[gavindjharper]

Just had a wicked idea.... you see all the "bolt on" safety camera detectors that are a little bit "high vis"; but if there were a discreet sensor with maxidot integration, would you consider a "safety camera detector"...

I've emailed Fiscon, as I reckon there is a market for it; but thought I'd do some impromptu market research for them (I have no commercial affiliation with them, just that they seem the sort of people who could make it happen).

I've set up a poll, with Yes, No, and Conscientious Objection to cover all bases.

Hope something interesting comes of this.

Best

Gavin

[P13SST]

Pay attention when you drive and you wont need silly gadgets to keep you right. Just another excuse for bad driving and ill speed when I can get away with it attitude. I drive 500 miles per week go by 10 speed cameras a day (7 fixed, 2 or 3 mobile units) and have not had one ticket in 5 years so where is the market?

[K1W1]

P13SST, on 14 March 2010 - 00:23, said:

Pay attention when you drive and you wont need silly gadgets to keep you right. Just another excuse for bad driving and ill speed when I can get away with it attitude. I drive 500 miles per week go by 10 speed cameras a day (7 fixed, 2 or 3 mobile units) and have not had one ticket in 5 years so where is the market?

My thoughts as well. The only reason to worry about speed cameras is if you speed and if you do that then I have no sympathy.

I have had three speeding tickets in the last 18 months totalling 13km per hour over the speed limit. Here in Victoria you get 3kph over the limit then its $140 ($85 pounds) into state revenue.

This post has been edited by K1W1: 14 March 2010 - 06:46

[wardth]

What a load of nonsense from the self righteous amongst us. Most of the so caled "safety cameras" are a joke and remember these used to be called "Speed Cameras" until this was considered too controversial.

Speed cameras do not catch drunk or drugged drivers, they do not catch drivers with no insurance, mot, license etc and the fact that the number of traffic officers has been reduced to pay for their implementation serves to demonstrate that the powers that be saw an opportunity to make money rather than spend it.

I drive over 30K a year and would have lost my license a number of times without my Origin B2 not because I speed but because I may have been doing a few mph over the limit in places such as roadworks near Manchester in driving rain on narrowed lanes where I'm too busy trying to avoid a collision with a sodding great big artic either side of me than looking at my speedo.

Get a grip.

[shark_90]

They already make something that does this for the Mk4 Golf and Mk1 TT IIRC.

[Keith Lard]

P13SST, on 14 March 2010 - 00:23, said:

Pay attention when you drive and you wont need silly gadgets to keep you right. Just another excuse for bad driving and ill speed when I can get away with it attitude. I drive 500 miles per week go by 10 speed cameras a day (7 fixed, 2 or 3 mobile units) and have not had one ticket in 5 years so where is the market?

K1W1, on 14 March 2010 - 06:44, said:

My thoughts as well. The only reason to worry about speed cameras is if you speed and if you do that then I have no sympathy.I have had three speeding tickets in the last 18 months totalling 13km per hour over the speed limit. Here in Victoria you get 3kph over the limit then its $140 ($85 pounds) into state revenue.

The OP isn't asking for your sympathy. It must nice living in your utopian dream worlds.

If you don't want to buy then don't but personally I think the market could be quite significant accross the VAG range.

[TsvRS]

I reckon that if a person sticks religiously to the speed limit at all times then he has the right to be a little self righteous. I think it is also right anyway to criticise those who see a speed camera detector as a means of systematically flaunting the law. These are two wide extremes however. Most of us respect the speed limits in the general sense but it is road safety that is the goal rather than a fanatical respect for any particular speed. I reckon more accidents will be caused by people looking out for these "gotcha" style traps than would have been saved by having them pay more attention to road conditions around them.
Remember some people who do speed are actually far more conscientious drivers than are some others who you will see performing all sorts of things whilst driving including make-up, texting, talking on a mobile phone, getting stuff out of their briefcase, adjusting the ICE system etc etc. In general though if you are paying attention to the road it is failry difficult to get caught out by a speed camera. I still use (my phone as) a detector though.

[gavindjharper]

OK - stirring the pudding a little;

Quote

I think it is also right anyway to criticise those who see a speed camera detector as a means of systematically flaunting the law.

Surely it is a way of systematically complying with the law. Speed/safety camera detectors reinforce good behaviour by ensuring that a driver is aware that there are speed cameras present. Obviously these would only be present if the area was an area of unusually high accident activity (only the most hardened cynic could think that the cameras were there to make money). It is just another driver aid.

In a similar vein, we all know it when it is cold and frosty outside, and messages are often displayed outside on the overhead motorway signage; but we still like our little bong inside the car to reassure us the temperature has dropped.

Quote

I reckon more accidents will be caused by people looking out for these "gotcha" style traps than would have been saved by having them pay more attention to road conditions around them.

Granted - a number of cameras have had to be removed as they have caused more accidents by people braking. The paranoia amongst the general public induced by the overzealous and sometimes inapproppriate use of safety cameras means that many; through misinformation or ignorance, will slow to a speed far below even the acceptable limit; creep past them and the resume normal speed once they are clear. Advance notice not only warns the driver of the presence of the camera; but also that they can anticipate erratic braking and potentially dangerous driving behaviour from the driver in front who may have seen the camera at the last minute.

The safety benefits are therefore manifold; alerting the driver to obey the speed limit; and providing advance warning that other drivers could potentially drive eratically.

Clearly, therefore, the more people that have these fitted; the less excuse there will be for excess speed; overall driving behaviour will improve.

I have no problem at all with sanctimony or self-righteousness; it is good that there are people out there that set a high standard for themselves and others to aspire to. I personally consider myself fallible and human; whilst I aspire to drive as well as I can, I am sure there are times when I have not; through ignorance or carelessness, whilst clearly the best solution is alert well-trained drivers; clearly technology and driver aids have saved lives, and so any piece of technology which contributes to vehicle safety and compliance with the law must be welcomed and applauded.

It isn't the technology pathway that matters GPS vs. Radar detection e.t.c. it is the overall improvement in safety and driver behaviour that counts.

;o)

[SlimAdy]

K1W1, on 14 March 2010 - 06:44, said:

My thoughts as well. The only reason to worry about speed cameras is if you speed and if you do that then I have no sympathy.

I have had three speeding tickets in the last 18 months totalling 13km per hour over the speed limit. Here in Victoria you get 3kph over the limit then its $140 ($85 pounds) into state revenue.

If you've been caught three times in 18 months speeding (bottom line, is you have been speeding), then you could probably do with one!

[TsvRS]

I wouldn't want to be labelled a hardened cynic so I will stop believing that speed cameras are just a means for making money and otherwise almost entirely useless. I will start to believe that speed cameras improve safety on our roads. Similarly I will stop thinking that some of those who use detectors do so only to momentarily slow to 30 for a camera before literally speeding off. I will start thinking that there is a segment of the population that wish to be better informed about the speed limit on the road on which they are driving and for this they are prepared to put their hands in their pocket.

Being a softened cynic though I will personally use a detector to avoid paying any money myself. :)

[wardth]

Had to go to Southend on Thursday using the A127. What an awful road that is - changing speed limits, average speed check zones, the odd Gatso or two and even a Truevelo thrown in for good measure. A prime example of Essex Constabulary's "zero tolerace" policy on speeders. The real issue for me is that I didn't see a single traffic officer in the whole of the 170 mile round trip yet I saw lots of tailgating, undertaking, last minute lane changes with no indication, mobile phone usage, limo glass and a real shocker of a pickup truck carrying so much excess weight I'll swear the truck was bending in the middle. The funny thing is I'll be he got home without any interference from the boys in blue.......because there wasn't any. Don't need em remember because the speed cameras do all the work!

I am of the opinion that my detector has actually made me a better driver as I use it with the large speedo display and its in my line of sight all the time. This means I'm not actually taking my eyes off the road all the time to check my speed.

It comes into its own on average speed sections when I just go to the limit and stick on the cruise.........and giggle watching others slow down for the start and end cameras - obviously some people struggle with the concept of "average speed" http://briskoda.net/forums/public/style_emoticons/default/emoticon-0140-rofl.gif

It's all academic anyway as your car will be automatically limited one of these days and Police will be able to retrospectivly charge you with speeding by downloading your cars data from the previous 6 months!

[Keith Lard]

wardth, on 14 March 2010 - 21:02, said:

It's all academic anyway as your car will be automatically limited one of these days and Police will be able to retrospectivly charge you with speeding by downloading your cars data from the previous 6 months!

With the "big brother" society we seem to breeding at the moment I'd bet that scenario is likely to become true within our generation.

[pdhealy]

wardth, on 14 March 2010 - 08:36, said:

What a load of nonsense from the self righteous amongst us. Most of the so caled "safety cameras" are a joke and remember these used to be called "Speed Cameras" until this was considered too controversial.

Speed cameras do not catch drunk or drugged drivers, they do not catch drivers with no insurance, mot, license etc and the fact that the number of traffic officers has been reduced to pay for their implementation serves to demonstrate that the powers that be saw an opportunity to make money rather than spend it.

I drive over 30K a year and would have lost my license a number of times without my Origin B2 not because I speed but because I may have been doing a few mph over the limit in places such as roadworks near Manchester in driving rain on narrowed lanes where I'm too busy trying to avoid a collision with a sodding great big artic either side of me than looking at my speedo.

Get a grip.

Here here! Where I live the purpose of a speed trap is to generate revenue, not to prevent or deter speeding. This is freely admitted by a number of police officer neighbours, including traffic corps members. I do not speed as a rule, and actually have not received a ticket in over 11 years. It really bugs me when others jump on the judgement band wagon on such posts as this. As private speed cameras are being brought in over here, I for one do not believe for a second that all these cameras will be calibrated correctly, and feel it is my right to be aware of their presence when driving. I have been a member of this board since 2004 and have noticed the same people "pounce" as soon as a poster hints at speeding.

None so pure as a reformed.... swear filter precludes the completion of this phrase.

[gavindjharper]

Well I am pleased that there are some other people on my wavelength too. It seems clear from this thread that FISCON (who I have emailed and asked to follow the poll) have some orders if they want to take this further. Integrating such a device with the Maxidot would put it in direct line of sight of the driver, enhancing safety.

[wardth]

One of my biggest issues with your average "camera detector" is its size and the fact that its yet another item on the dash. I've used by Origin B2 for years and across three different vehicles. Its size means its easy to locate and its designed to be "wired in" if appropriate rather than your usual coiled cable ending in a ciggy plug. The latest version the Popo Alert is nice and small and now has a colour screen. As mentioned above, the greatest benefit of these units is the fact that they have a nice accurate GPS speedo which can be displayed in large numerals. I cannot recommend these units highly enough and while they sure ain't cheap, they can pay for themselves very quickly.

The real issue with something integrated is that you are tied in to a certain database and / or feature set. The Origin offers laser sensing as well as the GPS location / direction of travel based service and this has prevented at least one ticket from the white hats on twisty A roads1 An integrated system would need exceptional database support from a third party manufacturer to ensure its validity, especially with the ever changing face of speed camera installations on our roads.

[M12MKD]

to answer the question depending on the price and how much an update subscription is or how easy it is to update then yes it would be an interesting piece of software.

I have a safety warmning on the sat nav which is a helpful reminded should you be slightly creeping over the speed limit. I generally syick to the speed limit, but sometimes the speed can creep up abit when following the rest of the traffic.

After I was caught speeding on an A road (3 lanes) to which I assumed was 40 (was only doing 35) as there was no speed limit sign in sight from where I pulled out of a junction I invested in the B2 aswel I used it until I got the sat nav.

So yes we should all be aware of the speed limited and we should not need them but as in my own case its not always a clear case of not paying attention.

[soapywalrus]

Sorry to criticise anybody, but if you get caught by speed cameras then you probably need to deal wit your observation skills, rather than your gadget quota. Speed cameras are by nature fixed, obvious and visible.

Even the ones being held by coppers are almost inevitably in exactly the sorts of places you would expect them to be, at the times you would expect them to be, and again are pretty glaringly obvious.

Better attention to the road, the conditions and the surroundings is all the protection you need against speed camera.

And before I get accused of being self-righteous or any such nonsense I have been riding motorbikes since I was 16 years old, and all the ones I have had in the last 10 years have been far faster than my cars (including the current vRS). I drive about 25,000 miles a year and drive to the conditions, whether that be above or below the speed limit.

[rob_e]

On my previous GTII had a Snooper s4 neo hardwired on the dashtop from new.

Over the 3 yrs and 90k miles I did in that car I would say it was useful, but if I add up the cost of buying the unit plus the subscription charges to get the database updates it really does not stack up financially - as such I didn't fit it to my vrs (sold on ebay instead!).

Fixed sites are easy to spot (you deserve a fine if you don't see the warnings and the big yellow box) and the mobile laser units are not picked up very well by any dashtop detector as the beam is usually too narrow to register .