This radar/laser detector works 100% exactly as it should. Very accurate and works at great distances. The reason some have given it 1 stars saying it didn’t detect a police officer. The reason for this is because not all cops have their radars on. Cops are highly trained to be able to look at a car and determine an average speed. If the officer does not have his radars on it WILL NOT detect it. It’s impossible for any radar detectors to detect one that isn’t turned on. Therefore it will not beep saying cop ahead. I come from a family of town cops and state troopers and tested the equipment on various speed detecting equipment and various bands. The device found every single one of them before the cop cars detector scanned me giving me time to slow Down. The rear scanner on the device works just as good AS LONG AS it has a clear view to the back. For laser detectors that cops sometimes use they HAVE to be parked and not moving for it to get your speed. The reason is because the laser beam is very small and narrow and must hit the car directly for it to register a speed making it 80% more accurate. This detector should be mounted in the very center bottom of your windshield for best use. The reason for it to be placed in the bottom center is most speed trap lasers are lower to the ground for best accuracy meaning the laser is pointed at the hood/front bumper of your car. Having the device in the center bottom gives it about 90% more chance of warning you sooner. With radars the police use it’s a large dispursment of radio waves making it very easy for the radar detector to find. The amazing thing about this detector is the fact it has a great system to determine if it’s a cop or just a door near by. I have so far never had a false reading in town unless I had the sensitivity on high. Finally, those who say they get false highway readings. Your not. 1st off there are hidden speed cameras. 2nd Cars and simitrucks can set it off. Why? Well, that is because most new cars and almost all simitrucks have radar systems that help them detect nearby cars to alert you when not to merge over or if your swerving. These radar systems in the trucks and cars generally use a K band signal at 24.75hertz. Passing a railroad crossing can almost always set it off. Rail roads have radars to detect cars to send information to the trains conductor to know he needs to blow the horn and lower the arms on the tracks. The signal is different state to state but in South Carolina about 98% of railways use X band. I hope this review helps sorry it was long just wanted to properly explain the detector to everyone!!! Read more
This was my first radar detector and will be my only for quite awhile and bought May 2018. I drive an FJ Cruiser and only go average 10+ over driving in places like Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida on highways, interstates, and back roads. I also take it with me when I travel GOOD: Range - very long and has saved me many times from not seeing cops behind hills and whatnot while still being able to read other drivers' reactions near hills Alerts - I leave it on the highest sensitivity and only get a few random alerts - after driving with it for awhile I can pick out what is real and what is false based on the strength and type of signal its receiving. It does not sense other signals from cars like blind spot, nor does it give out any signal to police indicating you have a radar detector. Value/Dependability - I guarantee I would have been stopped at least 10 times with cops wasting time and money by sitting in medians and behind hills and such but this thing alerted me very quickly and allowed me enough time to determine if its false and slow down accordingly. This is one of the best $120 I spent on an accessory for driving besides a dash cam which I have written a review on too (Garmin 55). Usability - I use it every time my trip is longer than 20 min and goes through roads I'm unfamiliar with. It has sat in my truck basically since I bought it in the sun with temps ranging from 110 to 0F and starts up every time I turn it on and only shuts off if the truck's battery voltage drops below some threshold. The screen is very bright but goes into a dimmed mode after a few minutes of detecting a signal. Wiring/Mounting - I bought the hard-wiring kit and add-a-fuse and also a custom switch so I can turn it on with the push of a switch without having to reach and turn the dial switch on the detector. I also velcro'd it to the top of my instrument panel as shown in the picture because the suction cup kept coming off in the heat, it was easier to see on top of the instruments, and it was more stealthy for police to have less of a reason to pull me over since i don't use the suction cups. I have left the dial at the 6 on-volume position ever since I hardwired a switch. Noise - the noises of each band are to me pretty distinct and able to be remembered after awhile of using it. I discovered the laser feature only once when driving on a Florida highway and it does sound like a retro laser, but have not heard it again since luckily. BAD: I literally cannot think of any bad thing besides the fact it uses a 12 volt dvd player style power connector instead of mini usb or a more common connector. It does have a micro usb connection on the side which I just remembered and have not figured out what reason it could possibly need to connect to a computer for. Overall, I love this radar detector. Its sensitivity is just right and can be adjusted, it has saved me plenty of times and its value surpassed tenfold at least by the amount of times I could've gotten in trouble. Very easy to wire and mount if you know what you're doing. Great first radar detector. Read more
This is a very good budget friendly detector and worth the money. It picks up radar from a good distance to give you some time to slow down, the rear detection is also good. It does send out false alarms, but the good thing about it, it seems to know they’re false alarms and it won’t stay alerting you for a long time. I also had the Uniden DFR7 and it had 3 times the amount of false alarms than the 480 and it wouldn’t quite down till you’re far away. This 480 gives you a lot of extra features that are worth it for a more than basic radar detector. If you’re choosing between the DFR7 or the Cobra 480, the 480 is way better. The hype of the DFR7 from enthusiast, that was 10 years ago, not now, you’ll be disappointed. The 480 is going to be a solid detector for everyday use and for drivers that don’t have a heavy foot. The only reason for the 4 stars is, the power cord could be a little longer. Save the extra $100 dollars and buy something for yourself or use it to buy the newer Cobra 700i that is updated and better. Read more
