First Impressions of The PMR Expo 2018 Event

The venue, a huge exhibition space was buzzing with excitement when we arrived on day two of the event. We were impressed by how well organised it was and the huge amount of people there. We didn’t waste any time, and headed off to find the stands we were most interested in.

There were some really great brands being represented from all over the world, as well as many emerging Chinese names we’d never heard of, selling variations of popular Hytera models. We were curious to see what the big players had on offer, Hytera, Motorola, Kenwood and Entel were at the top of our list and we weren’t disappointed.

The Products That Got Us Excited

We had lined up meetings with our supplier Syndico and Entel for them to share their latest news with us directly. Entel showcased their new PoC radio DN400 series which is due out early next year. It looks a lot like a conventional radio, but with all the advanced PoC features, we can’t wait to get our hands on it when it’s released. Entel’s DX400 series also caught our attention, with an IP68 rating making it fully submersible (we saw the demo, it fared well!), it is sure to give competitors a run for their money as it has a brilliant price point for such a robust radio. Entel are definitely a brand to watch in 2019.

The Hytera stand was as expected, a brilliant showcase of their products, in a primary location as you entered. They really showed off their range and their hunger for the market share is evident.  Hytera’s products are already amongst some of our favourite devices, as they really offer the full package. They look set to continue to grow. Their PNC370 PoC radio that is due to launch soon was brilliantly demo’d, the software application provided us with a real insight into the powerful capability of PoC radio systems. We anticipate PoC products from all suppliers to be the ones to watch next year as the competition hots up.

We knew we wanted to check out PoC radios while we could see so many in the same place, and we spent a long time reviewing the latest tech from Entel and Hytera, we will definitely be stocking their offerings the minute they come available. We have such a good feeling that this is the direction that two-way radio comms is going. One to watch for sure.

We also loved the new technology that R-Linx had to offer with their Wi-Fi emergency buttons. This is new to us and something we’ll be looking into in more detail, we love the idea of a programmable tap button and we can see this having many practical applications.

Through the course of the day we saw many demonstrations of variants of Hytera’s dispatch control system, aimed at emergency services and large-scale control centres. These systems show great promise and have impressive capabilities, it will be something we’ll be keeping an eye on as they roll out through Europe.

A Positive Day

We were drawn the Syndico stand for light refreshment, as friendly and hospitable as ever, they were offering a free bar from 4pm. We didn’t need much persuading to quench our thirst after visiting so many of the excellent stands throughout the day.

In summary, the event was a brilliant showcase of two-way radios and all things radio communications. It was a great day, worth the time and money, and is an event we’ll be visiting again in future. There are a few key products we’ll be adding to our website and to our radio hire fleet. We are exciting to be moving to bigger premises soon to accommodate our growth, and we can’t wait to have a space to share some of the great new products we saw with our customers. Just try and stop us showing off some of the functions and capabilities.