Three ways to keep your teams communicating, for different constraints and budgets. This guide helps you recognise yours; the coverage survey then settles it.
01 · DMR · MOTOTRBO
You own your network: radios communicate directly or through your own SLR repeaters. Simple, robust, no subscription.
02 · TETRA · DIMETRA
The standard for large-scale critical communications: priority calls, end-to-end encryption, several organisations on the same redundant network.
03 · BROADBAND · WAVE PTX
Your teams can talk wherever there is 4G or Wi-Fi, with no repeaters to install and no frequencies to apply for. Voice, messages, photos and location.
Both are digital, reliable and professional. The difference lies in scale, criticality and the number of organisations sharing the network.
Our rule: do not oversize if DMR is enough for your site, and do not entrust a critical operation to consumer 4G alone.
Each technology occupies its own frequency band, with its own licence. That is why a DMR terminal cannot talk to a TETRA network, and why broadband relies on an operator’s network rather than private frequencies.
Benchmarks to guide your choice. Each project is sized by the coverage survey.
| Criterion | DMR · MOTOTRBO | TETRA · DIMETRA | Broadband · WAVE PTX |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ideal for | Industrial sites, fleets, hospitality | Public safety, emergency services, airports, energy | National mobile teams, transport, logistics |
| Range | One site or several sites linked over IP | Regional to national | National, depending on operator coverage |
| Users | Dozens to several hundred per site | Thousands | Depending on the number of subscriptions |
| Infrastructure | SLR repeaters (1000, 5500, 8000) and, beyond that, Capacity Max | Network core and base stations (DIMETRA Express, X Core, MTS) | None: existing mobile or Wi-Fi network |
| ARTCI licence | Yes, we prepare the application | Yes | No, the network of an already licensed operator |
| Security | Basic and enhanced privacy; AES-256 depending on model and licence | TEA1/2/3 air interface encryption and end-to-end encryption | AES-256 encryption of data streams |
| Priority in a crisis | Good, on your own channels | Maximum: standardised pre-emption and queuing | Depends on the operator’s network |
| Lead time | Short, depending on ARTCI authorisation and supply | Long: an infrastructure project | Shortest: subscription activation |
| Cost structure | Mainly purchase, no subscription | Significant infrastructure investment | Little purchase, subscription per user |
| Examples | R7 · R5 · Ion · SLR 5500 | MXP600 · MXP660 · MTP8550Ex · DIMETRA Express | TLK 110 · TLK 150 · LEX L30 · WAVE PTX |
MOTOTRBO handhelds and SLR repeaters: your own network, at a controlled cost.
DMR handhelds → TETRA “An airport, an emergency service: no congestion, no interception.”TETRA terminals and DIMETRA system: call priority and end-to-end encryption.
TETRA terminals → BROADBAND “Teams spread between Abidjan, San-Pédro and inland.”WAVE PTX over 4G: the push-to-talk button wherever operators provide coverage.
BroadbandDMR (ETSI TS 102 361 standard, MOTOTRBO range) is an economical and robust private digital radio, for coordinating teams on a site or a fleet. You own your network.
TETRA (ETSI standard, DIMETRA systems) is designed for large-scale critical communications: priority calls, end-to-end encryption, several thousand users.
Push-to-talk over 4G (WAVE PTX) turns a rugged terminal or a smartphone into a radio with national reach, on the operators’ networks.
No licence or infrastructure to deploy, but you depend on the operator’s coverage: where there is no network, there is no communication.
For DMR and TETRA, yes: the use of frequencies is subject to authorisation by ARTCI. We prepare the application on your behalf.
For broadband, no: you use the network of an already licensed operator.
Yes, and it is common. A site equipped with DMR can extend communication to its mobile teams via WAVE PTX, with the two linked by a gateway.
The architecture depends on who needs to talk to whom: that is what the scoping phase settles, before the coverage survey. See our approach.
Our Motorola Solutions-certified engineers, based in Abidjan, simulate coverage on your terrain and guide you towards the right technology.