Cobra iRadar iRAD-100 Radar Detector for iPhone and iPod Touch

There are many things that you should keep in mind before buying a wireless radar detector.

Let us go through some of the most important aspects:

1. Your budget – You get a wireless radar detector for anything between $50 and $500. How much money can you spare for this accessory? Here, you should also keep in mind that the costlier ones are more reliable and smaller (hence, more easily camouflaged). It is better to wait form a few months (and saving money) to buy a costly one, than buy a cheap one that is likely to malfunction and give you often false alarms.

2. What type of radar you want to choose – Along with the budget, you will need to find out what type of wireless radar detector you want buy. It is important to do some basic research on this matter since there are so many companies and so many types of wireless radar detector machines that it is quite difficult for anyone to decide on the spot.

3. Is it legal? – This is a very important aspect, although it is also the most ignored factor. Many countries do not permit the use of a wireless radar detector (or any type of detector as a matter of fact). In that case, if you still decide to buy and install one, then you should be prepared to bear the brunt of the law if caught.

4. What features you want your wireless radar detector to have – Do you need anything special? This is the time to think about it. Before you go to the market you should make a list of what features you would prefer your wireless radar detector to have. Then, search online or offline which brands have these features, their cost, and their delivery methods. If you find everything in order, go ahead and make the buy.

5. Install the wireless radar detector very carefully – Whether it is legal or not, it has cost you money. So keep it in a safe place and manner that where it can work without the danger of being identified by the policemen or thieves.

6. Be very careful of scams – The net is a wonderful medium where you can find anything you want to get and more. However, you also get a good share of scammers. Be extremely wary of anything that sounds too good to be true; that’s a sure sign of a scam and a scammer.

Wireless Radar Detector Scams

The best way to find out a scam is by running a research in the net. There are consumer websites that serve as the scam police, and they also have a good and fast method of tracking down the false wireless radar detectors if you do get ripped off.

Beltronics Vector V940 Radar Detector

Radar detectors have advanced technologically quite a bit since they were first invented. As with most technology, the units have become smaller and more powerful as the years have progressed, and also cheaper. When you are in the market for a top radar detector, you will probably need to do your research to decide which unit is right for you.

Whichever top radar detector you decide on; what your price range is first, so you will know just exactly what you can afford. At that point, you can decide which top radar detector you want in that range.

Features of a Top Radar Detector

A top radar detector will be able to find and receive many frequencies of radar, especially since there are many different types of radar that monitors movement on the roads. A top radar detector will not only monitor for radar frequencies in front of you, but also on the sides and back of your vehicle.

Also, a good detector will be able to differentiate between false signals given off by equipment in cities such as a garage door opener and an actual radar detector monitoring the road. It will also have the option to modulate the sensitivity of its radar detection, and be able to operate on a city mode. This will make it less likely to give off false alarms while you are in a city, where other types of signal can set off the alarm on some radar detectors.

Many of the top models will also have options for how you are notified if there is radar in your vicinity, and will even have the option between a signal or noise and a voice alert if it does detect anything in the area.

A top radar detector should also have the ability to detect frequencies that sometimes police use to monitor cars to see if they have radar detectors. This usually happens in states like Virginia and Washington D.C. where radar detectors are illegal. A top radar detector will have the ability to quickly find these radar seeking signals and then immediately shut its own signal off so officials do not detect the unit.

A top radar detector can mean a significant investment. If you are on the road frequently for work or travel, however, your investment may pay for itself fairly quickly by alerting you so that you can slow down and avoid speeding tickets.

Beltronics Vector V940 Radar Detector

Planning to sell radar detectors doesn’t have to consume a lot of up-front cash, as there are numerous drop-shippers more than willing to fulfill your wholesale radar detector needs. That doesn’t mean you’re going to get the best price or possibly even the best product, but it saves money from stocking inventory.

Just like choosing the best radar detector for what you plan to use it for, choosing a wholesale radar detector supplier should be a timely process. If the detectors you end up selling are really refurbished units or worse, counterfeits, your days will be numbered as a retailer.

In relation to price, Cobra sells on its own website the Model XRS 9500 11 band radar and laser detector for $140. A website claiming to be able to offer wholesale radar detector pricing, sells the exact same model for $150. You’ll realize a savings of $10 by skipping the wholesale radar detector and going straight to the source. Both sites offer factory warranty as return guarantees. Unfortunately you have to wait until you approve your checkout to find out what it’s going to cost for shipping.

Many other companies offer to warehouse the merchandise for you, if you sell it for them. It’s a great way for a purvey merchandise for a wholesale radar detector until you think about your ultimate costs.

Wholesalers Don’t Have Your Interests In Mind

Suppose you want to sell radar detectors on eBay, or any other on-line auction site. You choose a supplier for your wholesale radar detector and list the merchandise on your auction. True, you didn’t pay for the merchandise that, for the sake of argument is going to cost $100 as a wholesale radar detector. You place a starting bid of $110 and let’s say you get lucky and someone buys it for $120.00. The order is sent to the supplier of the wholesale radar detector and they ship it directly to the buyer.

The payment, along with that money charged for shipping and handling. The company you deal with as the supplier of that wholesale radar detector sends you $20. Great deal, right? Now figure in your costs of listing the item on the auction site, payment fee charged to you if the payment is made through an on-line payment service like Pay Pal and a final value fee based on the selling price. Fees are going to be just about $5. Out of the remaining $15 profit, you still have to pay the monthly service fee for using most (not all) drop shippers. Most fees are about $15 a month and if that one radar detector is all you sell, you may come out ahead a nickel for taking the time for listing that item from the drop-shipper.

Of course if you plan on selling several items and day, in the long run it can come out in your favor, but if you’re trying to sell a wholesale radar detector that costs more than what you can buy on the retailer’s website, you may not sell too many and you’re out the listing fees.

Beltronics Vector V940 Radar Detector

Many people do not have a clue about what is the radar detector state law, along with most of the other standard laws that they are supposed to follow. Most are happy to lead their routine law-abiding lives without really knowing the nitty-gritty of the law. There have been so many instances when people were caught with radar detectors and punished as per the law, only to find themselves stunned because they presumed that if such devices were openly available on the market, they were lawful to use.

This is why many reputable brands now have to incorporate a few lines in the instruction manual saying that you will need to check whether the radar detector state law allows or forbids the use of the device before installing it. Even then, many drivers ignore the fact that it is possible to find themselves on the wrong side of the law after setting up the radar detector in their vehicles.

Companies who manufacture radar detectors in places where their use is banned are very careful about their propaganda and marketing strategy. They are also careful that they stay on the right side of the radar detector state law and law in general. This is why the well-known brands have something that can be compared to the statutory warning on a cigarette packet – i.e. that warning to check before installing the detector whether the radar detector state law permits its use or not.

Why It’s Important to Stay Within Radar Detector State Law

People who live in a place should be able to abide by the laws of that place — only then there will be peace and security for all. People, who want to install a radar detector despite it being against radar detector state law, risk fine and even imprisonment. They also risk themselves and their families through an accident caused by speeding.

Normally speaking, people who are assured that they will not come under the radar detector state law tend to take speeding lightly. Some people are responsible, it is true, and they have excellent control of their vehicles, but have you ever tried to stop a car tearing down the road at 150 miles per hour in a matter of seconds? It’s impossible. So keep in mind that the best bet is to stay within the law; only then we can expect others to follow the rules of the road, too, keeping the highways safe for everyone.

Beltronics Vector V940 Radar Detector

Today it is common for a man to be evaluated by the car he drives. Women all over the world are bowled over by a man who drives an expensive and fast Ferrari; even better if the car is a convertible. Now imagine another scenario – you are in your 20s, have an excellent red convertible and you have a gorgeous lady sitting besides you while driving – quite literally drinking you with her eyes.

In this situation, you want to impress her and so you speed up the car to make the drive look and feel even more exciting. Her hair is flying in the air and she looks breathtaking. Just when you think this is paradise on earth, a police car waves you down to write you a speeding ticket. Can there be any bigger dampener of romantic spirit than such an incident?

How to (Almost) Guarantee Your Escape

This ‘magical solution’ is a device called a radar speed detector that can be installed on any vehicle big or small (even a motorcycle) that can detect a radar gun before the radar detects your vehicle speeding. The radar speed detector is an excellent device that can keep you warned every time there is radar around you.

Of course, once you have this device installed, you will not worry anymore about speeding squads on the highways and places where police lurk – because your radar speed detector will warn you in advance of the presence of these traps. But then you should be careful that you do not drive recklessly just because you think you cannot be caught anymore.

Actually, the greatest downside of the radar speed detector is that it tends to make the drivers reckless and as a result highly prone to accidents. This is one of the main reasons why some countries have banned the use of the radar speed detector and why law enforcement comes down hard on any violation.

Any way you look at it, the radar speed detector is a double-edged sword. On one hand it protects you from being caught and given speeding tickets (which can burn a hole in your pocket in no time) and gives you total peace of mind. And on the other hand, it encourages you to become a hazard on the road, which can endanger your life and the life of others around you.

Beltronics Vector V940 Radar Detector

The suggestion to read a radar detector review before plunking down money is really only partly useful. Since different people under different environments conduct testing the quality of a radar detector review will vary accordingly.

For example, Radartest.com uses an eight-mile straight highway with distances over five miles for its radar detector review and Speed Measurement Labs insists on instant-on testing for both radar and laser testing, and only uses certified police officers for their sample runs.

Car and Driver bases its radar detector review on a three-mile straight road, with the radar units turned slightly, making the tests seem like the distances were only about a mile or mile and a half. AutoWeek goes further, basing its radar detector review on a real-world scenario. Over a period of months, they test radar units over regular commuting routes and a few longer trips. Differences in a radar detector review also creep up due to the testers being human, and thus susceptible to error.

Not All Claims Can Be Validated

Keep in mind, as well, that some claims made by manufacturers may not be as honest as they maybe should be. If advertising offers a guarantee to “pay your ticket” be sure to read the fine print, regardless of what you read in a radar detector review about that product. Most will not pay if the speed is more than 10 miles per hour over the speed limit and some will disclaim responsibility if the ticket is issued in a school zone or in a residential neighborhood.

Cost is another factor listed in radar detector reviews for consideration. Prices may range from under $50 to over $1,000 and a good radar detector review can tell you exactly the kind of quality you will get for that money. Keep in mind what you truly need – if you aren’t driving 100 miles in a Porsche over hills and mountains every day, you probably don’t need to spend more than a $1,200 on a radar detector no matter how cool the review makes it sound – the detector won’t turn you, the Volkswagen driver, into Mario Andretti.

When you do read the radar detector review for the units you are interested in, be sure to read the entire section for each feature. Some may have great range and a really cool readout, but lack filtering capabilities. A good balance among all features for the radar detector review you choose should help you pick the best unit for your money.

Beltronics Vector V940 Radar Detector

Radar detector technology has advanced quickly through the years, as the science behind it has become more and more understood. A remote radar detector is just another technological advance, this one nearly unrecognizable compared beside the original radar detector models, which were large, bulky, and unsophisticated next to their modern counterparts.

Remote Radar Detector Pros and Cons

A remote radar detector is one that is inconspicuous. It is professionally installed inside the dashboard and front grill of your car so that no one can see it. This is especially important if radar detectors are illegal in your area. They cannot readily be seen from the inside of the car, so unless law enforcement specifically looks for the device, they won’t find it on first inspection. This stealth capacity also keeps thieves from being tempted into stealing your radar detector.

One of the only downsides to a remote radar detector is its cost. Since the remote radar detector technology is so far advanced and top of the line, it will cost quite a bit, often more than $1,000. Additional costs are also involved with a remote radar detector since they are designed to be installed out of sight by professional mechanics that will then charge for parts and labor. Keep in mind that some remote radar detector retailers include the installation cost in their price, so that once you receive the unit, all you have to do is take it to a local shop, and the retailer will pay for the detector to be added to your vehicle.

A remote radar detector consists of advanced technology. Top of the line radar detectors not only monitor the signals known to be used by the police, they monitor those frequencies that are looking for radar detectors in your car. This is especially true in those states where radar detectors are illegal, like Virginia and Washington D.C. A remote radar detector that is high-end will find these radar detector detectors, and then immediately turn itself off as after warning you of the threat. This enables you to know the threats in your immediate vicinity.

Whatever type of radar detector you choose to buy, it may eventually end up paying for itself, since it will save you speeding tickets. A remote radar detector can be a good choice, especially if you don’t want it to be seen by those who may be looking into your car for various legal reasons.

Beltronics Vector V940 Radar Detector

A radar gun will cost from less than $100 to over $2,000, depending on the quality desired and its intended purpose. When most people think radar gun, they instantly think speeding ticket, but baseball pitching speed, golf club speed and the speed of just about anything you might be curious about can be measured with a radar gun.

Radar is an acronym for Radar Detection and Ranging. When activated, a radar gun shoots a radio frequency signal to an object at the speed of light (186,000 miles per second) which, once it bounces off the target, returns to the gun. When the signal echoes, a computer analyzes the time difference and combines it with the Doppler shift to accurately calculate the object’s speed, usually within 1 mile per hour or less of the true value.

The very first S-Band radar system for speed control, requiring two officers to operate, was used in Connecticut in the early 1960s. In the nearly 50 years since, the S-Band is obsolete thanks to the three bands in use today.

A radar gun cannot read the speed of an object unless it is in front of or behind the target. Since it uses Doppler technology it can’t read speeds from the side. Therefore, the more of an angle the target is to the gun, the less accurate the speed that’s detected.

Radar Not Just For Cars Anymore

If you’ve ever watched a baseball game, the speed of a pitcher’s throw is almost instantly displayed either on your television screen or on the scoreboard at the park. The use of a sports radar gun, patterned after police units, has been growing over the past 20 years. There are even radar guns used in carnivals where you have to predict the speed of your throw to win a prize.

While most police units are handheld, there are mounts available for the radar gun. Used as stationary units for sports measurement, there is a radar gun for every conceivable purpose. Some will measure the club head speed for golf instruction while others can measure the speed of an arrow or even a paintball. And how do you think they measure the muzzle velocity of bullets fired from a gun?

Finally, there is even a radar gun that measures slow speeds. The SportsPro from Astro Home boasts a range of 1 to 294 miles per hour with an accuracy of one tenth of one mile per hour. This type of radar gun can be used to track speeds of slow-moving trains in a yard and fork lifts in a factory. No matter your need, there’s a way to track speed.

Beltronics Vector V940 Radar Detector

Basic radar detectors have been around for years – since the 1970s — and thousands of people have used them to avoid speed traps. A radar detector with compass is a step up from the clunky, inefficient model that most people bought back then. The technology has improved significantly over the years, and a radar detector with compass is quite a step up.

A radar detector with compass works much the same way as a regular radar detector. The only difference is that this model has a digital compass integrated into the unit. This allows the radar detector to fix its own position, and thus enables it to indicate more accurately where the radar may be monitoring the highway.

Helpful Information Regarding a Radar Detector with Compass

Even though a radar detector with compass is fairly popular, it has been eclipsed by newer technology. It is not as precise as a radar detector with GPS — a global positioning system — for pinpointing where you are and where other radar signals may be coming from. A GPS radar detector is much more accurate and detailed and can give you much more information than a radar detector with compass.

There is a big positive side to a radar detector with compass. It is more readily available than a GPS radar detector, and even more affordable. Since the radar detector with compass technology is not as top of the line as it used to be, thanks to advances in detector technology, you can find a radar detector with compass more cheaply than you would a GPS system.

Whichever system you decide to buy, a radar detector may end up saving you money in the long run, since you might be able to avoid the police. Even though a radar detector with compass is readily available, they are not legal in Virginia or Washington D.C. In all of the other states they are legal, but that may change, so double-check your state’s laws when considering purchasing a radar detector with compass.

Radar detectors can be big money savers, especially for those who commute a lot and have a tendency to speed most of the time. If you can avoid just a few speeding tickets, your new radar detector with compass will pay for itself! So, do your research, keep abreast of what the laws are regarding radar detectors in your state, and you will be fine.

Beltronics Vector V940 Radar Detector

People always love to do whatever is forbidden. Whatever that may be, the moment it is banned, man will think of ways to get around the rules. This is the case with the hi-tech tools used for traffic controls. Today the police can control speeding with the help of radar posts from which they monitor car speeds with radar guns and then flag the drivers down to deliver speeding tickets.

You have to get a speeding ticket to know how frustrating it feels to get one; only then you will realize how trying it is to be caught and fined. This is why many people install a radar detector scrambler in their car that helps them sneak past the radar trap undetected.

What Is This Device?

The radar detector scrambler is, as the name suggests, a device that does not allow the police radar to pick up the speed of your car. This is not exactly a radar detector – the detector will give you a warning in the form of a beep, light flash, or human voice alert regarding the imminent speed trap, which makes it easy for the driver to slow down immediately.

On the other hand, with the radar detector scrambler, the radar is not allowed to pick up the car – that is, it will make the car invisible to the police squad with the radar. The problem is that here, even though the radar does not pick the car up, the police will surely take notice if the car flies past like a hurricane.

Unfortunately, a radar detector scrambler rarely warns its owner. This is rather like a silent worker who does their job without bothering to collect the thanks due. However, in this context, the radar detector scrambler is quite dangerous because if the police visually spot the vehicle speeding, there is precious little that anyone or any device can do here to save you a ticket. So the radar detector scrambler is only for those drivers who very rarely speed and generally drive within the normal speed limits.

You definitely do not need a radar detector scrambler if you have the passion for speed and you love to flaunt it to all and sundry. You will do better to buy a good radar detector rather than scrambler, because the former will warn you of the approaching danger which will help you check your speed sufficiently by the time you reach the police post; on the other hand the scrambler will most definitely get you caught because you will be totally unaware of the danger that lies ahead of you.