I am looking to buy a new Radar Detector, mostly because I finally realized that my Cobra is just way too shitty (even though it saved me a bunch of times).
I’ll probably be buying Escort 8500 X50 because of the newer hardware and firmware + their price is going up in February and I want to get one before they go up. I know V1 is the best buy I just don’t see me spending $399 on a radar detector.
The Bel Pro RX65 beat both the 8500 X50 and V1 in every test RadarTests.com could throw at it. I had a 8500X50 for a long time and my boss uses a RX65…we ran a few diffrent “tests” and he was always first by a hundred feet or so. Doesn’t seem like much…til you need the space to slow down.
my buddy has the 9500i
its pretty bad ass
GPS, speedometer, multple Band capable, individual block outs (using gps)
How old is your X50, because they did change hardware once and changed firmware a couple of times.
my buddy has the bell and it has never once picked any thing up before my x50…thats odd but my x50 has picked things up before my friends v1 and vice versa
I stopped believing in radar detectors.
Bought it summer 07, newest hardware/firmware from everything I’d read.
i purchased my 8500 x50 last summer and im happy with its results and has saved my ass a couple times and almost every time
Vlad you need to get a real Radar Detector, you only had lower line radar detectors which are not good at all. Right now I am using a cobra and if there is a cop at the Fire Station on Rt7 my radar detector will start picking it up 1/8 mile from our traffic light. And that is Cobra which I found out was no where close as good as Escort and BEL (mid-top of the line).
So now I am choosing between Escort X50 and BEL XR65. But I’ll prolly go with X50 since its cheaper.
PS: Who works at BestBuy and wants to give me a nice employee discount? I will buy the 2year warranty 
Radar detectors give you a fall sense of security.
Plus if a cop decides to pull you over for anything else, like no front plate or whatever other reason he wants to come up with, seeing a radar detector in your car will almost gurantee you getting a ticket instead of getting out of one.
I’d rather save that 400$ to pay for a possible ticket I’d get, and give it to my lawyer then pay for a radar detector.
I’ve been pulled over more with one than without one, and I’d rather keep controlling my speed and trust my two eyes, then speed and hope that a detector will save me.
v1 or nothing
I agree. The arrows and #s really make a difference to me.
8500 or V1. The other shitty ones for $50 are worthless. Period.
i disagree with the v1 statement.
i use the bel pro rx65. bet you it works just as good as your v1. “it doesn’t have the arrows,” i know. you get radar, you slow down. who cares where its coming from? your being gunned so it doesn’t matter either way. it also has way more programmable features than the v1. its also reflashable, like the v1, and comes with every form of detection that the v1 1.8 does. its less money, and looks a little better than the outdated big black box as well. one thing that i wouldn’t mind having is the stealth display though. the beltronics hardwired smart cord takes care of placement of the unit though, and has a mute button at your finger tips. you can independently turn off such annoyances as the “x” band, or turn it to lower sensitivity, and the detector has 3 bands of operation. autoscan, highway, and city. the features go on and on.
the 9500 seems like a nice piece, but i haven’t had the opportunity of seeing its false alarm limitation abilities in action. escort and beltronics are also the same company. mike valentine, the creator of the v1 used to work for escort as well.
cobras are just junk. seriously, they make the good quality detectors go ape shit. put one near a v1, bel or escort and see for yourself. from what i’ve seen personally, i wasn’t impressed with they’re range either. if you are serious about avoiding tickets, raised insurance, points, fines, and attorney fees, you’ll buy a good detector. the first time a detector alerts you, and you are unscathed, its paid for itself IMO. i wouldn’t trade mine for anything. i’ve owned my bel for about 2 1/2- 3 years now and have never been stopped for a speeding ticket.
vlad, a detector doesn’t guarantee you to be above the police. any smart user of one still knows when to exercise caution when breaking the law. just because you have one, you are not invincible.
oh btw vlad… i don’t think your aware but new york state has invoked a bullshit law thats called the “driver responsibility program.” 6 points= $300.00 plus $25.00 for each additional point. now how much does that detector cost? probably less than the fines, attorney, and the higher insurance premium.
Oh trust me I’m well aware. After my lawyers dealt with my last ticket, one of them told me.
“Now don’t you go screwing around again, what we did right now, getting rid of this ticket, is like painting the Mona Lisa. If you get another ticket… well you just took a shit on Mona Lisa.” :lol
To each his own I guess. I’ve been fine without one in my car for quite some time now. And it’s very hard to hook one up on a bike, plus at the speeds we run most of the time it’s pointless because there is no way you’ll slow down below the speed limit in time for him not to catch you speeding. Plus such abrupt braking would endanger the rider behind. :confused
thats not fully true vlad
most cops when they see the detector they usually asked well in my case they ask if it works and i am truthful and say yes most of the time lol
They are just being sarcastic when they say that. Obviously they already know the answer since they pulled you over. I’m saying they will be a lot less likely to let you go without a ticket once you are pulled over. I talk to many cops in my job, and I know a quite a few off duty too, and they all say the same thing. If you want check out this thread, and tell me how many times I’ve been let go or ticketed. Pretty much everytime I was ticketed I had a detector.
id say the 8500 or the V1, top 2 in the world. i love my valentine. its saved my ass so many times, from miles away!
let me ask a question, my friend told me that you can pay so much a month to tomtom and you can use your navigation as a radar dectector as well. SOunds like a good idea if its true
idk if its real or not man. but the idea of being able to use ur gps to track cop cars is awesome to me. they dont have to have their radar on, and id see em comin for miles and miles. im sure theyd make that illegal in a split second if info of such a device came out in the open