Radar dectectors / dashcams - get what you pay for?

[Ck1720]

Hey guys,

Just took delivery of my new to me 2018 M3 ZCP 6MT.

Searched the forums but didn't find my exact question.

Has anyone tried the less expensive radar detector or dash cam options off amazon? Any good? Or do you get what you pay for?

Looking at:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B086B88TGR...ing=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/APEMAN-Record...9748055&sr=8-4


Thanks

[jd__m4]

I have a Blueskysea B1W dashcam. I’ve had it for about three years and used it in three different cars, no complaints thus far.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BNGBBTF...5HKAX2ZYXG6RFC

[Suds]

My detector of choice, I own 3 plus some other older models.
One dude and six vehicles, my sig plus two trucks.

https://www.escortradar.com/products...YaAvn4EALw_wcB

[AIRHEIR]

I am running a BlackVue 900 dual channel. Love the pic quality and is solid.

For radar using mirror tap to run escort max 360.

[McIntoshMotorSports]

I'm running a Uniden R7 and Garmin Mini; loving both so far. Debated a front and rear cam setup but I really wanted something small, I do believe you can add more so I may end up getting another and routing it to the rear cigarette lighter. I like the cleanliness of hardwired setups but prefer to be able to easily remove everything and transfer to another vehicle with ease.

[HyeM3]

Be careful with the cheaper radar detectors because you for sure get what you pay for. The cheaper ones most likely lack any sort of range and will annoy you with the hundreds of false alerts you'll get everyday. With that being said this is my setup and I love it. Max360 with the Escort M1 dash cam all sharing the same mount and power cord. I've seen several slightly used higher end radar detectors sell for a good deal in the classifieds section on these forums. Can't go wrong with Uniden or Escort

[Tecnniqe]

Originally Posted by AIRHEIR

I am running a BlackVue 900 dual channel. Love the pic quality and is solid.

For radar using mirror tap to run escort max 360.

I'm running dual channel blackvue as well.
Glorious 4K resolution and parking mode

Really easy to install in BMWs to hide all the cables compared to Mercs and Audis

[nickl630]

Generally with dashcams its gonna be blackvue vs everyone else. I personally have 4 blackvue's and wouldn't use anyone else.

Detectors are usually valentine one vs escort vs everyone else lol. I see you live in Chicago... when I lived in SoCal I didn't even use one.. to many false signals to make them worth it.

[TCom]

check out this site for radar detector info.

https://www.vortexradar.com/
They have great youtube videos too.

Uniden, Escort, and Valentine all top the list. Need arrows? It is Uniden R7 vs Escort 360s vs Valentine 1 Gen2.

Don't need arrows and want budget? I can confirm the Uniden R3 is a great detector for the money.

[wasya152]

Originally Posted by McIntoshMotorSports

I'm running a Uniden R7 and Garmin Mini; loving both so far. Debated a front and rear cam setup but I really wanted something small, I do believe you can add more so I may end up getting another and routing it to the rear cigarette lighter. I like the cleanliness of hardwired setups but prefer to be able to easily remove everything and transfer to another vehicle with ease.

What mount are you using? I have the uniden as well.

[White340]

Thinkware is what I have. Had it for over 5years and it has caught a few interesting things during this time. I would get another one when I get another car.

[GKay]

Originally Posted by nickl630

Generally with dashcams its gonna be blackvue vs everyone else. I personally have 4 blackvue's and wouldn't use anyone else.

Detectors are usually valentine one vs escort vs everyone else lol. I see you live in Chicago... when I lived in SoCal I didn't even use one.. to many false signals to make them worth it.

Some detectors (uniden r7 and escort) have auto lockout feature that auto ignores false repeat signals and blind spot monitoring systems.

[damageprone]

You get what you paid for applies here.

Cheap Radar detectors may have less detection range, or many false alerts, or doesn't detect at all. There are many different technologies that the cops use now and they most likely won't support it.

Cheap Cams have poor resolution, or lack very important features like gps, wifi, g force detection, various power management, etc.

Go with what everyone uses as they are popular for a reason. Radars like Uniden, Escort, Valentine, etc. Cameras such as Blackvue or Thinkware. People do use Viofo which is a good bang for your buck middle ground dash cam. Anything from Blackboxmycar.com is usually pretty good. Make sure to pair dashcams with a backup LiFePO4 battery, or it will drain the F80 battery which could damage it (a $1000 replacement).

[6spd4lyfe]

What is the backup battery to use?

[damageprone]

Originally Posted by 6spd4lyfe

What is the backup battery to use?

Cellink was the gold standard. I think Blackvue relabeled a Cellink Neo unit for their new one.

I have a Cellink Neo paired with a Blackvue extender unit. They look identical and pair well. The app recognizes with no issues so I'm assuming they're both Cellink.

There is a Thinkware one out now as well.

These things aren't cheap, but they are reliable and are safe. I've tried to do various other ghetto-rigs to bypass cost, but none can compare to these. They recharge fast and run longer than anything you can make.

https://www.blackboxmycar.com/collections/battery-packs

[McIntoshMotorSports]

Originally Posted by wasya152

What mount are you using? I have the uniden as well.

Just the included suction for now but tucked it up under the mirror so it's somewhat hidden. Will probably pickup the Blendmount that is made for our cars eventually down the line.

[6spd4lyfe]

V1 is the best, right?

[bletour]

Cobra is owned by Escort now and you certainly get what you pay for. The Cobras are known to have fairly short range in some situations and won't detect the newest low power radar guns (MRCD/MRCT) which may or may not exist in your area yet.

Radar detectors depend a lot on what you need and/or what annoys you. Do you need MRCD/MRCT detection? How quiet do you want your detector to be (how good should the filtering be)? Do you want it to automatically add filtering based on GPS? Do you want to run with external bluetooth device with advanced filtering/information or do you want it all in one device? Are you worried about photo camera warnings? Do you care about arrows to show you direction of the signal?

Also realize that many blind sport detection systems in cars use radar and false a lot of detectors. Some are better at filtering that than others.

Like others have said, Uniden/Escort/Valentine are the big three. Radenso is also another good option.

Looking to go cheap(ish) then the Uniden DFR7 or R3 might be a good choices.

Radenso vs Uniden R7 vs Valentine vs Escort really come down to needs. Valentine is excellent when paired with your phone and apps but lacks some of the internal filtering/options others have. Radenso has very good filtering and excellent MRCD/MRCT detection (if needed). The R7 gives a lot of features and abilities for the money and can frequently be found on sale if you watch Amazon. Escort are premium units that are very good and add some extra abilities such as photo camera notification.

[bletour]

Originally Posted by 6spd4lyfe

V1 is the best, right?

Not as clearly as they once were. They released a new version last year that is still very good but lacks some of the optional features that other detectors have without using a cellphone running a side app.

The Valentine patent on "arrows" has run out so Escort and Uniden now have those on some units.

They are still very good detectors but not the "default" choice they once were for many people.

--Bill

[rkyan661]

Check out DDPAI as a dashcam. Their 4K dashcam produces better quality than my Blackvue 900. I have both and was surprised by the difference

DDPAI Mini5 4K Dash Cam 2160P, 4K UHD Dash Cam Recorder 3840x2160P, Built in 5G WiFi GPS Dashboard Camera Recorder for Cars 64G eMMC Storage |5G WiFi & App |Night Vision, Parking Mode,Super Capacitor https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08GM2X9GG...UTF8&psc=1

[Kilabyte]

I switched from a 1080p dashcam to this 4k one and can finally read license plates haha. I couldn't go back to a single channel setup.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...f_=as_li_ss_tl

[Ck1720]

Thanks guys. Decided to go with a Uniden R3 and one of the smaller, cheaper dashcams.