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Product Description Whistler's Pro-Series Line! Can Whistler improve for 2009? YES! Our new SE versions of our high performance units include a feature called "Ka Max" mode. This feature improves on our already impressive Ka perfromance. All the SE models include our popular features - Radar Signal ID (RSID) and Laser Signal ID (LSID).
Amazon.com Product Description Whistler's XTR-695 is a detector that maximizes sensitivity and minimizes falsing. Ka Max Mode gives you improved Ka Band sensitivity. Radar Signature ID displays known Ka gun frequencies to help distinguish threats, and Laser Signature ID does the same by displaying pulses per second of received laser signals. Take advantage of 360-degree coverage for all radar and laser bands, Whistler's patented POP-mode detection, and a wealth of bonus features like a 72-point digital compass and vehicle battery voltmeter.
The XTR-695 maximizes sensitivity and minimizes falsing. Click to enlarge.
7 Color Backlit LCD Text Display The XTR-695's brilliant text display provides distinct visual confirmation of signals detected, signal strength, and indicates engaged modes of operation. You can choose from 7 different display colors for a bit of personalization, even assigning a different color for each band, or scrolling colors.
Filter Mode There are times when a radar detector can emit the same frequency as police radar and can cause your detector to falsely alarm. Sometimes a detector can display a signal when picking up another radar detector in vehicle close by. The Whistler Filter Mode checks the signal to verify if it's a legitimate police radar or a false alert from another detector.
Auto Dim Mode The Auto Dim feature automatically switches the illumination of the text display between the bright and dim settings according to varying light conditions so that the text display will always be easy to read.
INTELLICORD Ready Add the Whistler INTELLICORD and you'll be able to remotely control the radar detector in settings such as power on/off, city modes, dim/dark and quiet/auto quiet with a simple press of a button.
Real Voice Alerts
Real Voice provides added information to the detected signal over and above the simple band ID tones from internal speaker. Click to enlarge.
7 different display colors. Click to enlarge.
Real Voice provides added information to the detected signal over and above the simple band ID tones. The unit says "X band" when it detects an X band signal. This allows you to keep your eyes on-the-road. Real Voice is also used to articulate Safety Warning System messages and feature selections. Real Voice will be used to articulate the following:
Band Identification
Safety Warning System messages
Feature Selection
Low Profile Alert Periscopes Whistler's Low Profile Alert Periscopes provide an added attention getting visual alert. The two extra LEDs flash on and off when the unit alarms to provide a unique visual alert.
3 City Modes/Highway Mode Highway mode provides full audio and visual warning of laser/radar systems while maintaining full sensitivity. Highway mode is the default setting of all Whistler's laser/radar detectors. City mode helps reduce the annoyance of automatic door openers and burglar alarm alerts by providing an initial alert (same distance as Highway Mode) then remaining quiet unless the signal strength becomes very strong. When the signal increases the unit will alert briefly to notify you of the change in signal strength.
Stay Alert The Stay Alert feature is designed to test a driver's alertness. Within 30 to 60 seconds after the feature is engaged an alert is sounded; to show alertness, the driver must press the volume, city or the mute button within 3-5 seconds. If a button is pressed within 3-5 seconds, the cycle is repeated. If a button was not pressed within 3-5 seconds the unit alarms at full volume and the display shows an unique visual alert.
Quiet/Auto Quiet Modes Pressing QUIET before a signal is detected engages Auto Quiet Mode, which automatically reduces the audio level after the initial warning to a low audio level setting. Pressing QUIET during a radar/laser encounter silences audio alerts, while allowing visual alerts to keep you informed.
Alert Priority When two or more signals are received at the same time, the alert priority is: Laser, VG-2, Speed Radar, Safety Radar.
Example: If X band is alerting, then suddenly a VG-2 signal is detected, the VG-2 warning will override the X band alert.
Vehicle Battery Saver Mode The Vehicle Battery Saver Mode automatically shuts off your detector within 3 hours if you forget to turn it off. The timer is reset if the detector is turned off, unplugged or any button is pressed before the 6 hours have expired. The detector will alert you with an audible and visual warning before it shuts off.
Safety Warning System--SWS This relatively new radar is not for speed detection at all, it is used to keep you informed of highway safety. Transmitters are installed and programmed (for example: in emergency vehicles) to make you aware of possible situations that may require your attention, such as: ambulance vehicles that are moving or stationary, road hazards ahead, road construction delays or detours, etc.
What's in the Box Whistler XTR-695, Power Cord, Windshield Mount, User's Manual
Fun to useSeptember 7, 2010 Jason He(Evanston, IL, US) Plenty of false alerts in metro areas and on busy interstates, but on more rural state highways it's very accurate. I caught two speed traps on a 45-mile journey on Illinois Route 47 this past Labor Day. Voice alerts on the device are loud and clear, and unlike other reviewers here, I had no problems reading the display even in bright sunlight. (The color washes out a bit, but text remains very legible.)
Undecided but returning unitJuly 21, 2010 TreborKavon(Jersey) 7 out of 9 found this review helpful
I ordered this unit to replace my Beltronics Vector 940. I had that unit for many years but dropped it on the ground and sadly that was the end of that.
I was ready for another Bel but after reading some on-line reviews I decided to go with the Whistler mostly due to the better test results of Ka band detection around curves, not to mention the additional features such as electronic compass and display options.
Packaging: Not that it necessarily matters much but this unit came in a plastic bubble or blister package. The Bel came in a nice box that had a certain quality about it that was lacking with the Whistler packaging. I guess the Whistler was packaged to be more retail store friendly.
Accessories: The unit came with your basic cord, suction mount (adjustable by way of bending the metal), and a small folded 'manual'. The Bel came with extra fuses, power cord clips, and an adjustable suction mount. The Bel also came with a full size 'book'-style user guide.
Construction: The XTR-695 is kind of big. The plastic has somewhat of a cheap feel to it. This is not cell phone quality construction but more 'cheap radio' quality. On-line photos of this unit do not really convey the true look. It's not horrible but it is huge and the headphone jack and other external features don't have a quality feel to them. The headphone jack does not look like it will take a standard mp3 player type headphone plug. I will give the Whislter a 'C' on fit and finish.
Display: The display is nice but a little short (the case is so big the display could have been a little longer). The tower LEDs are great but at night they light up the interior of your car like a disco - you HAVE to disable them at night or you'll be a cop magnet. Yes radar detectors are legal in most states but you don't need a cop nabbing you for something he may have let you go on initially but has changed his mind because you are using a radar detector.
In the daytime the display can be hard to see. Adjusting the backlighting color helps with this. The maximum brightness level just isn't quite bright enough. The Bel had a 'recessed' display so the housing extended out a little further then the display, creating a visor effect which was very useful in daytime driving. I could be wrong with my terminology but the Bel had a LED display while the Whislter seems to have a LCD display. Whatever they are called I will take the Bel type display over the Whistler. The multi-colors of the Whistler are nice but what matters most is being able to read the display, not how cool it looks.
Controls: I found the controls to be laid out ok. I don't like the fact that you have to press the menu button 18 times to get to a certain setting, such as the 'tower LED disable' option. A really useful feature would have been a dedicated 'display' button to cycle through presets of different display settings.
Features: I like the auto power on feature but with my Subaru Wrx I turn the key to 'on' and I pause to let the fuel pump do its thing for 4 seconds, then I start the engine. This causes the Whistler to come on, then switch off and back on again. Not a huge issue but more of an FYI. I'm sure it won't hurt the unit.
The power on self test is cool but also sounds like an 80's video game. The quality of sound and voice is good.
The compass is a nice feature even if it just gives you something to look at other then 'Highway' or whatever most other brands' units display when not reporting detection.
The Battery Voltage meter is also cool but I dont know how often anybody would use this. A nice option would be to have a choice to set the unit to auto-cycle through compass, voltage, etc. but its' not a big deal.
Performance: Let me tell you I was initially impressed with detection. The first night I installed the unit I test drove it in my small town. It picked up X band 3 times and each time it gave me advanced notice of oncoming police cars (they left their radar guns on apparently). It also picked up Ka band in the next town over; it wasn't until I was on top of the police car but he was facing east as I was driving north so I didn't feel that it missed...it may have been his direction or he may have waited until I was close to turn on his unit.
The next several days told a different story. Traveling to work up a major highway I saw no police cars and had no falsing from the Whistler. On the way out of state it was pretty much the same until I hit a city area and it picked up some false signals. This is expected so it was tolerable. Switching the unit to City mode didn't stop the falsing as far as I could tell. Also, there are several 'city' modes but I just wanted to be able to hit one button. This is important and should have been built into the unit.
The longer I use the Whistler the more disappointed I become. The more highway driving I do the more I scratch my head. The unit falses during highway driving on X and K band often and maybe even Ka band (it alerts for Ka but I have yet to find the police car and believe me I know where they hide as I have been taking this route to work for 10 years). X and K are easy to dismiss as interference from alarms or other detectors (this is supposedly filtered out by the Whistler) but when Ka band alerts you find yourself visually scanning for a police car that never appears.
This kind of device behavior leads to the bad habit of ignoring alerts and leaving you with the potential for a ticket. I don't know if its that the unit is so sensitive that it picks up radar guns from 'too far' away or if its simply not doing well in my area. A lot of times it will alert me of 'PULSE' radar but again police cars are nowhere to be found. At some point it all becomes too much information and/or too much false information.
Driving in some small towns the XTR-695 will go through X band, K band, then pulse, all false signals and the unit will do this even after switching to City mode.
In trying to engineer a unit with multiple features and options it is my opinion that Whistler failed to just keep it simple. The Bel unit I used to own had a techie mode for those folks that wanted to see the detected frequency and other 'techie' items, perhaps Whistler needs to provide this option.
The positive reviews of this unit on certain radar-detector focused web sites really has me confused. It could be that Whislter for so long had been the lower end or cheap brand when it came to radar detectors so when Whistler finally released a unit with decent design, ok quality, and "better then before" detection, people gave it higher marks then earned. I now am even more curious as to how this unit fetches such a high retail price that is so close the the Beltronics 940/955 units. While I am returning this unit I now do not know what to expect from Bel so I do not know if I should even go with a new Bel detector.
Summary: In closing I would say I cannot recommend this unit. Sure it was great at detecting the old X band guns the police in my town use but that's nearly useless...I already know my town and know not to even go 3 miles per hour over the 25mph speed limit.
To be fair I have not owned this unit long enough to truly rate Ka band detection during 'wide open' highway driving. It could be that this unit excells on open highways and will work perfectly in that scenario. Also many state police officers 'know better' and only turn their guns on when they see their potential target coming. I'll give this unit the benefit of doubt and say that it may work just fine at detecting Ka band.
My problem is there is so much falsing I actually started to wonder if the 100 degree temperatures here in the Northeast have something to do with the units falsing.
And so I am returning the unit to Amazon for a refund not for any specific reason but because while the XTR-695 may be a good solution for others it is not for me. The combination of the Whistler's cheap feel, falsing, and spotty detection, all influenced my decision.
And by the way, Amazon should really consider packing their electronics orders with more then one sheet of packing bubble. The contents of the shipping carton tend to slide, bounce, and/or roll around during shipping and this cannot be too kind to the item, especially electronic items.
Whistler XTR-695 is only adequateJune 17, 2010 T. D. Samuel(Salem, OR USA) I purchased this unit based upon several reliable on-line reviews for its accuracy and comparisons to other competing brands in the same price range. My experience in use, is that its performance is only adequate. I get false alerts from other stationary sources like microwave/cellphone towers and commercial building alarm systems. Recently, while driving, I passed a motorcycle patrolman and my laser alert warning did not activate until I was practically on top of him. I am finding that the laser alert function is functionally useless. I tried to save some money by buying a mid-range product rather than the high-end stuff and I got what I paid for -- mid-range performance.
Works wellMarch 24, 2010 Alexander(Israel) 4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This thing works really well. After driving for 2 weeks with this nice little cops detectors I can tell that in Utah most highway patrol cops use radars with a frequency 34.7 GHz and 35.5 Ghz, sometimes I can see 34.9 or 34.3 GHZ. Some State troopers use K band only radars and this guy will tell you what it is. Basically, I got a ticket from a state trooper for 230$ and decided it's time for to know where they're hiding. This radar detector spotted an evil Dodge of local highway patrol behind the bridge where he was hiding. No way I'd see him. On Friday nights Highway patrols are all over the place, last week of a month the same thing.This detectors keeps me in check all the time and I've avoided many tickets since and it'd paid off its cost. 4 stars cos it gives false signals on X band(like all others do) and sometimes screams on K and KA band also false. But guys, don't be fooled if you pass a highway patrol car on the road that just pulled someone over and it doesn't go off, it doesn't go off because at the moment that cop pulled someone over he fixes his speed and his radar is not working anymore. Also don't be fooled when it doesn't go off when a police car drives behind you, not all police cars have speed radars, cos they're not highway patrol! So don't expect it to go off near 911 police or some detective.. Hope you drive safe and never get a ticket.
good radar detectorMarch 13, 2010 Alexander E. Khait(Chicago) 0 out of 1 found this review helpful
my third whistler. so far, no complaints, works fine. sometimes goes into a fit with no obvious targets in sight, might be responding to other radar detectors?
