Escort 8500 X50. This is the foundation for all the good radar detectors. All the new ones have all these GPS and false radar nonsense additions jacking the price up to an unreasonable amount for the performance needed. My 8500 X50 grabs Ka band (Hwy Patrol Radar) from miles away on open road. ALL radar detector are USELESS in the city because of the close quarters and most of the time it is LIDAR which is what biker cops use. Those guns are instant on and instant off which means once you detect a signal its already too late. Radar detects can filter X-Band, K-band which are car alarms and auto doors. If you buy and 8500 X50 for example you filter out all band except Ka. Once you do that all radar signals you receive will 100% be Hwy Patrol.

http://i.imgur.com/tXhhMkM.jpg -- max speed recorded from a track run.

I use the 9500ix on road trips. You do have to learn how to interpret the alerts for the detector to be effective. No detector will prevent you from getting "popped". Same for laser, very quick on/off.

Around town, the gps enabled units are useful for alerting of redlight/speed cameras (both common around chicago).

yah id just wait for the max360 if from escort.

Valentine 1

Everything else is sub par. And for those complaining that the V1 gives a lot of false alarms, they have not tried the newer versions. (Even though they look the same on the outside, the inside of the V1 has been redone numerous times) The new filters in full Logic mode are VERY effective. My V1 very rarely gives a false alarm.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

yah, i should get the junk-k fighter update this winter for sure..

i honestly don't believe in radar detectors. by the time it alerts you, chances are you're already caught. with the case of a laser, it won't alert you unless it's shot at you and by that time, the LEO already has clocked you.

with the cost of a radar detector, i'd much rather invest in a radar/laser jammer.

I have an Escort Passport Max 2 hardwired with a Blend Mount. I absolutely love the set up and its ability to cancel out false alarms such as automatic doors and known stationary radars. Being able to have the OLED colored amber to match the Z is a nice touch as well. The only downside is it doesn't have the arrows such as a V1 and the new Max 360. If the Max 360 was out 3 months ago I would have purchased it when I got my Z.

Yup.
Also legal in AB, WA, OR and California. I can't recall if they are also legal in SK or not. For sure not in MB.

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The Android phone connects to the V1 by Bluetooth using a dongle from V1. No cell service required. YaV1 uses the phone's GPS. You can get YaV1 from Google Play.
The Invisicord I have has a pass through. The cord is double-ended on one end (if that makes sense) with two RJ plugs. One goes into the dongle linking it to the V1, the other to power the V1. The opposite end of the cord has two pins that pull power from the Z's self-dimming mirror. With the Blendmount and the Invisicord everything is up at the mirror. I have the dongle attached to the V1 using double-sided tape so I just plug the two RJ plugs in right next to each other; one into the V1, the other into the dongle.
The LG phone I run the YaV1 app on is a simple, inexpensive prepaid Boost Mobile phone that I unlocked so every time it's fired up it bypasses the annoying activation screen. YaV1 is Android only, so I can't run it on my IPod or IPhone.
An LG Realm costs well under $100, but I believe it is now discontinued. There are a bunch of other inexpensive phones that people are using. All you need to know can be found on the site I linked to. I am no expert. I got everything from that site. I recall a member here put me onto it. Edconline?

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Great, except where the popo still run K band. Filter that and you could be bear meat. I took a trip across WA state this past summer. I was just in the process of getting my setup dialed in and was getting a constant stream of K alerts from behind me. I was ready to just pull the plug on the V1 and give up I was so pissed. Just then a WA State patrol cruiser passed me and the K alerts switched to originating ahead of me. The cop pulled away and then over onto the shoulder a few miles ahead waiting, hoping to nab one of us in the pack he just passed. When I got there he didn't even gun us. We were all on the limit and he could see he wasn't gonna get anyone. When I got home I checked that website....sure enough; WA Staties still run some K band.
The biggest bummer is some of the newer cars with lane divergence and blind spot warning stuff set off K, so that can be a drag. YaV1 can be set to automatically filter particular frequencies so that's one of the advantages to running it along with a V1. I wouldn't be able to put up with the V1 squawking all the time without it.

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Junk fighter
 

I got my V1 this past summer. It has the JF update. Trust me; it's a noisy b**** even with JF.
Around town YaV1 will emulate Savvy. Savvy lets you set the V1 so you don't get any alerts under any speed you choose. The Savvy module can be purchased from Valentine and plugs into your OBD port. If you run the YaV1 app the software will emulate it so you don't need to buy it.
No. I don't work for, or have anything to do with Valentine. I just did the research before I laid out the coin.
Once again, the site I linked to is all you'll need...and no, I'm not connected to them either.

I'm half thinking of selling my setup. I can't be bothered to put it into the car except on road trips, and since I'm an old fooker I'm really careful where I do speed. And for me, speeding is 20 over, tops. Not like when I was a lead footed young'un.

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Interesting. Thanks for the insight. Perhaps CA, NV and AZ use Ka only. Who knows...maybe i like to live dangerously lol

Lucky buggers. I have to put in for a transfer to the Pacific side of this continent. Legal to have radar detectors, fun curvaceous roads plus the best mountains and snow for skiing. WTF am I still doing in Ontario???

I can attest to this. I have an older V1 that gives a lot of false alarms. This got worse when blind spot monitoring and adaptive cruise control started to become more prevalent. Earlier this year I bought a new V1 and the difference was dramatic. Still get false alarms but it is not bad.

The V1 is sensitive but I rather get a false alarm than no alarm

Laser bounces and scatters. I have been saved by laser detection a few times. It only really helps on the open high way when there is a decent amount of road between you and the cop. I will agree laser detection isn't that useful in the city or on twisty roads. Laser detection needs distance to be helpful.

BTW radar jamming is very illegal. Laser jamming is still legal in most states (IIRC) but I heard newer laser guns can detect laser jamming. Laser jamming might get you out of a ticket but the cops will know you are using it and what would keep them from pulling you over and harassing you over it.