Thales plans advanced encryption for P25 radios
Thales Communications announced a software upgrade scheduled for later this year that will add 256-bit key AES encryption to the Thales 25 portable radio.
The radio is P25-compliant and offers OFB DES encryption, an 11 hour-plus lithium-ion smart battery with fuel-gauge display, 304 channels, RF power up to 5 watts and GPS tracking.
In addition, new firmware is available to upgrade early versions of the Thales 25 radio. Version 5.11, for Model-501 radios, offers improved priority scan, an enhanced keypad with side button lockouts, unit ID display, and backlight enhancements. Version 7.1, for Model-503 through Model-506 radios, increases sensitivity while scanning, improves receiver response time, and provides more reliable shadow channel selection.