What kind of scanners do police use

They are relatively simple to obtain, use, and set up. Most people use police scanners to monitor the law enforcement, fire, and EMS activity in their local area, as well as stay up-to-date on severe weather or emergency alerts. In the olden days of scanning, this was as easy as switching on an analog or Crystal scanner and waiting for the calls to roll in.

Advances in radio technology and digital systems have made finding the right scanner for your area is slightly more complicated than it used to be. This guide was designed to guide you through picking the best police scanner for your specific area and needs.

To help with this, watch our "H ow to Buy a Police Scanner" video below:. To add to the confusion—these change without much notice. Most people favor the convenience of a portable handheld scanner, but some like to have their radio anchored in one spot or in their vehicles. There is a side-by-side comparison on each scanner page under Compare. There is no shortage of things to compare on scanners. Some of the most popular considerations are:. On each product page under Included , all accessories for that particular scanner that come with your purchase are listed.

Under the Options section on the righthand side of all of our product pages, we provide a list of popular add-ons that many customers add to their purchase. Click " Shop ". If you have not already research on which scanner will work for your area, I would recommend this step first. Click the correct selection to confirm your area of interest.

Once again, our example for this article is Worcester in Massachusetts. Our widget will auto-populate our device page according to what systems your location of interest is using. So, if your local fire department doesn't offer a live feed, you won't be able to hear their communications. Apps sometimes also transmit feeds from volunteers who share what their personal scanners pick up.

However, with a full-featured police scanner, you can manually input the frequencies of all nearby agencies so you don't miss out on any news. Some models can automatically locate nearby frequencies too. Basically, a police scanner app is a decent option for anyone who wants to get a hint of what radio scanning is all about without spending hundreds of dollars. However, anyone interested in radio scanning as a serious hobby will probably need to invest in an actual scanner. Tracking local events with police scanners has been a popular hobby for many years.

Beyond the entertainment and gossip you can get out of such a device, a police scanner can be an invaluable security tool. By tuning into the frequencies of your local emergency services, you can keep one step ahead of crime incidents, traffic accidents, fires and severe weather events even before news outlets report them.

Even seasoned users sometimes face complications, especially when they purchase a new model. Also, you should know that most of the programming software for scanners is made for Windows.

There are, however, professionals who will program the scanner for you for a price, of course , based on your location. Some can also be mounted in vehicles. Handheld scanners are more compact and run on batteries for complete portability. Figuring out whether you need a digital or analog scanner is perhaps the most important factor when choosing a police scanner.

To figure out if the signals in your area are analog or digital, look up your city or county at RadioReference. Analog signals will be labeled as AM or FM. Digital signals have labels such as P25 or DMR.

Most frequencies are now digital, or will eventually be, so you might be better off purchasing a digital model from the start. But not every digital scanner can pick up all known digital signals. Before buying a scanner, make sure the label explicitly states it detects the signals you need. Nowadays, some models are pre-programmed and able to access a nationwide database of frequencies. These pre-programmed scanners generally feature location-based scanning. Some models also have GPS capability so the scanner can detect changes in location and update the frequencies as you move.

It comes pre-programmed with access to over 10, frequencies in the U. Simply turn on the unit, enter your zip code and the scanner automatically detects channels for police and fire departments, emergency medical services EMS and weather alerts within a to mile radius. Pros: Convenient handheld design, plenty of features, customized alerts and instant replay. This hybrid model scanner from Uniden does it all and more, with a CB radio, police scanner, fire, ambulance and BearTracker warning system built in with 40 different channels and a 7-color display.

It alerts you when any sort of public safety transmission is issued and the built-in GPS enables you to select local channels from their nationwide database. The scanner operates seamlessly alongside the CB radio so you can press a button and instantly connect to local police and fire stations. It also has an ergonomically-designed, noise-cancelling microphone so your transmissions to and from tractor-trailers, for example, come through crystal clear.

Pros: Hybrid model has an expanded range of features and capabilities, ergonomic noise-cancelling radio makes crystal-clear transmissions.

Looking for a police scanner for the bunker in your basement or one for your nightstand? The Whistler WS is an analog model that gives users complete control over scanning the airways. You can dial this police scanner in to be incredibly efficient by using the lock-out feature which omits any frequencies that are dead air. You can also set priority channels, which will jump back to the channel and check it every two seconds. But if you really want to go deep into the programming, you can use your PC to help program scan, and even backup your data.

Cons: Antennae may have trouble picking up a signal in your area, depending on where you live. This police scanner can do a little bit of everything. It has channels in 10 banks to scan police, EMS, and local weather. But it also has an FM radio for when you want to tune into your favorite sports radio or news radio program. And we all know the early bird gets the worm, so you can program the alarm clock to wake you up for the day so you can get to scanning the airways.

Pros: Has police, EMS and weather channels in addition to FM radio so you can switch back and forth between pleasure and purpose. The Uniden BCN base mobile scanner is a great model for beginner police scanner users to get their feet wet. Like premium handheld models from Uniden, this radio scanner has Close Call RF technology to pull and receive surrounding signals automatically as it scans channels per second.