likely to be available in the future. I have also been told that some people have an issue with the "one button" concentric volume/channel selector switch.
Finally, it looks like the APX6000 would also be a good choice. It, too, is ready for Phase II P25, but is likely the most expensive of the units mentioned. Again, the lack of an XTVA device is disappointing. It looks like the APX6000 has separate volume and channel selectors.
Anyway, what are some other things that I should consider? Obviously, cost is always a factor. What would my fellow BatLabbers here be inclined to do? Would you buy or lease? If you decided to purchase, would you go XTS2500, XTS5000, APX4000 or APX6000? Also, encryption is not something we are ever likely to want or need. Scanning, however, is a desired feature. I am sure that our users would prefer to have a display like the Type II or Type III units have. Also, it looks like the Type 1 of either the XTS2500 or 5000 might not have enough channels for us.