Radar Detectors: Reviews

Updated September 2009

Auto GPS

Compare All

Best radar detector overall

*Est. $525 Compare Prices

Expensive new radar/laser detectors with GPS receivers can do one thing others can't -- they warn you where speed or red-light cameras are lurking. Experts say the Escort Passport 9500ix not only excels at this, it also… detects radar guns more quickly than its rivals do. The 9500ix also automatically determines which alarms are false and remembers them -- so it will only get your attention when it counts. The 9500ix isn't invisible to radar-detector detectors like the Beltronics STi Driver (*Est. $500) is, but experts say that only matters if you're illegally using your radar detector in areas where they're banned.

See more photos, specs, and reviews

expand

collapse

Expert & User Review Sources:

SpeedZones: The Escort Passport 9500ix is one of the top performers in this authoritative test by Speed Management Laboratories. Rather than ...

RadarBusters.com: "Radar Roy" Reyer, the former police officer who runs this retail site, says the Escort Passport 9500ix "is the best detector on ...

RadarTest.com: Reviewer Craig Peterson says he doesn't consider this a true comparison, because one of the competitors -- the custom-installed ...

PopularMechanics.com: Popular Mechanics' Glenn Derene spends a week testing the Escort Passport 9500ix in speed-trap-rich southern Connecticut. He ...

Laserveil.com: LaserVeil.com, a retail site selling a laser light-absorbing spray for cars, also rates radar detectors. The Escort Passport ...

Amazon.com: The Escort Passport 9500ix is one of the highest-rated radar detectors at Amazon.com, averaging 4.5 stars (out of five) in more ...

Where to buy:

See All Stores

Best mid-range radar detector

Beltronics RX 65

*Est. $300 Compare Prices

The Beltronics RX 65 radar/laser detector lacks GPS functionality, so it can't alert you to speed or red-light cameras like the Escort Passport 9500ix (*Est. $525) can, and it's more prone to false alarms. It also takes… longer to get a strong signal from a faraway police radar gun in tests. However, reports say the RX 65 gives the driver more warning than a budget unit will. The RX 65 radar detector also comes with some helpful extras, including a signal-strength meter, Ku-band detection for European use (Ku-band radar is not used in the U.S.) and a carrying case.

See more photos, specs, and reviews

expand

collapse

Expert & User Review Sources:

RadarTest.com: Reviewer Craig Peterson pits three over-$300 radar detectors against each other, looking for "the world's best." Based on ...

RadarBusters.com: The Beltronics RX 65 is one of the top-rated radar detectors at this site run by Roy Reyer, a former police officer who now sells ...

CNET: Reviewer Wayne Cunningham evaluates the Beltronics RX 65 based upon his experience with the unit. The thorough write-up includes ...

Laserveil.com: "The Veil Guy" runs this site, which sells a laser light-absorbing spray for cars, and also tests radar detectors. This annual ...

Epinions.com: The Beltronics RX 65 earns an average of 3.5 of five stars, with more than 30 consumers posting reviews. In addition to the ...

Where to buy:

See All Stores

Best radar detector under $200

Beltronics Vector 955

*Est. $175 Compare Prices

While no review says the Beltronics Vector 955 is as good as the top-performing Escort and Beltronics radar detectors, testers say it's a good budget radar and laser-gun detector that will give drivers just enough notice… to react to upcoming traps. It shares many of the same features as more expensive models, including spoken alerts and a city mode that is supposed to reduce false alarms from automatic grocery-store doors and the like; however, users still report far more false alarms than with GPS-equipped detectors like the Escort Passport 9500ix.

See more photos, specs, and reviews

expand

collapse

Expert & User Review Sources:

RadarTest.com: The Beltronics Vector 955 outperforms two other budget radar detectors in this test, the Cobra XRS 9955 and Whistler Pro 78SE. ...

Guys of Lidar: The expert tests at GuysOfLidar.com mimic real-world situations; for example, radar detectors are tested on their ability to ...

Laserveil.com: LaserVeil.com is a retail site that sells a laser light-absorbing spray for cars. In addition to that, it conducts expert ...

RadarBusters.com: The Beltronics Vector 955 is one of the few under-$200 radar detectors that gets a recommendation from "Radar Roy" Reyer, the ...

Amazon.com: The Beltronics Vector 955 earns an average rating of 3.5 stars (out of five) with more than 60 consumer reviews posted. With such ...

Epinions.com: The Beltronics Vector 955 earns an average of 3.5 stars (out of five) from more than 25 users at Epinions.com, a site where ...

Where to buy:

See All Stores

Most "invisible" radar detector

Beltronics STi Driver

*Est. $500 Compare Prices

Although the use of radar detectors is usually legal in passenger cars, a few states ban them completely, and federal law prohibits their use in trucks over 10,000 pounds. Police can use radar-detector detectors -- or… RDDs -- to discover which cars and trucks are using a radar detector. However, the Beltronics STi Driver is invisible to RDDs in tests. This radar/laser detector is a solid performer in most other ways as well, picking up radar signals far enough away from the gun to give drivers lots of time to slow down -- although not quite as quickly as the Escort Passport 9500ix, which costs about the same.

See more photos, specs, and reviews

expand

collapse

Expert & User Review Sources:

SpeedZones: The Beltronics STi Driver is invisible to VG-2, Spectre 3 and Spectre 4 radar-detector detectors, tests here find. However, it ...

Guys of Lidar: The Beltronics STi Driver lands near the top of test after test at GuysOfLidar.com. Experts here rank detectors according to ...

Laserveil.com: This retail site sells a laser light-absorbing spray for cars, but it also includes radar-detector reviews. The Beltronics STi ...

007 Radardetectors.com: Radar detectors are ranked here according to their accomplishments in 12 categories (such as features and false-alert rejection). ...

Radar Detector Geeks: Paul Graham and Gary Smith, who own a Kentucky auto gear shop, provide one-page reviews of 18 radar detectors from Escort, ...

Amazon.com: The Beltronics STi Driver has a 4.5-star rating (out of five) from nearly a dozen owners. Some of the reviews are very thorough, ...

Where to buy:

See All Stores

Buy Radar Detectors

for $469.95

Escort Passport 9500i *Est. $450

6 picks including: Amazon.com, RadarTest.com…

Valentine One *Est. $500

4 picks including: SpeedZones, Guys of Lidar…

Beltronics GX 65 *Est. $475

4 picks including: Amazon.com, SpeedZones…

Escort Passport 8500 X50 *Est. $300

3 picks including: RadarBusters.com, BestBuy.com…

Beltronics Vector 995 *Est. $225

2 picks including: Amazon.com, RadarTest.com…

Escort Passport 9500ci *Est. $1,600

2 picks by top review sites.

Laser Interceptor *Est. $700 to $2,450

2 picks by top review sites.

Escort Solo S2 *Est. $340

2 picks including: Amazon.com, RadarBusters.com…

Cobra XRS 9960G *Est. $300

2 picks including: Amazon.com, SpeedZones…

Whistler Pro 78SE *Est. $175

2 picks including: Amazon.com, SpeedZones…


	Escort Passport 9500i Radar and Laser Detector from Amazon.com New: Too low to display In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Valentine One Radar Detector from Amazon.com New: $483.99 In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Beltronics Pro GX65 Radar Detector (Black) from Amazon.com New: Too low to display In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Escort Passport 8500 X50 Radar and Laser Detector (Blue Display) from Amazon.com New: Too low to display In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Beltronics V995 Vector Radar and Laser Detector (Black/Silver) from Amazon.com New: Too low to display In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Escort Passport 9500ci Custom-Installed Radar Detector from Amazon.com New: $1499.99 In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Laser Interceptor Ultimate Laser Jamming Device, Laser Jammer from Amazon.com New: $625.00 In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Escort Solo S2 Cordless Radar and Laser Detector from Amazon.com New: $329.95 In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Cobra XRS 9960G Voice Alert 15-Band Radar/Laser Detector with 1.5-Inch Full-Color Display, GPS Locator, and Red Light/Speed Features from Amazon.com New: Too low to display In Stock. Average Customer Review:


	Whistler PRO-78 SE High-Performance Radar Detector with Blue Text Display from Amazon.com New: Too low to display In Stock. Average Customer Review:

Radar Detectors: Reviews

Best radar detector overall

Best mid-range radar detector

Best radar detector under $200

Most "invisible" radar detector

Radar Detectors by Price Range