Beltronics BEL 950 Radar Detector

I've been driving with radar detectors since 1984, when I bought my first SuperFox Vixen II. since then, I've owned detectors by Uniden, Cobra ("Be Careful! Slow Down!"), Whistler, and Cincinnati Microwave (Escort/passport). My last detector was an Escort Solo 4, and when that one finally gave up the ghost I decided to shop around and compare.

First off, you need to decide what your need for a radar detector is: Do you drive within the speed limit most of the time, and only want one to serve as a reminder? Or do you normally drive as fast as you feel comfortable with, regardless of the posted speed limit?

If you are the former, then almost any radar detector will work for you; I'd advise you to save some money and buy one of the lower-cost but still capable models such as the Cobra line.

If, however, you fall into the latter category, then you know that the accuracy and sensitivity of the detector are the most important aspects. How often does it false? At what range do you get solid detection? How many different signals can it track, and how easy is it for the driver to differentiate between signals?

You've probably guessed by now that I fall into the latter category, so I did some heavy research before buying. My final three choices were down to the Valentine One, the Escort 7500, and the Bel 980. Of the three, the Valentine One had the best performance results, but also the highest price; plus, (IMHO) it's ugly. The Bel 980 had the next best test results, but it has a lot of bells and whistles (no pun intended) that I just didn't want or need--it's so complex that it comes with a "tutorial" mode!

I was pleasantly surprised, then, to look on Bel's website and see that the 950 and 980 are the EXACT same detector--the 980 just has additional features. The detection ability, anti-falsing, etc are the exact same.

So I bought the 950. ;>

I've been driving with it for about 5 months now, and I haven't found anything I don't like yet. It's alerts are clear and concise, it's fairly intelligent when it comes to false signals (it will sometimes show them on its display, but won't audibly alert you), and setup is quick and easy. the windshield mount is fairly robust, and while the coiled cord is a bit annoying, you can buy the straight power cord and connect it directly to you car's power supply (connect it to a *switched* source, though!)

In my own testing (my friend has an Escort 7500), my Bel consistently beats the Escort in detecting K and Ka bands. The Escort has a slight advantage in X detection, but since there are so many false signals in the X spectrum, this is not such a big deal for me; the Bel still detects X-radar in plenty of time to slow down.

As for laser, well, who knows? Given that lasers are highly directional, I question the utility of a laser detector--and in any case, it only seems to go off around airports. Laser speed detection devices are not widespread, are very weather dependent, and are hard to use, so I'm not losing too much sleep over it.

In short, IMHO this was the best detector I could buy for less than $250. I'd recommend it highly.