Saphe Drive Mini traffic alarm | real-time speed camera detector and warning system | Car Alarm System | Colour display | Works across all of Europe | The Car car electronics starts automatically

Product Information

To help, we’ve broken down our review to some key areas that we feel would be important to drivers. Set the cruise control to the current speed limit and enjoy the ride. We recommend using cruise control on the motorway and highways. With cruise control, you can focus on the road and traffic, while avoiding a potential speeding fine. The noise quality was of great importance here too. Too loud and it’ll get annoying and you’d be put off and hate it. The alarm was loud enough to raise attention over music (if not blaring), but subtle and short enough to nudge you without disrupting your driving. We wouldn’t be surprised if this hasn’t gone through some rigorous user testing to get to this stage. Unlike the Saphe One+, you’ll need to recharge the Drive Mini, and there’s a small micro USB connector on the underside to do so. No idea on battery life, but after a week of driving, it had used a bar, so potentially you’ll need to charge it once a month, maybe? The best radar detectors will also detect lasers (but will not jam them). Aside from that, look at the general quality of the product; suspiciously cheap examples will not be as good as reputable ones.

The phone wasn’t doing anything else, no music streaming, wasn’t being used for maps; it was just sitting in the central armrest. The Snooper looks like a traditional portable satnav device, and clearly displays your current speed alongside the actual speed limit on its clear, 5in touchscreen; here the emphasis is clearly on prevention.

What you need to know about radar detectors:

It includes your typical fixed and mobile speed cameras, as well as average speed cameras. They could also warn you about those subtle cameras mounted on traffic lights, and so forth. This will be important, given that there are over 7,000 speed cameras that are strategically placed throughout most British roads. Yet, how does it actively warn you about it? Be Aware Of Your Surroundings I wouldn’t expect my phone to lose such a large amount of battery when sitting relatively idle if it wasn’t using Saphe Link. However, it’s by no means a deal-breaker; just be aware if you have a long drive, then expect to heavily use your phone for the rest of the day. In the UK, it’s perfectly legal to use a speed camera detector, although it’s a subject that often comes up for debate in Parliament. Nevertheless, while detectors – units that alert the driver to speed traps – can be used, radar jammers are strictly forbidden. Drivers using a jammer could be charged with perverting the course of justice, a crime that can carry a custodial sentence and/or a large fine. Can I use a speed camera detector abroad?

Key specs – Size: 60 x 36 x 15mm; Cameras detected: Fixed and mobile, traffic light, average speed; Updates: OTA; Power source: Rechargeable battery; Accessories supplied: Adhesive pads, mounts Powered by a long-lasting battery, the Saphe One+ is also easy to install wherever you wish and you don’t need to worry about any messy trailing wires. I never used the Saphe Link app to give me on-screen phone alerts, so I can’t vouch for how well it works.

What’s it like?

Key specs – Size: N/A; Cameras detected: Fixed and mobile, traffic light, average speed; Updates: Real time; Power source: N/A; Accessories supplied: N/A As you drive, the Alpha X will warn you with a loud ‘ding-dong’ and voice alert – something like “spot camera detected”. The top of the device has two buttons; on the left it can be used to cycle through warning distances to the nearest 100m, while the right-hand button toggles the smart radar. Menu options are accessed by buttons underneath (so there will be no distraction as you drive). Ever been caught by a sneaky speed camera that you were unaware of? Chances are, the majority of us can say yes to that.

The short version, if you want it for established fixed cameras get it. However if you want it for mobile cameras and very new installations Saphe just do not have the critical mass of users in the UK and the chances of notification are slim to non, therefore Waze is the better choice. Saphe will alert you of fixed speed cameras throughout Europe. Saphe speed camera detector has registered more than 100,000 fixed speed cameras in the world.The basic role of a speed camera detector is to alert you to the presence of upcoming speed cameras so that you can manage your speed effectively (and avoid getting fined). But they also come with a range of other clever features. The battery inside is one of the chunkiest coin cells I’ve ever seen, a CR2450. It is user-replaceable, but the manual doesn’t allude to this. You need to gently prise apart the top and bottom sections of the One+; you can then slide the battery out. It would be good if they could tap into Waze or another system to cover mobile cameras more accurately or even send you alerts to confirm if a camera is still there or not. That is where the Road Angel and Saphe’s live-updating databases establish their value (a value which Road Angel are not shy about charging for). The Alpha X allows users to update their database by connecting to a Windows computer via USB lead, but that’s not a tempting option for Apple devotees. Here the GTX80’s addition of Bluetooth, from which iPhone users can make free database updates whenever they choose, makes a convincing case for this option over its competitors.

In terms of alerts on the One+, you get a flashing LED of different colours; blue is speed cameras, red is for an accident or danger ahead, while yellow flashes if there’s congestion or an accident. These two traffic alarms are designed to help you avoid speeding fines and accidents by notifying the driver of all types of speed cameras ahead, speed limit of the road, and of any dangers on the road. None of those excuses will wash, however, if you’re snapped by one of an increasing number of speed cameras or caught in a police radar trap. And this is where speed camera detectors, or radar detectors, can help save the day. Acting as an additional pair of eyes on your speed, they produce an audible alert when you’re approaching a speed camera. Some display your speed using GPS, or use the same satellite technology to show when you’re approaching a known camera location. Others use radar to alert the driver to the presence of a police radar trap. If you spot an accident, press the red button on the left, with a picture of a warning triangle. This lets others know that there could be a nasty pile-up or a lengthy jam waiting to happen. Thus, they’re now aware that they should probably reroute their journeys elsewhere. Come on Saphe, please speed up both this critical update and the time it takes to update other areas of your database (eg. the M4 Slough area average speed road works were removed weeks ago and yet the database is still claiming it’s 50mph when it’s not. Pretty annoying after 20minutes of false alerts...Key specs – Size: ‎75 x 40 x 60mm; Cameras detected: Fixed and mobile, traffic light, variable and average speed; Updates: OTA; Power source: Rechargeable battery; Accessories supplied: Mains plug, USB adapter, USB cable, dash mount That person is you, yes you, the one who is reading this. There is hope for you, new car owner, and you the many who make up the used car market where the technology transfer has yet to make an impact, if at all. You the many, used car owners, can now beat the hidden profit generators, otherwise known as speed cameras, by outwitting them with a relatively affordable technically advanced speed camera detector. I have since switched to using CamSam PLUS (an Android app), which works flawlessly and costs very little. In fact I think Saphe bought their UK speed camera database from CamSam so you get the exact same speed cameras! Interestingly I still get warned about the same camera on the parallel road, but CamSam handles it correctly and doesn't crash. I'm finding CamSam (on the phone screen) plus Waze (on the car screen via Android Auto) to be a good combination. They don't conflict with each other and I get warned about all fixed cameras (through CamSam and optionally Waze) and mobile cameras (through Waze). The reason for not using Waze alone is that it only warns about cameras if you're actively speeding, so it's theoretically possible to accidentally speed up and go through one without having been warned. Well, the unit itself is just the physical hardware; think of it as a Bluetooth alarm and button. So the heavy lifting is being done by the Saphe Link app on your phone.