Hey everyone. Well..I'm thinking about buying a radar detector, and for those of you who already have one, I heard that the valentine V1 is the best. I was wondering, now could a radar detector actually help prevent you from getting tickets? does it alert you when cops are around? because I was under the impression that they work to let you know WHEN a radar is being focused on you, and by then it would be too late anyway, right? So I was just wondering how they work, and if they're actually useful, cuz I've had three speeding tickets already, and its made my insurance go up wayy too much, i can't afford anymore. thanks!

 

Radar detectors detect stray radio waves bouncing off cars in front of you.

They do not alert you when cops are around. The device that does this is called the bear tracker. It works by detecting the relay that cop car put out when they receive a signal, I believe.

Laser detection is not as good as radar on most detectors. A lot of times if you get laser indicators, you have been hit. At that point you count how many of your nine lives are left and check the speedo.

Radar detectors are a tool. If you have gotten three tickets in a short period of time you may want to slow down a little also.

 

do you have anymore information on this? im very intrested

 

I found a review of uniden's bct10.

http://www.nellump.net/peri/hypo/gen...artracker.html

 

radar detectors are not good for laser b/c at 4100 feet a laser beam is only 10 inches wide...so it isn't able to pick up the signal unless you have already been hit...

i got the Escort Passport 8500 which has saved me from about 5 tickets in less than a month...

go to http://www.radartest.com to look at reviews of the different models

also, laser shifters are good for avoiding laser guns...they send a signal back to the gun to jam it and then you can slow down and turn them off so that the cop can try and hit you again with the laser, but by then you are already going the speed limit....you might want to check your state laws b/c these are illegal in certain states

Escort is supposedly the best radar/laser detectors

 

laser's only valid at something like 1000 yards anyhow (3000 feet), because the dispersion is too great to be accurate (i forget the court case name that determined this though).. Never understood why they could use radar if laser is ruled like this, but whatever.

Personally I like the Beltronics Vector 850. Combine that with the BelTronics LaserPro™ 904 (laser detector/jammer) and you'll be pretty well. I've found the detector in the 850 is pretty damn sensitive w/o going off on false calls. Oh, and in NJ i also found it *will* tell you where the cops are.. they drive around with radar on


[Modified by rjr162, 3:21 PM 3/17/2003]

 

YUP, they are illegal in Virginia and Washington DC.

 

i love my valentine 1 it has saved me many times.