Great Laser and Ka Band Detection. Nice Fit and finish. Unbeliveable Programming including the option to monitor up to 3 different bands at once and being able to get exact frequency readings.

A bit big, but no big complaints here.

I was crusing from Duluth to Minneapolis in a Lotus V8 Espirit. We averaged about 95-100mph till the cities. 4 laser detections well over a mile out, (damn smokies) and 2 Ka Bands over 2 miles out. I probably saved $1000 in tickets and my licence thanks to the superior detection of the passport 8500. Wouldn't have any other rader detector. Hands down, If you don't want tickets, you want the pass port 8500.

Range, accuracy, customability.

None

The most advanced detector on the market. Unbelievalbe KA range and the ability to track and display multiple radar threats make it worth every penny. The Valentine 1 is showing it's age, the Escort 8500 is all about insane range and accurate alerts. You've never had a detector with such minimal falsing as the 8500. Valentine makes a good detector, it would be great at about $125 or so. It's old and dated, without a doubt used to be the best detector on the market. For many years in fact. Things improve over time and the Escort 8500 is the next step up in performance. It's not a huge step but a step none the less. You simply cannot get a better performing radar detector, regardless of what you're willing to spend. Do the research yourselves, not only are you getting more range with the 8500 but the accuracy is unbelievable. I've ridden in vehicles running the V1 and it's hard to take its alerts seriously. Lots of falsing in town.

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Whistler, cheaper old Bels (their new ones are great) Uniden

This detector dose everything right. Not having arrows is NOT a weakness. Most if not all the experts agree that the 8500 is flat out better then the V1. Can be linked to the laser shifter ZR3. It falses much less then my V1 did even in its highway mode. The range on the 8500 can not be beat.

None from what I can see.

Let me first start out by saying that the Passport 8500 is flat out better then the Valentine one and this is a flat out fact of life and almost all the experts agree. Some of the Valentine heads will try to tell you that the V1 is better then the 8500 but what they don't tell you is that the Passport 8500 has been kicking the Valentine ones butt. I have used both the V1 and the 8500 and for the money the 8500 is the best out there at any price. As far as radartest being a bad test? well I have no idea if they are or not but I can tell you one thing for sure and that is that they are one of many tests that has picked the 8500 over the V1 so I would have to say no to that statement. Just take a look at both Escorts and Valentines websites and you will see that on Valentines website Mike Valentine makes a point of slaming the Passport 8500 and the only test he quotes is Car and Driver and then go over to Escorts website and you will see that Escort DOSE NOT SLAM ANY ONE OR ANY THING they just quote all the experts. Also when Mike Valentine starts slaming and making up stories about the 8500 all that dose is make him look bad and I will never buy from a company like that ever again. Ok now on with some more facts about the Passport 8500. I have to tell you that the 8500 is one sweet radar detector and it has picked up radar from well over 4 miles away and thats no bull. Each time the 8500 gos off you will know its the real deal. As far as laser gos NO DETECTOR can pick up laser from real far away however I was able to slow down in time when my home town ST pulled out his laser gun and shot me from at least a 1000ft away. If you use both the Valentine one and the Passport 8500 you will agree that the Passport 8500 is a flat out better radar detector then the Valentine one regardless of what any of the Valentine people will tell you. Last but not least if you Valentine heads are going to start slaming my review? then at least talk about what I have talked about here DO NOT just start talking trash about my review just because you do not agree with me. Also when you post a review do not just talk about radartest talk about all the other tests that the Passport 8500 beat the Valentine one in. Oh ya and Iam sure you will just be calling all the other tests biased as well like you always do?.

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Valentine one and many others. This is the best radar detector at any price.

LOUD. Very sensitive. The EZ Programming is great, I turned off X band so it doesn't go off at every automatic door. Display is easy to read.

I'm anal. I want arrows! If Escort put arrows in this unit, I think it would be the best unit hands down. Some people argue arrows aren't necessary. I disagree. I think its an added feature to help you decide whats a false and whats the real deal! On top of that its really neat :)

Amazing detector. All of my previous detectors were cheap ones, but I finally decided to get a higher end unit. In the city, I can usually pick up K band from about 3/4 to 1 mile away, little bit farther than that with Ka. Nobody around here uses X. Even when the cops use the Instant-On tactic, I usually have PLENTY of time to slow down. ALWAYS USE THE EXPERT METER! I often find cops hiding behind buildings that use an X or K signal, which is usually enough to disguise their signal. I noticed the first week I got it, that I was picking up 2 K bands in an area where I'd normally get one. Sure enough, there was the cop sitting there timing me. Even though I commute to school everyday on a busy highway, I have never seen anybody out there timing. I wish I could give you some success stories. I can't tell you which detector is better between the V1 and the Passport 8500. My advice is to not take anybody elses and find out for yourself. But for $300, this detector represents a great deal.

LOUD!!!! Bright, and very user friendly. Also, I really like the Voltage meter as well being a stereo fanatic. I also have numerous amounts of lights that I use and it lets me know when I should turn them off.

Rear range, probably because of my tint. It is pretty big too.

Nice Radar. I had considered the V1 because it just seemed to be a great radar, but did some research. One of the things I like about the Escort is the fact that their web site lists all the tests and not just Car and Driver. I am a really fast driver and it sure picks up radar at rediculous ranges. Matter of fact, it was 30 mins to close at Hooter's and a friend and I decided to make it and I live about 30 mins away. So tearing down I-35 at about 90MPH The radar goes off and about a mile and a half later, sure enough, there is an officer. In short, we made it with time to spare and no Ticket!! I really like the LOUDness of it being that i have a stereo system that I like to play loud so I can hear it. I also like the bright display. The Expert Meter is also nice because you can be going along around places where there are always false alarms and find that there is another radar present which might be an officer. It has saved me numerous times and has probably paid for itself. As for the Valentine, it is another awesome radar and I would not talk bad about it, but I have really enjoyed my 8500 and it will probably be the last I will buy.

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Cobra ESD 6100; been in cars with the BEL 980 and the higher end Cobra's

Chart 1-5: Fail,Poor,average,Good,best. >>>Good >>Best >>Good >>Good >>Good<<< "Loud" setting for noise alerts

>>>Price is high, 230.00 whould be a fair price >>>Auto mode is OK, but i think it takes away some of the detectors ability to ferrit out the really weak Ka band signals. Recommed the highway setting for this reason.

I am no expert, and Ka is the main threat now (minus Lidar) but lets take into consideration these points 1st. We all should know 1:The higher your detector is, the better it picks up "RADAR"(not Lidar)in theory. Meaning, if your in a car behind another car or truck, "some" RADAR is blocked from making it to your detector. Especially on 2-lane highways with hills and curves between you and the police RADAR unit. 2: Some windshields have a metalic tint in them (I don't mean the 4 inch dark tint on the upper part of every cars windshield, i mean like "Instaclear" which adjusts the tint on the front windshield automatically like on some peoples perscription glasses) which reflects radar off of the windshield before it makes it to your detectors "Horn" receiver. (Consult ANY radar detector instruction book for further details). 3: Not all police units use RADAR all of the time, VASCAR is out there and most states (Highway patrol) use it. No detector can protect you from VASCAR (time/distance speed measuring). 4: Not all drivers are stopped for speeding. Some police officers sample traffic with the new Bee III "POP" radar and detectors can't detect its low-power sampeling before its to late. See: http://www.mphindustries.com/products_home/radar_pop.html Or for more information on the Bee III goto: http://www.speedzones.com/test2002new/test2002.htm and scroll down to "Bee III Instant on" and read about, and view, the Bee III radar guns ability to clock/sample cars without setting off a detector. This should answer some of the lame questions or excuses people give about the "My ????????(your detectors name/brand) didn't go off till it was too late in the Ka Band! So i returned it and got the V1." Now, here is my short opinion: Good detector over all. Most of my incounters are with Colorado state police troopers on 1-25 between Colorado springs and Denver. They mostly use Ka band. Lots of times i detected RADAR with at least one or two signal strenth bars normally 1/2 or more miles away from the CSP vehicle on the other side of hills or curves. And on Straight ways, anywhere from 1/2 to 3 miles away. Castle Rock Police, CO, now uses Lidar, and clocks on the strip of 1-25 runing through there town for the CSP. My 8500 detected the vehicle in front of me get pegged with Lidar and pulled over. But, that was luck for me to detect it i think.

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Radio Shack (or Radio-Smack) Detectors from 1993-1997. Whistler from 1998-2002 Jan.

Picks up Ka/K band from a great distance... Saved me a few times giving me time to slow down and then some. Usuaully picks it up about 1/2 to mile a away based on my own experiences. The display works great at any time of day or night, with 4 different LED brightness settings. Has some extra features other detectors don't I think true detector geeks would love, but I have no use for. The Smart Cord is nice when X-band gets annoying in the city, just press mute and it stays mute until the threat is gone. Very easy to program- no more needs to be said about this.

Laser has yet to go off. In fact, I got cited for speed and the officer said he had lidar. Not one chirp from the 8500. Escort tech support says laser is just too narrow sometimes. Big boo for that, being that the 8500 is around $299 retail right now. Its a bulky, not just because it comes with the Smart Cord, but the stand alone unit is hefty compared to any detector I have seen.

An easy to use detector, excellent range for some bands but don't depend on it to save your rear. I gave this product a 3, but for some it might not be a very great product depending on your needs...

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Had a Radio Shack entry level detector for 2 years and have used a Uniden GPRS for a month as well.

The Range on the 8500 is flat out alsome as I have picked up radar from well over 5 miles away. The 8500 is the best detector I have EVER used and it has saved me from getting so many speeding tickets that its not even funny.

DO NOT BELEAVE EVERYTHING YOU HERE AS THERE IS ALOT OF MISSLEADING INFO ON THIS SITE. Valentine one owners try to talk smack about this detector but thats because they are jealous losers.

Let me first start out by saying that regardless of what ANYONE on this site says the Escort Passport 8500 is better then the Valentine one in this is a fact of life. Sure the 8500 has some of its own weaknesses but not as many as the V1 and All the Valentine heads like to talk smack about the 8500 when in fact almost all the experts agree that the 8500 is a much better detector. beware as there are some people out here that will try to tell you that the V1 is better becasue it has arrows when in fact it has already been proven that the V1 has less range then the 8500 and also the V1 CANNOT SEE RADAR COMING FROM OVER HILLS and this is something that is sometimes over looked. As far as the Car and Driver test gos they are a VERY over rated test and there track record shows for it as they have always picked the Valentine over anything eles just for having arrows and that puts all the other detectors at a huge disadvantage. Also if you go to Valentines website you will see that Mike Valentine quotes Car and Driver and this is the ONLY test he quotes because this is the ONLY TEST THE VALENTINE ONE WINS. Then go to Escorts web site and you will see that the 8500 has won more then 12 tests and that is something I never here all the Valentine heads talking about because the 8500 is flat out better then the V1 and this is a fact. When it comes right down to it the ONLY people who say that the V1 is better are Valentine one owners themselfs as if you ask almost any expert what is better %95 of them will tell you the 8500 NOT THE VALENTINE ONE. So if your still not sure as to what detector is better then at least take alook at both the V1 and the 8500 as they both have 30 days to return them. But you will see that the 8500 is flat out better then the V1. oh and one last thing NO ONE NEEDS ARROWS TO SLOW DOWN AND THIS IS A FACT SO LEARN TO LIVE WITH IT VALENTINE HEADS.

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Yes I have used a Valentine one infact two of them and the 8500 smoked both of them. and the Valentine one is not even close to the 8500.

rediculous range on all bands especially K and KA

thiefs want it so don't leave it in your vehicle.

I just made a trip to Florida from New Jersey without a ticket. My average speed was 80+ to cut the travel time. I ordered the hard wire kit because detectors are illegal in Virginia and its better than having it on the windshield. A must have.. Anyway the 8500 is the way to travel especially during the night.

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passport 7500

Accuracy in all bands, latest technology. Affordable price for what you are getting.

I didn't like the silver color, I would rather it be black, like it's brother the 7500. Very large, would have prefered a little smaller footprint.

This is my second Escort. In 1985 I purchased a Escort Passport with X & K only. It served me very well. I finally decided to upgrade and I bought what I feel is the best radar detector in the market.

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1985 Escort Passport