# R8 Companion — user reviews > 126 indexed App Store user reviews of R8 Companion by Angela Mcarthur, rated 4.80/5 from 1,491 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/r8-companion/id6461348120/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/r8-companion/id6461348120.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 1,342 · 4★ 81 · 3★ 32 · 2★ 15 · 1★ 21 ## What do users think of R8 Companion? Overall sentiment: positive **Pros** - 🚀 Great functionality - 👍 Customizable settings - 👍 Responsive developer - 👍 Helps quiet the R8 - 👍 Useful features - 👍 Easy to use - 👍 Improves user experience **Cons** - 🐛 Bluetooth disconnection issues - 🔊 Audio volume issues - 🔧 Needs better UI organization - 🔧 Lacks granular audio control **Commonly reported bugs** - Bluetooth disconnection on mute button press - Automatic speed limit setting changes **Most requested features** - Option to control push notifications - Wireless/Bluetooth firmware updates for R8 - CarPlay support - Background app functionality - Home screen widget - Speed camera alerts ## Newest reviews (18 of 126) ### 4/5 — Great! But.. *2026-09-04, version 1.38.15* One request, can you get the detector to automatically connect via Bluetooth when CarPlay starts? I have to manually go in and find the r8 each time and I have a lot of Bluetooth devices ### 3/5 — Why can’t all radar detectors be connected? *2026-08-25, version 1.37.6* Why does escort 360 have an app that will show you active KA band but Uniden doesn’t ### 4/5 — R8 CarPlay *2026-07-24, version 1.36.8* Works fantastic, except there should be system voltage displayed on the screen. ### 5/5 — Makes the R8W 10x better *2026-07-11, version 1.35.2* Very nice app. My R8W is installed on my motorcycle and this app just needs to run in the background on my phone for it to send all alerts to my helmet com system (Cardo) seamlessly. Excellent app! Well worth the $10 cost. ### 5/5 — Amazing App & R8 Tool *2026-06-27, version 1.33.11* This app is simply amazing. This is a perfect tool to complement the R8. The app seems to be updated pretty regularly and it’s amazing how it works. Great app Angela keep up the awesome work, please! ### 5/5 — Incredible *2026-06-27, version 1.33.11* At every opportunity, I recommend this app to anyone that can benefit from it. It has been a miracle on my somewhat noisy R8W and has made the auto-lockout function much better. It would be foolish not to have this, and add R/Tach app while you are at it, and you will have the perfect setup. As a bonus, and I just saw this today, apparently CarPlay was added. Thank you for all tour hard work, and smart work, in getting this created and continually making it even better through updates. I never drive without my radar detector, and I never drive without R8 Companion. ### 5/5 — Absolutely the BEST *2026-06-21, version 1.33.11* This app works flawlessly, now that you added car play it’s a must have for every owner of a R8 or R8w Thank you for having the best app out there! My drive just got a lot better ### 5/5 — Connected finally *2026-06-09, version 1.32.4* After I updated my r8w I tried connecting and it wouldn’t connect… Until I turned it off and then turned it back on and it connected right away. ### 5/5 — Great but needs custom frequency filter *2026-06-06, version 1.32.4* My 2026 CT5 constantly falses at Ka 35.100 one bar strength , probably from the entertainment system. Lowering Ka sensitivity to 80% doesn’t help. Need a low strength Ka frequency filter without merely blocking off an entire Ka segment. ### 5/5 — ez *2026-06-05, version 1.31.7* so helpful if you know what to do but very user friendly would recommend ### 5/5 — Please fix Bluetooth *2026-06-02, version 1.31.7* This app is FANTASTIC! The difference between using the app and just the detector standalone is night and day. This app is a must have for any R8 user. ### 5/5 — Absolute Masterpiece. A Top 3 App Out of 700+ on My iPhone. *2026-06-01, version 1.31.7* I rarely feel compelled to leave reviews, but after extensive testing and keeping over 700 apps on my device, R8 Companion stands firmly in my top three of all time. If you are serious about radar detection and own a Uniden R8, this is not just an optional accessory—it is an absolute necessity. What Angela Mcarthur has built here completely transforms the R8 platform. Out of the box, the R8 is an incredible detector, while better than most, it can be notoriously noisy with false alerts. This app fixes that flawlessly. The Advanced False Assist engine, Ghost Muting, and the incredibly intelligent, bidirectional SpotLocks function seamlessly. It gives you a quiet ride without sacrificing a single inch of long-range protection. The high-resolution proximity meter, the brand new MyRadarIQ threat assessment graphics, and the background voice announcements provide vastly superior situational awareness compared to the stock screen. The only true way to improve this app is the exact feature we need most: full Apple CarPlay integration. With the developer’s recent promise to bring a dedicated CarPlay layout to an upcoming update, my expectations are incredibly high. Bringing this level of developer dedication directly to the in-dash screen will make an already flawless experience completely unbeatable. I would have never imagined saying something like this, but, as much as I detest subscription-based apps, I would gladly pay a monthly or annual subscription fee if that’s what it took to keep this app fresh and updated! To the dev: Thank you for your relentless work, the consistent real-world data updates, and for keeping future updates free. You didn't just build a companion app; you built the definitive R8 experience. Simply phenomenal work. ### 3/5 — good but... *2026-05-18, version 1.29.8* i like the voice notifications. One problem though is that I am listening to Spotify on Carplay and after a voice notification the music volume will be 3 steps lower! close the app and the volume is back to normal. Don't think i will continue with the apo for that reason. ### 5/5 — Giant speedometer *2026-05-15, version 1.28.2* I’ve been using this app for a while it works great. I really have only one thing I would like to see changed… Please make it to where we can either disable or change that giant speedometer in the middle of the screen to something else, it’s visible from every car around me, including what could be a potential police car not running radar I would love to be able to either turn it off or switch it to something else. When an alert goes off the speedometer shrinks to the corner of the screen, which seems to be a perfect place for it. Other than that, it’s been great! ### 4/5 — Great app *2026-05-08, version 1.27.61* I don’t use this app a lot, but the app make it easier for me to adjust my setting on my R8. Look forward to see when get could fully optimized for CarPlay where I could see map and setting on my infotainment ### 5/5 — A great companion *2026-04-11, version 1.26.31* This app connects effortlessly, provides a lot of information, and controls the detector when you want to make a quick change to the settings. Thank you developers for adding speed limit to the screen. It's a work in progress but adds to the value! ### 4/5 — Worth the purchase *2026-04-02, version 1.26.31* The R8 is a good detector, but way too ‘busy’ with alerts on weak signals. This app filters the junk out and mostly only alerts on the real signals. Really improves situational awareness. One star off due to an audio glitch with CarPlay (sometimes music stays muted after an alert, workaround is to select ‘test audio’ in the app, then the music will resume) ### 5/5 — Awesome App *2026-03-26, version 1.26.31* Makes the R8 just that much better. Would love to see a CarPlay function so I could display the data from the phone on the headunit! ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — Garbage *2024-07-19, version 1.12.1* Direction or speed go haywire. Go south it will display every direction. Works for half a minute. I phone Promax 14 ### 1/5 — Changes R8 setting *2023-10-12* Once I installed and paired this app to my R8 detector, it immediately kept putting my detector into over speed limit warning of 60 mph. No matter how many times I went in to reset it and turn it off, it would immediately go back to the 60 mile an hour over the speed limit warning. The moment I killed the app and changed the setting back, it would work like it did before with no speed limit warning. However the moment I engage the app and it paired to the detector, it goes right back to changing the setting to over 60 mph speed limit warning. Therefore I have deleted the app and cannot recommend this product. **Developer response:** Hi Reflex, This is a setting in the app, simply go into the “audio settings” at the bottom of the main alert screen and then change the over speed limit to what you want. It is set to 60 in the app by default. Please consider changing your review once you have verified this fixes your issue. Thanks! ### 1/5 — Love it if you never upgrade phones *2023-09-30, version 1.03.14* Should really make it where u can back up and restore on another phone upgraded phone and realized that feature is useless in said case ### 2/5 — Annoying Popups on CarPlay *2026-07-23, version 1.36.8* The app was great until a recent update where it was implemented into CarPlay now there is annoying popups at the bottom of my CarPlay Screen every 5 seconds and it’s impossible to mute. ### 2/5 — Recent update includes speed limit display and error *2026-05-10, version 1.27.61* A recent update decided to include a speed limit display which there is no option to turn off. Just plain annoying. Plus the word limit reverts to “SVRBK” for some reason. ### 2/5 — Sucks 12-19-25 *2025-12-20, version 1.25.9* It’s terrible, for some reason whenever I open the app all of my audio starts to skip in my car, but it only does this whenever I open this app In addition to that, I feel like there should be more customization and different parameters. The Voice on this thing sucks also. 😂 If they need made minor tweaks, this app could be really good. Allow our users to communicate and tag locations similar to waze ### 2/5 — New User - First Time Start *2025-06-22, version 1.21.1* The repetitive “guide” alerts when first using the app are extremely excessive and annoying - even for a noob. I didn’t realize I would be spending $9.99 to get bombarded with such notices. I pay nothing for Uniden’s app and I do not get guide alerts! Constructive feedback: Things like this are better placed elsewhere within the app, perhaps under Settings > App guidance. ### 2/5 — Won’t connect to my R8 *2024-12-18, version 1.19.7* I bought this app hoping it would work with my R8 but it won’t connect. I updated the firmware and still won’t connect. I double checked the firmware and it’s up to date I have tried 6 times still nothing. My R 8 works perfectly fine. Looks like I wasted $10.00 ### 2/5 — Very responsive *2024-11-22, version 1.18.2* Developer is very responsive to my questions and suggestions. Much appreciated. App is terrific! Makes Uniden's R8 far more useable. Great! I use a dedicated iPhone SE 2020 just for R8 Companion. Still waiting for option to turn off details at end of trip. I never use it and I have to dismiss it every time. ### 2/5 — Paid for a useless (to me) app *2024-05-08* I currently have the uniden R8 and I purchased this app in hopes of connecting it through Bluetooth. Well since I got the app, it has never connected to my R8 and I assume it’s a problem with my uniden R8 but I just felt like this app was not necessary for me to purchase. This was probably the most useless app I have purchased and the R8 works perfectly fine without it. But with that being said, I will never know the benefits of this app because it never connected, and yes, I red my owners manual and it still won’t connect. Must be my R8, I don’t know, but it works fine without the app so I assume I’m not missing out. I just wish it wasn’t whatever I paid for it. **Developer response:** Hi jnosef, Sorry your detector is having issues. We have free technical support that would love to help you get going. As long as you have version 1.28 of the R8 firmware, you should have no problems connecting, and then you can leave a review based on the app instead of your detector experience. Here are some useful links: Tech Support Email: https://crackedpixel.com/contact-us | Latest firmware for your detector and installation video: https://crackedpixel.com/downloads | Help videos for connecting: https://crackedpixel.com/videos-%2F-how-to | ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — Almost perfect *2026-09-01, version 1.37.6* Great app. I originally gave it 4 stars and said 5 stars if it worked with CarPlay. It does now so I changed it to 5 stars. ### 5/5 — Good R8 companion *2026-08-31, version 1.37.6* It’s worth it ### 5/5 — The best. *2026-08-26, version 1.37.6* Incredible adaptability. ### 5/5 — Must buy if you have a detector *2026-08-12, version 1.37.6* Literally amazing, just trust me ### 5/5 — so good *2026-08-11, version 1.37.6* actually worth every penny. great app if you have a Uniden R8 detector. 10/10 ### 5/5 — Car Play integration *2026-08-06, version 1.36.8* What an awesome surprise update and win!!! Ka alert triggered and next thing I see, is that it is showing up on my Carplay screen! Huge thanks team! ### 5/5 — Great investment *2026-07-30, version 1.36.8* A must-have when you have a R8! ### 5/5 — No doubt worth every penny *2026-07-26, version 1.36.8* Best Radar app out there for Uniden Keep up the great work fellas! It works on my car play along side WaZe. Genius! Yall should make the alert band that would light the outer boarder or edge of the screen and flash colors to get your attention. Every millisecond matters when running radar! ### 5/5 — CarPlay! *2026-07-22, version 1.36.8* App just gotten better. Got in my car and noticed I was getting hits seen on my car screen. One suggestion if possible. Can we get car battery voltage to show please ### 5/5 — App works extremely well *2026-07-11, version 1.35.2* The only thing I can think of to make this app better is update the speed limit data. A lot of local city streets speed limits aren’t displayed. I know in Google Maps those speed limits are available. Having it up on my vehicle display in CarPlay would be nice too. It does add value to my R8 for sure. --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-09.*