Cheap Whistler DE1783 All Band Laser-Radar Detector (Electronics) Price

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Customer Reviews of Whistler DE1783 All Band Laser-Radar Detector

Works great as long as you're smart
I agree this product works great. The only time I've been close to being pulled over since I got it was the one time I got lasered. There's not much any legal detector can do about this. But it does give you the chance to slow down. The way the laser radar works is that the cops specifically are aiming at your car and may not have radared previous cars so there is nothing for the detector to pick up until you're screwed. Other than that it's great especially if you have a car that likes to go fast.

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Early days but!
I haven't quite got to trusting this detector yet, its the first one I've owned. Seems OK for Ka open road cruising.

It was easy to setup, basically "plug and play", the compass calibration was easy and seemed to point me in the correct direction.

The voice prompts are good, as well as tones for different bands. The CITY 2 mode is great around town and definitely eliminates X band.

Open road performance - well its definitely saved me once in town, on Ka band, enough time to scrub some speed off. It seems to be good at picking up Ka when the cop has it on all the time, about 300 metres with a crest in the way! Still don't know about instant on, haven't picked up any scatter.

Haven't had a beep out of it for Laser yet.

Speed cameras - I don't think it works with the NZ speed camera (mobiles). Did a test with one parked on a street, no beeps until beside the van!

I think it is going to be good for open road driving and Ka radar in NZ,esepcially if the cop has his radar on all the time, just need to see how it goes on some of my favourite roads that are fast and curvey!

Definitely good value for money, as I didn't want to spend too much on a detector...

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If you use a radar detector, this is the bare minimum
For the past couple of years I've used a Beltronics 906 which was, up until mid 2003, a reliable tool. However, since then it has failed to respond or responded far too slowly multiple times.

What's happening? It appears that the arms race has just escalated. There is at least one new technology being used that older radar detectors can't adequately pick up or fail to pick up at all. One of these new tools being used by the police is called POP. And most radar dectectors made prior to 2002, and perhaps all before 2001, cannot detect it. Some sources argue that POP isn't that wide spread. My experience indicates that it is.

If you use a radar dectector and it was made prior to 2003 you have to purchase a new one, especially if you travel on inter-state highways.

For the price the Whistler 1783 is the best value for those on a budget. Test results at speedzones dot com indicate that it performed extremely well and arguably the best in its price range. Don't even think of getting a Cobra or a Rocky Mountain. Both are practically worthless in comparison. As for other Whistler models, the 1793 has a few more bells and whistles, but it doesn't appear to be much stronger. If you have the money for the 1793 you're better off purchasing a more expensive brand such as a Beltronics or Passport. The cheaper Whistler models don't have full text displays which is really mandatory. In the case of POP, you really need a clear indication that it's being used and the 1783 provides that.

If you have a somewhat larger budget then you'll want to look at perhaps a Beltronics 965 or 995. Both were introduced this past year and both are newer than the 985 which appears to have been discontinued. In this arms race with new and evolving technologies the more recent the model the more likely it will work effectively.