Police laser speed guns - can they take photos?

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heavenlywild

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#25565 25-Aug-2008 18:02

I am wondering whether the handheld laser speed guns that police use can actually take photos or are they merely speed guns only?

I ask because I saw quite a few police cars on the Western Motorway in Auckland this afternoon. There was one guy holding the gun and a couple of police cars behind.

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#159651 25-Aug-2008 18:04

It is a speed gun only.

They then get one of the cars to chase you down

heavenlywild

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#159660 25-Aug-2008 18:30

Haha, that's good because I was going at around 105km/hr!

No wonder there were a few more police cars behind.

The police must be out of money again!

coffeebaron

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#159686 25-Aug-2008 19:40

Make sure you always request to see your speed. Don't take the word of some random cop who didn't even do the point n lock.
Also laser guns should be used on tripods. The are very very error prone if not held extremely still; i.e. a slight knock sideways and they are pointing at another car, or a wee bump forwards and they've just added several km/hr to your speed.

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Dratsab

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#160164 27-Aug-2008 14:50

heavenly_wild: The police must be out of money again!

Actually they don't get money from this activity, it all goes into government coffers. A much better use of the revenue would be to put it back into roading, on top of the existing budget.

kiwitrc

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#160166 27-Aug-2008 14:57

This might help. I have always been dubious about such products but who knows

itxtme

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#160414 28-Aug-2008 11:40

kiwitrc: This might help. I have always been dubious about such products but who knows

laser jammers are illegal and do work..

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kiwitrc

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#160415 28-Aug-2008 11:42

itxtme:
kiwitrc: This might help. I have always been dubious about such products but who knows

laser jammers are illegal and do work..

Its not a jammer its supposed to be a laser absorbing clear paint. If laser jammers dont work why are they illegal? Mine work very well.

BobW

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#160429 28-Aug-2008 12:35

coffeebaron: The are very very error prone if not held extremely still; i.e. a slight knock sideways and they are pointing at another car, or a wee bump forwards and they've just added several km/hr to your speed.

To add 5 km/h to the measured speed, the laser speed gun would need to be moving at 1.4 metres per second - that's quite a bump, so your assertion seems implausible.
Nonetheless, concerns about the accuracy of hand held laser speed guns are common. A recent test compared them with other devices, finding that all types of device were generally within +/- 1 mile per hour when used correctly. See here
On the other hand, incorrect operation or calibration can lead to errors - potentially large errors - as discussed at length on this site

Back to the original question, hand-held speed cameras are commonly used overseas but not in NZ as far as I know. The second link above provides some information about hand-held speed camera, amongst other types.

graemer

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#160434 28-Aug-2008 13:08

itxtme:
laser jammers are illegal and do work..

Ahh.. you sure? If they are illegal, why are they allowed to be sold? Just like radar detectors, I understood them to be (currently) legal.
My jammers and detector work well.

corksta

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#160435 28-Aug-2008 13:12

coffeebaron: Make sure you always request to see your speed. Don't take the word of some random cop who didn't even do the point n lock.
Also laser guns should be used on tripods. The are very very error prone if not held extremely still; i.e. a slight knock sideways and they are pointing at another car, or a wee bump forwards and they've just added several km/hr to your speed.

That's the biggest load of crap ever!!! Have you actually used one? Have you actually stood on the side of a road, looked through the lens and pointed the dot at a vehicle? Where's your evidence to back up your claims?

Having spent a considerable amount of time using one and knowing how one works your whole post is ridiculous. Your comments remind me of all the "experts" who watch planes from the observation deck at Auckland Airport and talk about Boeing 737s when they're actually watching an A320, or how it's so amazing that such a massive 747 actually manages to take off at all, and so on. They sound like they know what they're talking about but really they have no idea...........

kiwitrc

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#160436 28-Aug-2008 13:15

corksta:
coffeebaron: Make sure you always request to see your speed. Don't take the word of some random cop who didn't even do the point n lock.
Also laser guns should be used on tripods. The are very very error prone if not held extremely still; i.e. a slight knock sideways and they are pointing at another car, or a wee bump forwards and they've just added several km/hr to your speed.

That's the biggest load of crap ever!!! Have you actually used one? Have you actually stood on the side of a road, looked through the lens and pointed the dot at a vehicle? Where's your evidence to back up your claims?

Having spent a considerable amount of time using one and knowing how one works your whole post is ridiculous. Your comments remind me of all the "experts" who watch planes from the observation deck at Auckland Airport and talk about Boeing 737s when they're actually watching an A320, or how it's so amazing that such a massive 747 actually manages to take off at all, and so on. They sound like they know what they're talking about but really they have no idea...........

No, dont hold back, what do you really think

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corksta

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#160439 28-Aug-2008 13:18

kiwitrc:
corksta:
coffeebaron: Make sure you always request to see your speed. Don't take the word of some random cop who didn't even do the point n lock.
Also laser guns should be used on tripods. The are very very error prone if not held extremely still; i.e. a slight knock sideways and they are pointing at another car, or a wee bump forwards and they've just added several km/hr to your speed.

That's the biggest load of crap ever!!! Have you actually used one? Have you actually stood on the side of a road, looked through the lens and pointed the dot at a vehicle? Where's your evidence to back up your claims?

Having spent a considerable amount of time using one and knowing how one works your whole post is ridiculous. Your comments remind me of all the "experts" who watch planes from the observation deck at Auckland Airport and talk about Boeing 737s when they're actually watching an A320, or how it's so amazing that such a massive 747 actually manages to take off at all, and so on. They sound like they know what they're talking about but really they have no idea...........

No, dont hold back, what do you really think

Well...............

Nah I'm ok now. People who talk nonsense as fact just irk me a little bit, to put it nicely. :)

coffeebaron

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#160446 28-Aug-2008 13:42

corksta:
coffeebaron: Make sure you always request to see your speed. Don't take the word of some random cop who didn't even do the point n lock.
Also laser guns should be used on tripods. The are very very error prone if not held extremely still; i.e. a slight knock sideways and they are pointing at another car, or a wee bump forwards and they've just added several km/hr to your speed.

That's the biggest load of crap ever!!! Have you actually used one? Have you actually stood on the side of a road, looked through the lens and pointed the dot at a vehicle? Where's your evidence to back up your claims?

Having spent a considerable amount of time using one and knowing how one works your whole post is ridiculous. Your comments remind me of all the "experts" who watch planes from the observation deck at Auckland Airport and talk about Boeing 737s when they're actually watching an A320, or how it's so amazing that such a massive 747 actually manages to take off at all, and so on. They sound like they know what they're talking about but really they have no idea...........

Fair comment - as I have not personally used them. These comments are based on conversations with someone in the industry who has been involved with testing a range of radar & laser equipment. The opinion is probably bias though, as he is not on the enforcement side of the industry :)

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andysh

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#160462 28-Aug-2008 14:32

I think it is not illegal to use Laser Jammers, as all they are is emiting light, which is not illegal. Also isn't it 10% ontop of the speed limit when tickets start coming?

However Radar jammers are illegal (I think) as they have to do something with sending out a frequency. There are radar jammers out there which are spose to be legal and work, but I think it is hard to get one without the other.

*all info on what i have read/herd, no expert here*

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coffeebaron

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#160476 28-Aug-2008 15:11

andysh: I think it is not illegal to use Laser Jammers, as all they are is emiting light, which is not illegal. Also isn't it 10% ontop of the speed limit when tickets start coming?

However Radar jammers are illegal (I think) as they have to do something with sending out a frequency. There are radar jammers out there which are spose to be legal and work, but I think it is hard to get one without the other.

*all info on what i have read/herd, no expert here*

Andysh

That's right. To jam a signal, you have to transmit on the same frequency to disrupt the signal. As there are no licenses required for transmitting "light", you can use a laser jammer.
Technically a radar jammer is not actually illegal either, it's just that you need to seek permission of the license holder to transmit on that frequency - hmmm, somehow though I don't think the Police will say yes you can transmit on our radar frequency :(

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