Some of you guys are sadly misinformed. This is how things REALLY work, not only in GA but technically. So let's get some things straight so you guys don't go on perpetuating misinformation:
1. Laser "Jammer" is a bad use of the correct word. It's a diffuser, not a "jammer". Real jammers are infact ILLEGAL.
2. The way a diffuser works is because it has LED's inside those sensors and when it detects the laser from the police radar gun it illuminates those LED's inside which in turn confuse the gun into a false "0" or "error" reading. It DOES NOT tell the radar gun you are going ANY speed, much less that you are at "45 mph when you are actually 100 mph". IT DOESN'T WORK that way at all. Simply forces the radar gun to act as if there has been an error. Be aware, they will then turn around, reset, and shoot you again. Hence #3 below.
3. All diffusers come with some sort of ON/OFF switch. Some are fancier than others, but all are designed to do the exact same thing. The way it is SUPPOSED to be used is: 1. When you get clocked by Laser/LIDAR it goes crazy letting you know you're being clocked. 2. It causes the police radar gun to read "error" or "0" (or some variation of that as error messages vary from manufacturer of Radar Gun) as described above. 3. You slow down. 4. You use that ON/OFF switch mentioned above. 5. You let yourself get clocked once you are at or below the posted speed limit. 6. The end. THAT is how it's supposed to work.
4. Not all diffusers are created equal. Some are better than others. Some have distance thresholds at which they will work, i.e. if shot at by a Stalker 500 gun then it diffuses up to about 500 ft from the source then the gun can still "punch thru" and clock you anyways when you're within 500 ft even if the unit is "on". In other words, since not all Laser guns are the same, then the diffusers have their limitations as well. Don't think you're immune to everything all the time. Most good ones work very well, but it doesn't ever make you invisible all the time. At some point, like within short distances, they can indeed clock you anyway. Not the diffuser's fault. Just designed that way.
5. Police can and do indeed ticket you w/o the use of any radar gun nor speedo in their car. It is perfectly legal and their "word" will indeed stand up in court, much like an "expert" witnesses does in civil cases. It's rare, but it is perfectly legal. If you think they can't, you're sadly mistaken.
6. Radar detectors are still useful for some situations. All metro counties still use conventional radar for speed control. Yes, they have shifted to using Laser a ton more than before, but there are still a lot of patrol units using conventional radar too. The key is that much like the diffuser, you're NOT invisible just merely by having one. It is designed to let you know WHEN SOMEONE ELSE IS BEING CLOCKED (contrary to popular myth) and NOT while you're being clocked. If the radar gun is pointed at you and clocking YOU, it's too late. Not even the best RD in the world will keep you out of a ticket then. For example: If you are driving down a two lane road late at night and speeding AND you are the only car on the road......when police hit you with their gun.....you're toast. Simple and plain. If you are on that same road or any road and you have other cars in front of you, give them enough room (if you're tailgaiting, they will get you too for the exact speed they clocked him/her for) ahead of you for THEM to get clocked first. When your RD goes off, hit the brakes, slow down, and when it's YOUR turn hopefully you won't get a ticket. If you use it as intended, it works. If think it has magical powers of invisibility, it won't work....much like that cape you wore when you jumped off the steps.
7. This is one of those cases where you actually do get what you pay for (most of the time). Valentine One, Passport, Uniden, Cobra, etc. Brand does matter, but also do your research. For example, some companies are the same company rebranded. One is more affordable than the other, yet the guts (what really matters) of two RD units are exactly the same. Don't EVER buy ANYTHING from Rocky Mtn. It's total and absolute garbage. Low end units from all manufacturers are usually just that, low end. Some high end have useless features, some have very useful features. Super high end Passport uses GPS technology to "remember" false alarms and eliminates them in the future, therefore when it goes off YOU know that it's the real thing and act accordingly. That's the biggest complaint from RD use, false alarms from everything from automatic doors at the grocery store to tail lights from other cars (Chevy Trail Blazers are awful at setting off your Laser signal). If you get false alarms all the time, what do you do? Ignore it. How do you know when it's real or not? That's why too many false alarms suck. That's why a feature like the Passport's is useful. The exact frequency of the gun shooting at you may not be, but GPS where it remembers there's a stupid CVS Pharmacy auto door is. Get it?
BTW, I've owned and used RD's (of just about every brand out there) and diffusers since before most of you were even born. I have no interest nor dog in the fight about what you buy or don't buy, speed or don't speed. That's your business. But I know what works and what doesn't and hate to see people be misinformed.
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