Lil' Black Box.
Written: Nov 29 '02 (Updated Oct 14 '03)
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Pros: Price, works well.
Cons: Mute function a bit confusing, the VG-2 mode doesn't work.
The Bottom Line: If you go to Visions and get offered the same deal, it's a cool thing to have. Just don't use it where it's illegal.
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| peakster's Full Review: Whistler Fuzzbuster F3500 Radar Detector |
I was looking around for some things to add to my Christmas list and I got on the topic of radar detectors. After looking through four stores I ended up purchasing the Fuzzbuster 3500 with my own money in November because the guy at Visions Electronics offered me this detector for good price ($115 Canadian).
Well I sure felt like a sucker. Maybe it was because I sort of felt skeptical about radar detectors at the time or maybe it was because I drive a 1980 Chrysler Cordoba that only has a maximum speed of 133km/h (82mph). Nonetheless, I bought the device.
First of all, the big question: does it work? Yes it does. In the city, the Fuzzbuster gives me a reasonable amount of warning time in city sensitivity mode for radar; at least 3 seconds until I can even see a police car in the distance. This is plenty of reaction time for city speeds. False alarms are so rare in city sensitivity mode that I almost felt that the Fuzzbuster didn't work at all until I encountered actual speed traps.
Reaction time at highway speeds is also good...as long as you're not going too fast. 30 km/h (20mph) past the speed limit is reasonable with this thing set on highway sensitivity. You'll still have enough reaction time to slow down enough for a cop to be satisfied with your speed. However I don't recommend going like 2 times the legal limit hoping the Fuzzbuster will save you. You won't have enough time to slow to a reasonable speed to satisfy the police.
Basically I think any radar detector for a really fast driver wouldn't eliminate all speeding tickets but it would give you enough warning time to make the speeding ticket a lot less costly. On the contrary, I haven't had a single pull over with the Fuzzbuster on...even on city sensitivity mode.
The Fuzzbuster can also detect laser guns as well. I haven't had confrontation with any laser guns since I bought it so I can't tell you about how well it performs at detecting that type. I would imagine the warning time to be a lot less because I hear laser has a lot less "scatter". However, people clocking you with laser are usually out in the open and have to clock you at close distances. Police also can't use them inside their patrol cars. Therefore you should actually see them in time, again if you're not going too fast.
Another thing about the Fuzzbuster 3500 is that it has VG-2 technology which means that if you live in a place where it is illegal to have a radar detector, the Fuzzbuster 3500 is able to shut down transmission for a few seconds if it senses a radar detector-detector that cops have in places like Manitoba, Virginia, Washington, etc. Unfortunately, this feature didn't work for me as I headed back to my campus in Manitoba. 10 minutes into the province, the Fuzzbuster picked up radar in ample time, but the VG2 mode didn't work at all and the next thing I know, the cherry lights of the cop car come on and I was pulled over and given a $90 ticket for "Driving a vehicle equipped with a radar detection device". Pretty extravagant for something that merely picks up radio waves and can be bought at your local Wal-Mart... Thus don't use this where it's illegal. $90 seemed like a lot to me, but at least he din't take the device away. I was allowed to put it in the trunk of my car.
There are also some other little "bells and whistles" but you can read all the features it has in the 'VIEW DETAILS' section of this product. The thing works well and that's all that really matters to me...
...however I will mention the mute function. This detector defaults to an automatic mute which means it only beeps four times no mater how strong the signal is. Therefore it's hard to tell how strong the radar is without looking at the bar graph readings. Personally I like having a beeping noise increase in speed as I get closer to the source. This is the only part I found confusing about the Fuzzbuster. After reading the instuctions like 10 times I found out you have to push the mute button to turn off the mute function every time you turn the Fuzzbuster on.
Maybe I was the only one in the world that found that confusing...
Overall I think it's a great warning system to have in any vehicle.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
peakster
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Member: Landon Gendur
Location: Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
Reviews written: 13
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me:
I'm an 18 year old kid attempting to live with Canadian products.
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