"Radar Detector" for a penny: a review of a GPS informant iconBIT TRACKER MINI
When they sent me a box with this gadget, the classic “all ingenious is simple” flashed through my head right away. Until now, I have not heard anything about such iconBIT TRACKER MINI developments, whose appearance is quite logical and justified. The model is without reservation a miniature box that can save tens of thousands of rubles (at least ~ $ 270 dollars) to particularly unwary drivers, avoiding fines due to attentive stationary complexes of the type “arrow-ST”. Only in contrast to the usual radar detector, iconBIT TRACKER MINI is guided purely by the built-in base of camera coordinates and the GPS module. This solution has its pros and cons, which we will discuss in the review.
I can be wrong, but in my opinion iconBIT TRACKER MINI and its analogs “budded” not so much from full-fledged radar detectors, but from ... DVRs. Last year, for the first time, I began to come across flagship “black boxes” with the finally justified presence of a GPS receiver. If earlier such a maximum was capable of recording tracks moving a car, it was subsequently used to warn about speed cameras.
')
And not to say that this required special hardware improvements - I know at least one model in which the after-factum firmware was released with the addition of notorious notifications. Now this functionality is mainly available in top registrars for 6-7 thousand rubles ($ 162-189 dollars), but this price usually also includes the presence of LDWS system. Apparently, in practice, the solution turned out to be very suitable, and therefore the launch of the release of a separate GPS gadget was given.
On the box given a concise definition of the device - "GPS-informer about road cameras."
Packaging strongly emphasizes how tiny the device we find inside.
Both from the front and from the rear are photographs and schematic images on a 1: 1 scale. Well, traditionally for the iconBIT models, the purpose of the buttons is explained, the brand comes in the case of its other devices - recorders, tablets, etc.
Without a warranty card and instructions not done. The manual is short and easy to understand, and nowhere, then by and large to take the difficulties of development.
A set of accessories is small, taking into account the specifics of the device, there is nowhere to accelerate. The miniUSB cable is designed to connect to a computer and install the firmware or updated camera database. The cigarette lighter power supply is made with an L-shaped plug to make it easier to remove the cable from the back of the iconBIT TRACKER MINI case.
Let me chill a little iconBIT. It seems to be obvious that in our time it is impossible to do with just one “annunciator” in a car — you need at least power for the recorder and the smartphone. I'm not sure that the vast majority of cars are equipped with two cigarette lighters, so the motorist will probably have to spend money on buying a splitter. The best solution would be a power supply with a USB-connector, a similar accessory is now commonly found in the recorders of the middle and upper price range.
For installation, a bracket with a removable pad is used, fixation takes place on a 3M double-sided tape. If I am not mistaken, two sticks are included in the kit - one was glued to me and became unusable, I had to use the last sticker. But for the next browser, I put a stick in the box from the iconBIT DVR QX PRO recorder, in which one of the two mounts is exactly the same. However, I did not use any of the two stickers there :)
Bracket iconBIT TRACKER MINI is made so that the device can be installed on the dashboard and on the windshield. Simply put - anywhere within sight. For example, on one of the "grocery" gadget is almost under the ceiling, but I did not like this approach, I have to be distracted too much from the road to look at the indicators on the display.
I like the installation on the glass in the lower left corner, when the review does not deteriorate in any way, and when contemplating the small screen of the device by and large, you do not lose sight of what is happening in front of the car. However, my option may not be suitable for those who prefer to install a holder for a smartphone in this place. My "dialer" while driving lies in the cavity next to the gear knob, so there was no interference.
And here is the "inverted" mount, when you install the gadget on the front panel, is also a good solution. It is unlikely that a cable will be laid out only covertly, although it already depends on the driver’s keenness and specific machine.
Both the casing and the buttons are made of matte plastic, the likelihood of the coating getting dirty with your fingers and wiping it regularly tends to zero. Only the screen "paw" is not recommended, just as it is protected by a glossy overlay.
Rear connector is miniUSB.
Below - the name of the model and the slot of the speaker.
Device dimensions - 42 x 42 x 25 mm, comparable to the size of a matchbox. This, by the way, is a significant plus, because it is unlikely someone will like it to litter the car with a lot of additional electronics.
On the front side there is an LED display - the most economical solution, with a TFT-TN matrix, the price would probably have increased slightly. A compass is displayed on the left, to the right is the clock, the current speed or the distance to the detected camera. Below we see four buttons. The purpose of the “cursor” keys is to change the values of different parameters. ON / OFF is responsible for switching on and off. The last you hardly have to use, iconBIT TRACKER MINI turns itself on when the engine is running and turns off with the “power off” of the machine. If you press the button twice, the sound will turn off.
Next, let's deal with the "MENU" button and simultaneously begin to explore all the custom model options. Pressing once causes the setting of the first feature of iconBIT TRACKER MINI. The model is able to track the speed of the vehicle and immediately begins to “bale” the driver with a constant sound signal in case of exceeding the manually set upper speed threshold. On the value “0” the option is completely disabled, in general, the setting range is in the range of 40-150 km / h. If you have noticed for yourself the ability to enthusiastically put pressure on the gas and too late to look at the speedometer - a reminder will not be superfluous. Or when specifically no, no, yes, and you want to accelerate, a warning will make you think once again - is it worth breaking the speed limit? And it is not necessary to break, because otherwise the gadget will express its sound discontent continuously. Therefore, either follow the rules, or even disable the "shadowing."
Press the key twice and open the speed calibration by GPS. If you notice serious discrepancies between real readings and model values, an adjustment from “-10” to “+10” is available.
When the device does not fix the movement, time is displayed on the screen. The default zone is +4 GMT for Russia, but by pressing “MENU” three times, you can make adjustments from “-12” to “+13” GMT.
Finally, pressing the key four times, we get the opportunity to adjust the volume. A curious mode is available when the device independently makes the sound louder in direct proportion to the increase in vehicle speed.
Actually, the main thing - the identification of speed cameras. In the latest database update, the “updated area” column shows “Russia, CIS, Europe”, and in the “Comments” field - “Russian and Europe maps”. Thus, the local gadget iconBIT TRACKER MINI can not be called - it is equally useful when traveling to Europe. Although I do not presume to suggest how the device will be treated in countries with a ban on the use of radar detectors. Here the owners of registrars are most fortunate with the option of “warning”, because here the additional functions are not at all evident.
The device begins to signal and count the distance to the object for about 500 meters, this is more than enough for timely speed reduction. Do not forget that sellers of radar detectors are very fond of scaring customers with the opportunity of "ARROW-ST" to start "driving" the car almost a kilometer away. Well, how else can you use expensive radar detectors for 12,000 rubles ($ 324 dollars) with a warning for 1-1.5 km? By the way, I don’t really like the idea of listening for a squeak for 1.5 km, and a trip around Moscow is quite capable of turning into an ongoing soundtrack in this situation.
My tests took place for about a month in Moscow and the suburbs, to assess the completeness of the database, I also checked with the information of Navitel and Yandex.Maps. the result is more than satisfactory, I did not find any “miss” in the set of coordinates of iconBIT TRACKER MINI. I note that I used the firmware from August 5, the more current version did not appear at the moment. I have no complaints about the completeness of the information, but I would not mind storing the database in the form of a TXT file open for editing, as it is implemented in registrars. So there would be the possibility of importing databases of third-party projects such as mapcam.info.
... Surely such a question asks almost every first motorist after learning about iconBIT TRACKER MINI. Let's understand and at the same time look out for alternatives.
First of all, about the price. In the case of a GPS informer, you pay 1,490 rubles (~ $ 40 dollars), and for acquiring a radar detector - from 4-5 thousand (~ $ 108-135 dollars) and up to 12-15 (~ $ 324-405 dollars) thousand rubles for the most heaped models.
Further, the most important thing is that in urban environments there are a large number of sources of interference, such as alarms, that interfere with the normal operation of the radar detector and provoke false signals to the driver that irritates the driver. Yes, there are city special modes in the devices, but no one will give us any absolute guarantees. But iconBIT TRACKER MINI doesn’t care, as the device with a probability of 101% a) will not miss the camera b) will not give a false warning.
At the same time, think for how many times in a month you can get into the sight of the mobile radar guard and how many in the field of view of stationary sets? Simply put, is it necessary to detect it in real time? On habrahabr, as recently as last year, they wrote about such a wonderful thing as the “ Register of stationary objects of observation (complexes of fixed-wave functions) . ” This is an open registry with a full official list of stationary complexes of photo-video recording of traffic violations. At the moment, it contains 702 objects - and this is only in Moscow. If you look at the map, the city is literally littered with complexes.
And we must remember that the cameras react not only to a violation of speed. Let me quote from Anatoly Nirov, technical director of a company that developed and produces Strelka: Strelka complexes installed in Moscow now register speeding violations, moving into oncoming traffic, traffic on areas not intended for vehicle traffic roadside, pavement), traffic on dedicated lanes intended for public transport. " By the way, the interview confirmed the practical range of the complex to 500 meters. From personal experience - my acquaintance was slightly surprised when he received “letters of happiness” for 17,000 rubles (~ $ 459 dollars) in a month. It turned out that on one of the sections of his route between the house and the work was an "ARROW", fixing the exit to the very designated lane.
Finally, we should recall the navigation applications (for smartphones), which are now at the same time equipped with the camera warning option. This means that getting into the car, you need to turn on the GPS every time, run the program and put the device on recharging (the receiver increases the battery consumption). We leave the car - we take actions in the reverse order. I suspect that you will get tired of making these manipulations pretty quickly. I would call the “Antiradar Strelka” program, which costs $ 5 on Google Play, a more or less sensible option, but again - you can't do without a series of constant manual actions, while iconBIT TRACKER MINI does not require such care.
The device iconBIT TRACKER MINI - from the series "the taste and color." I do not in any way claim that such devices will eclipse and completely replace full-fledged radar detectors. At the same time, I indicated in detail above why GPS informers not only have the right to exist, but are also able to become quite effective alternatives to a separate radar detector. In the end, if you need to acquire “protection” from speed cameras, but you don’t want to spend too much, parting from 1 490 rubles (~ $ 40 dollars) will probably be easier than putting twice or three times as much for an ordinary radar detector. At the same time, after the test, I can state with confidence that it is critical to complete the detection of the complexes, you will not lose. And even rejoice absent false positives. And iconBIT TRACKER MINI takes up less space compared to the average “detector”.
PS But what about the disadvantages? In my opinion, one minus is still there. I would very much like to see in radar detectors of any kind an intelligible solution to the problem of detecting complexes of the Avtodoria type. Let me remind you, these cameras work in pairs and measure the average speed of the car in a certain area. So, it would be great to clearly inform the driver where the first camera starts tracking and ends with the second complex. There is a controversial point - iconBIT TRACKER MINI is completely devoid of battery, but if for a registrar this can really be attributed to a disadvantage, then in the case of a GPS-informer I would not consider this as a minus.
A bit of history
I can be wrong, but in my opinion iconBIT TRACKER MINI and its analogs “budded” not so much from full-fledged radar detectors, but from ... DVRs. Last year, for the first time, I began to come across flagship “black boxes” with the finally justified presence of a GPS receiver. If earlier such a maximum was capable of recording tracks moving a car, it was subsequently used to warn about speed cameras.
')
And not to say that this required special hardware improvements - I know at least one model in which the after-factum firmware was released with the addition of notorious notifications. Now this functionality is mainly available in top registrars for 6-7 thousand rubles ($ 162-189 dollars), but this price usually also includes the presence of LDWS system. Apparently, in practice, the solution turned out to be very suitable, and therefore the launch of the release of a separate GPS gadget was given.
Equipment
On the box given a concise definition of the device - "GPS-informer about road cameras."
Packaging strongly emphasizes how tiny the device we find inside.
Both from the front and from the rear are photographs and schematic images on a 1: 1 scale. Well, traditionally for the iconBIT models, the purpose of the buttons is explained, the brand comes in the case of its other devices - recorders, tablets, etc.
Without a warranty card and instructions not done. The manual is short and easy to understand, and nowhere, then by and large to take the difficulties of development.
A set of accessories is small, taking into account the specifics of the device, there is nowhere to accelerate. The miniUSB cable is designed to connect to a computer and install the firmware or updated camera database. The cigarette lighter power supply is made with an L-shaped plug to make it easier to remove the cable from the back of the iconBIT TRACKER MINI case.
Let me chill a little iconBIT. It seems to be obvious that in our time it is impossible to do with just one “annunciator” in a car — you need at least power for the recorder and the smartphone. I'm not sure that the vast majority of cars are equipped with two cigarette lighters, so the motorist will probably have to spend money on buying a splitter. The best solution would be a power supply with a USB-connector, a similar accessory is now commonly found in the recorders of the middle and upper price range.
For installation, a bracket with a removable pad is used, fixation takes place on a 3M double-sided tape. If I am not mistaken, two sticks are included in the kit - one was glued to me and became unusable, I had to use the last sticker. But for the next browser, I put a stick in the box from the iconBIT DVR QX PRO recorder, in which one of the two mounts is exactly the same. However, I did not use any of the two stickers there :)
Installation, Exterior and Controls
Bracket iconBIT TRACKER MINI is made so that the device can be installed on the dashboard and on the windshield. Simply put - anywhere within sight. For example, on one of the "grocery" gadget is almost under the ceiling, but I did not like this approach, I have to be distracted too much from the road to look at the indicators on the display.
I like the installation on the glass in the lower left corner, when the review does not deteriorate in any way, and when contemplating the small screen of the device by and large, you do not lose sight of what is happening in front of the car. However, my option may not be suitable for those who prefer to install a holder for a smartphone in this place. My "dialer" while driving lies in the cavity next to the gear knob, so there was no interference.
And here is the "inverted" mount, when you install the gadget on the front panel, is also a good solution. It is unlikely that a cable will be laid out only covertly, although it already depends on the driver’s keenness and specific machine.
Both the casing and the buttons are made of matte plastic, the likelihood of the coating getting dirty with your fingers and wiping it regularly tends to zero. Only the screen "paw" is not recommended, just as it is protected by a glossy overlay.
Rear connector is miniUSB.
Below - the name of the model and the slot of the speaker.
Device dimensions - 42 x 42 x 25 mm, comparable to the size of a matchbox. This, by the way, is a significant plus, because it is unlikely someone will like it to litter the car with a lot of additional electronics.
On the front side there is an LED display - the most economical solution, with a TFT-TN matrix, the price would probably have increased slightly. A compass is displayed on the left, to the right is the clock, the current speed or the distance to the detected camera. Below we see four buttons. The purpose of the “cursor” keys is to change the values of different parameters. ON / OFF is responsible for switching on and off. The last you hardly have to use, iconBIT TRACKER MINI turns itself on when the engine is running and turns off with the “power off” of the machine. If you press the button twice, the sound will turn off.
Opportunities
Next, let's deal with the "MENU" button and simultaneously begin to explore all the custom model options. Pressing once causes the setting of the first feature of iconBIT TRACKER MINI. The model is able to track the speed of the vehicle and immediately begins to “bale” the driver with a constant sound signal in case of exceeding the manually set upper speed threshold. On the value “0” the option is completely disabled, in general, the setting range is in the range of 40-150 km / h. If you have noticed for yourself the ability to enthusiastically put pressure on the gas and too late to look at the speedometer - a reminder will not be superfluous. Or when specifically no, no, yes, and you want to accelerate, a warning will make you think once again - is it worth breaking the speed limit? And it is not necessary to break, because otherwise the gadget will express its sound discontent continuously. Therefore, either follow the rules, or even disable the "shadowing."
Press the key twice and open the speed calibration by GPS. If you notice serious discrepancies between real readings and model values, an adjustment from “-10” to “+10” is available.
When the device does not fix the movement, time is displayed on the screen. The default zone is +4 GMT for Russia, but by pressing “MENU” three times, you can make adjustments from “-12” to “+13” GMT.
Finally, pressing the key four times, we get the opportunity to adjust the volume. A curious mode is available when the device independently makes the sound louder in direct proportion to the increase in vehicle speed.
Actually, the main thing - the identification of speed cameras. In the latest database update, the “updated area” column shows “Russia, CIS, Europe”, and in the “Comments” field - “Russian and Europe maps”. Thus, the local gadget iconBIT TRACKER MINI can not be called - it is equally useful when traveling to Europe. Although I do not presume to suggest how the device will be treated in countries with a ban on the use of radar detectors. Here the owners of registrars are most fortunate with the option of “warning”, because here the additional functions are not at all evident.
The device begins to signal and count the distance to the object for about 500 meters, this is more than enough for timely speed reduction. Do not forget that sellers of radar detectors are very fond of scaring customers with the opportunity of "ARROW-ST" to start "driving" the car almost a kilometer away. Well, how else can you use expensive radar detectors for 12,000 rubles ($ 324 dollars) with a warning for 1-1.5 km? By the way, I don’t really like the idea of listening for a squeak for 1.5 km, and a trip around Moscow is quite capable of turning into an ongoing soundtrack in this situation.
My tests took place for about a month in Moscow and the suburbs, to assess the completeness of the database, I also checked with the information of Navitel and Yandex.Maps. the result is more than satisfactory, I did not find any “miss” in the set of coordinates of iconBIT TRACKER MINI. I note that I used the firmware from August 5, the more current version did not appear at the moment. I have no complaints about the completeness of the information, but I would not mind storing the database in the form of a TXT file open for editing, as it is implemented in registrars. So there would be the possibility of importing databases of third-party projects such as mapcam.info.
Do I need it? ...
... Surely such a question asks almost every first motorist after learning about iconBIT TRACKER MINI. Let's understand and at the same time look out for alternatives.
First of all, about the price. In the case of a GPS informer, you pay 1,490 rubles (~ $ 40 dollars), and for acquiring a radar detector - from 4-5 thousand (~ $ 108-135 dollars) and up to 12-15 (~ $ 324-405 dollars) thousand rubles for the most heaped models.
Further, the most important thing is that in urban environments there are a large number of sources of interference, such as alarms, that interfere with the normal operation of the radar detector and provoke false signals to the driver that irritates the driver. Yes, there are city special modes in the devices, but no one will give us any absolute guarantees. But iconBIT TRACKER MINI doesn’t care, as the device with a probability of 101% a) will not miss the camera b) will not give a false warning.
At the same time, think for how many times in a month you can get into the sight of the mobile radar guard and how many in the field of view of stationary sets? Simply put, is it necessary to detect it in real time? On habrahabr, as recently as last year, they wrote about such a wonderful thing as the “ Register of stationary objects of observation (complexes of fixed-wave functions) . ” This is an open registry with a full official list of stationary complexes of photo-video recording of traffic violations. At the moment, it contains 702 objects - and this is only in Moscow. If you look at the map, the city is literally littered with complexes.
And we must remember that the cameras react not only to a violation of speed. Let me quote from Anatoly Nirov, technical director of a company that developed and produces Strelka: Strelka complexes installed in Moscow now register speeding violations, moving into oncoming traffic, traffic on areas not intended for vehicle traffic roadside, pavement), traffic on dedicated lanes intended for public transport. " By the way, the interview confirmed the practical range of the complex to 500 meters. From personal experience - my acquaintance was slightly surprised when he received “letters of happiness” for 17,000 rubles (~ $ 459 dollars) in a month. It turned out that on one of the sections of his route between the house and the work was an "ARROW", fixing the exit to the very designated lane.
Finally, we should recall the navigation applications (for smartphones), which are now at the same time equipped with the camera warning option. This means that getting into the car, you need to turn on the GPS every time, run the program and put the device on recharging (the receiver increases the battery consumption). We leave the car - we take actions in the reverse order. I suspect that you will get tired of making these manipulations pretty quickly. I would call the “Antiradar Strelka” program, which costs $ 5 on Google Play, a more or less sensible option, but again - you can't do without a series of constant manual actions, while iconBIT TRACKER MINI does not require such care.
Conclusion
The device iconBIT TRACKER MINI - from the series "the taste and color." I do not in any way claim that such devices will eclipse and completely replace full-fledged radar detectors. At the same time, I indicated in detail above why GPS informers not only have the right to exist, but are also able to become quite effective alternatives to a separate radar detector. In the end, if you need to acquire “protection” from speed cameras, but you don’t want to spend too much, parting from 1 490 rubles (~ $ 40 dollars) will probably be easier than putting twice or three times as much for an ordinary radar detector. At the same time, after the test, I can state with confidence that it is critical to complete the detection of the complexes, you will not lose. And even rejoice absent false positives. And iconBIT TRACKER MINI takes up less space compared to the average “detector”.
PS But what about the disadvantages? In my opinion, one minus is still there. I would very much like to see in radar detectors of any kind an intelligible solution to the problem of detecting complexes of the Avtodoria type. Let me remind you, these cameras work in pairs and measure the average speed of the car in a certain area. So, it would be great to clearly inform the driver where the first camera starts tracking and ends with the second complex. There is a controversial point - iconBIT TRACKER MINI is completely devoid of battery, but if for a registrar this can really be attributed to a disadvantage, then in the case of a GPS-informer I would not consider this as a minus.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/237939/
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