Hello. First, I want to thank everyone reading and even more those commenting. I’m a retired law enforcement officer who is now looking at running a large and very dangerous inner city contract with security personnel at various locations in several large cities in one region. I was shocked when I started it that no communication net had been set up. We need it. I’ve gotten into more in 3 months on this job than I did my last 3 years as a cop. I encouraged everyone to download Zello as an easy stop-gap but to be honest, it’s horribly unreliable.
The client just thinks their personnel can just call 911 but so far they seem more interested in watching or videoing what’s happening so that’s not helping, plus, it doesn’t put ME in the loop - especially is I have an officer injured or in need of emotional support after something. We can’t depend on clients to act like trained dispatchers.
Given that some of the locations are 80 miles from one another and I want everyone on the same net as a supervisor to overhear emergency situations and get nearby back-up or other emergency services started, it’s pretty obvious that I need to be on a PTT/POC network. Zello ain’t it, though.
The client just thinks their personnel can just call 911 but so far they seem more interested in watching or videoing what’s happening so that’s not helping, plus, it doesn’t put ME in the loop - especially is I have an officer injured or in need of emotional support after something. We can’t depend on clients to act like trained dispatchers.
Also, it is possible that officers may have to buy their own radios so I want to keep the individual unit cost down. They are very well paid but that’s all relative tosay with families and food prices.
The alternative is a phone app. It stinks but it is what it is. What provider would y’all suggest considering all these factors?
The 80 miles means the infrastructure is going to be more expensive than just the radios so you really need to involve a local radio company. Radio sites in each area mean big expense. But there could be a managed poc system that might work if all the areas have decent cell coverage? Radios with man down buttons could be really useful. The radios probably work out individually affordable. The system is the key thing. I doubt a trunked system would be findable!
What you are needing is going to be well beyond your own abilities unless you want to use something like a PTT service through one of the cell providers. Depending on the location you are providing service would depend on what is available to you. In the Phoenix area I can think of a couple of radio systems that have a large enough coverage area that would accomplish what you are wanting to do but it all depends on your specific area. Having been involved in Security in the past I know the one thing the “Client” is going to look at is cost. If it is going to cost them more money then they want to know how it is going to benefit their operation, Security is a line in their budget that produces no income. In public safety cities and agencies will spend millions of $$ of taxpayer money to provide their officers with the best radio service available as well as other gear all in the name of officer safety, but private security doesn’t have the ability to do the same even though they face some of the same dangers.
With my prior security experience we used nextel radios and Zello on standard cell phones. Both were effective depending on the user. A cheap cellphone running an app or PTT, or a $1000 DMR radio are all going to be as effective as the person using it. There are some better more durable cellphones available that will run the Zello app and have dedicated PTT buttons on the phone Kyocera Duraforce and Sonim phones both work well (all dependent on provider cell coverage). Using Zello gives you more freedom to setup groups (Talkgroups) and manage the “radio system” yourself vs paying someone else to do it.
Thanks for the replies! Your input is certainly appreciated. The long range is why I’ve come to the conclusion that what we need is a PTT 4G network. I know repeaters and all kinds of other issues will come into play on a traditional radio frequency. I do believe the issues we’re having with Zello are phone and Bluetooth related due to some people purchasing shoddy equipment or phones. That’s why I want issued RADIOS, not phones, because I don’t want people screwing with them, rooting them and playing games on them, making talk around gossip groups, etc. Considering that I want one channel only I don’t think it will be too expensive. Do any of you have any referrals or suggestions? I trust this forum’s expertise.
Also, I do have a GMRS license and I just got my first GMRS radio today. It’s great to be into this new hobby.
Precisely. I’ve been looking at Global-PTT. I am not impressed with Zello. We had a bad situation when it failed us. I’ve heard zero conplaints about Global-PTT. I am honestly worried about Chinglish menus and backwards UI menus that often come with Chinese products, though.
Something like this might be what you want, although I don’t have any first hand experience or have I heard any reviews… https://rapidradios.com/
As for the phones, there are apps available that allow you to lock down the phone and only make certain apps useable. No games, no social media, & so on but you’d still be using Zello or something similar. Was your bad experience with Zello the app itself the wireless service that you were using?
Zello on a radio with PTT seems to work better than on a phone, but the handshaking is always a bit hit and miss. Get the timing wrong and you let go of the PTT and you didnt get in, that sucks.