The Best: Escort Passport 8500 X50
The Escort Passport 8500 X50 Radar detector is around $300 is price. Similar in price to the Beltronics Pro RX65, but in my opinion, superior to the Beltronics Pro RX65. A bit more expensive than a standard radar detector, but if it saves you a ticket or two, then it’s well worth it. The Passport 8500 X50 has a far superior range than a typical radar detector, going out as far as 2-3 miles. Gone are the days when your detector will go off just as the police car is passing, giving you no time to slow down. The Passport 8500 X50 gives you ample time to slow down, and if you live in Virginia (where radar detectors are illegal) it’ll give you ample time to slow down, turn it off, and take it off before they can catch you with one of their “radar detector detectors”. Also, the problem with other detectors is that they produce too many false alarms. The 8500 has fixed this problem with a “AutoSensitivity Mode” that automatically reduces false alarms. Over all the device is very customizable. It is also has the ability to block the VG-2 radar “detector detector”, which is really handy if you live in one of the states where you’re in violation for having a Radar Detector (I believe it’s only Virginia). Bottom line: It may cost a bit more than a standard radar detector, but it will save you in the long run! Some of the cool features it has includes:
- Built in Earphone Jack
- Mute and Auto-Mute modes
- 280 LEDS, with Ultra-bright Matrix display
- One year limited warranty
- The option of having a 2 year extended service plan (but these are very durable and could very easily last you for the next 20 years)
The Good: Beltronics Pro RX65
This is not your standard, bottom of the line, radar detector. It’s a more expensive, more sophisticated, $330 radar scanner made by Beltronics. I have long thought of Beltronics to be the best maker of radar detectors… but they do make you pay for that quality. The set-up for the Pro RX65 is quite simple, that a novice buying his first Radar Detector should have no problem. This particular radar by Beltronics is around the same price as the Excort, but in my opinion, not quite as sleek and sexy. Don’t get me wrong, the performance is great (along the lines of the Passport 8500 X50) but there are some faults in the design. It has a bright red LED warnings that go across the screen that can be a bit “round and hard to read. Holding down the volume button can also be a challenge as you need to grip the device with two fingers whilst it flips through the different volume levels, which can be difficult to do while driving. And to adjust brightness and other settings you need to flip through the same button that adjusts volume. Our advice is to have all the settings ready to go before you start driving. Also, in performance testings the Pro RX65 seemed to give off more alerts than the Passport 8500 X50. But there is a bright side to the Beltronics Pro RX65. It has an incredible range. In some cases getting up to 5 miles in range. In addition it has a ridiculously long battery life. In addition it offers X-Band alerts, which the Passport 8500 X50 does not offer. of course, with X-Band capability, comes false alarms because of things like burglar alarms. However, if you switch the radar mode to “City” these false alarms are greatly reduced. Don’t take The Pro RX65’s customization ability for granted. But the false alarms were minimal when compared against other radar detectors. Another cool feature is it has SWS readabilty. This means it picks up SWS messages that are sent out, which can tip you off to incidents such as roadwork, weather-related problems, and emergency vehicles. However, SWS isn’t currently used that often, so Beltronics has it off by default, but it can easily be turned on. Bottom line, it may have some interface problems, but it greatly makes up for it in functionality, ease of use, and performance. We like it, but not quite as much as Escort’s Passport 8500 X50.
The Ugly: Cobra ESD-700 6-Band Radar Detector
The Cobra ESD-700 6-Band. Not a ‘totally’ crappy radar detector, but no where near the previous two detectors. But what it lacks in quality, it makes up for in price, coming in somewhere between $40-$60. It has many flaws, such as it’s “uber-sensitivity”. God forbid there be a automatic garage door around. Also, it may beep, informing you that there’s a police nearby, but it doesn’t inform you of which direction the warning’s coming from. Not to mention the beeps which are incredibly loud and annoying and may just break your ear-drums. Which brings us to the “Self Test” it has. It will periodically check for every type of radar out there, making a high-pitched loud beep for every band type. There’s no way to turn off this feature, it’ll just keep doing it over and over and over again whenever you turn your car on. What the hell?? You wind up being embarrassed if you actually have a friend in you car, as you feel the need to warn them not to freak out about the loud beeps that’ll likely give him a heart attack. In addition, you may adjust the volume, but in seeming defiance, the system will revert back to the old volume when you start the car up again. The bottom line: It may seem like a great bargain, but don’t be fooled. Don’t buy this, and your ears will thank you. *BEEP* *BEEP*
Note: Special thanks to Amazon for providing the photos!
