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Whistler Cordless Radar & Laser Detector [New] - $49.99 + $5 shipping shipping
1 * Whistler Cordless Radar & Laser Detector Model DE-1788
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How far does the 360 protection go out?
This will probably detect automatic garage doors like the last one on Woot did 
Buying a $50 radar detector is like buying a $0.50 condom… not worth the risk. Also, cordless means it will go into standby every 5 or so seconds to save power.
here’s the product manual
and a reminder to my fellow Virginians (if there’s any out there): radar detectors are illegal in the state of Virginia.
Bought one by Whistler on Woot a few years ago and it worked perfectly. We never got a ticket on a long trip. Unfortunately, here in Florida the heat gets to electronic left in vehicles so it’s time for an upgrade! Kept looking for one during the Woot Off but this will work!
It does not have 360 degree radar protection, the only windshield mounted detector on the market that has it is the Valentine 1.
Wrong! This detector does not have the on/off standby cycle like many cordless ones do (hence the larger size for four NiMh AA batteries). Read some of the reviews, most are positive.
In the battle between speed enforcement officials and radar detectors, getting an older model would probably provide a sense of (false) comfort.
That said, something is better than nothing at all!
Far be it from me to disparage anything woot-related, but this needs to be said because it suprised me:
I have a VERY good friend who is a county sheriff, and he tells me (and I believe him as I’ve known him for years to be a truthful person) that there is no radar detector in existence that will let you know before they’ve already pinged you.
In fact, he told me a great story of how he once followed (in an unmarked car) a guy, who didn’t speed at all, but saw he had a detector. So he’d keep shooting his radar as he followed occasionally. So the guy would look at it. ping. Look at it. Ping. look, etc… eventually, the guy takes the thing down and throws it on the seat next to him, and speeds off. My buddy turns on his lights and pulls him over. The guy in the car explains that he just got frustrated because his radar detector kept going crazy, and yeah, that’s why he sped off.
And being a good guy, my friend told him that he was behind him the whole time pinging him, and let him go with a warning, and a new perspective on the futility of trying to beat the radar. 
I’ve got one of these and it does a good job. You can run it plugged in (if you want) or unplugged. It doesn’t turn off and on to save power, though you can set it to automatically shut off if you want. Took mine to Miami and back to Chicago and it saved my butt a few times. I set mine up to turn off after 3 hours when unplugged to save batteries (though I store it plugged in in the storage compartment so it charges) and so you know, the thing freaks out before it shuts off to let you know that it is, in fact, shutting down. To cancel, just press any button.
Overall, I am very pleased with mine.
The range has been long enough for me to avoid getting popped, so I am happy. I spent $100 on mine just under a year ago, IMHO, this deal is good enough that I’ll be calling my father in law about it (he’s been talking about getting a Valentine One until he saw the price tag).
Outside of the circumstance you described, that’s not true. If a cop is sitting miles ahead of you and shooting radar on passing cars, a good radar detector can alert to that way before you are even in visual range of the officer, much less radar range.
this is a true story no one ever believes me though. I got a whistler on woot while back works great it also knows when exactly your getting scanned. So anyways im going a good 55 in a 35 the cop was behing bushes, he pings me i slam on my breaks instantly, got no ticket never even got me.
Correct. As stated on 007radardetectors.com, “The Whistler 1788 stays on 100% of the time for total radar and laser protection. Other cordless units go into a “sleep mode” to save on battery life which cuts down on performance. The Whistler 1788 has rechargeable batteries and a built in battery charger so it does not need a “sleep mode” to save on battery life. The translates into one of the best cordless detector we have ever tested.”
Well most smart people know to look for unmarked cars… And let your cop friend THINK that they don’t work. His ignorance helps everyone else.