BEL 855 STi

Price Paid:  $185.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
 97 F-150

Strengths:
Auto-Mute, SWS, and sensitivity

Weaknesses:
Not quite as reliable as the Valentine One.

Summary:
After the V-1, the 855STi is the best detector I''ve used. It doesnt give false positives as often as other models I have tried. I have it mounted between the headliner in my cab and the passenger''s sun visor (got to keep it outta sight in VA) and have had no problems with it. I really do not see a need the 360 coverage becuase police use the pace method when in a cruising mode. I also like the Automute feature.

Similar Products Used:
Just about every one under the sun.

Price Paid:  $200.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
 99 Ram 2500 V10

Strengths:
360 degree protection, SWS, laser and other bands. Display flexibility from bright to dim to no display.

Weaknesses:
It can't beat a Valentine one but for the money it's a good buy.

Summary:
First of all no detector is 100% fool proof. With that said, the BEL performance is well above par. falsing is about average to below average. Detection is well above the norm. The voice feature is neat for about a week or two, after that it's some what bother some. Sitting well over 6ft from the ground as positioned in my Dodge Ram enables this unit to pick up signals 2-3 miles down the road. I only wish the remote units had this kind of sensitivity. I'll either upgrade to a BEL 970 or valentine one in the future but for now I'm happy with this unit. For those of us outside the DC, VA and Maryland area The 855 and higher model number units are a good buy for the money. I recommend the visor mount for two reasons, better sensitivity and it's harder for would be vandals to see. As for th voice, you'll appreciate it when you run up on one of these construction crews on I95 late at night. So turn the voice off in the city but I'd recommend it's use on the Highway.

Similar Products Used:
Uniden, Cobra stealth trap shooter, Fox, Phantom Jammer and Escort.

Price Paid:  $200.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
 99 Ram 2500 V10

Strengths:
360 degree protection, SWS, laser and other bands. Display flexibility from bright to dim to no display.

Weaknesses:
It can't beat a Valentine one but for the money it's a good buy.

Summary:
First of all no detector is 100% fool proof. With that said, the BEL performance is well above par. falsing is about average to below average. Detection is well above the norm. The voice feature is neat for about a week or two, after that it's some what bother some. Sitting well over 6ft from the ground as positioned in my Dodge Ram enables this unit to pick up signals 2-3 miles down the road. I only wish the remote units had this kind of sensitivity. I'll either upgrade to a BEL 970 or valentine one in the future but for now I'm happy with this unit. For those of us outside the DC, VA and Maryland area The 855 and higher model number units are a good buy for the money. I recommend the visor mount for two reasons, better sensitivity and it's harder for would be vandals to see. As for th voice, you'll appreciate it when you run up on one of these construction crews on I95 late at night. So turn the voice off in the city but I'd recommend it's use on the Highway.

Similar Products Used:
Uniden, Cobra stealth trap shooter, Fox, Phantom Jammer and Escort.

Year / Model Reviewed:
 Volvo 740 Turbo

Strengths:
Customizable options like - sound/view & mounting hardware

Weaknesses:
lotsa false alarms specially in the city - even in CITY mode!

Summary:
Bought the thing about a year ago to combat Photo Radar. Worked well as long as it was positions correctly in the car. Found that by mounting it behind & just below the rearview mirror it could see forward and back through the rear window no prob, this also gave me the least amount of false alarms, but it still happened once or twice every day(see below).
One concern I had was the Laser dectector modual. The laser alarm was only trigged twice and I think it was set off by those new HID lamps in the newer Audis, BMW's & Lincon's.

Paid $189(CAN)

I need a cordless model. I Finally bought The VAL ONE last week after seeing it in action in my friends AUDI - No false alarms while driving in the city and seems to have a longer detection range Saved his Butt!

Similar Products Used:
Valentine ONE - Much better results, but it is a newer model

Strengths:
Size, display, price.

Weaknesses:
Pretty much everything else......

Summary:
I bought this detector after my previous Bel croaked. I had had problems with nasty falsing on the lower-end model and had hoped that the 855 would solve this (as Bel's advertising claims).
This thing is a piece of junk...... False alarms galore, minimal range, idiotic and useless features like SWS and voice.
I understand that people have a hard time stepping up to the $400 V1 but if money is a concern you may as well save the $230 this thing costs and drive blind.
Because of how much this thing falses you will become immune to what ever its doing either way.
I relegated this to my winter 4X4 and stepped up to the Valentine V1 for my M3.
After all of my experiences with the 2 aforementioned Bel's and other various Escorts, Cobra's and Unidens I have come to realize that all the money I have thrown away over the years on this kind of junk would have been much better spent of a single V1 and a hell of a lot of left over cash....
Buy a Valentine - the ticket you save may be yours!