Uniden Bearcat BC75XLT Handheld Scanner, 300 Channels, 10 banks, Close Call Technology, PC Programable, NOAA Weather, Aviation, Marine, Railroad, NASCAR, and Non-Digital Police/Fire/Public Safety

First of all, dont use free shipping because its garbage, 2 day is totally worth it unless you plan on being lied to about arrival dates. That being said I love this scanner so far it has exceeded my expectations. I read tons of reviews and watched videos on programming it and everyone makes it seem super complicated and stuff. Youd have to be stupid to not be able to program it. Its so incredibly easy, like if you can use a cell phone, you wont have a problem programming this scanner. I bought this ahead of the 2016 great Tennessee airshow so I could watch all of the planes come in and get some badass videos to Get my snapchat game strong. Which I did btw. I was able to hear the air boss at the show which was cool and was also able to hear the tower and emergency comms when the unfortunate Blue Angel #6 mishap occurred. Sometimes you cant hear Aircraft if theyre really far away but you can hear the tower talking to them. Other than that its not bad at all. Its got give or take a 20-25 mile Range. I dont fully understand all the capabilities of this thing yet but I guess Ill get there eventually.

Once you figure out the tricks, it works quite well. We use it for Train Spotting. Update, Nov 2018. This little unit still works great. Have had no problems with it at all. Once you learn how to select you frequency ranges, it works very well. We have had this for maybe 3 years.

Seemed like a good little scanner. The programming software was intuitive and easy to understand. There are plenty of helpful videos on YouTube that aided in the setup process. I ultimately returned the scanner because I live in an area that runs full digital 800mhz truncated emergency communication systems and this scanner is not compatible with 800mhz systems. Only four starts because I never really had a chance to actually use it so I cant say how well it works.

Ive had mine perhaps a year or two. Bought it to listen to railroad chatter on trips. The first time I traveled, I wound up putting it away because I couldnt figure out how to use it at all and I was pretty annoyed. The second time I traveled, I figured out that watching YouTube videos helped (especially when adding the word railfanning to the search), as did writing the Uniden tech support, where an employee really went the extra mile to try to be helpful. An individual named Charles explained things in plain English and was patient with my ignorance. I still had a little trouble, frankly. Then I learned that I could use it easily enough at home with a bit of a shortcut--pressing the function key (which is orange) and then the Svc button. By pressing those two buttons, I did not have to program anything but I automatically got to hear transmissions within range of us. That is all I had to do. So this is something like simply playing movies on ones VCR, DVD player, Blu-Ray player, etc., without even trying to use all the extra functions. The manual isnt all that useful as a guide even though it does label buttons and so forth. I had to acquire somewhat of a knowledge base before I understood what the manual meant (this is not the first time I had this experience with a manual). To be fair, I just didnt know anything about scanners, electronics, ham radios, etc. As far as I could tell at the time, this seemed to be the highest rated radio of its kind (in its price range) and the most talked about, and apart from the expected updated model of this same unit, that still seems to be the case. At the same time, there is a bit of a hurdle when it comes to entry into this type of hobby. We do not receive police transmissions. It seems that those in our area are encrypted now, so we wont be getting them. In a fairly highly populated city, there is still a limited amount to listen to (I am using the stock antenna) but we do get weather reports and a few other things. If I expected nonstop talking and wanted to listen to it for an extended time, I would have been disappointed (but that wasnt my particular interest). We turn it on around dinnertime and listen to the weather, etc. for ten minutes or so. Realistic expectations all around may be the key to enjoying this radio, which we now do. Now that I finally know more about how to use it, I am hoping that I will be able to listen to railroad chatter on our next train trip. That is the real reason I got it and I havent been able to do that yet. There are a number of YouTube videos that explain how to listen--which I didnt know when I bought this. Its helpful but still not a straight path to success. As for the unit itself, it seems fairly durable and it appears to work as intended. The buttons do require some pressure when you push them to get a response but that seems more or less like a good thing. Be aware of the button you need to slide inside the unit to indicate whether your batteries are rechargeable or not (its not hard). I am not a patient person and usually return electronics that I cannot quickly figure out. So it has been a bit strange that I have picked this up from time to time and tried again to use it. All in all, would probably buy the same unit all over again. Knowing that all I had to do was pick it up and press the two keys I mentioned earlier would have been of considerable help. But, from my experience as a novice, this isnt really an easy hobby to get started with, and if one wants to, some trial and error, with a considerable amount of non success, may be called for enroute to this goal. Up until now, I sort of regretted buying it. Reading the Dummies on two-way radios and scanners (this is not a two-way radio but the book has some content on scanners) helped me understand some of the backstory that eventually helped me use this. So, I wouldnt say dont buy it but I would say understand what the path may be like if you dont have related expertise, and go from there.

Excellent performance in a small package. As a first time scanner user, manual was difficult to follow. Highly recommend searching some basic YouTube videos to get started. Overall, for the cost of this portable scanner, very impressed and recommend this as a first scanner to purchase and learn with. Enough to keep you busy for months.

The scanner is perfect for the amateur listener. I have had others before and for the price it more than meets my needs. The only thing I would consider a negative is the use of the volumn knob for other purposes, requires you to remember to switch modes to return to the previous function. Its only slightly inconvenient. Other than that I wish there was an option to keep the backlight on for easier identification of the frequency when in low light situations. Easy to operate and program. Light and portable. Excellent product for the price. Couldnt be happier!

I purchased this for my Sisters Birthday. Unfortunately I ordered it in April. When she opened it yesterday on her Birthday May 30th, this will not work in our citys upgraded digital system. We are on the 700mhz digital system now and this only goes to 500mhz. My sister was a police officer and wanted a scanner to listen too calls. I am sure this is a nice scanner, but it will not work here in this Louisiana town. Please help not sure what to do now...

quick frequency install via internet radio frequencies list for owners( 80 mile area.) antenna provided 5 inch is fine but i put it to my old analog scanner one foot long multi element (at peak of rooftop antenna )and got so much going on at s c a n mode. get one of these and you can quickly hear that police emergency vehicle transmitt clear speech going tothat location ( of your curosity.) offers options like 200 lock out channels that made noise when scanning. buy two each 2300 mh aa batteries and listen for a couple of days current draw very low.these go for twice the cost elsewhere , see you tube reviews and how to plug and play . enter scanner bc75 xlt at search space.

It’s small and you can hear local Fire Department which I use it for..

We bought this to take to a Nascar race for the ability to tune into the racers channels and hear what is being said. This was a pretty easy device to program. I simply looked up the Nascar line up, found a YouTube video to show me HOW to turn this, and then input the correct numbers as needed. It worked just fine and doesnt seem to use much battery usage at all.