girmis

I have escort 9500xi (with gps red light cameras). Just for red light camera feature it is worth every $ it costs. Before I had it I was not aware how many RL cameras are there in Chicago land. As for a radar detection, it is decent, and it does not have hundreds of false alarms like Valentine.

w84me

Great question, thanks for posting, I've been thinking about updating lately. I've got an older Passport 8500 model and it still works like a champ. I feel like there are other radar detectors that set it off sometimes. Probably someones cheapo detector as they pass me has always been my suspicion.

I actually drive quite a a bit in the open country road and always feel comfortable speeding as long as there is enough traffic. It will detect a cop far off that is radaring someone else. 100 mph comes quick and w/o even knowing your going that fast, so you gotta have one.

I get nervous when I am the only one on the road, because they manage to sit on just the other side of the hill, and no detector in the world will save you from that. As far as laser goes, it detects it, but my experience is if it goes off, its because its pointed at you and of course, its too late. I don't know if newer ones are capable of detecting when the laser is pointed at other cars. The theory is, a laser has a more narrow beam, but I would think there would be some atmospheric diffusion and some reflecting off the car going on so it could be possible to detect. My 8500 is about 7 years old, so maybe the technology has improved

Oh, and the other thing that will get you a ticket is because your too relaxed behind the wheel, have the music cranked, and the damn thing is beeping and clanging but its bright out and you don't see it or hear it and next thing you know you have a cop in your rearview mirror. Damn the AC/DC!

or_550i

For LIDAR detection and jamming... Blinder. Not for the weak of heart to install.

Here are some Blinder 420's I was putting on a friends car:

tuffluck

shockingly police radar hasn't improved much. they have instant-on radar, which is kind of like a laser in that it sends a burst in a short range, but if you slam on your brakes you will stop before you are read every time (with a good detector).

the real "upgrades" to detectors aren't so much their ability to detect (at least again, with the good ones), just extra features like the gps in the 9500.

Brant535

That looks very cool! do you or can you combine this with a radar detector? What did it cost and is this legal in NY?

itb76

I just bought a 2004 545 about a month ago, and noticed my Valentine doesn't give false alerts as frequently as it used to. Turns out I have the comfort glass windshield, which has some kind of metallic coating to reduce interior temperatures in hot weather. If your car has this windshield your best bet will be a remote mount radar detector, such as the Escort 9500ci or Beltronics STi-R. I will be making this upgrade in the next several months. If you use a standard radar detector with one of these windshields, mount it on the visor as close to the inside mirror as possible.

There was some discussion above of the merits of radar detectors in general. IMO they are an important part of your self defense arsenal, but you can't drive mindlessly, talking on the phone, and expect your radar detector to take care of you. Most importantly, keep your eyes open, think like a cop, remember the common speed traps in your area. If you SEE the cop BEFORE he hits the instant on radar, you are way ahead. Drive carefully and good luck.

Next week I'll probably find out if my I-Pass (Illinois toll transponder) works with this windshield...

itb76

Toll transponder works just fine with this windshield. I mounted it way up high, right next to the mirror. I still feel the V1 is less sensitive in this car however.

Brent P

The perfect detector would be the Valentine with GPS and the ability to remember false locations.

I've been using Escorts for the past 20 years, but just got my first Valentine about a month ago. Aside from the fact that I get a lot of falsing in the city due to its sensitivity, I absolutely love it. I can't believe the difference being able to detect direction and number of bogies makes. It's like suddenly having all your senses when before you limited to one. Being aware of everything going on around you, and being able to interpret it more than offsets the pain of too much sensitivity in the city.

If you could just lock out the false alarm zones it would be perfect.