No fake field tests. Verified specs, use-case matching, and honest limitations — our full evaluation process.
We don't fake field tests. We do something rarer: we read every manual, verify every spec against the manufacturer's own pages, and compare machines on documented facts — with sources you can check yourself.
We pull frequency, weight, waterproof rating, coil, and technology from the manufacturer's product page or user manual. If two official sources conflict, we keep the product-page value and note the conflict on the page.
A detector is a bundle of trade-offs. High frequency finds tiny gold but loses depth on coins; pulse induction handles mineralized ground but weighs more. We score each machine against the job it's meant for.
When a spec isn't published, we print "not published by the manufacturer" rather than copying a retailer's guess. When a machine has a real weakness (weight, price tier, learning curve), we say so in the limitations box.
No — and we won't pretend otherwise. Our comparisons are built from verified manufacturer specifications, manuals, and documented feature sets. Where we describe real-world behavior (for example, how multi-frequency handles saltwater beaches), we base it on the manufacturer's documented technology and widely reported user experience, and we say so.
Because specs are checkable. Every number on our model pages links to the manufacturer page it came from. Marketing claims that can't be traced to a spec sheet are treated as marketing, not fact.
We match machines to use cases: a beginner needs simplicity and light weight, a gold prospector needs high frequency, a beach hunter needs multi-frequency and waterproofing. The 'best' detector is always best for a specific job.