Yes, Bel is Beltronics also owned by Passport Escort!
Radar Detctors
- Thread starter BadWeather
- Start date
You may have knocked the antenna out of tune.
I've got a Passport Solo cordless which just turned 3 years old and I have never had it detect a laser in Maryland. I know I've been hit by them in speed traps because I've seen the officer(s) aiming at me and then stop another motorist in the same pack. And, I've had the laser detector go off in other states so I figure its something to do with the type of beam they use here. So, does anyone know of a detector that will pickup the laser(s) used here in MD?
Thanks.
-Jim
Thanks.
-Jim
Zoinks!
Registered
It is VERY difficult to pick up lazers. The beam is so small compared to radar that it's basically a luck thing. But if you get hit with it, it's already too late. . .
i use a V1... got a small piece of aluminum brace and bolted it to the hole that is on the metal bracket right behind the speedo cluster. i use industrial strenth velcro... it has saved me numerous times already... once i was doing triples in a 70 and had time to slow down before i came over a hill and saw him on the backside
TruWrecks
Banned
I'm not bashing Escort, so lay off the "The V1 is a piece of s***" flaming! This is simply my real world findings with a couple of days driving around.
I picked up a 9500i two days ago to test against the V1. I have them both mounted to the windshield. They don't cause any interference with each other, and both have the same view of the road ahead. I'm by no means a "Radar Roy", nor do I have a radar gun to test with. What I do have is real world driving conditions to see how they perform.
In areas with lots of store I get a lot of false signals with both detectors. I drove to several shopping centers that give me 4 false signals every time. The V1 tells me how many and what direction. The 9500i tells me the band. With the 9500i I can lockout the false alarm and it never beeps again for that area. It sits there nice and quiet. My V1 was showing 4 bogeys (X and K band) as I drove by the mall yesterday. The 9500i was ignoring the bogeys, but it was registering them with the GPS icon. Those are known door openers using the K band. The V1 suddenly picked up a 5th bogey in the K band range behind me. A really strong signal that was growing in intensity. That's no door opener. I looked behind me (directional arrows told me) to see what was going on and I noticed a city police car pulling out of the mall parking lot. I know this was a valid alert. As the city car got closer I could see the radar unit mounted to door frame. The 9500i never made a peep.
The problem I found with the 9500i is that it never beeps again in that area, even for traffic radar. It marks every signal in that area as a known false for that band. I also did a web search and found that to be a common complaint from other users.
The statement "quietest radar detector we've ever tested" is very true. The 9500i looks like it has great potential, but it's not quite ready for prime time. I do like the GPS idea, just not enough to trade off the V1 until they have the bugs worked out. I will do a bit more driving with both today. I don't think I'll be keeping the 9500i if I find that it continues to block real threats. I have a police station about a mile from my house so that won't take long to verify.
Yes, I know I get false alarms with the V1. Yes, it can be annoying. In cities the 9500i may really shine with it's quietness, but for the open road the V1 is my top pick. Who knows? V1 may get GPS in it's future.
I picked up a 9500i two days ago to test against the V1. I have them both mounted to the windshield. They don't cause any interference with each other, and both have the same view of the road ahead. I'm by no means a "Radar Roy", nor do I have a radar gun to test with. What I do have is real world driving conditions to see how they perform.
In areas with lots of store I get a lot of false signals with both detectors. I drove to several shopping centers that give me 4 false signals every time. The V1 tells me how many and what direction. The 9500i tells me the band. With the 9500i I can lockout the false alarm and it never beeps again for that area. It sits there nice and quiet. My V1 was showing 4 bogeys (X and K band) as I drove by the mall yesterday. The 9500i was ignoring the bogeys, but it was registering them with the GPS icon. Those are known door openers using the K band. The V1 suddenly picked up a 5th bogey in the K band range behind me. A really strong signal that was growing in intensity. That's no door opener. I looked behind me (directional arrows told me) to see what was going on and I noticed a city police car pulling out of the mall parking lot. I know this was a valid alert. As the city car got closer I could see the radar unit mounted to door frame. The 9500i never made a peep.
The problem I found with the 9500i is that it never beeps again in that area, even for traffic radar. It marks every signal in that area as a known false for that band. I also did a web search and found that to be a common complaint from other users.
The statement "quietest radar detector we've ever tested" is very true. The 9500i looks like it has great potential, but it's not quite ready for prime time. I do like the GPS idea, just not enough to trade off the V1 until they have the bugs worked out. I will do a bit more driving with both today. I don't think I'll be keeping the 9500i if I find that it continues to block real threats. I have a police station about a mile from my house so that won't take long to verify.
Yes, I know I get false alarms with the V1. Yes, it can be annoying. In cities the 9500i may really shine with it's quietness, but for the open road the V1 is my top pick. Who knows? V1 may get GPS in it's future.
<div class="iF-Passage"><div class="QUOTEHEAD">Quote:[/Quote]<div class="QUOTE clearfix"><span class="quoteBegin"> </span>
The problem I found with the 9500i is that it never beeps again in that area, even for traffic radar. It marks every signal in that area as a known false for that band. I also did a web search and found that to be a common complaint from other users.[/quote] The 9500i locks out a specific signal (band and frequency) as per their documentation. Meaning if you lock out a signal at a location and a different signal is used, it should alert... Perhaps when the site was added to the 9500i it was a valid signal? I have the 9500i and if it is blocking valid signals after blocking invalid ones, i would like to know..
The problem I found with the 9500i is that it never beeps again in that area, even for traffic radar. It marks every signal in that area as a known false for that band. I also did a web search and found that to be a common complaint from other users.[/quote] The 9500i locks out a specific signal (band and frequency) as per their documentation. Meaning if you lock out a signal at a location and a different signal is used, it should alert... Perhaps when the site was added to the 9500i it was a valid signal? I have the 9500i and if it is blocking valid signals after blocking invalid ones, i would like to know..
Zoinks!
Registered
Can you do a test with the 9500i NOT blocking ANY signals to see which one has a better range?
TruWrecks
Banned
I was running it in Expert mode when I ran it yesterday. The 9500i shown 3 X and 1 K when I hit the mute button. I know the city car was using a different frequency because the V1 showed 5 bogeys X and K combined. I will do more driving with both over the next couple of days to see if it does it again at a different location. I'm also going to unblock the mall area I marked yesterday and see what happens.
This is only from casual observation so please take it with a grain of salt.
This is only from casual observation so please take it with a grain of salt.
Zoinks!
Registered
Will do! But thanks for the real life tests. It's interesting to see what happens. I've wanted to do this many times to see for myself which one works better around here. I have the pasport 8500x50 and love it!This is only from casual observation so please take it with a grain of salt.
V1 is way overrated, poorly designed and cheaply made rd that actually works. It has more false alarms then 8500 and twice as big.
I have them both and I use only 8500.
The reasons why V1 didn`t sell his engineering marvel in retail stores are:
1. Too expensive and he don`t want to share profit with retailers.
2. Too ugly, so nobody will buy it when compared with competitors on the same shelf.
3. Aura of exclusivity, same marketing tricks as BOSE use, to cover poor competitiveness.
I can`t sell my V1 only because if was a gift. Otherwise I would and buy 9500.
I have them both and I use only 8500.
The reasons why V1 didn`t sell his engineering marvel in retail stores are:
1. Too expensive and he don`t want to share profit with retailers.
2. Too ugly, so nobody will buy it when compared with competitors on the same shelf.
3. Aura of exclusivity, same marketing tricks as BOSE use, to cover poor competitiveness.
I can`t sell my V1 only because if was a gift. Otherwise I would and buy 9500.
Cheaply made rd? How so? Did you speak with Mike Valentine to see why his units are not in stores? You got one thing right, it (is) an engineering marvel, one that has saved me lots of $$$ over the years in fines, fees, and increased insurance premiums. Wouldn't leave home w/o it.
I took it apart to evaluate V1 circuitry.. It`s nowhere close to Escort technology. V1 thermal stability sucks if left on windshield exposed to sunlight. I explained that I have both units and there is no reason for me to bush one product against another. They both perform adequately.
V1 is Cadillac of radar detectors when 9500 would be Porsche.. Which one YOU chose is up to you.
V1 is Cadillac of radar detectors when 9500 would be Porsche.. Which one YOU chose is up to you.
I usually leave the detector on the bike when I drive to work, but it's a pretty safe place. I usually leave it on for the most part when I go to other places, but I try to assess my surroundings and then decide...
I thought the same thing, I could see them aiming the laser gun at the group of traffic, but the detector never went off (8500 and the S2 at different times). Then there were times when the laser went off and I would see the po po, but this would happen at night, I have yet to have it alert me during the day.
Also, it appears that my cell phone hands-free will cause the detector to trigger on laser...
thanks for taking the timeI was running it in Expert mode when I ran it yesterday. The 9500i shown 3 X and 1 K when I hit the mute button. I know the city car was using a different frequency because the V1 showed 5 bogeys X and K combined. I will do more driving with both over the next couple of days to see if it does it again at a different location. I'm also going to unblock the mall area I marked yesterday and see what happens.
This is only from casual observation so please take it with a grain of salt.
Herein lies the issue I think? You say at the mall you had X & Y bands popping off, and you blocked that area using the Escort. In doing so, the cop using K band is also blocked, since its on the same band! I know I'm just pointing out the obvious, but still.
FWIW, I actually found a CHP (Colorado Highway Patrol) that was pulling someone over, left the Ka band on and I had a good long stretch of road... As I drove away, same direction he was facing, I ticked off 1.7miles before running out straight road, going around a bend to the right and down then up hill out of RLOS (Radio Line of Sight). I was pretty impressed with that... he was behing me getting farther and farther away and the signal was still excellent until the dayum bend and hill section.
TruWrecks
Banned
I did that today with the V1 in "L" mode, and the 9500i in HWY (so it's at full strength just like the V1's antenna. In a urban area:
X = The V1 and 9500i where picking up at the same time.
K = The V1 picked up the signal a few seconds before the 9500i.
Ka = The V1 and 9500i appear equal.
Ku = Not tested because I didn't go to find a photo radar box yet.
Laser = Not tested. I can tell you that both will give a false when a Mercury SUV hits the brakes in front of the detectors. They use a lens that allows IR out of the 3rd brake element.
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