Wow. Only yesterday I realized they were twin radios and was very surprised no one was speaking about it. Great video, really helpful. Greetings from Poland.
I've just got mine PNI HP82 and it can (at least with my FW) change the mode to multiband (RA 25.615 to RL 30.105MHz). Just tried PTT + Func during bootup and TABLE selection menu appeared! Wow! I bought mine in Poland as a normal version and voilla. It works multiband. And NRC is a trully GAME CHANGER! during last's 13-th of the month (we have whole country wide tests @ 8PM) I've heard a guy in a car who was transimtting from 15km like it's a LOCAL! Amazing!
I like that the PNI is at least available, but the added frequencies of the Thunderpole means I'll be patient and wait for them to come in stock. Am enjoyig getting back into CB radio - looking forward to when President GEORGE II comes availalbe as well :) its all about patience to get the good equipment! (awaits sat antennas from well known UK distributor....)
Thanks for the video comparison.There are some people using CB in my area. I can pick them up on a couple of mobile radios I have but use as base station. Though as usual you get someone who broadcasts music on Ch19. Then someone with a powerful amplifier will try and transmit over them. Also pickup some toxic conversations at times. Not been able to make contact on my standard radios. So I was thinking of getting a hand held to see if I would get a better chance when I'm out and about. Didn't want to invest too much in case I'm not able to get contacts even while I'm out.
I have two requirements from a non-SSB handheld CB: full power output on the built-in battery, and some kind of CTCSS/DCS. I know the more expensive Randy III can do both, but others vary.
The only problem with the Randy 3 is the supplied trickle charger! but that's one big problem unless you find an alternative way of charging the battery.
the thunderpole is currently out of stock but more on the way. The PNI I have is the escort 62. about the same as midland one. which I have as well. The PNI 62 can change bands according to country. The midland one I have is fixed band. sold for the US market. both PNI and Midland take same battery pack and 12V mobile cord. I will be using a DX commander antenna with a element cut to 3/4 wave at 11 meter CB band. the expedition one. for portable setup. just cut wires for the bands you want and making extra ones for CB . 12 meter. 3/4 wave 6 meter. 1/4 and 3/4 wave on dipole comes to 50 ohm. 3/4 wave having better gain and better broadband match. love that icom speaker. that next on my list. 73's Boston NY,USA
Thanks for comparing outta the box with the “included” antenna. While aftermarkets are widely available, as we all know, stock operation is the norm as I’ve witnessed as a trucker. Most normies don’t know or care to learn about aftermarket parts as witnessed by most units for sale after people get bored and sell them online. Also theres a limit to what people (myself included) will tolerate during use. For me as a tillerman steering the wheels on the trailers to maneuver around obstacles in town and along the highway delivering the huge windmills between Pennsylvania and California to N. Dakota or the Texas New Mexico & Mexican Border i was in my escort vehicle on my mobile cb mounted on top center of the dashboard where it’s easily accessible while steering my truck w/one hand and a remote control to steer the trailer wheels in the other hand watching & steering 2 vehicles at a time leaves little room for stupid distractions. But on some job sites or drop lots or marine terminals we had to walk along side the trailer or ride on the trailer when we could get away with it, and steer the huge windmills out through the gates & onto the road to begin the trip, then in the middle of nowhere on delivery sites miles from the nearest paved road, so stock antennas never created a range / distance issue due to only being no more than 100 to 300 yards away from the driver of the semi. So you can imagine how cumbersome an aftermarket super duper telescoping antenna would hinder constantly getting in and out of a vehicle in the middle of winter & its -25F with 30 mph gusts of wind or in +120F arizona desert in august. So i say “YaY” for the stock rubber ducky. 👍🏻
Both are excellent radios but in my view the Thunderpole T-X has the edge with a display that looks better. Also the word "Escort" conjures up visions of the car from the 1970's and it also has a more modern meaning that for many relates to the field of prostitution. Small things can affect sales in a big way....
The PNI is £90 from Moonraker and includes the vehicle kit. The Thunderpole is £99 and as far as I can tell you have to pay £15 extra for the vehicle kit. It’s a no brainer - go for the PNI!
Iam lucky I was able to get one from Thunderpole as soon as they came out I also have A Randy 3 and Randy2 and the much less expensive Thunderpole TX compares very well for the price.
Still wondering how either the Thunderpole or the PSI compare to the President Randy III. I have the Randy and can't get a hold of the Thunderpole, but could get my hands on the PSI.
I would love to see the thunderpole tx and the president Randy 3 ..compared to each other...i have a tx..and its a fantastic radio....iive seen the randy 3 in action but i would love to se side to side comparison between the 2 radio.....thanks for this video its what made my mind up and got the tx instead of the pni...😎😎😎😎
NRC and price level are the main difference between Randy III and PNI/ Thunderpole comparsion. However, I would choose the PNI/ Thunderpole handheld all the way.
Great comparison. The Thunderpole seemed to have more of a transmitted buzz on the test than the PNI. It could possibly be the receive on the PNI being overloaded.
@CB.PUNISHER.1900SSB isn't practical on a handheld CB because of the power consumption, and it's actually why there has only ever been one SSB capable CB HT! the Albrecht AE-2900 and it's various clones including the Magnum equivalent.
Maybe you should consider doing the mic tests with speaking directly and from the side as well. I always speak from the side into the device to avoid popping and other noises.
looks like its software and screen printing of the buttons are the only differences. Seen this many a time with cb's. In the "olden" days a jumper would make the difference but now its software. Wouldn't surprise me that you could flash new firmware in via a Jtag inside.
Hello ,thanks for your video. I notice in my jopix like this units , the audio bandpass is very narrow, very selective, it has delay , and not much clear vs another cb walkies, vs analogs. This ones not listen am static noise of the band clear than anothers. The audio tx is very good, and the noise reducer. For me, they aren't not much quality audio rx.
Hello there, I just received my PNI HP82, ordered from PNI in the Netherlands (but it arrived from their head office in Romenia). You say in 3'00" that the PNI can't do that (expanding the channels, Tables 1-6), but mine seems to be able to do that, just like @rafniedz2354 said.
Wow. Only yesterday I realized they were twin radios and was very surprised no one was speaking about it. Great video, really helpful. Greetings from Poland.
I was after the Thunderpole T-X but couldn't find it anywhere. Got my PNI last week. Just got to get out and play with it!
I've just got mine PNI HP82 and it can (at least with my FW) change the mode to multiband (RA 25.615 to RL 30.105MHz). Just tried PTT + Func during bootup and TABLE selection menu appeared! Wow! I bought mine in Poland as a normal version and voilla. It works multiband. And NRC is a trully GAME CHANGER! during last's 13-th of the month (we have whole country wide tests @ 8PM) I've heard a guy in a car who was transimtting from 15km like it's a LOCAL! Amazing!
If you have contacts with these manufacturers, please tell them that we want SSB (and 10-12 meters)!
Sorry I don’t
Thanks Lewis what a great review.....
I like that the PNI is at least available, but the added frequencies of the Thunderpole means I'll be patient and wait for them to come in stock. Am enjoyig getting back into CB radio - looking forward to when President GEORGE II comes availalbe as well :) its all about patience to get the good equipment! (awaits sat antennas from well known UK distributor....)
I wondered if you were going to open the cases to compare the guts, Techmoan style.
You can access to the extra channels tables on the PNI too, the keys combination is Func+PTT+ON.
Thanks for the video comparison.There are some people using CB in my area. I can pick them up on a couple of mobile radios I have but use as base station. Though as usual you get someone who broadcasts music on Ch19. Then someone with a powerful amplifier will try and transmit over them. Also pickup some toxic conversations at times. Not been able to make contact on my standard radios. So I was thinking of getting a hand held to see if I would get a better chance when I'm out and about. Didn't want to invest too much in case I'm not able to get contacts even while I'm out.
I have two requirements from a non-SSB handheld CB: full power output on the built-in battery, and some kind of CTCSS/DCS. I know the more expensive Randy III can do both, but others vary.
The only problem with the Randy 3 is the supplied trickle charger! but that's one big problem unless you find an alternative way of charging the battery.
the thunderpole is currently out of stock but more on the way. The PNI I have is the escort 62. about the same as midland one. which I have as well. The PNI 62 can change bands according to country. The midland one I have is fixed band. sold for the US market. both PNI and Midland take same battery pack and 12V mobile cord. I will be using a DX commander antenna with a element cut to 3/4 wave at 11 meter CB band. the expedition one. for portable setup. just cut wires for the bands you want and making extra ones for CB . 12 meter. 3/4 wave 6 meter. 1/4 and 3/4 wave on dipole comes to 50 ohm. 3/4 wave having better gain and better broadband match. love that icom speaker. that next on my list. 73's Boston NY,USA
Thanks for comparing outta the box with the “included” antenna. While aftermarkets are widely available, as we all know, stock operation is the norm as I’ve witnessed as a trucker. Most normies don’t know or care to learn about aftermarket parts as witnessed by most units for sale after people get bored and sell them online. Also theres a limit to what people (myself included) will tolerate during use. For me as a tillerman steering the wheels on the trailers to maneuver around obstacles in town and along the highway delivering the huge windmills between Pennsylvania and California to N. Dakota or the Texas New Mexico & Mexican Border i was in my escort vehicle on my mobile cb mounted on top center of the dashboard where it’s easily accessible while steering my truck w/one hand and a remote control to steer the trailer wheels in the other hand watching & steering 2 vehicles at a time leaves little room for stupid distractions. But on some job sites or drop lots or marine terminals we had to walk along side the trailer or ride on the trailer when we could get away with it, and steer the huge windmills out through the gates & onto the road to begin the trip, then in the middle of nowhere on delivery sites miles from the nearest paved road, so stock antennas never created a range / distance issue due to only being no more than 100 to 300 yards away from the driver of the semi. So you can imagine how cumbersome an aftermarket super duper telescoping antenna would hinder constantly getting in and out of a vehicle in the middle of winter & its -25F with 30 mph gusts of wind or in +120F arizona desert in august. So i say “YaY” for the stock rubber ducky. 👍🏻
Both are excellent radios but in my view the Thunderpole T-X has the edge with a display that looks better. Also the word "Escort" conjures up visions of the car from the 1970's and it also has a more modern meaning that for many relates to the field of prostitution. Small things can affect sales in a big way....
What does the name “Thunderpole” make you think of?
Price is the main thing here for me.
I just ordered two cant wait to play with them
The T-2000 is the same as the PNI 9001. Which is a reworked delta LT 318.
The PNI is £90 from Moonraker and includes the vehicle kit. The Thunderpole is £99 and as far as I can tell you have to pay £15 extra for the vehicle kit. It’s a no brainer - go for the PNI!
Iam lucky I was able to get one from Thunderpole as soon as they came out I also have A Randy 3 and Randy2 and the much less expensive Thunderpole TX compares very well for the price.
Just ordered a pni, great video!
I was wondering if these two were the same.I’m guessing apart from the obvious button deferences it is only firmware that separates them.Thanks Lewis👍
Still wondering how either the Thunderpole or the PSI compare to the President Randy III. I have the Randy and can't get a hold of the Thunderpole, but could get my hands on the PSI.
Hey! Great Video! One thing to mention, is that the PNI can be brought into other raster, you need to hold FUNC and PTT while turning the device on.
Good one Lewis
I would love to see the thunderpole tx and the president Randy 3 ..compared to each other...i have a tx..and its a fantastic radio....iive seen the randy 3 in action but i would love to se side to side comparison between the 2 radio.....thanks for this video its what made my mind up and got the tx instead of the pni...😎😎😎😎
NRC and price level are the main difference between Randy III and PNI/ Thunderpole comparsion. However, I would choose the PNI/ Thunderpole handheld all the way.
Great comparison. The Thunderpole seemed to have more of a transmitted buzz on the test than the PNI. It could possibly be the receive on the PNI being overloaded.
@CB.PUNISHER.1900SSB isn't practical on a handheld CB because of the power consumption, and it's actually why there has only ever been one SSB capable CB HT! the Albrecht AE-2900 and it's various clones including the Magnum equivalent.
Maybe you should consider doing the mic tests with speaking directly and from the side as well. I always speak from the side into the device to avoid popping and other noises.
Both are a similar price in the UK if you look around the sellers.
you can have any name put on these radios, might be slightly different versions
I wonder if these can be modified to transmit on the 10 Meter Amature Radio band.
looks like its software and screen printing of the buttons are the only differences. Seen this many a time with cb's. In the "olden" days a jumper would make the difference but now its software. Wouldn't surprise me that you could flash new firmware in via a Jtag inside.
Sadly both currently out of stock
In fact PNI was first on the market.
Hello ,thanks for your video. I notice in my jopix like this units , the audio bandpass is very narrow, very selective, it has delay , and not much clear vs another cb walkies, vs analogs. This ones not listen am static noise of the band clear than anothers. The audio tx is very good, and the noise reducer. For me, they aren't not much quality audio rx.
Can you do a video about the radio array in Exmouth Western Australia ?
It's a shame neither of them has ssb.
Something like these with ssb would sell well and I reckon they would go right off here in Australia.
How does the JOPIX CB-514 do in comparison? It gets good german reviews.
What about the third contender, the Nanphone CB-272 which is another handheld that looks the same. Is it the same as the PNI or the Thunderpole?
It’s identical to the PNI
Do these have a USA frequency table for channels? If not can the channels be programmed to US frequencies. I looked, can’t seem to find an answer.
These should work fine on EU or CE mode, those modes use FCC-legal frequencies.
Will it work on the am usa frequency
THunderpole TX better display and expansion.
What about range?
What about it
hi lewis i won't lie, i kinda wondered the same. do u reckon a tx/rx comparison might be a worthwhile vid?
Stay tuned, filming that tomorrow ;)
@@RingwayManchester nice one!
Range is like asking, how long is a piece of string. Depends on your antenna, transmitting location etc.
sold out already
What is?
both radios are sold out on the links. hot cakes@@RingwayManchester
Both as at 2100 hrs UK
The "Escort" can still be bought on Amazon so it's not sold out... The Thunderpole T-X is sold out with more stock supposedly arriving in September.
Look identical probably from the same factory
Now both are out of stock xD
place called kcb getting thrm on thursday.
@@allanallen1835 Thanks
Hello there, I just received my PNI HP82, ordered from PNI in the Netherlands (but it arrived from their head office in Romenia). You say in 3'00" that the PNI can't do that (expanding the channels, Tables 1-6), but mine seems to be able to do that, just like @rafniedz2354 said.