Best Radar on Detector on the Market
Written: Dec 01 '00 (Updated Dec 01 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Inexpensive, same features as more expensive detectors, VG-2, 360 deg detection, 9-band
Cons: Fuse blows rather easily; luckily fuses are cheap and covered under the Best Buy product replacement plan ($10)
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| eKarl's Full Review: Cobra Electronics ESD 9100 Radar Detector |
My brother was concerned about speeding tickets. He had already gotten a speeding ticket for 54 in a 35 zone. Luckily, he got a lawyer to "erase" the ticket for a small fee. Still, he needed to be sure that it would not happen again.
So, he and I went on a trip to Best Buy. As we looked over the radar detectors they had, we saw the cheaper ones as well as the more expensive ones. We found that the Cobra had the most bang for the buck.
For $100, he bought the Cobra ESD (Extra Sensory Detection) 9100. It features nine-band detection: Four radar bands (X-band, K-band, Ka-Band, and VG-2), Three Laser Bands (LTI 20-20 Laser, Ultra Lyte Laser, and ProLaser), and Two Security Bands (StrobeAlert and SafetyAlert). It also features VG-2 Cloaking.
Cobra is the only brand that can detect the StrobeAlert™ band. Cobra designed StrobeAlert™. To prevent other brands from detecting it, they put it on the same frequency as K-band radar; but Cobra detectors are able to tell the difference between K-band and StrobeAlert™. There's one thing that the $400 V1 CAN'T do.
False alarms are minimal with the ESD 9100. With "City Mode" on, a false alarm is very rare.
On the highway one night, driving down to South Carolina, a State Trooper was out looking for some speeders. We were alerted to his presence about 15 seconds before he passed us, more than enough time to react. He tried a VG-2 Detection, but our detector alerted us to this, and at the same time cloaked itself. The ESD 9100 IS able to detect all other bands while at the same time cloaking itself.
As far as sound goes, it is reasonably loud, and even annoyingly so when no music is playing. It features adjustable volume and auto-mute, a system that automatically reduces the volume after 4 seconds of an alert. All I can say is that if your music is so loud that you can't hear the detector at all, you have some problems.
If you're looking for a detector that can do everything and doesn't cost a lot, this is DEFINITELY it!
Terms used:
VG-2: system used by police to detect radar detectors
VG-2 Cloaking: prevents police from detecting your radar detector
Band: A certain frequency range used for radar
Safety/Strobe Alert: systems used to alert users to possible road hazards (accidents, trains, high-speed chases, etc.) StrobeAlert™ is a Cobra exclusive.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
eKarl
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Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 0 members
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