Side by Side Comparison of: Cobra

This little gadget has helped me get to point A and point B quickly while avoiding getting multiple speeding tickets. Now I don't drive crazy but I do go at least 10 over on the highway, depending on traffic. Yeah every so often it sends off a ghost alert and no cops are around but I'd like to stay on the side of cautiousness anyways when it comes to avoiding having to pay off a ticket and deal with higher insurance rates

Do yourself a favor and put one of these in every car you own. IT IS ALWAYS RIGHT. I travel 150 miles a day for work and go through three counties. The cops are merciless in New York and this little Cobra has saved my as EVERY SINGLE TIME. You can't see them when the alarm goes off but when you do, you are so grateful that you spent the money on this machine. AWESOME.

Excellent value detector. It does the job I need it to do. It is simple enough to where I just plugged it in and it worked. On a 3 hour drive it successfully detected 5 out of 6 of the cops I saw (not sure if the last one was detecting or not). There were a couple areas where I got some false hits but it is pretty easy to tell if its false and can be muted. If you are looking for a radar detector and don't want to shell out money for an expensive one, feel safe buying this product.

I am a NJ/PA customer and I am loving my purchase. I had a very old Cobra that lasted me 15 yrs (by some strange miracle). I tested out a newer version before, but within a year, the speaker blew out and made it more annoying than helpful. With this new one, I was very wary of having a similar experience with the newer one I had purchased and laid to rest before. So far, it is a great purchase. Mind you, nothing is going to stop people from getting tickets. But the brighter text display, the ability to customize alerts, and all around pros of this Cobra are great! My only con, thus far, is that the volume is a bit softer than I am used to. But even that is good without being too distracting.

l purchased this item several months ago from Amazon.As usual it arrived on time and in perfect condition. In the time that I've had it it has already paid for itself more than a few times. I drive 11 miles each way to work 5 or 6 days a week on both urban and suburban roads and streets which are heavily patroled by all three branches of law enforcement using X , K, and occasionally KA radar detection. Withouut fail SO FAR I always see them before they see me and have plenty of time to take appropriate action (SLOW DOWN!). Through my city driving I do get a few false alerts but always in the same locations and at the same signal strength level (usually automatic door openers) so I'm not to alarmed but still aware. If you READ THE INSTRUCTION MANUAL you'll have the unit up and running in no time and hopefully be as satisfied with it as I am. I've read in some reviews that some users have had a problem with the suction cup mounting bracket staying put on the windshieled. This hasn't been a problem so far. I clean my windshield frequently (have to see you know) so maybe a good cleaning may help in this matter. In all I rate this product at 5 stars, especially for the price. The Only complaint I may have is that the alert volume drops off after the initial reception of the radar.It's still doing the job but at a lower volume. This is a minor isssue, it's already done it's job of alerting you so take heed and react accordingly.The Escort and Valentine detectors may be better than this Cobra but at $400.00 retail I highly doubt they're four times better.For most people this is all the radar detector you'll ever need.I'm happy with it and reccomend it.

I chose a 5 star rating because I have had older Cobra detectors in the past which have worked very well and I have always been well satisfied with their products. Since my purchase however, I haven't had much of an opportunity to use it on the interstate highway system and have been limited to using this in my local area and city. The city mode works well and was put to the test while driving in town several weeks ago. While pulling into a parking lot of a local business, the detector went off briefly and I thought it might be their security system. When I finished and left the lot, I got another brief signal and about a 1/4 mile down the road, there was a speed trap set up. So the detector works and it alerted me in plenty of time to check my speed. The detector also keeps you mindful of your speed and helps you stay within the speed limit. The unit detects multiple radar bands and is offered at a great price. It also comes with a windshield mount but also mounts on the dash and it doesn't take up much room. I have no complaints with this product.

As long as you turn off the x band. The K band goes off often which is store doors and 18 wheelers, some of them. The Ka band is the cops, that I pay attention to. It's not the best detector but its enough to keep you out of trouble.

I debated the purpose and value of purchasing a Radar Detector for years but after my last trip to Pennsylvania from Florida I got a speeding ticket and finally decided it would be worth wild to make the investment.So after reviewing this model and the model below it, i decided to go with this model since it had the alleged "Voice". So the first time i used it was to travel from South Florida to Pennsylvania and then back for a total of 2400 miles. It worked well for me and the voice alert is definitely worth the extra 20 bucks over the model below this one. I still need to understand all the alerts so i can be better informed on the false alerts but for the most part this item performed to my expectations and I would recommend this.

This is my 4th radar detector. Going back to the 80s, I had 2 Passport/Escorts and a BEL. I stopped using my last one nearly 10 years ago when photo radar became common where I live, and just slowed down instead. But photo radar was discontinued, and I have a few long highway trips to make, so I decided to get an inexpensive detector to help avoid tickets.My rating of this Cobra 9370 is heavily influenced by my experience with my BEL and Escorts.First, this Cobra picks up far fewer false alarms than any previous detector I owned. Admittedly they were much earlier models, and I'm sure the newer Escort and BEL models have improved. But this Cobra doesn't set off a lot of false alarms, even in the city.I give it a big plus for that. False alarms lower one's guard and make you less likely to take a warning beep seriously.Second, I know it works with laser, not because I went through a laser trap, but because my vehicle has laser emergency braking that activates if a collision with a vehicle ahead of me is imminent. Sure enough, when I start my car near a concrete wall or another car, the laser detector sounds. It doesn't sound when I park with clear space in front of my car. Whether that will translate into saving me a speeding ticket from a laser gun remains to be seen.With this Cobra I have encountered signals and seen K and Ka band radar units patrolling the highway. In each case, I picked up radar signals from police cruisers apparently using radar guns from inside moving patrol vehicles. In each case, I picked up brief warnings several times before finally getting a continuous strong signal. The brief warnings were early enough to safely and easily slow to the speed limit to avoid a ticket. I can't report whether this detector will protect against a handheld instant-on radar gun used by an officer parked or standing beside the highway. I was nabbed by one of these traps using my BEL about 10 years ago. I think the best defence against the instant on guns is to find a car ahead driving at approximately the speed you want to go, and to run a quarter mile or so behind him. That way, if an instant on gun is used to clock his speed, you will pick up the signal and have time to react. But if you are out there speeding alone, I think you're dead meat no matter what detector you have.It isn't perfect. The windshield suction cup mount is a joke. The detector sags badly and no matter how much I bend the mounting bracket I can't get the detector to hang level from the windshield. I'm still deciding whether to use the Velcro dash mount or buy an after market 3-suction cup windshield mount.Radar detectors are insurance, not complete protection. You may still get tickets, but if you're careful I think the Cibra 9370 will help you avoid most tickets after you learn how to use the less than perfect protection it provides.

This bad boy has saved my rump more than once. Yes, sometimes it doesn't detect every cop car (not all cars have or use radar). Yes, sometimes it detects them when you can clearly already see them. Yes, sometimes it goes off and there is no cop around (other sensors trigger it). However, it is very reliable in my small, rural town. When I go into bigger cities, I turn it off. Everything sets it off there and it isn't like you can speed through tons of traffic anyway. County roads, highways, and long stretches of interstate are where it works best, and ironically where you are more likely to speed anyway. I am sure there are better ones on the market, but I like mine just fine. I have had it for several years and it still works as good as ever.

For the money, I really appreciate the numerous features this detector provides! Its very hard to compare this unit's performance as I have no other devices to directly compare it too but I can say every time I have been targeted by police "clocking traffic", it has alerted several seconds ahead of time. I wouldn't say it gave me much lead time (maybe 2-3 seconds warning)... but I don't really depend of this device to avoid tickets as this is more of a "toy" for me to play with while driving. I like the ability to enable/disable the many features like turning off X-band warnings although in Ohio, I leave that enabled because I've read online some Ohio police departments still rock the X-band detectors?! Honestly I mostly leave it in "city" mode to cut down on false alerts (always near grocery, gas, or retail stores with automatic doors). Also, I commute downtown every day on the freeway that passes the CMH airport, they must have some laser-based auto-pilot landing technology in use because this sucker screams "laser alert" every time I go by the north runway. I've also been "lasered" by parked police cruisers on the side of the freeway... no warning at all before alerting. Instant on Laser really makes these devices useless as a warning device. Smart drivers should learn where those "hidden" spots are where highway patrols clock traffic from and just know the instant-on guns really don't provide any warnings these days. I also notice this detector alerting for minutes at a time on the freeway with a weaker signal... I'm assuming the modern cruise control radar-based autos are causing this... again, almost making these devices useless or at least very annoying.

This is written by someone who doesn't know a whole lot about radar detector fyi. I am aware the best types are made by escort, but I am definitely too cheap to fork out that much cash. I primarily was in the market cause I was going to make the drive from south county oc, ca to las vegas, and we were going to be in my new SS. So i really did not feel like getting popped for a wreckless driving ticket out there. I saw many mixed reviews on most of the cobra's, but decided to give it a chance since the price was right. So while driving down the 15, the cobra did pick up 3 different cop cars. Two from a few hundred yards away, that had coincidentally just pulled some one over seconds before I got to the level five alert for Ka. Then there was one cop I really did not see, he was pulled over, and the cobra only went off maybe about 3 seconds before I reached him. I dont know if he had his radar pointed or not, but it did pick him up, unfortunately not with enough time to slow down. But my luck, I think he was just closing out a ticket from the last person he got. Yes, there was a lot of false alarms, i actually found it better on city mode when i was out in the desert. When in highway mode, I got a ton of x alerts. Hey I know its not perfect, but for what I paid, it did okay considering my average pace was in the mid 90's with bursts of 100+ just to get a feel for my car of course.

Extreme amount of false positives. It freaks out and beeps at almost everything. To be fair, it has alerted me correctly a number of times. But more often than not, it alerts me to the presence of upcoming Walgreens automatic doors.

Not really worth it. Tons of false alarms. Sometimes I will drive right past a marked Police car and the detector won't make a peep but other times it won't shut up. It displays the TRAIN warning almost everyday. I like in the middle of a big city with no trains around for 15 miles.

Works ok. Instructions a bit confusing. Never did figure a few features out.

Spend a little extra and get the talking version of this device. Hard to see which indicator light is on otherwise, but you soon learn to memorize the sounds. You can turn off X & Ku bands, and leave the good stuff on. I also turned off K-band, and just listen for the ominous Ka to sound. In my state (after 3 years), I have not run into a bona fide K-band signal that maps to a law enforcement safety presence. Still practicing with it, and will return in a few weeks to update my post.

I had my last Cobra for over 15 yrs & it still worked great. I decided I was ready for an upgrade. I was very excited to get this on Christmas eve. I'm not as excited anymore. It's set on city but it goes off way more than my older one. And there are no cops in sight. Although I have noticed that it isn't doing as much as it was in the beginning. My other issue is the train alert. I have come up on trains & nothing happened. And I've been on the island, at least 6 miles from any trains, and it alerts me theres a train. I guess I'm still on the fence about it.

This is a basic detector that not only detects the speed detection devices in use but also when a late model car (Audi,Acura , Tesla etc) are in the vicinity. The detector does not differentiate the signals coming out of ADAS ) Lane assist and parking assist) systems used in the late model cars and will sound alarms Takes some practice and alertness to personally tune out of false alarms:-)Obviously, it is difficult to react and slow down when LASER is being used and is normally too late to respond.To be fair, it certainly helped me out a few times ..

Give off a lot of fake K readings I do however notice the fake ones are at red lights 90% if the time. Sometimes I get random readings completely uncalled for with no police around. Also when there is a police officer it alarms way to late and if i would of already been caught doing whatever it is.Secondly, I noticed when it is on my car radio is tweaking out and making a lot of static noice and when off it's clear as can be. All in all, don't know if it's money well spent.If I find a fix I'll update!

a lot of false alerts.

I read the manual thoroughly and here is my experience:Day 1: Commute to and from work, it worked like a gem! Only one false alarm in the city (on city mode at the time). Went past two cops on the way home and it detected them way in advance. I was very happy pulling into my driveway!Day 2: Commute to and from work, same roads as the day before, but in the city (on city mode), false alarms literally every 4 seconds!!I don't understand, I how I could have had such a different experience with it one day to the next. I was really hoping this would not give off so many false alarms. But I guess you get what you pay for. I'll give it a few more days but if this continues, it's going back! I will update my review if things improve.

The book says that it is never ever a false alarm if it flashers "Laser". However, I put my cell phone on my dashboard so I can use it as a GPS. Whenever I do that, the "Laser" flashes the entire time and won't stop until I pull my cell phone down. Also the notification is not really that loud, it's not a beep but more of a buzz noise. I miss my old detector and really don't like this one. Thinking of replacing it with another Whistler like my old detector.

Bought this last year, and it was working okay, but I found as time went on, I would pass radar signs, and it would not detect it at all, or would be until I was just passing it, what if that was a cop? A little too late, don't you think? Then as more time went on, I would pass police who I know were running radar, and again, the thing would remain silent, and not show any signs of detection, and yes, the volume was all the way up, and yes, it would say "system ready" upon starting my car, but it was quite apparent that the system was not ready, because it would not detect anything, rendering it useless. Luckily I never got pulled over, because I learned not to trust it, but I was still out nearly $100. You get what you pay for with radar detectors; buy a more expensive one which will of much higher quality.

Too many false alarms, my older model (XRS 9445) from 4 years ago works better! I USED to be a HUGE Cobra fan but this plastic junk is not worth the money. I ran both my older model and new one in my car everyday for a week to test side by side. Places with known radar (you know the ones telling you you are driving too fast) my old XRS 9445 went off like a charm but this new XRS 9470 sat dumb as a door knob on my dash with not even a whimper. When the 9470 did go off, there where no cops, no radar, no automatic doors to set it off as I was on the highway, and the 9445 was quite (as it should have been). Needless to say my 9445 is back in the windshield as it has prevented many tickets in the past and I'll stick with it until it dies. So much for upgrading when I didn't need to.

Didn't work when cops were around using radar. When actually it works more when it just warns me around the doors in front of the stores. Avoid and save money get a better one cough cough valentine!

It goes off all the time when no cops are around. I nearly got popped the other day on the interstate. The trooper was sitting on the side of the road and my radar detector didn't go off until I was probably 30 yards away. I passed him and it only went up to a "2" on the signal strength.What a waste of money it has been...

Too many false alarms -- and yes, I did program out the X & Y bands. I had an Escort / Passport for 22 years and several years before that. I thought a middle-of-the-road radar detector would be at least equal to one made 22 years ago. I was wrong. Should have paid more and gotten another Escort.UPDATE: Just bought one of the Escorts and junked this after a year. Escort worth the extra money. 0 false alarms and 100% accurate.

This product does not work. Yes the thing turns on so technically it works. The radar picks up false signals all the time. If the radar ever worked like it was advertised(picking up signals for over a mile), it would not be going off and flashing when I am within 100 yards of the police officer. Yes, by the time the Cobra picks up a signal, you are already clocked on the officers radar, ready to be pulled over. So the moral of the story is you get what you pay for and finding the cheapest alternative(COBRA XRS) is not the right move.

The whole point of a radar detector is to alert you with enough time to slow down. This thing constantly goes gives false alerts and does nothing when you need it. I was on the highway on a straight road and it did not go off until I was a few feet away from the cop and it ended up costing me a hefty ticket. Do yourself a favor and pay more for a real detector that will actually work.

Does not give 360 degree radar protection!Yellow lights DO NOT SHINE bright enough to be seen in sunny weather. (Note sunny at 60 degrees in Shitcago, IL.)Volume at max can NOT BE HEARD if window is open or radio is on.Can only detect radar head on.Many false signals at x and k bandWish I kept my whistler cr 90 detector. Beats this hands down