Beltronics STi Driver Radar Detector (Black/Silver)

Comment: Wanted another Beltronics ever since my old one went on the blink after a few years of use. Thought we purchased one of the best units on the market. What a disappointment!
Specifically wanted it for a planned road trip to FL. The STi unit arrived the day before we were to leave, so we were not able to test it ahead of time.
During our trip we were anxious to test the new unit. After a few miles on the road, the unit alarmed other than for the usual alets. When investigated in the manual,it noted that the unit's quality control was not good, and the unit should be sent back to the manufacturer.
What an annoyance to turn off the unit an turn it on every few miles until the alarm once again sounded. Of course we sent the unit back the first chance we got after arriving home from our trip.
Am very hesitant to buy another Beltronics radar detector if that's the best quality control they can produce.Beltronics STi Driver Radar Detector (Black/Silver)

Comment: I've owned this detector for a year now and I have just decided to sell it and go back to an Escort Model. The only reason I gave up the Escort Passport model was because I lived in Va and needed stealth because detectors are illegal in Va. The problem with the theory is that the STI Driver does NOT have anywhere near the ability of the Passport. Many times by the time I received the warning on the Driver I was already looking straight at the cop. Useless. Several times it also seemed like it completely failed to recognize a threat at all! Again useless. And as a side note, the amount of false alarms I received with the Driver on ANY setting was ridiculous.Very annoying and distracting. The only positive feature I can say about it is of course its stealth ability - yes you have it BUT at a big cost. And I am not referring to the price. I've decided to to take my money from the sale of this and to go back to Escort. Good Luck!

Comment: My Radar detector was purchased January 2010. One month later the detector stopped working and would not turn on. I verified it was not the power source or the cable; the unit was receiving power but would not turn on. Well I wasn't too happy but I knew it was covered by a 1 Year warranty. I called up Beltronics only to find out that they DO NOT HONOR WARRANTY CLAIMS for products purchased from Amazon.com!!! Even worse, they wanted $79.99 + shipping to fix the unit. Needless-to-say, I find their level of customer service inadequate and disconcerting given the volume of product they sell through this site. I will not purchase another Beltronics product and would advise highly against it given their lack of professionalism in standing behind the quality of their own product.

Comment: I've been using radar detectors for 30 years and settled on Beltronics. Had an RX65 for about 3 years and it worked well for me until someone stole it. I didn't want to buy a new one as it seemed best to save cash and skip the radar for a while. Then I got a ticket on my way to Church with the family. Yes, I was speeding - 60 mph in a 45 zone but the officer said I was doing 71 and gave me a big expensive ticket. (Asked if I could see the radar in his car and he responded that he didn't have the radar on.) Anyway, I was frustrated. Less than a week later I was driving and trying to be careful with the speed but spaced out for a few seconds while talking with others in the car - and got another ticket.

If I'd have bitten the cost I would not have gotten any tickets so I picked up the STi. I've had it for 2 years with no tickets. Saved myself big bucks as it's never failed to let me know when I happen to have wandered over the speed limit and someone's there to make me pay.

Buy it. It's the best windshield mount detector.

One gripe I have is that the auto dim function is not very sensitive and it takes a few steps to change the dimming of the unit versus quick access via a front button.

Comment: Unfortunately, the Bel sti did not function properly when it arrived at my home and was missing integral parts as well. I had to request the replacement parts from the manufacturer in Ohio in order to ascertain if the product functioned. It did not! I, then, had to ship it to BEL for repair at additional cost. When I received the STI, it functioned properly after factory recalibration. If my experience is an example of Amazon's quality control of a product, it does not exist!