What is the difference between MOTOTRBO and DMR?
If you are interested in digital radio communication, you may have heard of two terms: MOTOTRBO and DMR. What are they and how are they different? In this blog post, I will try to explain the basics of these two technologies and compare their features and benefits.
What is MOTOTRBO?
MOTOTRBO is a brand name of Motorola Solutions for its line of digital mobile radios (DMR) that comply with the DMR standard. MOTOTRBO radios offer voice and data communication, as well as various applications and services, such as text messaging, GPS, telemetry, and remote control. MOTOTRBO radios can operate in both analog and digital modes, and can interoperate with other DMR radios from different manufacturers.
MOTOTRBO radios are designed to meet the needs of different industries and users, such as public safety, transportation, hospitality, and manufacturing. They come in different models and configurations, such as portable, mobile, repeater, and base station. They also support different system architectures, such as conventional, IP site connect, capacity plus, linked capacity plus, and connect plus.
What is DMR?
DMR is a digital radio standard developed by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) for professional and commercial use. DMR aims to provide a low-cost and easy-to-use digital solution that can replace the existing analog systems. DMR uses a two-slot time division multiple access (TDMA) technology that allows two simultaneous voice or data channels in a 12.5 kHz channel, doubling the capacity and efficiency of the spectrum. DMR also offers better voice quality, range, and battery life than analog systems.
DMR is divided into three tiers, depending on the functionality and complexity of the system:
- Tier I: License-free DMR radios that operate in the 446 MHz band with a maximum power of 0.5 W. They are intended for personal and recreational use, and do not support repeaters or advanced features.
- Tier II: Licensed conventional DMR radios that operate in various frequency bands with a maximum power of 5 W for portables and 25 W for mobiles. They support repeaters and some data services, such as text messaging and GPS.
- Tier III: Licensed trunked DMR radios that operate in various frequency bands with a maximum power of 5 W for portables and 25 W for mobiles. They support multiple repeaters and sites that are connected by a network, and offer enhanced data services, such as telemetry and remote control.
How are MOTOTRBO and DMR different?
MOTOTRBO and DMR are not mutually exclusive terms. MOTOTRBO is a specific brand of DMR radios, while DMR is a generic term for any digital radio system that follows the DMR standard. Therefore, all MOTOTRBO radios are DMR radios, but not all DMR radios are MOTOTRBO radios.
The main difference between MOTOTRBO and other DMR radios is that MOTOTRBO offers some proprietary features and applications that are not part of the DMR standard, and may not be compatible with other DMR radios. For example, MOTOTRBO radios support a vocoder called AMBE+2, which provides better voice quality than the standard AMBE vocoder. MOTOTRBO radios also support a data protocol called Motorola Data Protocol (MDP), which enables various data applications, such as text messaging, GPS, telemetry, and remote control. However, these features and applications may not work with other DMR radios that use different vocoders or data protocols.
Another difference between MOTOTRBO and other DMR radios is that MOTOTRBO radios are designed and manufactured by Motorola Solutions, which is a well-known and reputable company in the radio communication industry. Motorola Solutions has a long history and experience in developing and providing radio solutions for various markets and customers. Therefore, MOTOTRBO radios may have some advantages over other DMR radios in terms of quality, reliability, performance, and customer service.
MOTOTRBO and DMR are two terms that are related to digital radio communication. MOTOTRBO is a brand name of Motorola Solutions for its line of DMR radios, while DMR is a digital radio standard developed by ETSI for professional and commercial use. MOTOTRBO radios offer voice and data communication, as well as various applications and services, that comply with the DMR standard. However, MOTOTRBO radios also have some proprietary features and applications that are not part of the DMR standard, and may not be compatible with other DMR radios. MOTOTRBO radios are designed and manufactured by Motorola Solutions, which is a well-known and reputable company in the radio communication industry.
If you are looking for a digital radio solution that can meet your needs and expectations, you may want to consider MOTOTRBO radios as one of your options. However, you should also be aware of the differences and compatibility issues between MOTOTRBO and other DMR radios, and make sure that you choose the right system and configuration for your situation.