Customer Reviews

Whistler XTR690 - High Performance Radar/Laser Detector with LCD Text Display

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is my first Radar detector. I researched first before buying and could not afford Beltronics. Moreover I do not see point in buying those. Read on as to why.
Beltronics can detect radar from upto 4 miles. It's practically a useless range. Cops are smart. They do not target your car or any area if it's straight. They scan you from the opposite lane when you are driving or on the blind turns. They do not keep the trigger pressed. They use their gun when they are sure that within seconds they can get reading. So 4 miles range is useless. What you need is a warning when someone's targeting you. Whistler does this job perfectly. It will even catch any radar that's facing away from you just in time for you to slow down. Don't get caught in POP and Laser no unit can save you from these. No one can save you from cop who's pacing with you either so be careful even after you buy any radar detector.

About this unit, It's quick, less false alarms. Auto-quiet feature is excellent. My whistler is always on auto-quiet. Safety warnings are good to know.

I recommend you buy this item if you exceed speed limit by 15mph or more. You will be amazed how many times a car gets tagged on the long drive and how cops hide.

I have a Whistler 1793SE, which I was very satisfied with. However, after seeing initial testing results and user feedback on [...] about this new Whistler product, I decided that I MUST have it.

It's an attractive, sleek-looking unit that performs fantastically. People have been reporting up to 3-4 mile Ka band pickup with this device, which is nothing short of fantastic. It falses very little, and the LED periscope lights is a very good idea (a lot of times when driving with my family in the car sleeping, I turn down the sound on the detector. It's a GREAT help to have a bright visual indication of alerts rather having to take my eyes off the road)

What's NOT listed in the features list: unbeatable customer service. Whistler has the best customer service in the industry! Whether you need to ask them a question or have your product checked under their gracious 3 YEAR WARRANTY, their customer service is knowledgeable, courteous, and responsive.

By the way, there will soon be a revision C1 update to this detector, which Whistler will perform free of charge. Wait till mid-August, then e-mail or call whistler regarding this update. It will further enhance an already fantastic product.

The only CON that I have to give is that under bright light or intense heat, the LCD screen can become hard to see. To aggressively price their detector while keeping in a compass and voltage meter, they had to use a cheaper display. You may also want to consider the Whistler Pro-78 Series Radar Detector, which has the same detection capability, but an intense blue display that is extremely bright. However, it's somewhat more expensive (though still a bargain), and lacks a compass and voltage meter.


They're both great detectors, but you'll have to choose which set of features please you the most.

I have this little gem for almost a year and it must have saved me thousands of dollars ( ticket + Court fee + Insurance). It detects all the signals, well in time ( if you position it right on the windshield ), 360 degree protection, cuts out false alarms ( from Door openers) by turning on the city mode ( 2 different city modes), Voice alert as well as Visual alerts, both of which are highly configurable, volume (low/High during night, auto fading voice alert), Lights (on/off during night), can also catch service signals ( traffic accident or road work ahead ). It also come with Magnetic compass, which I have not used it so far as you have to configure it.It has never disappointed me as I travel a lot on my work.
Warning: Make sure you don't rely 100% on radar detectors. Cops use different methods to catch you for speeding. For Example, esp. during nights, they can guess your speed with good accuracy by driving little bit behind you, its called pacing. No Radar detector in the world can alert you in that case. Use your judgment and also DO NOT USE Radar detectors where these are Illegal to use ( Virginia and Washington DC ) Usually in these locations cops can track you using Radar detector by whats called "RDDs" Radar detector Detectors, if caught cops can confiscate your equipment and also be prepared for heavy fine esp in Virginia.

Most of what I have to say has already been mentioned. This is a great detector for the money. I researched this before purchasing this one and it's been said that this rates up there with the high dollar models. I have yet to have it save me but all it takes is once and it will pay for itself many times over. Any ticket in California requires that you take out a second mortgage.

The display IS difficult to read in bright light. But I have found this with most displays. The one thing that really really bugs me is the nice shiny chrome top. It's sharp looking but when the sun hits it, it's blinding. I am considering painting it flat black or draping a cloth on it, or anything to stop the glare. Plus it reflects back onto the windshield which I find distracting.

I found the menus easy to navigate with minimal effort. I like it that I am able to alter the alert sounds and dimming the display for night driving is a breeze.

This is a pretty good detector. I ocassionally make runs from Houston to Lafayette on I-10 and there are plenty of cops out on the road. This thing seems to pick them up as well as higher priced detectors. Keep in mind that this is not a cop detector, the cops must be transmitting a signal for you to recieve(and in turn set off the alarm) a signal. Even picks up DPS Troopers from a ways a way, well enough time to slow your [...] down. So if you're in the market for a radar detector I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this unit.

Okay, I bought this laser detector for 118.00 in May 08. I expected a higher quality device and more accurate. I liked the fact that it had an LCD screen, a digital compass, and was audible. Within 2 days I was very dissatisfied with it. You can't see the "bright lcd" screen during the day even on the brightest setting. No matter how many times I would calibrate the compass it would get "stuck" on west. Also sometimes it simply wouldn't do anything when passing by a cop with radar. Sometimes it would inform me when I was already past the radar/laser which was really dumb. And worst of all, The device says L-A-S-E-R really loud and flashes ultra bright led lights on the top like a strobe and makes a really annoying noise. Which is not all that bad when you've got a cop with a laser gun pointed at traffic, but my detector used to randomly (once or twice a week) give false laser readings. I found that it worked NO better than a 39.99 unit my sister bought for me for my birthday from wal-mart years ago. Oh and one more problem, and the main reason I RETURNED this product for a full money-back refund: The clip that attaches to the suction cups on the windshield is very very cheap, after 1.5 weeks it no longer clicked and would consistently go flying off the dash while I was driving, so basically the cheap thing broke after a week and a half. By then I was fed up with this thing and I shoved it in a box and mailed her back! Good Riddance! Its pretty big too compared to other detectors you'll find. This product IS NOT recommended!

Seems good so far - picked up a cop a couple of minutes before I could even see him, maybe 3/4 mile away. Picks up behind hills and from behind the car. It has some blinking electric blue LED's on it which help if you have the music really loud, and it's pretty customizable for your particular preference. IT DOES NOT LIGHT CIGARETTES! It doesn't even play music or make phone calls. In fact, I have yet to see it give me directions anywhere. Come to think of it I haven't even see it do anything but detect police. Hmmm... kinda lame considering the iphone's abilities. But I'll keep it!!

Having been a client for radar detectors for some time now, I can tell you that the whistler XTR690 is a GREAT buy for the money. I had previously own a cobra, which was alright and I was satisfied with but, heard that these new Whistler were to work extremely well at a low cost. So I bought one and it is probably one of the better investment that I have bought. The range for detecting is much father than on my previous detector and also I've noticed it doesn't pick up as much false readings. Also there are a lot of cool features like the LCD display which looks really nice.

Overall I would recommend this to anyone with an interest in purchasing a new detector.

the best inexpensive detector, delivered as promised. has good detection distances, and can filter away most of the x-stray noise without hurting the common bands (safe to do in New England). I don't know if it can replace following a fast car for effectiveness, but when driving on quiet roads, I have confidence to maintain a reasonable pace.

suction cup attachment a little iffy, have to fog and wipe to get them to stick, but otherwise great.

works very well, detects signals very far away...could be much smaller in size...good value, recommend.