What is Trapster?
Simply put, Trapster is an application for getting speed trap alerts on your Blackberry, iPhone, Nokia, Android, Garmin, or TomTom device.
How does Trapster work?
When you see a trap, report it by pressing a button on your phone, or calling a toll free number. Other user’s phones will alert them as they approach the trap. Trapster learns the credibility of traps based on how many users agree. It also learns the credibility of each user, over time.
So how does it work? Our goal is to make it so simple that you don’t need to know. But in case you are interested, it combines technologies such as GPS and wireless location, voice transcription, geocoding, reverse geocoding, and SMS, with a central database server. It communicates in real time, using the Internet.
Some Statistics:
1390641 Total Trapster users world-wide
1131687 iPhones using Trapster (I wonder how many SA users there are?)
717612 Traps reported world-wide
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Why you need trapster even if you already have a radar detector.
Even the latest, most expensive radar detectors are useless against modern police enforcement technologies such as instant-on and laser. Your radar/laser detector will still beep, but in almost all cases, only after it is too late. The only way a radar or laser detector can help you is if it beeps in time for you to slow down before the officer gets a reading on your speed. With instant-on and laser, this only happens if the officer activates early or “misses” the shot, and some of the signal leaks past a car in front of you. Radar detectors are still effective for more traditional (Ka etc.) band radar. We recommend that you use both Trapster and a radar/laser detector for the best possible coverage. Also radar detectors are illegal in many US states, and are illegal nationwide for commercial vehicles.
Trapster works on Garmin and TomTom.
After about a gazillion of you (our users) asked for Garmin and TomTom support, we implemented it! While other sites charge money for this data, we offer it absolutely free (for personal use by individual registered users). Check out our innovative approach to setting areas, routes, and alert types of interest, and for POI Mailer automated notifications! Note: Static trap types such as red light cameras and known police enforcement points stay in the same place for years. But real time trap types such as the motorcycle police with laser, a mobile speed van, or a checkpoint, move from place to place every few hours. Garmin and TomTom navigation devices are not connected, so our servers cannot deliver real time data to them. Therefore we suggest you additionally use our location based text message system to be alerted to the trap types that are not static in nature.
Is Trapster legal?
Our understanding is that Trapster is legal in most countries. It does not fall under text messaging or hands free calling laws, or radar detector laws. If you are concerned you should probably check the laws in your state or country. In fact, the police we’ve spoken with actually like the idea. It beeps, people slow down, they have met their objective, you save money on the ticket and insurance, and everyone is happy. The police can always find plenty of other people to issue violations to. People who don’t use Trapster, that is.
Traps in South Africa?
Amazing hey? I definitely think that there are already a number of Trapster users in South Africa! Or maybe just one user doing a LOT of driving around?
Anyway, give Trapster a try by downloading the application for your iPhone here:
