Motorola Solutions has announced the all-new DTR700 license free radio, which will begin shipping in December of 2018. The DTR700 will be fully compatible with the previous DTR versions, the 650, 550, and 410.  Motorola announced the cancellation of these legacy models earlier this year.  There is a loyal following for the DTR series due to the license free operation and variety of calling options such as one-to-one, group calls, and all-call capability.  New to the DTR 700 will be a full color display, slimmer design, anti-microbial housing, improved range and battery life, and a variety of new calling features.

Special calling features include:

– Private Reply – respond with a one-to-one call to the person who last spoke

– Direct Call – one-to-one call to a pre-configured radio (e.g. manager, principal, security, etc.)

– Call All Available – group call across all channels to everyone not engaged in a call

– Page All Available – one-way announcement across all channels to everyone not in a call

The target application of the DTR700 will still be on-site users who want “Nextel like” push-to-talk functionality.  While the specs suggest communication across 350,000 sq ft and up to 30 floors, it is highly recommended that you test the range with a demo prior to deployment.  Users who require a larger coverage area would probably be better suited with a traditional, licensed radio system such as MOTOTRBO, or the TLK100 for ultra wide area coverage needs.

One of the downsides of the DTR series is that every radio needs to be reprogrammed when new radios are added to your fleet.  (You need to add the new radio ID’s to your profile) It doesn’t sound like that process will change with the new DTR700 series.  However, Motorola Solutions provides free programming software and the programming procedure itself is rather simple.

Overall, there are good new features and a much-needed facelift on this popular radio platform.  The original DTR series was rolled out in 2006, a year before the first iPhone for reference.  Users who are happy with the previous DTR versions will be happy with the new and improved DTR 700.