Home > Consumer Reviews > Beltronics 890 Radar Detector

The BEL 890 is my 3rd radar detector in as many weeks. And this one I'm going to keep... I got the 1st one cheap...- it was a COBRA 9100. Not bad, but not great. Then after trading that one in (read: selling it on eBay) I got the Whistler 1785 with a Digital Compass since I felt that I needed a ...compass! This model has gotten some decent feedback regarding its sensitivity and selectivity, but ...if you can't work the buttons and it gives you false alarms and erroneous compass settings to boot, well then, it's time for a REAL radar detector. For the money, this baby (BEL 890) is a gem! Easy to use, easy to SEE, easy to TRUST. If it saves you from ONE speeding ticket, well, then it has paid for itself. BEL is the top of the line...

I recently purchased a Belltronics 880 radar detector from Amazon for about .... It has audible and voice alerts that identify the type of radar signal, and an LED readout that shows signal strength; it does not have �Shadow Technology� like the 890 to prevent the detection of radar detectors, but otherwise appears identical. Only Virginia and Washington D.C. actually prohibit radar detectors, so I am at a loss why Shadow Technology is needed, or even desired, for most people.

The Belltonics radar detector comes with simple mounting options including pads, a visor clip, and a suction cup bracket for windshield mounting (which I chose). The constraining feature is the need to attach the power cord. I mount my unit low in the center of the windshield � just high enough to allow 360 degree detection, but low enough to keep the power cord out of the way. I would recommend a battery powered unit for anyone who would like to mount their detector on the visor or high on the windshield under the rear view mirror.

From the various reviews of radar detectors, it�s obvious that the most serious problem with the technology is false signals. Belltronics units are no exceptions. I think that it�s safe to say that people with radar detectors learn to �interpret� the signals. Like several others, I have come to ignore �X� band alerts. Most people mention that they encounter them around security systems, but I also seem to detect them around vehicles that I suspect have CB units turned on � or security systems(?). I also encounter false �K� band signals around traffic signals and security systems; �K� band is also used by stationary radar devices that display speeds to passing motorists in California and Nevada. I have never encountered a (real or false) SWS or radar signal. Police vehicles in the West invariably use �Ka� band radar and these are the signals that I pay close attention to.

In certain places, especially large cities, radar detectors are more or less useless. I confess that in the San Francisco Bay Area, my radar detector is more of a noisy curiosity than a useful device, and I seldom put it up local driving.

Traveling on the open freeway, you find that police patrols in the West � with the notable exception of California - usually patrol with their radars on; policemen in small towns with a regional two lane highway passing though town also tend to cruise with their radars on. The radar detector picks them up well in advance, provided there is an unobstructed view. The alert is an audible and voice signal identifying the band and a LED indicating signal strength. The strength of signals from approaching patrol cars increases very rapidly, if not suddenly; signals from patrol cars ahead or approaching from behind increase in strength more slowly. I�ve also seen Arizona freeway patrols parked in speed traps around the crest of hills. The manual for the detector points out the fact that you must have an unobstructed view of the trap during a speed check on a vehicle ahead in order to spot a speed trap.

Basically the technology is intended to help drivers detect police patrols. If you are speeding, the bottom line is that sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn�t. When the plan fails, the full strength alert sounds the moment you are caught. A New Mexico highway patrolman ticketed me doing 70 in a 55 after I rounded the top of a hill at night. A moment after I saw his vehicle, he turned on his radar and his lights as my radar detector lit up. (He didn�t really need radar to determine that I was going over 55.)

It is worth noting that the ability to REMOVE your radar detector quickly is also a useful feature. The windshield mount on the Belltronics has handy little tabs to peel the unit from the glass, so as I was pulling over, I quickly removed the suction cups from the dash and tucked the detector away. I pleaded guilty to a $69 fine, and put it back up as I drove off. (My attitude about leaving the detector up during a traffic stop is that I would do it if I planned on defending myself against a speeding ticket, but not if I plan to plead guilty.)

I found the radar detector most useful on wide open roads like Highway 50 in Nevada - billed as �The Loneliest Road in America.� My detector did not pick up a single radar signal outside of a town between Fallon, Nevada and Utah. It is important to remember that a radar detector alerts you to both the presence � and absence � of police patrol cars. For the most part, owners of radar detectors are actually looking more for the latter than the former, and I found that the wide open spaces of the Southwest had a lot of those places � perhaps just one too few ;)

Has my radar detector actually �saved� me money in tickets? That�s hard to say. In my case, one might argue that it cost me $69 by encouraging me to think I could speed without getting caught. On the other hand, I probably would have been driving at least 65 without one in that particular case, so that is also debatable.

Radar detectors are basically �technology toys� for drivers. I use mine for freeway and long-distance driving, but not city driving. I cannot say that it has prevented me from getting any speeding tickets � that�s always going to be hard to determine - but it has often warned me about police patrols that I was only able to spot after an alert. I have also learned to �interpret� its signals, and become familiar with its limitations. If you are the kind of driver who tends to keep an eye out for police patrols, you would probably find it useful. Otherwise, not.

360 degree detection? Who needs it? No one. The unit works well, but being hit from the side with a radar or laser unit will give the radar operator zilch for a speed indication. The only way radar works is if you are coming or going in relation to the transmitting unit, i.e. the radar gun or the laser gun. This is a marketing hype that shouldn't even be listed as a feature. Just worry about the front and back.

This is one of Bells newer models, and it has some improved features (Shadow Technology for VG-2). This allows for your unit to turn off the radar detector portion, yet leave on the LASER detector, so that the police radar detector detector does not pick up your unit! You'll drive right by the police and they'll never even know you have it!

I've found the SWS to be one of the most useful features BELL has, as unlesss you have it, your radar will "beep" for signals and it'll only be a SWS transmitter giving off an alert. There's even a signal of "Police in Pursuit" (but you won't have to worry with this unit as they won't be after you). More and more places are starting to have SWS, so it's a good idea to see if your area or places you travel have SWS transmitters as many have them, yet some do not.

The oscallitor and digital synthesizer are two of the new features. These help filter out unwanted signals (which give false signals even in the city), and they also help "fine tune" the radar so that you can get double the detection range.

The 360 degree detection is most help full with this detector. However as with anything it must be installed properly, and to take full advantage of the 360 degree detection for not only radar but LASER you need to install it as high as possible with a full view going towards the rear window. Best advice is to install it right under your rear-view mirror so that the whole radar has a clear line-of-site for the rear window.

With BELLS latest technology here, and proper installation, your chances of getting a ticket with this radar detector are greatly reduced! Until new radar/laser frequencies are invented, there's not much room for improvement as it's at the top of the line in radar detectors!