Uniden Bearcat BC125AT Handheld Scanner, 500-Alpha-Tagged Channels, Close Call Technology, PC Programable, Aviation, Marine, Railroad, NASCAR, Racing, and Non-Digital Police/Fire/Public Safety.

I was reluctant to purchase this scanner because I owned one of the first that was produced. The first one I owned was not very good. Poor reception and was subject to power line bleed over and numerous other problems. The Uniden BC125AT is a wonderful scanner. Programing from the scanner itself is somewhat of a pain and takes a lot of time. If you purchase this scanner download the programing software. It is very easy to use and will save you a ton of time. Reception is very good with no powerline bleed over.

I bring this to all the NASCAR, IMSA and MotoAmerica races I go to. It’s great to hear what is going on on track and all the teams. I either plug in headphones or an external battery powered speaker. Make sure you have at least two sets of rechargeable batteries.

Bought this handheld scanner for my Dad on May 9, 2021. He is a Past Chief of our Fire Dept. and still enjoys listening to what’s going on. He noticed it wouldn’t charge and opened the battery compartment to find the rechargeable batteries from 2010 ( ELEVEN YEARS AGO) had deteriorated and melted the inner compartment. He cannot switch it over from rechargeable to AA batteries because the old rechargeables melted the switch and contacts. Very disappointed. I had not realized this handheld was released 2011. I never would have purchased such an OLD product!!! Now to see if the original retail warranty applies to me or the radio company that is selling these. I will update this review once I find out what course of action I have. We missed the Amazon return date because we lost my Mom recently and our minds were not on this scanner.

Some reviews on this radio bash it for being unable to listen in on local police department, etc. These users need to do more research. This is an excellent analog receiver, NOT A DIGITAL RECEIVER. Check your local law enforcement radio frequencies and equipment as digital transmissions cannot be picked up by this radio. For where I live this is not an issue. I can hear my local law enforcement clearly and was easy to find their frequencies online. Another invalid complain many users had was how difficult it is to program and use the radio. Seriously, read the manual. There are three different scanning modes, not including Close Call or any of the Priority Scanning functions. I read the manual once and understood their operation and function. I mostly Hold on a single channel but occasionally scan a few banks I programmed from my computer with the included USB cable. Again, follow the directions that came with the radio and you can easily program the radio from a PC. Others have said that the program is similar to Excel, and they are not wrong. Its very simple, it shows you the banks you can program you just fill in the form. My only complaint is the battery life. One one hand, the receiver is relatively compact as it only takes 2 x AA batteries. As a result though, I am averaging about 4 and half hours of listening time before the low battery warning. I wish they would make the receiver a little bigger to accommodate a larger amount of batteries. In summary, I like this scanner a lot. Its relatively small, light, picks up my local frequencies quite clearly, and has decent listening times. Research which frequencies you will want to be listening to to avoid disappointment. I would recommend this to someone as a first time purchase of a police scanner.

As a lifelong rail fan, I am always looking for ways to improve my rail fan experience. One thing that I thought would advance my experience trackside was a scanner, which would allow me to listen to railroad operations in real time. When deciding on a scanner, I chose the Uniden Bearcat BC125AT because it was within my price range and had a good amount of useful features. I use my scanner almost exclusively to listen to railroad activity, but there are many other uses for the BC125AT. A scanner can be used to receive many different bands and activities; therefore, this product would be ideal for someone who is interested in listening to a variety of radio transmissions. The BC125AT is particularly good for those who are interested in storing their commonly used frequencies and taking their scanner into the field. Many Ways To Listen The BC125AT offers many different options to scan and listen to your desired channels and frequencies. There are nine channel banks with 50 presets each, which means you have the ability to store 450 channels in the scanner’s memory for later use. The BC125AT also comes with Uniden Bearcat programming software, which allows each channel to have an alpha tag or name so memorization of channels is not necessary. You are able to scan your saved channels to check for activity or scan all frequencies. Scanning all frequencies can be done by bank (in order of frequency) or by service. The BC125AT includes Police, Fire, HAM, Marine, Railroad, Civil Air, Military Air, CB, RRS/GMRS/MURS, and Racing frequencies, organized into banks. The BC125AT allows you to turn each bank of frequencies on and off individually, allowing for a very narrow scan if needed. I have found this very helpful, as I can scan only railroad frequencies when I am in unfamiliar territory. The only downside is that one knob controls almost all of the scrolling features, as well as the volume. This sometimes makes it difficult to adjust the volume or proper channel. The BC125AT also comes with a separate NOAA weather radio scanner and can be programmed to turn on in an emergency. Excellent Range For Size The range of the BC125AT is very good for the size of the antenna. Like most scanners, its range depends upon the strength of the output signal. In my current location with my scanner on the railroad frequency, I can listen to transmissions coming from locomotives about a mile away in either direction. I can always hear the dispatcher, due to repeaters along the tracks and a stronger signal. However, I have been able to receive spotty railroad transmissions from about 30 miles away in other locations, and I can receive a very strong signal from a police department in a county at least 30 miles away. Given the BC125AT’s size and large range of channels, the range is excellent and better than I expected. The range of the NOAA weather radio scanner is excellent. My previous weather radio only picked up weather in towns or locations that are at very high elevations. The BC125AT picked up a weather station in every single location I have tried it in, including some very remote canyons. Be Ready To Take Your Scanner Anywhere You Want The BC125AT is a very portable scanner. I have no problem taking it trackside or anywhere else. It is already a very small scanner, but the secret to its success is its detachable antenna. Once the antenna is detached, the size is comparable to that of a digital camera. The BC125AT can easily fit in any standard-sized pocket, and I routinely put my scanner in my pants pocket while riding the bus or shopping. The BC125AT fits comfortably in your hand or on your belt. It also comes with a headphone port, so it is possible to listen to your scanner in public areas without others knowing. Overall, the BC125AT is a great starter scanner for anyone who is interested in listening to radio traffic, whether that is railroad, police, HAM, or something else. It is an excellent portable scanner with ample range and options to make your scanning experience more enjoyable. Please reply to this review if you have questions about my experience with the BC125AT.

Other then the its not a new scanner and 11 years old, its not bad! It cuts out a lot of the time!

From Pittsburgh PA I can hear transmissions as far away as Interstate 80!!! And this area is full of hills and valleys, but this little radio was still able to pull those signals in. Scanning through the channels I hear a whole new world of conversations I didnt even know existed. I especially like the ability to scan for strong transmissions close by. It locks on and lets you know what is in your area. This feature can be turned off so that you can just run up and down a frequency range without being interrupted by strong signals you would rather ignore. A bunch of namable programmable channels means I wont lose interesting signals I may find while roaming through the hundreds of frequencies. A word of warning to you guys who like to just pick up a new toy and run with it... Read the manual!!! It will save you time and frustration! Once I understood the way Uniden had their menu scheme laid out, working with this radio was easy. This is my first real professional scanner and it took me a little bit of time to understand what I had purchased. But once I got the hang of it, I didnt want to put it down! Im still learning all the features, (havent tried to connect it to my computer yet), and can hardly wait to take it out to a sporting event. I know it is almost trivial, but the detachable antenna makes for easy travel. That was a nice touch. I can put it in my pocket with no worries about breakage. Uniden packed a lot of good things in this little radio for a fair price. I’m very happy with this purchase.

I bought the BC125AT to replace my Realistic scanner that was about 25 years old. It is impressive how small the Bearcat is. I found Bearcat easier to program and look at the channels then the Realistic. The manual does a good job of explaining all the aspects of the BC125AT and it is easy to find a topic that you need help with. Downside is that it seems to scan slower then the Realistic. As far as battery life, you have to use the NiMH battery as alkaline only last about 4 hrs. You can adjust how long it takes to recharge the NiMH battery which is handy. The default is 14 hrs but it can be as short as 9 hrs. I had to return the Bearcat to the factory due to a programming problem that showed up after downloading a hardware fix. They fixed the problem under warranty and returned it in about 4 weeks. Overall the unit does a good job of scanning but I feel the Realistic was better. This unit was recommended as a best buy and I guess for the price it does the job.

Only picks up frequencies that are well below the usual ranges used by first responders. Frequencies need to be manually entered into scanner. If you know which frequencies you want to listen to, makes sure the scanner can pick it up. Otherwise, the unit isnt very useful.

I am an experienced HAM Radio Operator and someone with substantial RF radio experience: If you have never owned radios of this type then you should know: Scanners, like this one, are not trivial pieces of equipment. many people buy them and think they are like a Mr Coffee appliance, in other words you just plug it in and it works. To get the most out of Scanners: 1.) they require programming. The Uniden supplied PC software is adequate and will get the job done, however it is nothing outstanding but it is FREE 2.) Antennas are the key to any radio reception. Scanners require NON-TUNED wire antennas like this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NKDN6YK/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_E41kDbJ7R53JF for $8 it is a bargain. You should DISREGARD other comments you read about using 144/440 tuned ham Radio Transmitting Antennas. They will work fine if all you want to receive is in those frequency bands, but realize they are TUNED so their reception sensitivity will fall off rapidly when the antenna is out of its designed band. 3.) This is a fine piece of well designed gear, and for $100 it is a bargain. It has excellent sensitivity across all bands. PROS: Super fast scan speed, Clever well laid out keypad design that gives you access to menu functions with just a few simple keystrokes. 4.) Of course the CON is that they are using AA NiMH batteries. 4-6 Hours is top run time. Uniden made a bad design choice there, as this radio could have easily been designed to accept 18650 Li-Ion batteries then it would have run for days on one set. If you are going to use this radio on a daily basis then you will need a pocket full of AA and Powerex Charger to properly maintain them. I read many comments here in these reviews from well meaning folks that are simply in over their head and then say this is a bad scanner. My suggestion is to find a local Ham Radio Operator to explain some of the principles of how RF works, and to help you with programming and operation of this type of equipment. It is not rocket science, but there is a little learning curve.