Motorola Announces New APX Series - Dual Band Portables

Motorola recently made a fairly big announcement at the APCO conference a few weeks back. They unveiled the Motorola APX-Series radios. These units will allow users to have the benefit of using their current 700/800 Mhz Trunking System (Analog or Digital) along with the added benefit of having VHF (155 Mhz) frequencies for Mutual Aid (MABAS / IFERN). Here is some PR from Motorola:

Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT) today announced the industry’s first Project 25 (P25) multi-band subscriber family, APXTM portable and mobile radios– enabling instant multi-agency interoperability for mission critical first responders. Motorola’s 4th generation P25 subscriber is multi-band (700/800 MHz and VHF), communicates with current and future networks (FDMA and TDMA) and has integrated GPS.

Designed specifically for first responders by applying the science of High Velocity Human Factors (HVHF), the dual-sided portable radio has both an audio and data side providing optimal functionality and loud and clear audio in a compact rugged form factor, which amplifies public safety officials’ ability to keep their communities safer than ever before.

Part of Motorola’s MOTOA4^TM portfolio, APX is the first multi-band radio to meet and exceed public safety specifications for mission critical communications and is 15 percent smaller and 50 percent louder than existing Motorola P25 radios. A custom-designed microphone on both the audio and data sides independently suppress most background noise, detects male and female voices and uses a digital vocoder to process and enhance the remaining speech after it is filtered from harsh background noise.

“Multi-agency communication is essential for mission critical operations. APX offers true interoperability and delivers advanced technologies and superior audio quality in one device allowing organizations to streamline the expense of installing, maintaining and operating multiple radios,” said Bob Schassler, corporate vice president of Motorola’s Radio Products and Solutions Group, Government and Commercial Markets – Americas. “APX radios are both backwards and forward compatible working in FDMA and TDMA, which is a testament to Motorola’s commitment to P25 Phase 2. “

The radios look great! Sign me up! Only a few problems, they are expecting first deliveries in Q4 2009 and here is the kicker, an estimated street price of $6,000 depending on options! Ouch. I have included some PR photos below. Here is the Motorola microsite for additional infomation - http://www.motorola.com/apx