Speed Detectors

[Niceyoungchap]

Hi,
Are there any speed camera detectors that are worth while and detect mobile cameras also? Id also like something straight forward and not to intrusive in the car as I'm a bit of a neat freak. its getting ridiculous in my area with the constantly changing the speed limits to catch people out and, in my opinion, make more money. One day the speed limit may be 60, then it may change to 40, 70 or what other number they may pick out of the hat!!

Thanks in advance for your advise / help

[vonhosen]

By the time the detector detects them they've already got you.

[MB140]

Waze app. It’s a nav app with access to speed camera databases and user based input for mobile cameras. It’s saved me a couple of times.

[spookly]

MB140 said:

Waze app. It’s a nav app with access to speed camera databases and user based input for mobile cameras. It’s saved me a couple of times.

Yeah, that ^^. Use Waze.

Laser detectors are pointless, as you're unlikely to be warned before they get you.
Radar detectors only work with certain cameras, and get so many false positives you'll end up ignoring it.
Tetra/Airwave detectors can be useful, but the cheapest commercially available one is £250+. Useful, as they'll alert you to any emergency services vehicle which has a tetra radio turned on. I built a tetra detector using a Raspberry Pi and a cheap SDR, worked fine, but to build one you'd need a reasonable understanding of programming, SDR, and electronics.

[anonymous-user]

I've had a few Laser/Radar detectors, and to be honest they have been complete rubbish and I wouldn't bother with them again.

False alarms too frequently on radar and not enough range on the laser detection.

I would absolutely buy a 'Target Blu Eye' if they weren't so expensive at £900.

Edited to add: It looks like someone has now produced a new Tetra/Airwave detection device similar to the Target Blue Eye but for £250, Called the Python P1 and P2.

I am tempted by that.

Edited by anonymous-user on Sunday 19th November 23:07

[HantsRat]

Lord Marylebone said:

I've had a few Laser/Radar detectors, and to be honest they have been complete rubbish and I wouldn't bother with them again.

False alarms too frequently on radar and not enough range on the laser detection.

I would absolutely buy a 'Target Blu Eye' if they weren't so expensive at £900.

Edited to add: It looks like someone has now produced a new Tetra/Airwave detection device similar to the Target Blue Eye but for £250, Called the Python P1 and P2.

I am tempted by that.

Edited by Lord Marylebone on Sunday 19th November 23:07

These would give you reading for every Airwave mast (There are tens of thousands) / HATO / Fire / Ambulance / Some train companies etc etc. Not to mention Airwave will be replaced in the coming year or so.

[anonymous-user]

HantsRat said:

These would give you reading for every Airwave mast (There are tens of thousands) / HATO / Fire / Ambulance / Some train companies etc etc. Not to mention Airwave will be replaced in the coming year or so.

I know what you are saying, but I've watched a few demo videos and out on the motorways and A roads they genuinely seem to work as intended. They start beeping well before a police vehicle comes into view, and they don't seem to beep randomly unless there is actually a HATO, fire engine etc.

I've never actually read about anyone saying they react to Airwaves masts. I think this is to do with the handsets or in-car units sending a signal to the masts every 15 seconds or so, but not the other way round, which is why police radio can be detected even not being used.

I wouldn't bother with one for round town, but I think for 'making progress' on longer motorway and A Road journeys it would be hard to beat from what I've seen. Especially for the fact that unmarked cars wouldn't be able to sneak up on you, and traffic cars sat on bridges, slip roads etc would be flagged up well before you went past them.

[HantsRat]

Lord Marylebone said:

I know what you are saying, but I've watched a few demo videos and out on the motorways and A roads they genuinely seem to work as intended. They start beeping well before a police vehicle comes into view, and they don't seem to beep randomly unless there is actually a HATO, fire engine etc.

I've never actually read about anyone saying they react to Airwaves masts. I think this is to do with the handsets or in-car units sending a signal to the masts every 15 seconds or so, but not the other way round, which is why police radio can be detected even not being used.

I wouldn't bother with one for round town, but I think for 'making progress' on longer motorway and A Road journeys it would be hard to beat from what I've seen. Especially for the fact that unmarked cars wouldn't be able to sneak up on you, and traffic cars sat on bridges, slip roads etc would be flagged up well before you went past them.

Save yourself the £300 - Airwave will be dead soon. With that £300 it would pay for 3 x standard £100 speeding FPN's.

[catso]

HantsRat said:

Save yourself the £300 - Airwave will be dead soon. With that £300 it would pay for 3 x standard £100 speeding FPN's.

What about the 9 points?...

[vonhosen]

Don't they still turn Airwave off when doing speed enforcement.

[FurtiveFreddy]

Lord Marylebone said:

Edited to add: It looks like someone has now produced a new Tetra/Airwave detection device similar to the Target Blue Eye but for £250, Called the Python P1 and P2.

I've got one, it works very well for motorway driving. Virtually no false alerts despite what some posters on here might want you to believe.

Not sure how much use it would be in a big city.

[anonymous-user]

HantsRat said:

Save yourself the £300 - Airwave will be dead soon. With that £300 it would pay for 3 x standard £100 speeding FPN's.

Any ideas what the system is that replaces it?

[EU_Foreigner]

catso said:

HantsRat said:

Save yourself the £300 - Airwave will be dead soon. With that £300 it would pay for 3 x standard £100 speeding FPN's.

What about the 9 points?...

That logic would work well in continental Europe where speeding is just a fine, but not in the UK where the insurance companies jump on the band wagon as well.

[vonhosen]

EU_Foreigner said:

catso said:

HantsRat said:

Save yourself the £300 - Airwave will be dead soon. With that £300 it would pay for 3 x standard £100 speeding FPN's.

What about the 9 points?...

That logic would work well in continental Europe where speeding is just a fine, but not in the UK where the insurance companies jump on the band wagon as well.

Not all of continental Europe is without points systems for speeding offences.

[LosingGrip]

They are free as well .

[captainaverage]

LosingGrip said:

They are free as well .

Almost always too late by the time they warn you

[Johnnytheboy]

At least he didn't call them the "mark one eyeball"...

I used to have a Road Angel which purportedly had a laser detector on it.

It didn't go off when I was actually driving past camera vans, but it used to quite successfully detect the sun on hot days.

[JohnnyMc]

Niceyoungchap said:

Hi,
Are there any speed camera detectors that are worth while and detect mobile cameras also? Id also like something straight forward and not to intrusive in the car as I'm a bit of a neat freak. its getting ridiculous in my area with the constantly changing the speed limits to catch people out and, in my opinion, make more money. One day the speed limit may be 60, then it may change to 40, 70 or what other number they may pick out of the hat!!

Thanks in advance for your advise / help

Most tools marketed as "detectors" are just comparing your GPS location to databases of speed cameras and aren't detectors at all, and thus won't be much use to you with these variable speed limits.

[p1esk]

Perhaps we should just comply with speed limits and have done with it!

I can't think why this didn't occur to me earlier; like 60 years ago...must be a bit slow on the uptake...

Dave.

[jm doc]

vonhosen said:

Don't they still turn Airwave off when doing speed enforcement.

Haha.