Review COTRE CO01D

COTRE CO01D - Basics

The CO01D is about as basic a DMR handheld as you will find anywhere.
- Single Band, UHF only
- Single zone
- 16 channels
- Tier 2
- No display

In the Box

Included with the radio are the:
- 3.7V 1500mAh Battery
- Belt clip with screws
- Charger base & AC adapter
- Antenna – 2.8" (7.1 cm)
- Quick start User Guide sheet – English

General Description

-   DMR / FM
-   UHF Band only
-   Size: 4.0 x 1.0 x 2.0"   (100 x 25 x 50mm)
-   Weight:    4.8 oz   (136g) w/ant & battery
-   430-470 MHz
-   CTCSS / DCS

-   2.0 / 0.5W transmit
-   16 channel
-   1 Zone

Transmitter

The CO01D is US Part 90 certified with a UHF frequency range of 430-470 MHz. Along with DMR, the radio also supports analog FM (Wide and Narrowband).

My audio reports over the air and using DMR Parrots have been excellent both through a DMR hotspot and the local repeaters.

The power is rated at 0.5 and 2.0W. Due to the antenna base, I was unable to do an actual power level test. Below are the power levels used by the FCC for certification.

click to enlarge

Receiver and Audio

The receiver sensitivity is very good on both digital and analog. I found the receive audio lacking some low frequency response but not that objectionable and perfectly readable.

The volume is controlled by the +/- side buttons, with position 0 being off and 8 being loud. Personally I would like level 1 to be a little bit lower, but it's not objectionable.
0 = off 1 = med 8 = loud (there is no low)

Enclosure

The CO01D is one of the smallest and lightest weight radios I own.

The small case weighs in at 4.8oz with the antenna and 3.7V 1500mAh battery installed. Battery removal is a simple press and slide down.

Directly under the PTT button is a programmable switch designated by a small circle. There aren't too many options other than a few basics shown HERE. The Menu button switches between Channel, Scan and Power.

On the Right side of the case are the K1 style programming jack and the power on/off button. Again, very basic.

Antenna

The included antenna is 2.8" long. which is a fairly common size for a handheld. The limitation here is the threaded antenna base. It is not the standard SMA configuration, but rather a thin threaded screw in connection.

Software

As you would expect, it's a very basic software. For DMR, load the contacts, create a channel and that's it. There's only one 16 channel zone, but it does give you the option to select the order of the channels.

The software as well as the user guide can be found on the Cotre Website. (Under FAQ).

Programming Cable

The basic programming cable is a K1 style cable with the UART chip in the USB connector. This is commonly referred to as a traditional two pin Baofeng / Kenwood K1 style. There are several compatible cables available, some requiring special drivers while others are Plug'n'Play. These programming cables are available from Amazon.

Battery and Charger

The included battery is a 3.7V 1500mAh reminiscent of the old cell phone batteries (see below) and the charger comes with an AC power module.

The charger is a bit unique as it can hold the handheld vertically or just the battery across the top due to the small size of the battery.

The LED on the front of the charger base is Red when charging, and Green when fully charged or no radio in the cradle. The battery easily charges to full capacity with an overnight charge.

click to enlarge

Operation

I found the operation a bit cumbersome. Not having a display requires you to have a good memory or carry a cheat sheet. As described above, The volume levels aren't bad if you are outside or mobile, but there is no low volume setting.