COEUR d’ALENE — A yearlong search to find a new provider for dashboard recording, body cameras and vehicle-installed computers will likely come before the Coeur d’Alene City Council tonight.

“We went out looking to find equipment that would connect with our current system,” Coeur d’Alene Police Department Capt. Dave Hagar said. “We think we found a winner with Getac.”

Getac — provided by the Washington, D.C., vendor PCN Strategies — is a brand of computing and recording equipment marketed toward law enforcement. The city already budgeted the funds before beginning the bidding process.

PCN Strategies turned out to be the lowest qualified bidder. They were also one of two who were able to provide what Hagar called a necessary characteristic of the contract: software and hardware that would work with the department’s already-established systems.

“One of the things we really try to do is be good financial stewards,” Hagar said. “Rather than switch to a web-based company, we were able to find a company that could work with the in-house recording we already have in place.”

The shift in companies represents more of a change in the marketplace than reliance on inferior systems. The brand the department has traditionally used for mobile computing — Coban — no longer manufactures or supports the equipment. Meanwhile, Vievu, the company Coeur d’Alene employs to supply its body cameras, was purchased and downsized in a corporate takeover.

“It’s probably taken us about a year to get to this point,” Hagar said. “We’re always looking for ideas that are more economically optimal. This was a company that came to the top of the list.”

The $196,510 contract — some of which will be funded with grant money — provides for 28 laptop computers, 18 in-car video systems and 36 body cameras.

Mayor Steve Widmyer said keeping peace officers technologically up to date is one of the most important commitments the city should make.

Hagar, meanwhile, called the switch — if approved tonight — a transition that will happen over time.

“It’s really like going from an Android to an Apple,” he explained. “It’s a new company we’ll slowly phase into as we move forward.”