Uniden R1 & R3 adds Ka Band Segmentation with firmware update 1.31

Uniden has just released firmware 1.31 for the Uniden R1 & Uniden R3 radar detectors which brings 3 improvements to the radar detectors including:

1. Ka Band Segmentation
2. Purple & White colored display options
3. Ability to change display brightness using the mute button of the power cable

Here’s a video showing you the new features and then below that we’ll go into more information about each new feature:

1. Ka Band Segmentation

Rather that having the detector sweep the entire range of Ka frequencies (33.4 – 36.0 GHz), you can improve the detector’s performance by telling it to not unnecessarily waste time scanning for radar frequencies where police radar doesn’t exist and only scan the frequency ranges where it does. (For detailed technical information regarding band segmentation, read this article.) Now the R3 is already incredibly fast and has fantastically long range performance, even in Ka Wide. However, segmenting the detector gives you even better performance still. Not night and day by any means the way detectors that are otherwise slow scanning the entire frequency range (ie. Redline and Valentine One), but it gives the Unidens a bit more of an edge.

Note: Ka segmentation is an advanced feature because it involves disabling certain frequency ranges and could potentially lead to your detector not alerting to legitimate police radar. It’s for that reason that I recommend sticking with Ka Wide in general. However, if you want to push the limits, we now have some new options for Ka band segmentation. In addition to Ka Narrow, 1.31 adds Ka Segmentation for each individual segment as well.

Ka Narrow is a simple solution to scan just for the frequencies where police radar typically exists in the US.

• 33.8 +/- 100 MHz
• 34.7 +/- 120 MHz
• 35.5 +/- 100 MHz

Ka Narrow is a great simple solution to improve the detector’s performance. However, if you encounter police officers who are using out of tune guns (typically because the guns haven’t been certified and calibrated recently), they can drift out of spec and your radar detector won’t alert. Ka Narrow improves performance, but what if you want a slightly wider range of Ka Frequencies? Enter Ka Segmentation.

Ka Segmentation Menu Option

Now you have complete control over all the different 10 Ka segments which you can enable / disable at will. Here’s what the 10 different segments cover and what they’re used to detect:

• Ka 1: 33.399 – 33.705
• Ka 2: 33.705 – 33.903 (MPH radar guns at 33.8)
• Ka 3: 33.903 – 34.191
• Ka 4: 34.191 – 34.587 (Stalkers that drift low)
• Ka 5: 34.587 – 34.803 (Stalker radar guns at 34.7)
• Ka 6: 34.803 – 35.163 (Stalkers that drift high)
• Ka 7: 35.163 – 35.379
• Ka 8: 35.379 35.613 (Kustom and Decatur radar guns at 35.5)
• Ka 9: 35.613 – 35.829
• Ka 10: 35.829 – 36.001

In most of the country, you’d typically run your detector segmented 2/5/8 to scan for 33.8, 34.7, & 35.5 respectively. However, people always wonder, “but what about where I live? Should I enable extra segments? Should I disable some?”

To answer that question, I’ve been working with people on RDF and we’re all reporting any out of tune guns that we’re seeing as well as if the police don’t use certain frequency ranges at all, ie. 33.8, and so you could safely disable those segments, and I’m maintaining a list of what states need additional segments enabled here: Learn which additional Ka segments should be enabled or disabled all around the USA.

In general I’d advise against disabling segments 2, 5, or 8 unless you really know what you’re doing. However, for all you advanced users, we now have true band segmentation available!

2. Purple and White Colored Displays

Next, there’s two new color options for the OLED display, purple and white. Here’s how they look:

Purple display

White display

(The white looks like gray, just brighter.)

3. Changing Display Brightness from the Power Cable Mute Button

Finally, if you want to change the display brightness, before you had to do it by pressing and holding the Mute/Dim button on the face of the detector. Now you can do it from the power cable as well. If you press and hold the mute button for a second, it will change display brightness levels and let you cycle through all of them.

Uniden cig. lighter power cable with mute button

Updating the Firmware

Now if you’re ready to update your detector’s firmware, you can download the firmware update from Uniden’s website here. (Scroll down, click on the gray Firmware button, and you’ll see the firmware available for the R1 and the R3.)

Here’s the firmware update walkthrough if you need it.

Remember:

• The firmware update is available for Windows only.
• If you have a Mac, you’ll need to run Windows on your Mac via Parallels or Boot Camp to update your detector.
• There’s two updates to run, the first is for the firmware, the second is for the voice pack update.
• It’s recommended to do a factory reset after updating the firmware and the voice pack.
• If you need help programming your R1 or R3, see my Uniden R1 & R3 programming guide.

If you need a MiniUSB cable to update your detector, you can purchase a MiniUSB update cable here.

If you have any issues updating your detector, please check out the firmware 1.31 discussion on RDF.

Last but not least, if you need to purchase either detector, you can buy the R1 here or buy the R3 here.

Thank you Uniden for making an already excellent detector better and better still!