Best Radar Detectors

[TruWrecks]

https://www.pashnit.com/product/adaptiv_radar_buy.html

Buy from a motorcycle enthusiast!

 

[lnewlf]

I sold my sportbike and bought a FJR, kept my Passport 8500, and now I don't get performance awards. Pfuzz everywhere nowadays,even on the backcountry mountain roads. I got really tired of running-that had to work out badly someday.

 

[Capt. Bob]

You could always drive the speed limit

Naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.

 

[FJRONAMISSION]

This topic rates right up there with oil and tires. At first I was going to jump on this and make some type of a comment about buying a less expensive detector that does only a partial job, thus leaving you almost as unprotected as no detector at all so why bother. Then I thought, man am too tired to yet again cover this topic the way that is necessary to give a meaningful answer. But, in the end I've got to say something.
Less than top line detectors will indeed pickup most radar and some laser signals, but often don't give sufficient warning or warn you until after it is too late. The Adaptive detector is an example of a well appointed motorcycle detector that only provides half-ass(1) measurably lower protection. But, it is waterproof, glove friendly and small! It does everything but give you good protection.

Let's take another tact here. Do you sometimes ride in a way that a radar detector may save you from a ticket? Do you live in an area where the police have the edge on you with up-to-date radar equipment? If their equipment is better than your detector you are getting a ticket. Now, how much would that ticket be? Do you normally ride borderline? Say 48 in a 40? 65 in a 55? Does your speed wander into the real danger zone where you could well be 15 or more over? If you ride 15 over or more what would that ticket be? What about your insurance increase?

Here is my bizarre suggestion. Estimate what a 15 over ticket would cost and what the resulting insurance increase would cost over the next three to five years. Now start your own personal insurance policy. Pay into the policy what you can afford, but pay into it as often as you can, because you never know when that ticket may be coming. Save, save, save against that rainy day. At some point, count that money, how much you got? I expect that your 'insurance' balance of $500 won't pay 3-5 years of insurance increase, so save, save, save. Oh, but wait -- how much was that top quality radar detector? Well golly dang, it cost less than what you have in your insurance policy...

FWIW.

(1) sanitized offensive phrase to make this post more palatable to the Adaptive leaning riders

==============

I am with you on this statement........

=Oh, but wait -- how much was that top quality radar detector? Well golly dang, it cost less than what you have in your insurance policy...=

Now which one you pick????

B.

 

[ionbeam]

If you have the $$$ buxs $$$ any of the following will give nearly equal warning. This is a no-brainer list, some research may add others into this same elite category. In no particular order:

Valentine One

Escort Passport 9500i

Beltronics Pro ??65

Bel STi Driver Radar

The arrow lovers will jump all over the Valentine. There is a big difference between these choices in the amount of falsing vs detection, and they are not equal in shielding from RDDs (Radar Detector-Detectors).

 

[JamesK]

+1, this page on RadarRoysBuyersGuide.com does a nice comparo of the top 3-4 radar detectors:

Bel vs Escort vs Valentine One

 

[fjrrider]

I've run thge Adaptiv now for almost a year. I have had an Escort and Valentine. The only thing I have figured out for sure is this.... A radar detector (no matter the brand) is supplemental protection at best and almost useless in the twisties!

Just my .03

 

[Rubbersidedown]

In my search for a "smokey" detector I have come across a very good objective source for radar detector reviews.Radar Test tests most of the detectors available on the market in objective controlled side by side tests in the same location. I'll post a couple of links to particular articles I found interesting, but recommend the site to anyone looking into any device.

For those of you considering the Adaptiv, they did a really good review with some not too impressive things to say about it. Radar Test Article Unfortunately this test only pitted it against the ultra high end detectors so it doesn't really address my initial question. At 3/4 the price and about 1/3 of the performance, I would have to say it would be worth the extra coin.

I guess I'm still looking for the 3/4 of the performance at 1/3 the price. At $180 I still find the Whistler XTR695 very interesting, and although it didn't perform at the same level as the V1 and the Escort, it hands down outperforms any Cobra model and many other more expensive units. I especially like that it displays the frequency of the Ka band signal so that you know whether it is a police frequency or just noise. And although I don't ride much in places where they are illegal, they do mention that it is very difficult for the RDDs to detect this device except at very close range.

 

[Bogey907]

Best detector on a budget?

The radar test site says it's the Bel 955 (best under $200):

https://radartest.com/article.asp?articleID=100582

At 95% of the sensitivity of a V1 and less than half the price, it works for me.

 

[Geezer]

Best detector on a budget?
The radar test site says it's the Bel 955 (best under $200):

https://radartest.com/article.asp?articleID=100582

At 95% of the sensitivity of a V1 and less than half the price, it works for me.

I have a Beltronics Vector, not sure of the model number. It receives signals from ALMOST as far away as my Escort X50. I put it in one of my cars after I got the Escort. The problem with the Beltronics I have is that it does not have a jack for external headphones. Not a problem in the car, but a must for me on the bike.

 

[Rubbersidedown]

Best detector on a budget?
The radar test site says it's the Bel 955 (best under $200):

https://radartest.com/article.asp?articleID=100582

At 95% of the sensitivity of a V1 and less than half the price, it works for me.

I am just about ready to pull the trigger on a Whistler XTR-695. I have found prices from $140-$159 with free shipping, although both are back ordered (the latter is expecting units today and to ship tomorrow) and the performance numbers on that chart don't seem to clearly favor the Bel. It is only slightly better at detecting X and K band in the curve test and is weaker in almost all bands on the straightaway test especially X and K. To most the X band doesn't matter, but I live in one of the two states still using it so it pulls some weight with me. The best feature, IMHO, is the identification of the frequency so that you know it is an authentic police radar signal and not just a cell tower or what have you. In any case, I think it will prove quite adequate for my application and is a good 3 bills cheaper than some of the others.

 

[squeezer]

Happy, happy days for those looking for a budget detector.

On, eBay right now, you can get a reconditioned Passport 8500 directly from Escort.

149.95. Free shipping. Full warranty. With cords, manual, car mount, etc.

At the moment, that would be your best radar detector under $200.

 

[HotRodZilla]

I am just about ready to pull the trigger on a Whistler XTR-695. I have found prices from $140-$159 with free shipping, although both are back ordered (the latter is expecting units today and to ship tomorrow) and the performance numbers on that chart don't seem to clearly favor the Bel. It is only slightly better at detecting X and K band in the curve test and is weaker in almost all bands on the straightaway test especially X and K. To most the X band doesn't matter, but I live in one of the two states still using it so it pulls some weight with me. The best feature, IMHO, is the identification of the frequency so that you know it is an authentic police radar signal and not just a cell tower or what have you. In any case, I think it will prove quite adequate for my application and is a good 3 bills cheaper than some of the others.

RSD,

I'm gonna go back and edit my previous post, but I just realized that the detector that I borrowed that only went off when I was getting stopped was a Whistler...It was NOT a Passport. Sorry, I'ts been a while, but when I saw you talking about the Whilstler, it all came back.

 

[Fred W]

Happy, happy days for those looking for a budget detector.
On, eBay right now, you can get a reconditioned Passport 8500 directly from Escort.

149.95. Free shipping. Full warranty. With cords, manual, car mount, etc.

At the moment, that would be your best radar detector under $200.

Linkage?

 

[SANFRANFJR]

You already did but I was going to mention Radar Roy and he sells the Adaptiv TPX
I don't have one yet but I have seen the Valentine 1 in action. Seems to work fine.

for now I rely on rabbits....

I've had radar detectors since the 70's - original FuzzBuster. The best one I've used to date is my current Valentine-1. More money up front, but has front/rear/side detection that works...AND, the software can be upgraded without having to buy an entire hard part unit when the technology gets better. As with all the units on the market, the most important things are: know how to read what it's telling you and don't overdrive it's protection......ie, open your eyes.

I also have a backup Passport 9500 and Escort. Both good units too.

Kirk

 

[jjsC6]

I have a Beltronics and am very happy with it. It think everyone needs to be realistic about what they need. I could care less about the V1 arrows - if mine is going off, I slow down - I dont care if the cop is in front, behind, or hiding in a Dairy Queen - I slow down till it quits going off.

Also, I don't care about it in the city - I run with the flow of traffic in the city. I only care about it out in the country where they are virtually always running some sort of K band. I've always gotten plenty of warning.

BTW, I have it velcro'd on top of the clutch reservoir, and have one of those super-bright LED blocks mounted just over my guages - I am also very happy with that.

 

[Rubbersidedown]

I am just about ready to pull the trigger on a Whistler XTR-695. I have found prices from $140-$159 with free shipping, although both are back ordered (the latter is expecting units today and to ship tomorrow) and the performance numbers on that chart don't seem to clearly favor the Bel. It is only slightly better at detecting X and K band in the curve test and is weaker in almost all bands on the straightaway test especially X and K. To most the X band doesn't matter, but I live in one of the two states still using it so it pulls some weight with me. The best feature, IMHO, is the identification of the frequency so that you know it is an authentic police radar signal and not just a cell tower or what have you. In any case, I think it will prove quite adequate for my application and is a good 3 bills cheaper than some of the others.

RSD,

I'm gonna go back and edit my previous post, but I just realized that the detector that I borrowed that only went off when I was getting stopped was a Whistler...It was NOT a Passport. Sorry, I'ts been a while, but when I saw you talking about the Whilstler, it all came back.

I hear you on your experiences with Whistler although I don't have any of my own. My understanding is that the Whistler has significantly raised the bar with their newer products, which over the last couple years have gotten a lot of positive press from some well recognized sources.

I also seem to understand that the Valentine 1 has and extremely high falsing rate due to the sensitivity of its antennas and each false is registered twice since their are two antennas. While the range of the Whistler might not be top tier, I don't know that I would want top tier. Some of the newer models claim they can detect a source over 10 miles away. That is far sooner than I want to be alerted, because I am then spending 9.9 miles scanning for the cop who may be around the next bend. One mile would be more than adequate for me assuming that I am only in jeopardy the last 1/4 mile or so. I am sure that the real world range is far less, but the range shown by radartest.com seems to be plenty adequate for me.

As for the falsing, it seems like the only "solution" are the GPS enabled detectors, but with the relative age of the technology it comes at a hefty premium. As with everything this is a sum of compromises and priorities.

 

[squeezer]

Linkage?

Just go to eBay and search "radar detectors"

It's the first thing that pops up.

 

[Rubbersidedown]

Linkage?

Just go to eBay and search "radar detectors"

It's the first thing that pops up.

That does seem like a pretty good deal. I did notice that this is the older 8500 and not the newer 8500 x50. I don't know what the difference is and the 8500 was top dog by many standards several years back. I only wonder if and how much the technology has improved, both on our side and theirs.

To anyone looking for a tried and true detector at a good price I would jump on this. I think I will be guinea pigging myself on the new Whistler. My dad has an Escort (not sure which exact model) and when I get mine I will try to do some side by side comparison to try to evaluate dollar for dollar and head up if there is any benefit between the two. If it doesn't stand up then I'll be sure to give someone else a crack at it for a good price.

 

[Inlaw1]

The biggest problem I've seen with cheaper detectors is falsing-you eventually tire of it, turn it off, or ignore it. Then you get nailed. Best I can suggest is waiting for a used Escort or Valentine to pop up, that's what I did, and got a 8500 for $180.

This is the real problem with the lesser priced units. It's the false signals that keep going off that you get tired of and you either don't hit your brakes the one time you should, or you turn it off and eventually get caught.

I'm an Escort fan and just don't get the "arrows" thing . I've had one or another Escorts since they started making them and they have saved me many, many times. They've also let me know when I'm getting pulled over a few times. :blink: I just recently upgraded from an 8500 to the new 9500ix. Talk about a pricey unit... but well worth it so far given I rarely have any false signals after running most of my usual routes. It either learns them, or you can mark them into the unit. You can also down load a data base of sites for red light camera's, speed camera's and marked false signals from other users. Pretty cool.

Look around Ebay or here for a used 8500, but if you want a decent detector that will last and do you the job you need, expect to pay at least $300 for either the V1 or 8500. That's my .02