I did some searches but I found most of the threads had a lot of dead links and old pics. So I figured I would ask if anyone could post some pictures on thier Radar Detector set-up. I am looking at either the Escort Passport 8500 X50 or the Valentine One. Both seem to be popular with peeps on this forum so it sounds like either way I cannot go wrong. Thanks in Advance for your input.

 

V1 w/ remote display

Hands down.

 

V1 is getting to be old hat. escort continues to raise the bar while valentine stands idley by and doesnt release new products. its been well over a year since a software update for V1, let alone a brand new product. while the V1 is a FANTASTIC detector, the quality of the escort 8500 is easily at a level where where $400 dollar price tag for the V1 is a joke. (not to mention the ADDITONAL cost of the above-mentioned remote display)

if paying an extra 100 bucks (plus another 40 or so for remote display) is worth it to you to have a detector that doesnt detect any better or worse than the 8500, go for it. you may get those handy dandy arrows, but at this point that is the ONE AND ONLY feature that is superior.

its time to light a fire under the ass of Valentine one and get them to do some new products because escort has, at this point, equalled valentine in terms of dectection ability, etc. its only a matter of time before escort comes out with an innovation that tops the "arrows" on the V1.

 

The reason why the V1 is still my choice is for the directional arrows. No other dector has it. And it's well worth the extra $100 for them.

It'd be ignorant to think that Valentine Research isn't working on something new. But it seems just like when the original V1 was introduced some years back, they're going to want to make the next release have the same kind of impact as the original.

8500 and V1 may be equal in dectection algorithms, but the directional assistance is what makes the V1 the winner.

 

Check sig. I've bought countless numbers of Escort products, mine beats them all! For all the money I lost buying Escort radars I could've bought TWO Valentine's.

The arrows are well worth it. And for everyone complaining about the sensitivity range of the V1, you can PROGRAM it, check their website.

 

the arrows thing is pretty coo, but its not really useful. If a cop have to detect ur speed, he will by shotting his radar thing and for the driver it doesnt' matter where the shot was fired from an alert it an alert.

 

Radar detectors are mainly used to pick up residual radar bouncing off object from a common orgin. So it is helpful to know where the radar is coming from... if you see the rear arrow, just keep on driving. The front, slow down... the sides, don't worry about it b/c radar is useless at that angle.

Just b/c your radar detector goes off doesn't mean you've been tagged, that's what laser and instant-on is for.

 

Plus the arrows help in areas with massive amounts of stores that have automatic doors so you can tell if its simply the store door our a cop is hiding in the area.

 

Opinions are like assholes... everyone has one... and this subject is no different as it's been debated many, many times. I've owned both and like the V1 much better. The combination of the bogey counter and the arrows make it a very accurate device and it saved me many, many times. I have it hardwired to the car and with the remote display, you can barely even tell I have a detector.

 

OH BOY...... Here we go.




V1 > *

 

 

shawn, im shocked, why are you still using a 3 year old version?? thats not even the newest model and even thats over 2 years old!!! you still got the one with the super thick case? why havent you upgraded to 1.8xx???

 

Yes, mine was purchased in early 2000.
I’ve run the serial number several times and the upgrades are still very minor.
Even still, I would never pay Valentine to upgrade it.
It’s cheaper to sell on EBAY and buy a new one outright.
I’ve done that TWICE since 1992 and am on the verge of doing it again.
But I’m holding faith that Mike V has something drastically new on the way.

Shawn S

 

I too am waiting on the next revision....I wonder how long that will be

 

I always thought the V1 upgrade deal was a great marketing ploy, but if you’re smart you should just sell it and repurchase like I’ve done in the past.
I just ran a search on EBAY and there are several units with version 1.7 like mine that have sold in the 310-340 range.
To “upgrade” mine would cost 189 bucks plus shipping.

If I sell it and buy new my cost is around 75 to 100 bucks and I have a brand new unit.

Here’s the specs on version 1.7………………….


V1 Description:
Radar circuitry known in-house as V1.7 gives high performance on all radar bands. Also,it remembers your “mode” setting when shut off. Has stack of four LEDs on front panel for band identification. Front and rear laser.

Upgrade Recommendation:
While this version is not quite up to today’s V1 standard for Ka, it’s almost always good enough, and always better than detectors from other makers. X and K performance is excellent. Upgrading merely to improve radar performance is not cost effective, in my opinion. Upgrading does bring other benefits, including our latest Generation 3 front-and-rear laser warning, which is a significant improvement over the Generation 2 technology used in this unit.

Our Instant Upgrade* will make the following improvements to your V1.
• Our best Ka-band performance.
• Our best X-band performance.
• Our best K-band performance.
• Adds radar coverage on Ku-band (used in Europe).
• Our best, Generation 3 laser warning, front and rear.
• Reduces V1's case height by about ¼ inch.
• Reduces V1's weight by about 1.5 oz.
• Latest windshield mount with new suction cups.
• Latest visor mount.
• New Lighter Power Adapter.
• New Direct-wire Power Adapter
• New coiled cord.
• New straight cord.
• New wiring-harness connector.
• Dual-Lock® fastener.
• New Owners Manual.
• Spare fuse.
• Spare suction cups.
• One-year limited warranty, same as new units.

 

Heh, why can't people say what they have and leave it at that.

I just bought a bel rx55 for ~230. I'll try it out for a month to see how it does. Supposedly its uses the same internals as the rx65, just with less features/programming. The rx65 is supposed to be on par with the 8500 x50, so we shall see.

I looked at the escort, but wanted to see if the bel would get the job done. Found it funny that they are charging a $40 premium for blue plastic over red.

 

I had one of the original Escorts, then later a Passport and I've had my V1 for almost 3 years.

I will never go back. Laugh at the arrows if you like, but once you've had them thats it. The only draw back is I wish it was a little smaller & lighter. The $400 is cheap compared to the potential cost of tickets and, more important, insurance premiums for 3 years.

 

I gotta say, I used to use a RD religiously... but a client of mine is a Columbus Cop and told me that he rarely if ever uses radar to clock - always laser. And once the laser warning goes off, you're already clocked.

Laser is coherent light, it doesn't break apart like RADAR...

So when they are using radar it bounces off of walls, cars, the road, etc... making detection easy - but laser only hits one car at a time and provides no reflection to any detector in the area - if your laser detector is going off, you've been clocked.

Do cops still use radar where everyone is at?

 

because that's not what the guy was asking

 

1) Laser CAN be detected, just not as well as RADAR. You have to be close to the vehicle being targeted to get any beam spread. It's better than no warning at all.

2) RADAR is still used everywhere. LASER can only be used from a stationary position and during the day. RADAR is mobile.

I think your client was pulling your leg.

 

V1








To add to what has been posted, the local county law enforcement likes to drive around with their radar on, all the time.

The arrows let me know if there is a cop approaching from behind, the side, or ahead. Nice to know with all of the un-marked cars they have. It has probably saved me from a few moving violations, not necessarily a speeding ticket.

 

Around here many local cops and state troopers have dash mounted K band radar that is always on. Arrows help out alot.

 

Ya but the school buses around here in White Marsh piss me off. I get the first blip at around 2k feet and by 500 the meter is max pegged. This is in Advanced Logic mode too. When I hear/see K band now I almost always write it off as a bus which is going to screw me one day

 

I've been getting Ka falses every now and then, but I've never seen a cop around here use Ka. I'm getting close to sending my V1 back as a defective unit while it is still under warranty to get it replaced. Too many falses lately while i'm on the highway with nothing else in sight.

 

No LASER here in PA. Only RADAR.
Maybe that's why I love my V1 so much.

Shawn S

 

^^ Why no laser in PA???

 

Are those buses from the First Student location on Philadelphia Rd?

 

Oh and around here, it is almost 100% laser during the day for local county police and state troopers. They usually switch to radar at night.

Montgomery County, Maryland Police Department (where I work and just South of where I live) has more laser guns than any other department in the country. No radar anymore. Every cop carries one with him/her at all times.

 

Saying v1 hands down, arrows kick ass, etc isn't proof of whats best. The bel 985, 8500 and v1 all have similiar performance in any recent test. People mention the arrows saving them from tickets like people with the 8500,etc are getting tickets without arrows. For every argument for arrows, theres one saying you should save your 100bucks.

 

I don’t know and I’m not complaining.
But I do live close to the NJ border and they do use it over there.

In PA local cops aren’t allowed to use RADAR either. Only State Police.
I don’t know if that’s good or bad because you can’t detect VASCAR traps easily.

Shawn S

 

Then save your $100! That's why there is more than one detector on the market.

 

They don't use VASCAR around here anymore. You still see the lines on the street but I've never seen or heard from anyone (including cops I know) say they use it.

 

Sorry, but 100 bucks is NOTHING to me when it comes to detecting cops the best way possible.
One ticket will cost double or triple that and that’s not counting insurance surcharges for several years.

I spare no expense when it comes to buying a detector. I want the BEST.
If the next V1 debates for 899, mine will be the first one going out via FedEX overnight delivery.

Shawn S

 

I just ordered the new Passport 8500 X50.

Sold my old Passport 8500 on Ebay for $220.

I think both the V1 and 8500 are the two best detectors. I just prefer the 8500.

 

None of us in the thread need a lesson in laser or radar. The last time I went thru Columbus was in 2000 from Kansas->New York (PAA) and radar was everywhere.

I agree. You've been lied to....repeatedly. If the cop said that, then kensteele > your client when it comes to knowledge about radar/laser.

A police department that has switched entirely to laser is going to lose revenue of fines. Either that or they have a dedicated traffic division and no patrol cars run laser/radar. A cop can't afford to come to a complete stop everytime they try to write a speeding ticket. Imagine you the cop are approaching a hill going 45mph and all of a sudden this ricer civic peaks doing 88mph and all you can do is watch him zip by.... You just can't write as many tickets standing still, it's too easy for traffic to slow down and bunch up, leaving you sitting there for awhile waiting for the next break.

I'm with Shawn, anything < $1000 and I'm buying from Mike. I will never buy anymore junk from The Escort Store again.

 

Why are you assuming someone, using another comparible performing detector, will get a ticket?

 

In the last 3 months here in NY with the 55mph limit, I detected Laser twice from another car up ahead being hit. Both times it was a nice loud blip, a few seconds later followed by a constant hit as my car was hit. Both times, I hit the brakes and slowed enough.

Hands down the V1 is the best, besides my normal highway driving with our archaic 55mph limit, I've driven from NY to North Carolina, Michigan, Ohio, etc, etc, and its saved my butt on each trip more than once.

For those saying the arrows are useless, I remember one episode where my V1 went off, and I saw a cop pass by the other way, and it was him. The detector's arrow suddenly pointed ahead, and wouldnt you know it, another cop was on my side of the road clocking everyone. The Passport doesnt help much in that situation, does it?

One ticket plus increased insurance rates for years buys several V1's, and makes the diff in price minute.

 

Exactly. This has happened to me on a couple of occasions, I even posted about it last year: http://www.acura-cl.com/forums/showt...hreadid=106525

Proof enough laser is not 100% undefeatable.

 

I don't think its useless, kinda find it odd others haven't tried to copy it in some form, but as far as the two cop situation, yes, others make out fine also. "In ExpertMeter™ mode the Passport 8500 X50 can identify band and relative signal strength on up to 8 radar signals simultaneously."

 

The V1 does that too. And tells you where the strongest signal is coming from via arrows.