At the 2014 International CES, Cobra was present featuring some of their new technologies for the driving enthusiast. The Cobra SPX 7800BT is the latest in Cobra’s iRadar line that features some noticeable improvements that should help it compete against the latest offerings from Passport and Valentine One. Also, the SPX 7800BT is designed to be easier than ever to use.
Cobra’s latest in the iRadar line has a separate display and better detection.
The competition has spent a long time honing and developing their detection systems to eliminate false alarms and increase range. Now Cobra claim that they have doubled the detection range over their previous iRadar products. Helping with detection is their iRadar network, which contains a database of speed cameras, red light cameras, and other threats. Users can also submit their own reports manually, or automatically when the radar detector indicates a threat. There are approximately 1 million users on the iRadar network, helping the accuracy of the database.
We like that a user can specify whether a threat in the database is real or false. If people start marking a bogey as real, the system increases the alert radius and takes the threat more seriously. We also like that alerts stay in the system from radar scans and manual entries for an hour before being terminated. This prevents targets marked days prior from showing up long after the law enforcement officer has left the location.
The new Cobra iRadar device is incredibly small.
We also like the overall size of the product. It features a full-color LCD display built into the detector so the driver’s phone can remain in his or her pocket to provide less of a distraction while still allowing access to all of the iRadar functionality. We also like being able to completely conceal the device and use the phone app for information.
The detector can be used with the screen on or off with the app.
Ultimately, detection is what is the most important feature to many drivers. A fancy screen and a network-enabled app only help when the detector has good range, excellent threat detection, and the ability to accurately distinguish between real threats and false alarms. That is something that really can only be tested on the street, but Cobra have made it clear that they are working on both detection and technology to advance their products. The Cobra SPX 7800BT is available now for $229.95.