Uniden USB-1 cable driver - Prolific PL2303 Vista installer (2006-10-22)
========================================================================

WHAT THIS IS
------------
Uniden's Vista driver installer for the USB-1 cable (32- and 64-bit). Uniden's
listing repeats the XP-era driver version numbers, which appear to be copied
from the older installer; the driver version inside could not be confirmed.

The USB-1 is Uniden's USB-to-RS232 adapter cable. Uniden: "The USB-1 cable
uses the Prolific PL2303 chipset." With the driver installed the cable appears
in Windows as a COM port, which programming software (FreeSCAN, UASD) and the
BC_VUP firmware updater then use.

APPLIES TO
----------
Uniden lists these scanners as using the USB-1 cable: BC246T, BCD396T, BCT15,
BCD996T, BC346XT, BCT15X, BCD396XT, BCD996XT and BC95XLT. In this archive it
is tagged to the BCD396XT and BC246T.

Only cables with the Prolific PL2303 chip, such as the USB-1. Uniden: a
third-party adapter with an FTDI chip needs FTDI's driver, and Uniden cannot
support third-party cables. Not relevant to the BC350A or BC355N, which have
no PC connection.

Operating systems: Windows Vista (32/64-bit).

BEFORE STARTING
---------------
  - Unplug the USB-1 cable. Uniden: "You must run this installer prior to
    plugging in the USB-1 cable."
  - Administrator rights on the PC (Uniden's troubleshooting steps run the
    installer with "Run as Administrator").
  - Know which chip the cable has. Uniden: older USB-1 cables use the
    PL2303HXA, newer ones the PL2303HXD; current Prolific drivers for Windows
    8 do not work with the HXA, which needs the 1.5.0 package. The 1.6.0 zip
    includes PL2303CheckChipVersion.exe to tell them apart.
  - Remove any older Prolific driver first if the cable misbehaves (see IF
    SOMETHING GOES WRONG).

CONTENTS OF THIS ZIP
--------------------
The zip published on fubsypoly.com wraps the vendor file(s) byte-for-byte,
unmodified.

PL-2303 Vista Driver Installer.exe
    2,065,563 bytes
    SHA-256 807b8a5a61c7d30149d65f0862eef51fc86e322b96a956ba04ae30fec266632e
README.txt
    This file.
SHA256SUMS
    SHA-256 checksums of the files above.

INSTALLATION
------------
 1. Run PL-2303 Vista Driver Installer.exe as Administrator and follow the
    prompts.
 2. Plug in the USB-1 cable. Windows should recognise it and install it as a
    COM port (Uniden: about 30 seconds the first time the cable is plugged
    into a port).
 3. Open Device Manager > Ports (COM & LPT) and note the COM number of the
    "Prolific USB-to-Serial Comm Port". Set the programming software or BC_VUP
    to that port.
 4. Each USB port on the PC typically gets a different COM number; after
    moving the cable to another port, update the software's port setting.

The exact wording of the installer's screens could not be confirmed.

VERIFYING
---------
With the cable plugged in, Device Manager > Ports (COM & LPT) lists a Prolific
USB-to-Serial Comm Port with no warning icon. A yellow mark with Error Code 10
on Windows 8 or later means an HXA-chip cable with a driver that does not
support it (Prolific's 1.6.0 release note).

IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG
-----------------------
Uniden's steps for a failed installation (verified on Windows 7 64-bit):

 1. Plug in the cable, open Device Manager, right-click the device with the
    error and choose Uninstall; then unplug the cable.
 2. In Uninstall Programs, remove "PL-2303 USB-to-Serial" and any other old
    Prolific drivers.
 3. Download the driver again, unzip it, right-click the installer and choose
    Run as Administrator.
 4. Plug in the cable; it should install as a COM port.

If the COM port appears but software cannot talk to the scanner, check the COM
number and the scanner's baud-rate setting, and close any other program using
the port.

DOWNGRADING
-----------
Drivers can be swapped: uninstall the current Prolific driver (Device Manager
and Uninstall Programs, as above) and install the other package. For an HXA
cable on Windows 8 or later Uniden directs users to the older 1.5.0 package.

PROVENANCE
----------
File:        PL-2303 Vista Driver Installer.exe
Source:      https://www.uniden.info/download/files/PL-2303%20Vista%20Driver%20Installer.exe
Wayback:     https://web.archive.org/web/20210125234941/https://www.uniden.info/download/files/PL-2303%20Vista%20Driver%20Installer.exe
Retrieved:   2026-09-18
Vendor page: https://www.uniden.info/download/index.cfm?s=USB-1
Status:      verified

Downloaded from Uniden's live file. Status verified: the vendor's own URL. The
driver was written by Prolific Technology Inc. and is redistributed by Uniden
for the USB-1.

MORE INFORMATION
----------------
  - Uniden USB-1 drivers page:
    https://info.uniden.com/twiki/bin/view/UnidenMan4/USB-1Drivers
  - Uniden download listing for the USB-1:
    https://www.uniden.info/download/index.cfm?s=USB-1
  - BCD396XT Upgrades & Firmware:
    https://scanners.fubsypoly.com/uniden-bcd396xt/vol-5/
  - Prolific drivers for other operating systems: http://www.prolific.com.tw
