nyca

you can definetely pick up a laser alert on the V1 when the car in front of you is lit up, I've experienced it many times.

mglobe

The assertion that if you can't beat Lidar, you should just go without any detector is just completely flawed. At least where I live, based on the hits I get on my detector, probably 99% of the time the police are using radar. It's true that the small percentage which are using laser devices are hard to elude with simply a detector. But the use of laser around here is still relatively small. So if you just want to go with a radar/laser detector, you will be protected for the large majority of instances. If that is not good enough for you, then there are several laser "jamming" devices which are claimed by many of the testers to work. I decided to go with a laser jammer in addition to detection because though there is a small number of lidar units deployed in Houston, their numbers seem to be growing.

PogueMoHone

But if you are the car in front, you are a dead duck! The point of the radar is to try and avoid tickets (all speed trap related). The increasing use of Lidar increases the chances of getting caught.

If you have seen how the CHP (wolf packs), and local Police (standing on sidewalks) operate with Lidar, the inadequacies of conventional radar detectors are quickly exposed. In fact, in California if you have a radar displayed (looking for Ka while they catch you Lidar) your goose is well and truly cooked.

yemenmocha

V1 has saved me countless times and it gives me slightly more advanced warnings than my Passport that everyone praises. Also, the V1 is nice and loud (think convertible top down background noise) whereas the Passport and other models can be tough to hear.

They still use Ka band in AZ so the choice isn't so hard.

2ndof2

One thing that hasn't been discussed here is (I read somewhere) that lazer units must be stationary to get an accurate reading. Someone correct me if I'm wrong but as I understand it radar units can be used while the patrol car is rolling while LIDAR cannot be used that way. So clearly the V1 offers protection from patrol cars on the move so long as they don't pace you. As for speeding in general I try to make sure I'm not going too fast in areas where I can be ambushed by a patrolcar or bike hiding around a corner. Most of the time I'm driving my Forerunner so the tendency to go that fast just isn't there like it is in my 993. Ka band is a CHP favorite out here, other than that I find lazer is a favorite of a whole bunch of new Lexus and other cars with lazer units tied to their cruise control.

GeoT3

using any radar detector takes knowledge as to what the thing is trying to tell you. One cannot blindly drive over the speed limit with a radar detector without using common sense also. Speeding ahead of a pack is a no no in any circumstance... you still have to be vigilant with your eyes scanning the horizon for cars slowing down/brake lites...

PogueMoHone

I have seen the cops standing on the side walk, on Winchester Avenue, protected behind a bus stop using the Lidar, the motor cycles were on side street (out of sight) a little distance away.

This Lidar is going to get you and the current generation of radar detectors, irregardless of make, are only offering false confidence. Scanning the pedestrians might be a better tactic, the habitual vigilence needs some revision and the traditional radar detector doesn't help until it is too late. My V1 didn't pick anything up on the night in question, luckily I hadn't yet got up to speed.

There will be little need for rolling radar in the Police cars, they will achieve their revenue objectives with Lidar.

Be careful out there.

2ndof2

Colm,
To suggest that there is little need to use rolling radar is one thing, but in practice I just don't see them abandoning this approach. LIDAR is evil and no question that speeding in areas where police can hide and shoot you from the side of the road means a greater chance of getting cited. Hopefully my clearguard coated black front end with no license plate makes getting a LIDAR reading on my car more difficult for them!

Streamlined

This sounds interesting, but too bad no arrows like the V1, I really do find them useful:
http://www.autoblog.com/2007/09/19/s...tector-with-g/

I wonder if the GPS can actually work against you at some point, meaning they could find a way to use it track you and your speed..

Bad a threat as lidar is I don't see the police/chp giving up on radar used on the move in cars and mounted on some motorcycles all that soon, so I think the V1 is still be a good tool to have on hand.

PogueMoHone

Again, my point is, if I had a Radar detector (and I do) I would continue to use it (and I do, a V1) But with the advent oif Lidar, I use it with diminished expectations, and would have been caught a few times but for fortunate circumstances. It is only a mater of time or luck and the V1 (or an other) is not going to save me. My comments are not about which detector is best (I bought a V1) but about their current effectiveness.

Would I repurchase a new Radar detector today (of any brand)?, absolutely not, because Lidar really renders them effectively obsolete. A signal after I have been caught is adding insult to injury.

Deanski

Another reason I like my K-40 system. I don't have to hear the V1 bashing, I just hear the K-40 bashing every now and then.

I remember one person who trashed the K-40, but it was mostly directed at the laser "jammer" that K-40 has. As this individual was trying to push a unit he sells/markets etc. Just another shill.

Everyone I know that has a V-1, likes them and has good results.

Regards,
Deanski