I'd like to buy a police scanner so I can listen in on local emergency response and whatnot. I know nothing about them - other than the fact that they let me listen to the police. Anybody use one or know what brands are good and what features I'd want? I'd be willing to spend a good couple hundred bucks, and I definitely want a portable one.

don't know how in america, but these days the police radio in finland is encoded, so that civilians can't use it.

Police scanners suck.

So when I was a young naive child, I did something stupid and illegal. I got caught.
Somehow, I got away with it without them telling my parents.

Brothers friends mom has a police scanner. Mom told son. Son told brother. Brother told parents.
><

Cue JLee!

It's pretty much a matter of knowing what frequencies various departments use. Then you have to know the 10 codes so you know what all the various numbers mean.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten-code

If they use analog, you should be able lto scan them - if they're on digital, it's not going to be cheap, but I think it's possible. You might need someone to program the frequencies in, though - I'm not sure exactly how these radios work.

How big a city do you live in? Around here even cheap scanners get you by. OHP uses a trunking system, but that isn't too expensive as long as you can figure out how to set it up, plus they rarely use that.

I'd just go to radio shack and buy one, to be honest. then go to radio-reference or something to get frequencies. a quick google search will get you what you need in that area.

Why do you want to listen to that?

You plan on doing any vigilante work?

Nope, that's my job.

Old people in my area used to make money calling the different sheriffs departments and being a middle-way between them. Now some people in bounty places will use them to pick up parole/court violation people before the cops do and make money. All gangs do it to watch where the cops are while they transport major drugs, but major drug operations aren't hit by cops on radios that something from radioshack can pick up. Nerds and fat women with mustaches like to use them for Jerry-Springer level entertainment of a technical sort. "Oh, someone in THAT part of town just got in a fight with their grandma and or spouse!"

I can get on columbus pd website and listen to them online

I live in a county of over 1 million people, in the SF bay area. It's big and it's urban...so I wouldn't be surprised to hear most the police around here have gone to digital. Digital scanners seem to be going for about $500 right now. Thanks for the suggestions.

If you want to listen to San Diego.. http://scansandiego.net/cgi-bin/index.pl

My brother picked up a radioshack one that I got to pick up the NYPD frequency in my set of precincts. It was a crappy one that couldn't go to the frequency by default, and I'm not sure exactly what I did to make it happen.

But as has been said, you can find the local frequency online usually.

I can't imagine someone having a legitimate use for one.

for the lolz

Within the normal limits of legitimacy.

Uh...to be aware of what is happening in the community as it happens.

said the withered old man, perched on the edge of his rocking chair, smoking shotgun in hand.

"Now, git offa mah property"

I bought a GRE PSR-500. The locals aren't using digital, but in the event they ever switch, I'll be prepared. Perhaps I'll post up in a few weeks whether it's any fun or not :downs:

Damn, that is expensive as hell.