Whistler XTR-185 Radar Detector Review

Driver Experience Test

Yesterday afternoon we took the Whistler XTR-185 out for a spin on our 85 mile test route for my “Low Priced Radar Detector Review.”

The XTR-185 retails for $139.95 and is a cordless all band radar detector. For those of you that have not been following my reviews I am not a big fan of cordless radar detectors for the mere fact that in order to conserve battery life most  turn themselves on and off in milliseconds. From experience this phasing in and out has a tendency to reduce sensitivity and range. Utilizing the power cord that comes with most  cordless radar detectors does not change the fact that the circuitry is still designed to operate in cordless mode. Therefore unless you absolutely need a cordless consider a full time 12 volt detector instead.

I installed the Whistler on my windshield, set it for highway mode and started my leg on a desolate stretch of roadway that intersects Wickenburg and I-10. Here devices that are commonly found in more urban settings such as alarms and automatic door openers are that have a tendency to active false alarms are nowhere to be found. However the XTR-185 did register over 12 X and K/Ka devices that I would consider true false alerts.

As false alerts are a chief complaint of radar detector owners, I would consider the number of false alerts somewhat excessive.

I deviated from my normal leg to the downtown area of Buckeye to get a cold drink. In town I started receiving a K/Ka alert as I started approaching an intersection. A few moments later a Buckeye patrol car intersected my path. As this was not a straight on encounter posing no threat, I feel that the response from the Whistler was adequate for a detector in its price range.

After my stop, I headed back to the Interstate to continue my normal route.

A few minutes on the Interstate, I began receiving my second K/Ka alert. Across the median I observed a Arizona Department of Public Safety Pickup stopped behind another car. Considering that the DPS vehicle was parked behind another vehicle almost 1100 feet away, I felt that the alert of the XTR-185 was lagging.

After I passed the DPS cruiser, I removed the XTR-185 and pointed it directly to the rear of the vehicle to see if there was any increase in signal as perhaps the officer was using a fixed rear facing antenna; however the intensity of the alert was less then when I approached from the front of the officer’s truck.

As we approached the more populated area of the city, I switched the detector to city mode III to block out X band alerts. The detector seemed to chatter much less, however we still encountered several short K/Ka alerts that I would consider falses.

On my last leg, the detector did alert K/Ka as we entered back into Wickenburg on US 60 and almost immediately I observed a Wickenburg patrol car approaching within 1200 feet. Again considering the terrain and traffic this short range alert gave me minimal time to react.

Considering the low price of this detector and the fact that it is cordless, I would rate the detector average in its performance to other detectors in its price range and design.

I feel that when a consumer makes the choice of “fudging” on the price of a detector to save some money, that their next choice should be purchasing a detector that is powered full time by a 12 volt source and NOT consider cordless. From experience inexpensive cordless radar detectors do not provide adequate protection from the high end speed enforcement equipment police use today.

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