SOS Lite Beta: Stream Your Own Scanner to Android (2026)

A hobbyist-built Android app called SOS Lite is in private beta, and it does the one thing commercial scanner apps cannot: stream your own radio to your phone with no feed delay and no subscription. The beta was announced on RadioReference on August 29, 2026 by forum member d3reeves of Logan, Ohio, and it targets owners of the Uniden BCD536HP and SDS200, with other Uniden models to follow (RadioReference thread).

What SOS Lite Does, According to the Beta Thread

The feature list posted for the private beta includes live scanner audio on Android, alpha tag and scanner information display, local-network connection, device-based beta activation, and a bug-reporting tool. Remote access and ScannerBridge support are listed as still in development. The developer, posting under the ScannerHeads name, has been answering questions in the same thread, which was still active on September 12, 2026.

Treat that list as unshipped. Beta software changes, features slip, and nothing in the thread describes a release date or a price. The notable part is the architecture, not the polish.

How Remote Listening Works: ScannerBridge and Tailscale

For listening away from home, the app pairs with ScannerBridge, a component that runs on an old Android phone parked next to the scanner. The developer says remote connections travel over a Tailscale VPN rather than an exposed router port, which keeps the setup off the public internet.

The developer reports he has listened to his home BCD536HP from about 60 miles away, with data tags carried alongside the audio (RadioReference thread).

That is the whole design in one sentence: your scanner stays at home, your phone becomes the remote head.

The Real Difference: No Feed Delay

Broadcast scanner feeds are somebody else's audio, relayed. They commonly lag 30 to 60 seconds behind the live transmission, and they die when your internet or their stream does. Listening to your own radio removes both problems. You hear the traffic as it goes out over the air, and the only network you depend on is the one you control.

For anyone who tracks live incidents, that gap is the whole point. It is why scanner feed audio and radio traffic never quite line up, and why remote listening from your own receiver is a different product.

What Is Not Shipped Yet

• Remote access is listed as still in development, so the app is local-network first for now.
• ScannerBridge support is on the roadmap, not in the beta feature list.
• Model coverage starts with the BCD536HP and SDS200. Other Uniden models are promised later.
• Activation is device-based and tied to the beta, so access is at the developer's discretion.

Which Owners Should Care

If you already own a network-capable Uniden base or mobile, this is a free way to test remote listening without buying anything. If you own a handheld, the beta does not apply to your radio yet, and there is no announced date for that. Meanwhile the safest path to live audio is still a pre-programmed unit that arrives ready for your county, such as the Baofeng UV-5R Mini.

Owners of newer Uniden gear should also watch the simulcast question, which is the hardware issue that decides whether a feed is clean or garbled. That is covered in Uniden SDS150 Flagship: Simulcast-Proof P25, Now Shipping.

How to Follow the Beta

The thread is the only source. The developer is recruiting testers directly, taking bug reports, and posting updates in the same conversation. If you own a BCD536HP or SDS200 and want in, the path is to read the thread and respond there rather than wait for an app store listing that has not appeared.

FAQ

What is SOS Lite?

SOS Lite by ScannerHeads is a private-beta Android app for Uniden BCD536HP and SDS200 owners that streams live audio from your own scanner to your phone, along with alpha tags and scanner information.

Does SOS Lite cost a subscription?

No subscription has been announced. The beta announcement describes device-based beta activation, and no pricing was posted in the thread.

Do I need ScannerBridge?

For local-network listening, no. For remote listening away from home, the app pairs with ScannerBridge, which the developer says reaches the phone over a Tailscale VPN instead of an open router port.

Is this the same as a Broadcastify feed?

No. Feed apps relay someone else's audio and typically lag 30 to 60 seconds. SOS Lite plays your own radio, so there is no feed delay and no third-party stream to go down.

Which Uniden models are supported?

The beta covers the BCD536HP and SDS200. The developer says other Uniden models will follow, with no date given.

Is the beta finished software?

No. Remote access and ScannerBridge support are listed as still in development. Treat the feature list as a plan, not a shipping specification.

Bottom line: SOS Lite is a beta worth watching if you own a BCD536HP or SDS200, because it removes the feed delay that scanner apps cannot. It is not finished software, and it does not help handheld owners yet.