Batboard

I know this is a Motorola board, but I'm sure that everyone will give me an honest answer to my question. I have been asked by a large corporation to help them make a choice of three HT's to replace the current Visars they are using. This replacement is due to age, wear and tear. These will be used on a large corporate campus, UHF, conventional. Site Maintenance and operations will be using these radios so they need to be durable. Here are the choices they gave me;

1. Motorola EX-500
2. Vertex VX-210
3. Kenwood 3140

Do any of you have any other recommendations? The “mode” “Channel” requirement is very small. We can get by with a minimum of 6.

Thanks,
S. John Holder
K6SJH

Actually, I'd go for the Vertex 210 or even a Motorola CP200 since they're 1/2 the price of the EX500.

Yeah, Much as I love My motorolas, I have a friend who rents hundreds of vx-400 and 210's for convention hall use, and with the beating they take from the load-in and out crew and show mgmt., they have a very low fail rate. Not quite the same test as giving it to a taxi driver, but a very durable radio. I haven't seen the inside of an ex-500, but if it's built like a ht-1250, I'd go with the vx-210 over that radio. Can't speak for the kenwood, but I do believe they make a decent radio.

Will

Vertex has some serious warrenty service issues. Like, if a radio needs service, expect to wait a LONG time for it to get done. The radios themselves are very good, but I won't buy them for my Dept because of the service thing.

Kenwood makes good stuff too, but I have never personally used the 3140. It looks like a nice durable radio.

Are they dead set on the EX-500 for a Motorola option? If they aren't using MDC1200, QC-II, or Companding, it would seem like they are spending a lot of money on something they aren't going to use. Like Jim said, the CP 150/200 might be more suited and cheaper.

It strikes me as sort of strange, and it may seem strange to others here, that the agency/user has three radio models picked out, so to speak, then turns to you to find out "which one is best." If they're asking you for a technical evaluation that's another matter, although on paper all of the radios will probably look very similar, but as it stands right now it would seem that they've gotten proposals from three dealers and for some reason can't make up their minds what radio to choose.

I would first make a due diligence investigation of the dealers if there are a lot of radios involved and see if the radios can be repaired locally by local talent, or if they have to be sent off to a repair depot, then what other customers think of each dealer's service operation and capability, etc. etc. The particular radio chosen is important, but there are lot of other considerations as well.

My radio choice would be for either old Motorolas of some kind or new Vertexes of some kind, but in any case I sure as hell would buy leather cases and speaker/microphones for ALL of them and make the staff use them, which is the first step to longer radio life.

Thanks to everyone for their prompt and honest replies, keep them coming as a decision hasn't been made yet.

I was brought into this at the last minute. The party that is responsible was going to issue a purchase order today for the Kenwood but decided to ask me for input at the last minute. I have asked him to hold off for a couple of days so I can ask some questions, primarily here on Batlabs !!

This is one of those deals where they need to purchase and received the equipment by 15 December 03 to get the money spent this year. Use it or lose it…..

I have asked that he get a quote on the CP-200 as was suggested. We do not need all of the bells and whistles that the EX-500 has.
We'll see what happens.

Thanks again,
John

You don't say how many radios are involved, but I'd go out and buy HT1000s before they go off the current product list. In fact, I'd buy half as many as I needed. The radios will last you a long time. I'm not a good one to ask about prices (I don't write the checks), but I believe that major purchasers can get HT1000s for on the order of $700.

I have been using Yaesu/Vertex portables for years...yet I am unusually dedicated to the HT1000.

"Save $50 on Every Motorola Two-Way Radio You Buy"
http://www.MotorolaQuality.com
Required "QC Code": C29

It does cover the HT1000 and EX500


Different note; can someone get me or put me on a list for two full event passes for IWCE 2004 conference? I know exhibit only passes are free...just wondering if someone can put me down for a couple full event passes free of charge. I have been to a few conferences where people have put my name down as an employee of a big name company...please PM

The CP200 is a great model radio. The only drawback that I can see with it is the remote speaker mic jack and the way it is mounted to the circuit board. The jack it self is pretty decent and has gold plated contacts. If a remote speaker mic isn’t going to be used, it would be my first choice.
If they were happy with the rather fragile and small VISAR, they will be very happy with the EX500. Its construction is a lot better than the VISAR. Both the speaker mic connector and the battery contacts are gold plated and because of the construction, easier to keep clean.

Nand.

My choice would be the vertex series. Our Fire Dept has about 60 vx-400 portables. They are rugged, even had one fall into a portable water tank. After just blow drying it out, the radio is in service with no problems. The cost of the Motorola's is a major reason why we now buy Vetex, I wouldn't touch the cp-200 series, personaly the seem like a FRS radio. Besides they are ll made in the Pacific rim, even the Motorola's

We actually have started to buy Relm RPV-516 portables since they are "disposable"...

Haven't lost any of the four yet to damage as they get treated the same as HT1000's. Nice 16ch portable. Think we paid like $250/each with mobile chargers. http://www.relm.com/pages/products/pdf/516A1.pdf

Hopefully soon every firefighter (full-time & volly) in the county will get P25 portables as part of a new communications plan. Unfortunately it will include the increase of the telephone 911 service fee from 4% to 20% (OUCH!). Still curious how they will workout paging issues without VHF. I wonder if they can do a group call to certain departments to "tone out"...

I have sold between 20 and 30 Vertex portables mostly VX-210A and VX-180 and have had no complaints at all. I have returned just one portable in 2 years only because the s/n on the back did not match the s/n read by SW. They are tough radios. The price includes a 3-year warranty.
Also, Vertex has addressed the service delays by contracting out, look in the back of MRT for the ad. I can't recall the name right now.

I wouldn't quite call the CP200 "disposable" as it seems to be the replacement for the GP300 series, which held up for years without problem.

The HT1000 seems like a bad choice for this use, since they are over $1000.00 each. You can get 3 CP200s for this. You can buy spare radios and still be cheaper than the HT1000. I'm not saying the HT1000 is a bad radio (its' one of the best), but it's a bad radio for this intended use.

They decided to go with the Vertex. As it turned out, the Vertex was the least expensive choice and your input helped them make the decision, as they were leaning heavily toward the Kenwood. They are buying 12 of these radios for evaluation.

Thanks again to everyone,

John
K6SJH

My advice to the author is this:
Find a dealer that will let you test drive the radios. Hold them, touch them , squeeze them. Which one is the easiest to grip? Which one doesn't awkwardly bulge out of a rear pocket? What is the audio quality like? How are they built? (on the inside)
Those are things I would look at and if I was purchasing for co-workers, whether they are the people that clean the toilets or sign the paychecks, I'd ask for their opinion because they will be using them.

chipjumper wrote:Hopefully soon every firefighter (full-time & volly) in the county will get P25 portables as part of a new communications plan. Unfortunately it will include the increase of the telephone 911 service fee from 4% to 20% (OUCH!).

Please please please tell me which county that is. I want to know so I never make the mistake of establishing telephone service there. If you want to buy expesnive toys with tax dollars, at least waste the money yall already take. I don't care if the increase is 20 cents. I refuse to pay any additional for this purpose. At least not until every fire department in the country has all the equipment they need.