| Whistler's RLC-100 is a compact, full-featured red light/speed camera warning system. The device compares your vehicle's current location (using GPS) against an on-board database of thousands of known red light camera and speed camera locations. Free updates are included for one year, installable via USB on your home PC, and you can manually enter in up to 100 of your own custom locations. Plenty of bonus features are also included, such as speed alerts, a tripmeter, and a digital clock.
 A compact, full-featured red light/speed camera warning system. Click to enlarge. |  Measures just 3.13 x 2.13 x .75 inches, and 1.6 oz. |  View a feature diagram.
Click to enlarge. | High Sensitivity GPS Antenna
Compact, high efficiency antenna receives GPS signals. Updatable Camera Database
The RLC-100 is shipped with the Verilight camera database (Red Light and Speed cameras) preloaded. This unit can be updated with the latest database anytime by connecting to a PC. In order to update the unit, you will need to download the Software program from Whistler�s website first. You must also register the unit before any updates can be downloaded. Free Updates For One Year
Free updates will be available for up to 1 year from the date of registration and software installation. After 1 year, updates can be purchased. Seven-Segment Digital Readout
The RLC-100 features an easy-to-read display indicating time, speed, and distance to camera. Choose between bright/dim modes based on preference, time of day, etc. Current Speed Reading With MPH/KPH Option
Choose from MPH/Yards or KPH/Meters for your units of measurement. 12 Volt Power Out Jack
Provides a 12 volt, 1.5 amp output to power other devices. Enter Custom Locations
The unit's Manual Entry function allows for storage of up to 100 user locations. Digital Clock
Keep track of time with th ebuilt-in clock. Select a "top-of-the-hour" alert to be reminded as each hour passes. Selectable Speed Warning
Select a speed warning threshold to keep your lead foot in check. When exceeded, the unit will announce, "attention, reduce speed now." Built-in Speaker
Provides distinct audio warnings for Red Light, Speed Camera and user entered locations. You may adjust alert volume to your preference. Camera Alerts
When a camera location is approached, the unit will announce the type of alert (Red Light Camera, Speed Camera, or User Selected), for example, "Caution, red light camera detected." The display also counts down the distance to the camera. USB Port
For connection to a PC for updates. A mini USB cable will be required to connect the RLC-250 to a PC. Stay alert
The Stay Alert feature provides a reminder to stop for rest after 2 hours of travel. It can be turned off in option mode. Mounting the unit
The unit can be mounted using the included magnetic dash disk, or the non-skid pad. What's in the Box
RLC-100 Unit, Power Cord, Non-skid Dash Pad, USB Cable, Magnetic Disk Mount, Alcohol Pad |
|
 Works fine, but who really wants it? |
| Review Date: October 21, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Bookenator, |
First of all, this thing is smaller than I expected, which is good, but it's also not a full featured radar detector. It is a GPS enabled red light camera and speed camera warning device. It can also tell you the time, date, your speed, and warn you when you exceed a user set speed.
How small is it? Smaller than a deck of cards. Still the display is big and bright enough. It rests on its speaker, so the voice is a little muffled, but you can turn it up loud and clear. It comes with two ways to install, one is a sticky magnet you stick on top of your dashboard, the other is an easily removable rubber pad that it rests on. I tried the latter, fully expecting the Whistler to go flying on a hard turn, but it stayed put, even when hitting bumps at highway speeds.
Back to functionality, if all you want is something to warn you about cameras, this puppy will do the job and be smaller than most radar detectors. But is that something anyone really wants? Seems to me like you're better off getting an all in one radar detector with GPS and camera warning. I'm just not sure there's a market for this device.
That said, it functions as advertised, was easy to install, and easy to use. If this is something you have a use for, go for it. |
Passed its test
|
| Review Date: October 21, 2009 |
| Reviewer: D. Hentze, United States |
| Living in the NYC area where Red Light Cameras are a dime a dozen, it was easy to test out the RLC-100. It passed the test with flying colors. It detected every camera I know about in my area, and even one that I never knew existed because it was well hidden. The unit itself is much smaller than I anticipated. About half the size of a small radar detector. The display is simple and easy to read. It tells you info such as current time, current speed, trip distance, trip mileage, and distance to any detected cameras, etc. The unit also has a "stay awake warning" if desired. Setting it up was fairly easy, but required reading the instructions. Mounting options are limited to 2 choices. A non-skid pad, which isn't 100% non-skid, or a "magnetic puck" that sticks to the dashboard. I will not use the "puck" for 2 reason. One it's ugly. And two, thieves look for these mounting devices to break in a steal any electronics that might be in the car such as GPS and radar detectors. So I'm stuck with the non-skid pad which works fairly well. Another negative about the unit is that the audio is terrible. It's barely understandable. Since the unit says very little, it's not that big a deal. The unit does have a 12v pass thru to plug another device into it, but requires an optional cable. I do have one outstanding issue that Whistler hasn't resolved as of yet. In order to get the 1 year of included updates, you have to register and get a confirmation email. As of now, I've registered and not received the email. I emailed Whistler Support and was told that their system is down as of now, but should be back up in a day. Assuming that it is, I don't consider this a major problem. All in all, the RLC-100 does exactly what it is designed to. It is a "one trick pony", but if you're in an area infested with cameras, it's a nice little gadget to have. |
Good for what it's supposed to do
|
| Review Date: November 9, 2009 |
| Reviewer: sb-lynn, Santa Barbara, California United States |
There are pros and cons to this product. My main complaint is something that is not the fault of this detector - it's that you may want to consider getting something that not only detects red light cameras, but is a radar detector as well. I personally found this red light detector not all that helpful both because there few speed detector cameras in my area, and because it can only warn you about new cameras either by your manually adding them or having them previously added to the database.
Pros -
1) This devise is pretty easy to install and the instructions are straightforward, which is important for someone like me who has a low frustration level for this type of thing.
2) It's simple to use and read, and the warning for known red light cameras is good.
3) It's good if you have a need for a separate device that gives you the time, mileage, and your speed.
Cons
1) This is not a radar or red light detector, and only can warn you about cameras already included in the data base. If the camera isn't in the database, you won't know about it and have to manually add it.
2) I live in a small city about 100 miles away from Los Angeles, and we don't have any speed cameras in my town. It wasn't until I got to Los Angeles that I was able to test this out. (Hence it's pretty useless for my needs.)
3) The non-skid pad only worked okay for me. I did not end up using the product so I don't know about long-term use. |
Very cool device, terrible database
|
| Review Date: October 21, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Corey Scott, Rocklin, California, United States |
I have been using GPS navigation products for a number of years now, and I always thought it would be nice if the software in a GPS had traffic camera locations loaded into it. Whistler used that same idea to create a stand-alone device that lets you know when you are approaching a speed/red-light camera by cross-referencing your GPS location with it's internal list of known traffic cameras. It is important to note that because it operates in this way, it isn't actually a "detector".
The device is much smaller than I thought it was going to be, which proved to be a good thing I think. It looks very much like a typical radar detector, but it is about half the size. The magnet mount is also not what I was expecting, which was also a welcome surprise. Rather than using a magnet on the device to mount it to your dashboard (which, obviously, wouldn't work in most cars), the magnet is mounted permanantly to your dash, and the detector itself is magnetically attached to the fixed mount. This makes it unbelievably easy to take the detector on and off your dashboard, but is also a strong enough magnet to keep it mounted firmly in place. The little plastic cover for the USB port on the side doesn't seem to stay in place, it falls out a couple seconds after putting it in; I will probably just rip it off, since it doesn't serve much purpose anyways.
As the detector powers on each time, it audibly tells you to fasten your seatbelt - a feature which annoyingly cannot be turned off. The unit begins searching for a GPS signal, which it seems to find much faster than most other GPS devices. When I turned the detector on for the first time, it got a GPS lock within 15 seconds. After that, GPS lock was usually achieved in less than 10 seconds.
By default, the detector displays the time when the vehicle is not moving. It automatically downloads the time from the GPS satellites. I am not sure if it determines the time zone based on GPS location, but mine was automatically set to Pacific time, which is correct in my case. HOWEVER, there does not seem to be any settings for Daylight Savings, so I had to "trick" the unit into displaying the correct time by setting it for the Mountain time zone.
It has several features besides showing you the time and your vehicle speed, but none of them seem particularly useful. The top-of-the-hour alert is just plain annoying. The excessive speed warning is equally annoying. The max speed might be handy if you're a race car driver. The odometer might be handy if the one in your car is broken...
The PC software that comes on the CD is extremely simple. It is basically just a big button that says "update device". I was hoping you could browse it's database or view the locations on a map or something, but that is not the case.
Now, moving on to the device's actual performance:
There aren't any speed cameras in my area, but I would assume this detector works the same for both speed cameras and red light cameras. I tested it by driving home on a route that I know has 4 red light cameras along the way. It gives ample warning before approaching an intersection, and it's distance reading seems very accurate. HOWEVER, the database seems horribly out of date. Of the 4 cameras I passed, the device only warned me about two of them. Additionally, the unit warned me about cameras at 2 other intersections, both of which no longer have cameras, but clearly did in the past (I could see the poles they mounted on). I really hope they provide a major update to the database soon.
Pros:
-Works great with all the traffic cameras in my area
-pretty blue lights flash faster and faster as your approach camera location
-can manually store camera locations that aren't in the database
-camera warning feature works perfectly
Cons:
-No daylight savings adjustment
-USB port cover doesn't stay in place
-the PC software is pretty weak
-free updates should be unlimited, not cut off after 1 year.
-database is terribly out of date
-no way to "remove" cameras from it's database that no longer exist.
-VERY cheap display, they should have opted for something a little more modern. |
It's not pretty, but it works
|
| Review Date: October 21, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Just a guy, Westchester, NY |
On thing you need to know up front - this is only a red light/speed camera alerter. It is not a radar or laser detector. It has a database of waypoints that it thinks are red light/speed cameras. When the internal gps says you are approaching one of those waypoints, it alerts. It is not a "detector" because it does nothing to evaluate the area around you to see if there is anything not already in its database. Accordingly, this product is only as good as the database it is loaded with. You can update the database via the internet and you can manually add cameras you know about by pushing a button on the product as you pass the camera.
I have found that it works as advertised.
An important note is that to update the database you need to load a program that ships with the unit on one of those mini-cd-rom disks. My computer won't play the disk, but I'm sure others would. (My computer has a vertical cd-rom drive.) I would have to lay my computer flat to do that. I was able to download what I needed directly from their website. I believe you get free database updates for one year. After that, I have no idea how much I would cost to subscribe to the updates. I haven't seen a need to update the database yet. It found each of the cameras I know about on my way to work.
The display reminds me of a clock radio I had in 1982. There is nothing fancy here. One annoyance is that every time the unit powers up a UK female voice says "Hello Fasten Seatbelt Unit Active" It is annoying and cannot be turned off.
One BIG plus is that the GPS receiver is strong enough to work well even when the unit is inside the armrest of my convertible. There is no reason it needs to sit on my dash and I can hear the alerts from within my armrest. I only wish there were a way to turn off the power up message.
The clock cannot be set for daylight savings time, but I really don't care since I am not using this as a clock. I am also not using it to measure my speed. My car came with a dial for that.
Overall, this does what it is supposed to do, but it has a few unnecessary extra "features" and there should be a way to turn off the start up greeting - there is not.
The manual can be found at whistlergroup dot com.
PS. The non-skid dash pad didn't work at all for me. My dash was clean.
AMENDMENT: I have now had the opportunity to do a few updates. The proceudre is really prehistoric, but it works if you follow the directions. The customer support is also absolutely amazing. I suggested a new feature (the ability to turn off the turn on announcements) and I received a return email almost immediately from an actual person who is working on a firmware update to include this improvement. Five stars on the customer service. |
|
No details are available for this product
No video reviews found for this product.
