What is the best radar detector for a deescent price?

[kowalski]

Hi to ya all, I'm pretty new here on this forum so I don't have any good experiance with radardetectors. I was interested in a Bel Vector 995 but this detector lacks a lot of options that many other detectors have such as SPECTRE, instant alert etcetra etcetra, so which detectors are recommended for a good price maximum 300 dollars.

The detector must have all the necessery options that is important, and have good test reviews 8)

thanx for your help

[Ovencleaner]

Hi to ya all, I'm pretty new here on this forum so I don't have any good experiance with radardetectors. I was interested in a Bel Vector 995 but this detector lacks a lot of options that many other detectors have such as SPECTRE, instant alert etcetra etcetra, so which detectors are recommended for a good price maximum 300 dollars.

The detector must have all the necessery options that is important, and have good test reviews 8)

thanx for your help

IMO you will be happier with the detection range and ThreatDisplay of an Escort X50 or RX65

[jimbonzzz]

Regarding the features you mentioned:

Spectre should only be a concern for you if you frequently drive where radar detectors are illegal. The only detector which cannot be detected by Spectre is the BEL STi Driver and remote variants, and is the ONLY choice for someone who frequently drives where detectors are illegal. However, the STi is way above the price you want to pay. Some Cobras have a "Spectre Alert" feature, which only works for the first version of Spectre, the Spectre I. It does not work for the Spectre II, III, or IV.

ALL detectors alert to instant-on radar, although some detectors have special "instant on alerts". There is NO way for a detector to know for sure if the radar being detected is actually instant-on or not, all the "instant on alerts" do is provide a different alert if the signal ramps up very quickly, whether it is actually instant-on radar being used or not. You could obviously tell if a signal ramps up quickly with the "regular" radar alerts on most detectors. IMHO the special "instant-on alerts" are little more than novelty, and although some people like them, personally I don't.

[hockey005]

cant beat the professor on explaining that one...x2

[jdong]

Bottom line: Budget detectors worth considering:

Whistler XTR-690
Whistler Pro-78

Bel Vector 940 and above


Premium, top-of-the-line models:

Escort 8500 x50
Bel RX65
Escort 9500i
Bel STi / STi-R

Valentine One



These are IMO the only models to consider in your search. All are adequate in terms of performance and featureset and the prices run in this list from $115 upwards of $500.

Don't pay too much attention to feature lists... They are mostly just marketing gimmicks.

[Loiosh]

The best feature for any RD is your knowledge of how it works.

[trinispeed]

I own quite a few. Of course the V1 is the best, kind of pricey though. I enjoy my X50's the most. If I were you I would personally go for a X50. BTW the blue display looks better than the red imo.

[rose1]

I would get a Pro 78 rev. c

[dmo1028]

Loiosh and Rose1 - I agree with both of your statements!