Customer Ratings & Reviews

First impression: My first impression of the Cobra RAD-700i is that it is a very well-made radar detector. It feels like a very solid radar detector. The plastic is solid with no flexing or giving at all. The buttons are solid that requires an intended push to activate. That prevents accidently changing something from buttons that can be pushed easily. Cobra Radar Detectors are part of the Escort Radar Detectors, some of the best radar detectors ever made. While the 700i is not an Escort radar detector, it gets some of it’s features from Escort, such as amazing Digital Signal Processing (DSP) which helps eliminate false signals and helps the auto learn feature. This radar detector uses a small coax 2.5mm power plug rather than a USB. A know a lot of people don’t care for this. Personally, I prefer these type of power plugs. They tend to stay in easier than USB and tend to last a lot longer. As a amateur Radio Operator, I have quite a few things in my truck using these power plugs, and I’m happy with that. Setup: You can plug in the radar detector right out of the box and start using it right away. The default settings will work for most people. To configure it to your liking, there are 2 ways to configure it; manually on the radar detector or using the Drive Smarter app, available through the Apple Store or Google Play. Configuring the radar detector manually allows you to set things like radar sensitivity, Feature on/off, display color, display brightness, etc. It’s not too difficult, but it did take me a few minutes to figure it out. Configuring with the Drive Smarter app does all of that plus more. It allows you to see the gallery of recordings and play them back. It configures services like the Mayday Alerts and advanced safety features, provides community driven alerts, police alerts, and voice control. Using the app requires Bluetooth connection. To pair the detector to the app: 1. Turn on Bluetooth on your phone. 2. Install and configure the Drive Smarter app. 3. Turn on the Cobra RAD 700i. 4. On the app, press Account > Add Devices. 5. Then follow the directions on the app. My detector installed quickly and easily. Performance: I have used radar detectors since they first came out. My 1st radar detector was the original Fuzzbuster. It was super simple but worked great. Since then, I have kept up with them and almost always had one with me. All my radar detectors have struggled with false alerts. My current radar detector is a recent one, and it is better than the previous ones with false alerts, but I still get them. My 1st day out with the Cobra RAD 700i was going to start very quickly. Right down the road is a Walgreens that sets off every radar detector I have owned since that store went up. As I approached the store, it set of the Cobra. I was really hoping it wouldn’t go off, but it did. On the plus side, the Winn Dixie across the street did not set it off, and that was unusual. During the entire tests, I kept the radar detector in Auto, rather than switch from local and highway. That 1st day was much quieter than any previous day with any radar detector, and this made me very happy. About half of the known false alert areas, such as stores, banks, etc., did not set off the radar detector. On the way home, the Walgreens set it off again. The second day I had to travel on the highway. As I left home, I approached the stop light where the Walgreens was, and it did not set off my detector. I wondered if the AutoLearn feature had already worked. It seems like it had. The 700i provided a much nicer ride than with previous detectors. I got far fewer false alerts, and the 700i didn’t seem affected by the rear-view mirror detection systems. Also, in the middle of the tourist area (Walt Disney World, Universal Studios), the detector was relatively quiet. On 3 occasions, the detector went off and did so in a way that I knew it wasn’t a false alert. On one, it was an automatic speed detection sign on the side of the highway. The second fired off at a max level. It stayed on for about a mile and eventually I saw a highway patrol coming up behind me. Once he passed me, the alarm went off. The 3rd time was a speed trap, and if I had been speeding, it gave me enough time to slow down as I had people in front of me. The rest of the week was about the same. Most alerts were for red light cameras, and I had a few false alerts, but very few. One of them wasn’t learning, so I marked it as a false alert by pressing mute 3 times as the alarm was going off. Also, on one of the roads I take, they have a speed detection sign by a school. My other detectors never detected it. The Cobra 700i does. Throughout the week, I focused on the features. Most of them are standard features found on other detectors. But there are two features that I really liked. First, If I want to be alerted once, and not constantly reminded, I press the Alert button once. It mutes the constant alarm but will alert you once for every new alarm. Then it does silent while continuing to alert you via the front display. The second feature I love is the AutoLearn feature. Using DSP technology from the Escort series, it does an amazing job at filtering out false alerts. However, the fact that it can automatically learn that certain alerts are false alerts, and then filters them out is a breath of fresh air. I now have a radar detector that will protect me from police radar and red-light cameras, and not drive my wife and other passengers completely crazy. One last thing I wanted to comment on is the EZ Magnetic Mount. This is an excellent mount. It’s not new, and I have used them before this one, but none of them worked as well as this one. The others I used were good for a few days, and then when I got in the truck in the morning, the radar detector and mount were in the floorboard. I applied this one when I originally put it in the truck a week ago, and it is still on the windshield with no sign of letting go. Cobra did an amazing job making a good mount better. Conclusion: Radar detectors have made great progress with filtering and configurability, but the 700i is far above and beyond any other radar detector I have used within its price point. The DSP filtering is amazing, the AutoLearn is a blessing, and the feature set is very strong, especially when using it in tandem with the Drive Smarter app. Because of the advanced filtering and AutoLearn feature, it has put my current radar detector in the pasture. I have ordered a permanent mirror mount and harness from BlendMount, and I am permanently mounting this radar detector in my truck. I will most likely get one for my wife’s car also, because she likes this radar detector because of the lack of false alerts. If you want or need a radar detector, I highly recommend the Cobra RAD 700i. It does its job beautifully without driving you crazy.

The Cobra RAD 700i has been a solid addition to my driving toolkit. Living in a rural area, I don't encounter heavy traffic often, but with several highways nearby, including NJ RT 80 known for its speed traps, having a reliable radar detector has become essential. Setting it up in my car was straightforward and didn't clash with the interior - a big plus. It's discreet yet functional. The performance is impressive, especially the 360-degree detection range. It keeps me informed about what's around, which is important on these open roads. What sets the RAD 700i apart for me is its false alert filtering. It smartly differentiates between actual threats and random signals, so I'm not constantly distracted by false alarms. This feature is particularly useful given the sporadic nature of police presence in my area. The integrated GPS is a great feature, and the pre-loaded camera locations are a helpful addition for navigating speed traps. While apps like Google Maps and Waze offer police activity alerts, the hands-free, real-time nature of the RAD 700i gives me an extra layer of awareness without needing to constantly check my phone. All in all, the RAD 700i has been a reliable companion on the road. It's a practical choice for anyone who drives frequently through areas with varying levels of police activity and values staying informed and safe on the road.

This accessory makes life so much easier when traveling. I find I have a smoother ride with less anxiety and worry, even on those pesky 10 hour road trips back to my hometown. The display is clean and clear with no question what I am looking at, making life easier when I only have a split second to take my eyes from the road. Bluetooth capability creates seamless connectivity to the app, making things easily hands free. Anything that needs to be done by hand while driving can be done with the simple push of a button without taking eyes from the road. This model also has a magnetic mount so the accessory can be removed to prevent theft. My favorite feature is the Autolearn Intelligence. It helps block false alarm alerts (which happen more often than you might think) with a built-in GPS and software that learns over time. The app that goes along with this accessory has SO many cool features, including a constantly updated database with new red light cameras/speed traps, help from others who also use the app for detection, and much more.

My past few radar detectors were from other companies as my history with Cobra wasn't the best, but I can tell you right out of the gates, this model has got my opinion swayed back into the right direction. This model has the Escort-style magnet hookup to attach to the large suction cup on the windshield which I opted to use a mirror-mount that I had from when I used the Escort - a perfect fit! The 12v cigarette lighter power is the standard barrel style that Cobra has used for a long while now, and the cord is extremely long. I opted to go with a 3ft USB-C to barrel plug instead so I didn't have so much extra cord. I hooked up this detector along with a Radenso and Escort model for comparison. The Cobra had a range almost as long as the Radenso, and just a hair longer than the Escort. All three had comparable false alert rejection, which is fantastic because there's nothing worse than a radar detector that keeps throwing false alarms, which you end up turning off because you're annoyed. I've seen no false detections from any of these. The display on the Cobra is a little... "washed out"... but completely readable. The colors just arent very vibrant. The sounds are definitely loud enough but not irritating to hear. To be completely honest I was able to (and still am using it) exactly how it was out of the box, with the exception of having flipped through the display colors. No other settings were changed, and I ended up on the red display as it was out of the box. Definitely a good detector, and a great addition to my vehicle. I'll be using this one as my daily driver!

As an older dad, I don’t really speed (much) anymore and haven’t in the past decade. So imagine my surprise when I was pulled over for speeding 59mph in a 5hp zone. And a ticket for obstructed view thanks to my air freshener. On a whim, I decided to get a radar detector to at least warn me when some rookie is trying to meet a quota or impress his boss. Back in the 90’s, a radar detector seemed to be standard issue for most edgy teenage drivers. I remember my cheap detector lighting up from the door sensors at gas stations and in front of mall entrances. I guess the technology has gotten better, because this Cobra doesn’t go nuts near doors. It comes with a straight cable, which is really long. I was able to route it carefully to not be in the way. Much nicer than the coiled cable my old one (from the late 90’s) came with. It mounts to the windshield with a suction cup and it never came off despite lots of sun late this summer and now freezing temps. It seems to find police every time it chirps. I have gotten some notifications where I didn’t end up seeing any cop car, but I assumed that they must have been well hidden or pulled away by the time I got to the spot. I have no idea if it’s going to save me but like insurance and vitamins, it makes me feel better. So I’m sticking with it.

The RAD 700i is a decent detector, but it's hard to say how effective it is. It's not a fault of the detector more than it is the area that I commute. I mostly take backroads and a large stretch of highway that's still under construction. After 5 years of construction (with another 5 planned) cops rarely pull anyone over on that 25mi stretch because they have nowhere to pull them over. So I have no input on highway performance yet. The back roads I took, my other detector picked up a KA band that must have been on one of the side roads. I never saw the cop and the signal would increase as I came to the intersection and drop as I passed. The RAD 700i never picked either signal. I set the sensitivity to max instead of auto so I could pick up everything. Some of the X bands that my other detector would pick up (but I have locked out - it still displays, just doesn't chirp) also weren't picked up by RAD 700i. Luck of the draw had it that I didn't have to deal with any cops along the highway so I can't say with certainty whether the detector would have spotted them or not. One thing that puzzled me was what was the need for a barrel connector when it already has a microusb port that has enough draw to power the device. It's only used for updating, nothing else. The included adapter hogs your lighter port all by itself. So if you have multiple devices, like I do, Cobra doesn't think they're important enough to consider. I ended up buying a universal USB cable with barrel connectors. It works fine with my 4 port charger. Now for the app - GARBAGE. All I needed was a no nonsense app that allow for adjusting settings and downloading firmware. You have to open an account, allow crazy amounts of permission, and allow for tracking ALL THE TIME. After setting up the device it was immediately deleted. I don't speed much, so here's to hoping the detector alerts me in time to check myself when I'm feeling feisty.

The real job of a radar detector is to alert when it needs to and stay silent when it doesn't. This does its best to do that through various features such as connecting to your phone, remembering repeated alerts in the same location, and automatically adjusting sensitivity based on your speed. How much all this helps is hard to determine, and presumably only gets better with time as it learns the false positives. Out of the box defaults seem to work pretty well. I do encourage you to download the Drive Smarter app which helps the detector learn locations and also pull in data from other users for things like speed traps. During my course of using this, most of the alerts I got were none I really needed to worry about (e.g. police cars parked at the coffee shop or working an accident scene). But sometimes it also didn't alert when passing other cop cars (presumably didn't have their radar guns active). I also tried testing this by going by some permanently installed "your speed is" signs, as well as temporary ones. It only alerted to the temporary ones once, not sure why. And that gets to crux of this, and why I gave it 4 stars. I think it works well. But, ultimately, it's hard to know when it's silencing false positives, and when it's simply missing some radars. And, a bit tied into that, this has a lot of functions and features, so downloading the full manual is almost required to get the most out of this, but I found while driving, and the thing is giving me alarms, I don't remember what I should press to do something about it (aside from muting it, or obviously slowing down). So, might take a few more reads of the instruction manual to learn all the functions.

The Cobra RAD 700i radar detector is not just a detector but much more. (Mississippi and Virginia are now the only 2 states that band radar detectors) The box the device comes in is very small BUT well packaged. You get a charge 12v cigarette style power cord, I really wish this was USB C ( their is a usb on the detector BUT you can not power the device with it). You get a very small instruction manual, that gets to the main points only. Download the Drive Smarter app, pair the detector with the phone and app and off you go. You can adjust all settings in the app and most on the device if you choose. The great feature of the detector is the ability to show you traffic light cameras, and that alone is a great feature, as sometimes you are just not fully aware of traffic light cameras and this will save you the devices price in a short time. The app has its version of maps in it BUT I tried to use it for directions and a normal 50 minute trip was 1.5 hours with its directions (confused???) not good in my experience. The only other annoying factor is Apple car play cancels the detector to function properly (traffic light camera location), not the device fault but IOStrying to keep you safer and mainly IOS from getting sued. So I have to not use car play when I need traffic light camera locations. The detector radar detected a hidden police vehicle with plenty of time for you to adjust speed if needed. I would recommend the product as long as you understand IOS faults (if used with and IOS device, have not tested with android as I don’t have one)

Cobra has been making electronics that focus on drivers and their cars for a number of years now - and there's a reason that they've survived and thrived for that period. They deliver on devices that give you just what you need and nothing that you don't. This RAD 700i detector is another great example of that. The detector itself is fairly simple with a simple screen that shows you what is detected and how much (when it's not detecting something, the screen can be in a screen saver or show you your GPS tracked speed. I like that you can (in the app) change the color of the screen between a few different options - I like the blue as it matches the other displays in my car. The mount is secure and easy to use and the cord is long enough to reach your DC plug (the cigarette adapter) likely wherever that may be. It does seem to alert when it should..and not when it shouldn't. It also has GPS-based learning so it can learn where there's a stationary radar that's a false alarm and stop alerting there. When you add the APP though (Drive Smarter) and pair your detector with your phone, then you get even more. You can get alerts when you're coming up on places where others have reported things that the detector ought to alert you to which extends your own range and gives you even better advanced warnings. It also will pick up the speed limits for the road you're on and can display that so you know how fast you should be going (it can also alert when you go over the speed limit or a different speed you might set). So if you like to be extra aware of what's around you while you're driving, this is a great detector to drive with. Give it a try today!

I just bought today so will update with review however it’s great so far

the false alert system works great display is bright enough very satisfied

I bought this for my wife and the radenso DS1. No comparison. This unit has been problematic from the start (very finicky with the 12 V min voltage). Not the easiest to adjust settings. buy the radesnso ds1. Brought to Ecuador didn’t detect the most basic. Returning.