Radenso RC M Radar Detector Review

Radenso RC M Overview

The Radenso RC M ($2,099) is a high end custom installed radar detector. It offers long range performance, best in class BSM filtering, the best MRCD/CT detection capabilities, arrows, GPS lockouts, plus AntiLaser Priority integration. It’s one of the very best custom installed radar detectors available on the market. It’s also quite possibly the best option available for a fully integrated custom installed radar detector and laser jammer package.

RC M Features & Highlights

• Long range performance
• Best BSM filtering available
• Directional arrows
• OLED display and control pad combined into one unit
• Display is removable from the magnetic base
• Sensitivity can automatically adjust with speed
• Manual GPS lockouts
• Low speed muting
• Redlight camera / speed camera alerts
• Nearly RDD immune
• Manual display brightness adjustments
• K band alert tones are more attention grabbing than Ka
• Integrates with AntiLaser Priority laser jammer
• 1-year ticket-free guarantee
• 2-year warranty
• RC M Ultimate Edition: 5-year warranty and 5-year ticket guarantee
• Free lifetime updates for firmware and redlight camera database
• Retails for $2,099 for front and rear radar detector
• Retails for $3,409 for radar detector with front ALP laser defense kit

Radenso RC M Review Video

A year ago I did a video review of the RC M. This article is going to go into more detail, plus it adds some additional changes, improvements, new test results, and comparisons with other radar detectors. Most everything about the review video still applies today though, plus you’ll get to see and hear the detector in action.

Interface & Display

The Radenso RC M’s display and controller are integrated into one single unit.

The top half is your white OLED display which shows your radar and laser alert info, signal strength, and directional arrows.

The bottom half contains your buttons for powering the unit on and off, changing settings, muting alerts, locking out signals, changing the alert volume, disabling your jammers when shot, etc.

The display itself is magnetically detachable from the base. This is great in case you’re in an area where radar detectors or laser jammers are prohibited. You can pop off the display and quickly shut the whole system off.

You also have the option to keep the system enabled when you pop off the display. This way you’ll still be able to hear your alerts, though you won’t be able to see them or manually mute your radar detector. I liked this in my Miata because I installed the display on my dash and when the sun hit it just right, it’d reflect right into my eyes or my passenger’s eyes. If this happened, I could pop off the display for a bit and keep going. For my next vehicle, I changed the display’s positioning to ensure this didn’t happen again. 😉

Speaking of which, let’s take a look at a couple different installs so you can see what it looks like.

Installation

First up, in my Miata, I did a DIY install and just used double-stick tape to attach the display onto my dash.

For my Q5, I had the display professionally installed by Musicar Northwest. It looks much better and it’s super convenient in its new location. I can easily see the display and reach the controls while driving.

Typically for professional installs, the display / controller is embedded somewhere into your vehicle, often with custom fabricated enclosures.

The display / controller isn’t designed to be separated, but I have seen some talented installers split them apart, custom build new housings and solder in new wires, customizing the detector even further.

Radar Mirror is also working on custom RVM installs to embed the RC M’s display into your rear view mirror.

So there’s a lots of custom install options that professional installers can create for your vehicle.

Let’s get back to taking a closer look at the radar detector itself. 🙂

Performance

Next let’s take a radar detection sensitivity and range. The RC M is a long range detector. In my testing, it isn’t the longest range detector on the planet and it didn’t win first place in my latest radar detector shootout, but it is able to hang with the big boys (Radenso RC M is shown in orange below) while also offering a bunch of other useful features too.K band results can vary more though, depending on settings. To get the most effective BSM filtering, you have to set TS Rej to High which can negatively impact range. Against traditional radar guns like the Decatur Genesis II, the RC M gave plenty of advanced warning even with TS Rej High. Against lower powered radar guns like the Kustom Falcon HR or Raptor RP-1, enabling TS Rej High (required for Honda / Acura filtering) can have a pretty substantial negative impact to performance. I found that doing that on a curvy road, the RC M can get almost C/Owned.

The Radenso RC M almost always offers plenty of advanced warning, even in demanding situations. I’m sure Radenso would love for the RC M to be the most sensitive detector on the market for the sake of bragging rights, but even in its current form, I think it’s a solid performing detector. If it has a weakness, it is K band detection in tough terrain against lower powered radar guns with its BSM filters fully enabled.

Range is important of course, and there’s a lot of other factors to consider too when it comes to choosing a well-rounded radar detector.

BSM Filtering

Effective BSM filtering is one of the things Radenso is best known for. Their blind spot filtering is some of the best in the business.

Up until very recently, they were the only company which offered the ability to filter out pesky BSM’s from Hondas and Acuras. The Net Radar DSP and Uniden R7 can now do it too, but you have to actually disable a small section of K band where those BSM’s exist (24.195 – 24.205 GHz) which prevents alerts to both false and legitimate signals in that frequency range. I’m not entirely sure how Radenso is filtering them, but I believe their BSM filter is more sophisticated so it should still alert to legitimate police radar on those frequencies so their implementation is more intelligent.

In general, the main alerts I get from the RC M are from Mazdas and a few GM vehicles. The Mazda CX-5 SUV’s are some of the biggest culprits, but those cause every RD to false alert.

Speaking of which, if you’d like to learn more, watch this video with Jon Dandrow, the President of Radenso, showing you exactly what a Mazda BSM false looks like, why it’s so hard to filter out, and how it’s different from other vehicles that the detector can filter out.

Alert Tones

Now while the RC M is great at filtering out many false alerts, it will still false occasionally. One of my biggest complaints with the RC M is how it sounds when it does go off. K band false alerts are actually pretty annoying and while the detector may alert less often than other detectors, when it does go off, it’s much more annoying than other detectors.

Ka alerts tones, for example, are a low pitched single beep. It’s kind of hard to hear over the sound of your music and road noise. K band alert tones, on the other hand, are a higher pitched double-beep. They’re much more attention grabbing in general, plus they’re more intrusive over the sound of your music.

Ka alerts are generally a much higher priority, but it’s the K band alerts that are more attention-grabbing and annoying. I wish it was the other way around. I want Ka band to seriously grab my attention.

So the RC M may alert less than other detectors, but when it does go off, it’s noticeably more annoying. I hope that Radenso gives us the option to choose different alert tones for the detector, similar to how we can with a few other radar detectors. In my opinion, this would really help it live up to its reputation of being a quiet radar detector.

GPS Features

There’s several really useful GPS features with the RC M to help it further cut out false alerts and provide you with additional useful information. I do find that the RC M (like the windshield mount Pro M) takes a bit longer than average to acquire a GPS lock than other detectors, especially if you haven’t driven in a few days, but it’s not a huge deal in practice. Here are the main GPS-related features the RC M offers.

GPS Lockouts

First up, GPS lockouts. When you come a stationary false alert on K band, press and hold the lockout button on the control pad (second button from the left with the lock icon above it) and it will begin the lockout learning process. The RC M will learn where the false alert starts and stops as you drive down the road and will automatically mute it for you next time you come by again in the future. (Autolockouts are not available. They are manual only.)

When you come across the signal again next time, it will show a little “L” on screen to let you know the signal is locked out.

One related feature I like is the one-beep option. If you want the detector to give you a quick beep and then go silent, you can enable the one-beep option. This way you always know when there’s a signal around in case you’re worried about accidentally locking out a police officer. If you want it to stay totally silent the whole time instead, you can disable the one-beep and the RC M will only alert you when it sees a new signal alongside the previously locked out signal.

Low Speed Muting

Low speed muting is also available which is helpful to keep the detector quiet in new areas of town where you haven’t locked everything out yet.

Set the low speed muting threshold where you want (the default is 30 mph) and it will mute your radar alerts below that speed. When you travel above that speed, it will alert normally. The signals will always show up on screen visually. It’s just the audio alerts that are muted.

Auto City Mode

Another useful feature is Auto City mode. You can have the detector dial back the sensitivity at low speeds and crank it up at high speeds. This way you can further cut down on false alerts when putzing around town and sitting at red lights. Once you get up to highway speeds though, the RC M will open up and run at full sensitivity.

To use this feature, set the speed threshold in the settings (default is 60 mph) and then choose your sensitivity levels for X, K, and Ka bands.

City Mode (as opposed to Auto City) will run at reduced sensitivity at all times. Highway mode runs at full sensitivity at all times. Auto City mode will effectively switch between City and Highway modes depending on the speed you’re driving. Auto City mode is the mode that Radenso recommends running, it’s what’s enabled by default, and it’s what I use as well.

Redlight Camera / Speedcam Alerts

The RC M also has the ability to alert you to redlight cameras or speed cameras as you approach one. Using its built in GPS database, it will alert you to any ticket-issuing cameras up ahead and count down the distance to the intersection or camera.

Frequency Display

Now one feature I’m not a huge fan of is its lack of accurate frequency display. All K band alerts show up as 24.150. All 34.7’ish alerts show up as 34.700. The RC M doesn’t have the ability to display the exact frequency of the police radar gun even though it does need to know them accurately for features like GPS lockouts and band segmentation to work properly.

Now to be fair, most people don’t need this information and don’t care. Some advanced users like the feature to tell if police radar guns are in tune, if there’s any additional radar guns being used at different frequencies, when the officer switches from front to rear radar antennas and thus the frequency changes, and so on. It can provide some additional information and situational awareness.

Most people won’t care about this missing feature and probably won’t even care if a signal is 33.8 or 34.7, but it is a pretty basic feature available in most every radar detector that I find myself missing in the RC M.

MultaRadar & Gatso

Another one of the things that the RC M shines at is its low powered radar detection. The MultaRadar CD and CT are low powered radar guns that are now starting to show up across North America. The same applies to the Gatso systems used for photo radar applications in Arizona and Iowa.

Out of all the radar detectors currently available on the market, the Radenso RC M (and its windshield mount counterpart, the Radenso Pro M) is the very best at MRCD detection. The MRCD most heavily used in Edmonton, Canada.

The RC M offers reasonable range (a few hundred meters when the officer shoots you from behind as you pass), pretty good MRCD false alert filtering, plus a ramp-up that lets you know as you get closer to the signal.

The Uniden R7 can detect it too, but it gives much shorter range. The same applies to the Uniden R1 and R3, but they can only scan down to 24.050 so they can’t detect lower frequency MRCD. The RC M can scan down as low as 23.500.

Some of the Escort’s like the Max Ci International and Redline EX can do MRCD detection, but they false more and go off full-tilt without any sort of progressive ramp-up.

The Stinger VIP has good MRCD detection too, but if you get it with the rear antenna for arrows, you get wayyyyy too long of an alert from behind after you pass the MRCD. The Radenso allows you to enable MRCD detection for the front and disable it for the rear so that once you’re past the kill zone immediately passing the officer, the alert will quickly die off.

In short, the Radensos offer the best all-around MRCD detection support and it’s the brand of choice in places like Edmonton where the MRCD is set up all over town.

Against the MRCT though (used in Chicago), the RC M does false more than it does when detecting the MRCD. The RC M is one of the few detectors that differentiates between MRCD and MRCT. That said, I do hope that Radenso improves the false alert filtering more against the MRCT.

If you have the MultaRadar in use in your area (learn where the MRCD/CT are in use), the Radenso detectors are your best countermeasure. Heck, Radenso even keeps up with where the officers like to park for their mobile photo radar speed traps and Radenso will even alert you to those GPS locations, similar to how it alerts you to redlight cameras.

If you don’t have the MRCD/CT in your area, it’s nice having the feature available. If it does show up one day, you always have the ability to turn the feature on. Custom installed radar detectors aren’t easy to swap out when upgrades are needed so it’s nice having a detector that’s designed to be more future-proof.

Arrows

The Radenso RC M comes with a second rear antenna that gives the detector arrows to help it point directly towards the officer.

The arrows work pretty well in the RC M, much better than they did originally. When it was first released, the detector liked to light up both front and rear arrows simultaneously which made it confusing to quickly tell at a glance where the officer was. If the front arrow was bigger than the rear arrow, the signal was stronger up ahead and so the officer was likely up ahead.

Radenso changed this to make the arrows usually light up just front or rear, making it easier to immediately identify where the officer is. At times it will still display different sized front and rear arrows simultaneously when you’re close to the officer, so I normally think of this as being similar to “side” arrows meaning you’re about to pass the officer if you haven’t already.

RDD Immunity

In locations where radar detectors are illegal, police officers sometimes use radar detector detectors (RDD’s) to identify drivers running radar detectors. It’s for this reason that many radar detectors are designed with special stealth technology to avoid being detected by RDD’s.

In my testing against the Spectre Elite, the latest version of the Spectre RDD, the Radenso RC M is almost completely stealth.

In most places, the Radenso RC M would be just fine. It is significantly more stealth than detectors that don’t have any stealth technology.

That said, there are certain situations where the RC M could be detected, especially if you’re are running the rear antenna and the officer pulls up behind you in traffic.

Depending on how high your rear antenna is, how high the officer’s Spectre is on his windshield, and how close he pulls up behind you, it is possible for the Spectre to pick up the RC M’s rear antenna. Because of this, I wouldn’t rate the RC M as 100% stealth. It is close, but in certain situations, it is possible for the Spectre to pick up the radar detector.

If you’re extremely concerned, you can always run it with just the front antenna and give up the arrows, or you could power off your RC M if you see an officer pull up behind you. That’s not ideal, but you do have options. If you need a detector that’s completely and totally stealth front and rear, the Escort Max Ci 360 and Stinger VIP are two other detectors to consider.

ALP Integration

One of the things that people like best about the Radenso RC M is that it integrates with the AntiLaser Priority which is the best laser jammer on the market. Once you pair the two together, you have one controller and one display that interface with both a top tier radar detector and a top tier laser jammer.

There are other options to integrate a radar detector and a laser jammer, but if you go for a different brand and setup, you will be sacrificing performance for radar and/or laser.

For example, the Escort Max Ci 360 is also a great radar detector, but the laser jammers lag behind the competition. The Stinger fiber laser jammers are great, but I don’t like their radar detector. The K40 RL360di radar detector and the Defuser Optix laser jammer are both sub par. Only the Radenso RC M with the AntiLaser Priority allows you to have both a top tier radar detector and top tier laser jammer integrated into one package.

In order to integrate the two, you’ll need the $39 Radenso RC M bridge cable that connects the RC M CPU and the ALP CPU.

Once you integrate them, all of your laser alerts show up on the RC M’s display. The arrows light up front or rear depending on what side you’re shot from. Press any button on the display to instantly disable your jammers. You can also set the RC M to automatically disarm after a preset period of time (choose between 1-9 seconds, or unlimited jamming for testing).

Now that said, I personally prefer running the RC M and ALP standalone. This does mean that I have two separate controllers, but if you integrate them, you lose a few advanced features that are only available when run standalone.

Features available only when run standalone:

• ALP audibly announces which laser gun you’re being shot with (it just says “Laser” on the RC M display)
• ALP audibly announces direction you’re being shot from (Radenso does have arrows and the ALP LED still lights up red for front and yellow for rear, but the Radenso audio alert doesn’t tell you the direction)
• ALP alert tone is more attention grabbing than the Radenso beep
• ALP standalone supports Bluetooth for easier configuration and firmware updates through your phone. When integrated, ALP firmware updates can only be done via USB

For some people, these extra few features aren’t really a huge deal, but I do like having them which is why I run the two standalone. (I also like to run a different radar detector every week so I also like having them run independently for this reason.)

Here’s some additional information about the pros and cons of integration, plus you can see and hear all the different alerts.

To buy an ALP standalone, you can purchase it from ALP’s website.

To integrate the ALP with the RC M, get the RC M ALP Laser Defense Kit. This is essentially an ALP triple without the factory control pad. Since the RC M will be taking over as your controller and speaker, it comes with the bridge cable so you can plug your ALP into your RC M.

Firmware Updates

Now speaking of firmware updates, those are pretty straightforward. When an update is available for your RC M, download the latest update on radensoupdate.com. You then copy the update files to a USB thumbdrive, insert the drive into your RC M, start up your RC M, and it will take a few minutes to update.

Once you do this, you’ll have all the latest features, bug fixes, and redlight camera / speed camera database alerts.

The USB stick method is nice because it works for both Windows and Mac and unlike some other systems, you don’t have to bring your computer out to your vehicle, ensuring you’ve got an internet connection over WiFi to update. Just bring a little USB stick and you’re all set.

Customer Service

Radenso’s customer service is very good too. They’re based here in the US and are available by phone or email.

They’re also actively engaged with radar detector enthusiast community, listening to their customers, and improving things accordingly. They also do a great job of being open with people and teaching us about all about radar detectors from the manufacturer’s side. (The video linked to in the BSM section above is a great example.)

Ticket-Free Guarantee

Radenso also offers a 1-year ticket-free guarantee when you buy your RC M direct from Radenso or from an authorized reseller.

The guarantee covers radar tickets with the RC M. If you also pair it with the ALP, the guarantee covers laser tickets too.

I’ve always seen ticket-free guarantees as being mostly a marketing tool to help generate sales. They’re great as an added layer of protection, but I wouldn’t recommend making a decision based solely on ticket-free guarantees. Some people do though which is why many companies, including Radenso, have started offering ticket-free guarantees. You’ll also see them from companies like K40 and Escort.

Radenso RC M Ultimate Edition

For those of you who want the very best of everything, Radenso also sells the RC M Ultimate Edition.

The RC M Ultimate Edition comes with front and rear radar antennas, front and rear ALP protection, a bunch of swag and gift certificates, laser etched serial number cards, a 5 year warranty, and a 5 year ticket-free guarantee.

The Ultimate Edition is only available through select Platinum Installers who are the very best of the best in the industry. These are the guys who offer the most professional and clean looking installs possible.

Plus if you trade vehicles and want to move your system from one vehicle to another, so long as you go back to a Platinum Installer, they can move your RC M from one vehicle to the next and your 5 year warranty and 5 year ticket-free guarantee transfer over to your next vehicle as well.

Pricing for the RC M Ultimate Edition starts at $4,499 plus installation.

RC M vs. Escort Max Ci 360

The closest competitor to the RC M is the Escort Max Ci 360. These are my two favorite custom-installed radar detectors and each one has its own advantages. Let’s look at the advantages of each one.

Radenso RC M Advantages

• Better BSM filtering
• Removable display
• Controller and display are one unit (though this may be a disadvantage depending on what you want)
• Lower price for radar only ($2,100 for front & rear radar vs. $2,530 for front & rear radar)
• Laser jammer is much more effective since you’re using the AntiLaser Priority over the Escort ShifterMax
• Able to run 6 laser jammer heads total instead of only 4 for even more protection and coverage
• Offer both front and rear protection against even the most challenging laser guns
• Parking sensor functionality available with the ALP’s
• MRCD/CT and Gatso support (critical if it’s in your area already)
• Company has a better reputation among enthusiasts
• RLC database updates are free for life instead of 3 years free then $25/yr
• 2 year warranty instead of 1 year warranty

The RC M is more future-proof with its MRCD and Gatso support, it won’t false to Honda and Acura BSM’s, they won’t nickel and dime you down the line with RLC update fees, and the laser protection is more effective too.

Purchase a Radenso RC M online here.

Escort Max Ci 360 Advantages

• Longer range radar detection
• Multicolor OLED display
• Controller and display are smaller individual units (though having two components may be a disadvantage depending on what you want)
• Lower price with laser jammers ($4,409 ALP defense kit triples or $4,609 for ALP quads vs. $3,899 for Escort quads)
• Automatic GPS lockouts instead of manual
• Display brightness can automatically dim instead of only manually
• Bluetooth to connect to your phone
• Shares realtime alerts with other drivers in the cloud
• Can display current speed limit on screen
• Completely undetectable by RDD’s
• Accurate frequency display
• Better alert tones (my opinion)
• Company has been around longer

Using the Escort system, the biggest things I notice are that the Max Ci 360 looks more modern with its multicolor OLED display, the GPS lockouts are fully automatic and hands-free, the display brightness changes automatically, it adds in an additional layer of protection with alert sharing with other drivers, plus it can tell me the current speed limit of the road I’m on just like Waze and Google Maps. It’s also fully stealth to RDD’s if you need that functionality.

Purchase an Escort Max Ci 360 from a local distributor.

RC M vs. Net Radar DSP

ALP integration is a big selling point for the RC M. If you definitely want to run the ALP as your laser jammer (I’d highly recommend it), the ALP also has its own native radar detector that can be plugged into it called the Net Radar DSP. It’s cheaper since you’re running just one CPU for both radar and laser instead of two. The interface is also simpler since there’s no dedicated display, but you can integrate it with your phone to add back some functionality. It does have some pretty heavy compromises though. Let’s take a look at the advantages of each.

Radenso RC M Advantages

• Better BSM filtering
• Better MRCD support
• Dedicated display for radar and laser alerts
• Better visual differentiation between radar and laser alerts
• Settings easier to change by the RD’s controller itself
• Can use GPS lockouts and a dedicated speaker simultaneously without issue
• Dedicated button available to create GPS lockouts
• 1-year speeding ticket guarantee

The RC M does cost more and the BSM filtering is better, but the biggest thing I notice is that I can actually have a radar mute button, a GPS lockout button, and an external speaker for audio alerts working together without issue. It also does a better job differentiating between radar and laser alerts.

Purchase a Radenso RC M online here.

Net Radar DSP Advantages

• Lower price ($2,429 w/ ALP triples vs. $4,409 w/ ALP defense kit)
• No dedicated display option at all (which could be a downside) for a stealthier install
• Supports Bluetooth so your phone can be your display
• Firmware updates available via Bluetooth
• Radar and laser alerts can force the app to the foreground on Android (on iOS, you can get a notification which you need to tap on to bring up the app to JTK, lock out a signal, etc.)
• GPS lockouts can be pseudo-automatic instead of completely manual
• Audio alerts can play through car stereo, but there may be a bluetooth audio delay after your alert LED lights up where you’re wondering if you’re getting shot with laser or it’s just another radar false alert
• Support for different settings profiles to quickly change settings on the fly
• Laser gun ID’s (ie. “DragonEye ahead”)

I personally don’t like the NR DSP’s interface. To use the GPS lockouts, you have to buy the Bluetooth module and run an app on your phone. When you do this, your external speaker stops working, one of the control pad buttons stops working for laser, and both stop working to mute radar signals. There is also no dedicated GPS lockout button since everything is completely handled phone. There is somewhat of a workaround by using a third-party bluetooth Flic button, but that is not ideal either.

This all happens because the control pad, bluetooth module, and external speaker all plug into the same port in the CPU and so the ALP can’t talk to everything at once. If the ALP CPU had a standard headphone jack for the speaker and Bluetooth built in the CPU, we wouldn’t have to deal with all these issues. In its current form though with these limitations, I like the Net Radar DSP less than either the Max Ci or RC M.

That said, if you’re okay with having to run a phone for GPS lockouts and not having a dedicated mute button unless you use a Flic, and/or you do mostly highway driving, you can save about $1,980 by going for the NR DSP over the RC M.

Purchase a Net Radar DSP online here.

RC M vs. K40 RL360di

Now the K40 I don’t really consider to be a serious contender to any top tier radar detector or laser jammer. The performance is pretty bad on both sides. (See my radar testing and laser testing.) Nevertheless, it is a popular option you’ll hear about and I’m sure people will want to see how they compare, especially when shopping for custom installed radar and laser protection. Both manufacturers can integrate radar and laser and offer speeding ticket guarantees, but there’s a lot of differences too. Let’s run through the advantages of each.

Radenso RC M Advantages

• Longer alert range on radar
• Significantly better laser jamming capabilities
• MRCD/CT and Gatso support so it detects more radar guns
• Nearly RDD immune
• GPS lockouts are more advanced
• Display integrated into controller (having a display visible may be a disadvantage to some, but K40 still requires a controller which is similar in size to Radenso’s controller)
• Redlight camera / speed camera alerts
• More options for laser jammer automatic shut-off timer
• K40’s laser jammer addon is $900 for two heads while ALP’s addon is $1310 with 3 heads, but that jumps to $1200 once you add a third K40 head like the ALP
• Parking sensor functionality available with the ALP
• Firmware updates and improvements are released regularly for both the RC M and ALP as opposed to never with the K40 (RL360di has no USB update port and the Defuser Optix hasn’t received a single update in the 3 years it’s been on the market)
• 2 year warranty instead of 1 year
• Available with 5 year warranty and 5 year ticket-free guarantee instead of 1 year

Purchase a Radenso RC M online here.

K40 RL360di Advantages

• No display to install, LED’s only (though may be a disadvantage to some)
• Options for a wireless remote or a permanent flush-mount remote in your dash
• Can integrate with Kenwood and JVC aftermarket head units
• RL360di normally retails for $2,000, but can be found online for $1,500 (compared to $2,100 for the RC M) so it is cheaper

Purchase a K40 RL360di online here.

Personally I don’t think there’s a real comparison here. The Radenso performs significantly better on both radar and laser, has better false alert filtering, more features like RLC alerts and MRCD support, continually updates and improves their product, and offers a longer warranty.

The K40 doesn’t have a dedicated display so you can get a stealthier looking install, but you still need to install the remote which is roughly the same size as the Radenso which means it winds up being pretty much a wash. The wireless remote is cool alternative, but I keep hearing stories of people losing it and it’s $160 to replace. The aftermarket head unit integration is pretty cool for the few people that run a compatible aftermarket stereo. So there are a few advantages, but nothing substantial that I think warrants the big reduction in both performance and features.

The K40 can’t really compete with the top tier radar and laser products nowadays so if you’re comparing these two, the Radenso RC M is the clear winner.

RC M vs. Radenso Pro M

What about the Radenso Pro M? It’s Radenso’s windshield mount radar detector that’s based on the same platform as the RC M so it offers most all of the same features, but it costs just a fraction of the price at just $499. Both also offer a 1 year speeding ticket guarantee. Should you save some money and go for the Pro M instead? The RC M does offer more features, but let’s go over the key differences and advantages of each.

Radenso RC M Advantages

• Arrows available because of the rear antenna
• Integrates with the AntiLaser Priority, though the ALP can still be run standalone with the Pro M
• Increased sensitivity and longer range thanks to the slightly larger radar antennas
• Raised buttons make it easier to control while driving
• Cleaner looking install with nothing hanging off your windshield
• No RD or suction cups visible to police or thieves

Purchase a Radenso RC M online here.

Radenso Pro M Advantages

• Much lower price ($499 vs. $2,099)
• Easier and cheaper to install (just suction cup it to your windshield and plug it in to your cig. lighter, or you can hardwire)
• Can easily be moved from vehicle to vehicle

Purchase a Radenso Pro M online here.

The RC M is a more complete package with the arrows and laser jammer integration. The Pro M does 90% of what the RC M can do, but for a quarter of the price, plus it’s much faster and cheaper to install.

If you’re set on getting a clean looking custom installed radar detector, the Radenso RC M is the obvious choice. If you’re looking for the best bang for the buck, the Radenso Pro M offers almost all of the features of the RC M for a fraction of the price.

Conclusion

Should you get the Radenso RC M?

If you’re looking for both a high end radar detector and high end laser jammer in one fully integrated package, the Radenso RC M and AntiLaser Priority is the way to go.

Additionally, if you’re looking for the most future-proof system possible (these systems are neither easy nor cheap to switch out when it comes time to upgrade), the RC M leads the pack too.

On top of this, it offers long range radar detection, the best BSM filtering around, lifetime updates for free, and it comes from a company of enthusiasts who are passionate about making awesome products.

Without a doubt, the Radenso RC M is one of the best radar detectors that money can buy.