OVIEDO, Fla. – The Oviedo Police Department has completed upgrading its five-year-old tasers.

Officers went from a 2018 Taser 7 model to a 2023 Taser 10 model.

Oviedo City Communications Manager Lisa McDonald said the newer tasers are safer for officers and suspects.

“The old tasers use a two-prong approach to subduing a subject, with one prong being positive voltage and the other prong being negative voltage,” McDonald said. “Both of those prongs are equal to about 50,000 voltage.”

The new tasers deliver much less voltage in a single shot, “approximately 800 to 1,000 volts,” about 1/50th less voltage than the older model.

“It also has a warning alert on top of the officer’s commands,” McDonald said.

Accuracy and range also increase. The new tasers have a range of 45 feet “and can be used from a greater distance to subdue a subject.” The old ones fired only 25 feet.

The old tasers required reloading after two firings, but the new tasers contain 10-shot cartridges, giving officers more opportunities to hit the intended target in case they miss or if the prong was unable to pierce clothing or other outerwear.

The Oviedo Police Department said the new tasers cost about the same as the older model.