Honeywell Granit 1981i FR Cordless Bluetooth 2D Full Range Area Imager USB Kit with Charge and Communication Base 1981IFR-3USB-5

End of life. Honeywell placed the Granit 1981i at end of life in May 2023 and names the Granit XP 1991iXLR as the replacement, which Barcode Printer Shop does not currently stock. The Granit XP 1991iSR we do list is not a substitute: it is a standard range scanner reading to 33 in, against this unit's 52 ft on a 100 mil code. Remaining 1981IFR-3USB-5 stock is sold for fleet matching, replacement units and validated workflows where requalifying a new model is not practical.

Key Features

• In the box: Red 1981iFR-3 scanner with vibrator, the CCB05-100BT-07N charge and communication base, a black USB Type A cable 3 m long and coiled, battery installed. No power supply.
• Full range optics: reads a 100 mil Code 39 from 40.7 in out to 629.9 in, which is 52 ft, and still reads a 2 mil code in the hand.
• Cordless Bluetooth v2.1 Class 1 with 100 m or 330 ft of line-of-sight range, so the operator can walk the aisle rather than the label.
• Area imager with an integrated laser pointer aiming system and auto-illumination, so the aim is visible at rafter height.
• Reads a 13 mil UPC from 4.8 in to 90.5 in and a 20 mil Code 39 from 6.0 in to 171.0 in.
• Minimum resolution of 2 mil on 1D and 2D codes alike.
• Vibrator feedback, which is the only good-read confirmation that works on a noisy dock.
• Rated for 50 drops from 2 m onto concrete at minus 20 C, and 5,000 tumbles from 1 m.
• IP65 sealed against dust and water jets; the base is IP51.
• At least 7,200 scans and 8 hours of operation per charge on a 2400 mAh battery.
• Works from complete darkness to 100,000 lux, which covers a dark rack aisle and a sunlit yard.
• Three-year factory warranty on the scanner, one year on the battery.

Key Specifications

• In the box: Red 1981iFR-3 scanner with vibrator, the CCB05-100BT-07N charge and communication base, a black USB Type A cable 3 m long and coiled, battery installed. No power supply.
• Scanner type: Cordless industrial area imager, full range optics, red housing with vibrator
• Decode range: 7.5 mil Code 39 3.9 to 64.9 in; 13 mil UPC 4.8 to 90.5 in; 20 mil 6.0 to 171.0 in; 40 mil 14.3 to 389.4 in; 100 mil 40.7 to 629.9 in
• 2D decode range: 7.5 mil Data Matrix 3.9 to 29.9 in; 10 mil 3.9 to 40.3 in; 55 mil 16.9 to 232.8 in; 100 mil 31.8 to 406.5 in
• Minimum resolution: 2 mil, 1D and 2D codes
• Angle tolerance: Pitch 70 degrees, skew 80 degrees. Honeywell publishes no roll figure for this model
• Radio: Bluetooth v2.1, Class 1, 100 m (330 ft) line of sight, 2.4 to 2.5 GHz adaptive frequency hopping, up to 1 Mbps
• Battery: 2400 mAh Li-Ion minimum; at least 7,200 scans; 8 hours of operation; 4.5 hour charge with an external power supply fitted to the charger
• Durability: Scanner 50 drops at 2 m (6.5 ft) to concrete at minus 20 C, 5,000 tumbles at 1 m, IP65; base 50 drops at 1.2 m, 5,000 tumbles, IP51
• Host interfaces: Delivered by the base: USB, keyboard wedge, RS-232 TTL. This kit is cabled for USB Type A
• Dimensions and weight: Scanner 133 x 75 x 195 mm (5.2 x 2.9 x 7.6 in), 420 g (14.8 oz); base 250 x 103 x 65 mm, 290 g
• Warranty: Three-year factory warranty; battery warranty one year

Kit contents

This kit is the red 1981iFR-3 scanner with its vibrator and battery fitted, the CCB05-100BT-07N charge and communication base, and a black USB Type A cable 3 m long. Note that cable: Honeywell's ordering string for this part number describes it as COILED, while the TAA sibling 1981IFR-3USB-5-N ships a straight industrial-grade cable with its own part number. They are demonstrably different leads and neither part number should be ordered on the strength of the other. What is not in the box is a power supply. Honeywell's own Quick Start Guide says the power supply must be ordered separately if needed, and the base takes host power over the bundled USB cable, so a USB install works as delivered and a keyboard wedge or RS-232 install needs a supply added to the order.

Full range optics

FR means full range and on this scanner that is not a marketing gradient, it is the entire purpose of the product. A 100 mil Code 39 reads from 40.7 in out to 629.9 in, which is 52 ft, so an overhead rack placard or a rafter-mounted location label can be read from the floor without a ladder or a lift. At the other end of the same optical path a 2 mil code still resolves in the hand. In between, a 20 mil code reads from 6.0 in to 171.0 in and a 13 mil retail UPC from 4.8 in to 90.5 in. The Granit XP 1991iSR we also list is a standard range unit that stops at 33 in on a 20 mil code, so it is not an alternative to this scanner under any circumstances and no configuration setting changes that.

Imaging engine

The decode engine is an area imager. Honeywell prints the scan pattern as area image, and the only laser in the specification is the aiming system: an integrated laser pointer with auto-illumination, which is what makes a target visible at 40 ft. That distinction matters because a laser scanner sweeps a line and needs the code aligned with it, while an imager takes a picture and decodes what is in the frame. Pitch tolerance is 70 degrees and skew 80 degrees; Honeywell publishes no roll figure for this model and none is invented here. Light tolerance runs from complete darkness to 100,000 lux, and the minimum resolution is 2 mil on 1D and 2D codes alike.

Cordless operation

The radio is Bluetooth v2.1 Class 1 running adaptive frequency hopping between 2.4 and 2.5 GHz, rated at 100 m or 330 ft line of sight, with a data rate up to 1 Mbps. Line of sight is doing real work in that sentence: racking, steel and stock all cost range, so a yard survey is worth more than the headline figure. The battery is a 2400 mAh Li-Ion minimum, good for at least 7,200 scans taken one every four seconds across an 8 hour shift. Charge time is 4.5 hours with an external power supply fitted to the charger, which is worth reading twice, because the power supply is not in this box. Honeywell publishes no out-of-range batch capacity for the 1981i and none is quoted here.

Build and sealing

This is the ultra-rugged end of Honeywell's range and the figures are specific to it. The scanner is designed to withstand 50 drops from 2 m onto concrete at minus 20 C, plus 5,000 tumbles from 1 m, and is sealed to IP65 against dust and water jets. The base is rated separately and lower: 50 drops from 1.2 m, the same 5,000 tumbles, and IP51 sealing. ESD immunity is plus or minus 20 kV air discharge and plus or minus 8 kV contact on both units. Operating temperature runs from minus 20 C to 50 C, storage with the battery from minus 40 C to 70 C, and humidity to 95% non-condensing. The scanner weighs 420 g at 133 by 75 by 195 mm.

Discontinued status

Honeywell placed the 1981i at end of life in May 2023 and no longer hosts a live product page for it; only the data sheet and the quick start guide remain. The named replacement is the Granit XP 1991iXLR, an extra long range unit, and the choice of successor is itself informative: Honeywell replaced a full range scanner with a full range scanner rather than with the standard range 1991iSR. Buying a 1981i today is a deliberate decision. Fleet matching so that one spare covers every truck, replacing a failed unit without requalifying a workflow, and keeping a validated process untouched are all sound reasons. Starting a new deployment on it is not, because parts and support availability only shorten from here.

Where it fits

High-bay warehousing, yard operations, cold stores and heavy manufacturing: anywhere the same operator has to read a damaged 2 mil code on a component in the hand and a 100 mil placard three racks up. That combination is the case for full range optics and it is expensive to solve any other way, because the alternative is two scanners or a lift truck. The case against this part number is equally clear. If every code is read at arm's length on a counter or a bench, full range optics buy nothing and a standard range scanner is cheaper, lighter and current. If the site needs a scanner it can still buy in five years, this one is discontinued and a current model is the right answer.

Barcode Printer Shop supplies Honeywell scanners to US businesses with the kit contents stated plainly on the page, so what arrives is what was ordered. Contact us to learn more or secure this solution for your business today.