wow! first time I've seen lidar used at NIGHT on South Bay highways
 

So, I've been commuting to from south San Jose to Mountain View for >3 years, mostly on 85 and sometimes via 101 then 87. I've seen the squad of 3 to 5 CHP (at least 1 w/laser) in the day randomly but today was the FIRST time I've seen laser used at night on 85, err... anywhere.

At ~10:45 pm on 85 south tonight in my Prius (near Camden Ave exit), my laser detector suddenly goes off. WTH??! I was doing ~70. Crap! Soon after, I see a car way ahead of me hit his brakes.

Sure enough, I see a CHP cruiser next to the center device southbound w/his lights off and a door open. There's no way I could've seen him before he nailed me w/laser. Soon after, I started getting radar detections so I unplugged and removed my radar detector.

Watch out guys...

I exited at Camden and parked w/my lights off (in case he wanted to come after me). It didn't look like he got in his car and followed. Whew.

Thanks for the heads-up. They have been ravaging 85 lately, both in the am and early afternoon. I saw 4 or 5 last Wed am on the way to work 85N - no problem given the flow of traffic, however, I left work early and zipped home (Wed night drag races), and got nailed. There was no conversation, no talk of "you have a clean record, please slow down". I was stopped maybe 3 minutes total, and got my ticket. I don't know what he was shooting with, as the V1 was in the Z, but he (on his bike) was in the triangle area that guides the merging traffic from Saratoga onto 85. Bastards...

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=e...=17&iwloc=addr

what was also weird was last week, on 101 northbound near hellyer, i saw a 2002ish toyota fourrunner, totally stock looking, pulled someone over flashing strobes and lights in the window, and a guy wearing just a normal windbreaker with a badge on a chain from his neck walked out.

i know to look for unmarked crownvics or impallas or what no, but a four runner? careful outthere!

Is a laser the same as a radar?

^^^ LOL, wow

no its not.

Glad they don't have laser much out here. :)

No, they are different. Your radar detector will not pick up a LASER speed-read.

What kind of detector do u have? mine is starting to act up and not pick up simple things like the speed reader police leave on the street.

Man I used to go to school at night @ West Valley CC...When I got on the 85 (usually after 10pm) I can usually dash my way to 17/880 back to Harrison exit, Campbell...looks like the Chp are cracking down.

I've had my Valentine One for ~10 years now.

Valentine V1 enough said.

you can take the valentine one from one car to the other. i thought it was a special one time install......did i think wrong?

yes you cant put into any vehicle it a radar

yeah I've been hearing that CHP is trying to use laser more now

oh and a v1 will not really help because it means that the laser has directly hit you already so if you are speeding and detect laser, you are probably screwed already.

soo this is a new device that CHP uses? I'm in sacramento this is the first time I heard about Laser.. I need to do some research or someone tell me about the radar and laser? other than Radar detector cannot catch laser?

basically laser is more accurate than radar and I believe that it does not have to be calibrated like radar detectors. It sends one direct beam instead of a wide range like radar so that makes it hard to detect unless you have actually been hit by one. Laser jammers are quite effective, but they are illegal in California.

Damn technology huh? faster cars on the road... the laws will always be on top. I need to be careful when im in the bay then.

Sort of...

the purpose of a "Laser detector" is not to detect the lidar hitting you and to let you know that you have been hit.

Try to hold a laser pointer as still as you can and point it at something from, say, 200 yards. Even rest your arms on a solid object and just hold the laser in your hand. What you are going to see is a shaky blob that is moving all around in a 5 or 10 foot wide pattern... that is what your laser detector is trying to catch. Just that little flash from the officer not being able to hold that Lidar absolutly still.

When the officer is pointing at other vehicles in front of you the laser detector will try to catch the wiggly trace of the officer's Lidar beam giving you a possible heads up that there is laser being used close by.

good explanation
So basically if you detect laser, it could be an officer not aiming at the target directly. I would still think that if your detector picks up laser, you still have a good chance of being the actual target compared to radar which could set off detectors in a much wider area.

Anyway, everyone drive safe out there and post up any new signs of laser being used

i was under the imrpessoin that if you get hit by laser, even if you have a detector and goes off, its already too late, they would hvae gotten your speed by then, long before you can react and slow down.

so basically, all the laser function on your detector does is say "i think you just got lit up, you are either just lucky or you are screwed" lol

Get a good laser jammer... then you'll never have to worry about laser again.

Even if I were in a state where laser jammers are illegal, I would probably still have one... sometimes the penalty for having one if you're caught... is less not as bad as getting a speeding ticket...

Not only that... used properly... the police wouldn't necessarily know you have one.