Saphe Drive Mini, free lifetime speed camera and accident detector

Saphe Drive Mini

Many navigators now include reports for speed cameras, traffic light cameras or accidents, but devices such as the Saphe Drive Mini are able to add an additional level of safety when we travel, thanks to the operation independent of the navigator that does not require you to set navigation for each movement. .

Saphe Drive Mini does not require a subscription, works throughout Europe and uses the database of speed cameras and cameras, together with reports from users. It is a small box, with a display in the center and two buttons on the sides, which allow you to quickly report a camera / speed camera or an accident. The information is retrieved from the smartphone, to which it must be connected via Bluetooth to work.

To activate it, simply download the application (Saphe Link) and follow the connection procedure, very simple, indicated on the screen. You will not have to do any additional operations, since from the moment the procedure is completed, Saphe Drive Mini will already be fully functional and will start reporting. From a settings menu you can decide where to receive the notification, if only from the device in the form of a tone (there are different tones that can be selected to indicate a different "danger") or even from the smartphone. The application will show you a map in which the different icons relating to fixed or mobile speed cameras, traffic light cameras, accidents, etc. are positioned. During our test we only set the device notifications since, by selecting those of the smartphone as well, each notification was blocked from Bluetooth playback on the car's infotainment system. To be honest, it is unimportant to leave smartphone notifications active: thanks to the display on the device, an icon is shown that indicates the type of notification, whether it is a traffic light with a camera, a speed camera or other.

The ergonomics of use are exemplary. Despite the need to be connected via Bluetooth to the smartphone, you will not have to connect it manually every time you get into the car or even open the application. During the installation of the app you will be asked to give the necessary permissions to control the necessary functions of the smartphone and then as soon as you enter the car with your smartphone you will hear a "beep" from the device that will indicate that the connection has been made. You will not have to open the application or do anything else, everything will work automatically. If for some reason you enter the car without the smartphone, the Saphe Drive Mini will not work, but we believe that by now it is a consolidated habit to carry the smartphone wherever we go.

Battery life lasts for 6 months, a fact that we cannot confirm. However, we can tell you that we have used it for ten days for the home-work commute and a couple of trips out of town during the weekend, and the battery is still fully charged, or at least it has not yet discharged to the point of signaling a state. of lower charge. In the car, we simply placed it in the glove box of the central gully and it did not report malfunction problems, therefore, you do not necessarily have to place it in plain sight. However, having a display that shows additional information, you should want to place it on an air vent, but it will be at your discretion.

Regarding the presence of all speed cameras, we have received correct reports moving in an area where we were aware of the presence of surveillance installations, therefore we cannot report particular shortcomings. However, we have read some comments from users who reported constant disconnections from the smartphone or total lack of reports. We did not see any such problems during our test, so we are inclined to think that the problems indicated are more related to the smartphone than to the device itself. Obviously, since it is not a stand-alone device, working together with a smartphone, an extra variable is added that can lead to malfunctions; the positive side is that it works throughout Europe and does not require a subscription.

There are a couple of defects: the first is the impossibility of distinguishing the direction of travel, so a speed camera will be reported on the opposite side of the street; the second problem is the distinction of the unit of measurement used to send the report. A speed camera will be reported 25 seconds earlier, while a traffic light camera will be reported 250 meters away. This leads to inaccurate signals: if, for example, you are on a road with a couple of traffic lights in succession and you receive a camera signal, you will not be able to understand precisely on which of the two traffic lights the camera is present. The same can happen with the report of a speed camera, since, not knowing the route you want to take, you may receive a report of a camera 25 seconds from your position, but in the meantime you may change direction. In short, it would be useful to be able to shorten the signaling time or distance, to avoid false alarms and allow the device to be more efficient