Escort Passport 8500 X50 Radar and Laser Detector (Red Display)
by Escort Inc.
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List Price: Our Price: $238.95 You Save: $61.04 (20%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $159.94 (click here) Category: Car Audio or Theater See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Escort Passport 8500 X50 Radar and Laser Detector (Red Display)
Customer Review: Detects police radars most of the time.
Summary: 4 Stars
I usually don't drive fast, but I got my first ticket followed by 2 more in a space of 3 days after moving to a suburban area. There may have been a "drive to get more revenue" by the cops. One ticket I got was for changing a lane without giving the indicator while driving at 38 mph (in a 35 mph zone) on an empty road. The cop must have been desperate to hand out the ticket! That last ticket really annoyed me as it got counted as a moving violation...so I got this detector.
Since I have this detector, I've not gotten any tickets but it's mostly because I learned about the cops hiding places and drive within the speed limit in those areas. This is my first radar so I can't compare its performance with anything else but it detects police cars even if I can't see them. However, many times it does not detect any signal even if you are looking at the cop driving on the opposite side of the road or right behind you. This detector only signals one in three cop cars that I physically see. It could be that the cop cars don't have their radar on but I can't be sure. One time I saw all cars in front of me slowing down even though the posted speed limit was greater so I automatically slowed my car down although the road was fairly empty, and then I realized I was in a school zone. I must have missed the flashing yellow light. Within seconds, I saw this cop aiming directly at my car with a pop radar gun through the front windshield but the detector was completely silent. I came back and read the manual and realized you have to TURN ON the pop radar feature, it's not turned on by default!
On auto mode it picks up a lot of X bands especially from drug stores like CVS and Walgreen's and also from gas stations. Some car dealerships set off the laser very loudly but now that I am used to the sound, I don't panic like I used to. The police is usually on the Ka band and rarely the K band.
I have definitely started driving even slower since I got this radar detector especially as the beeping keeps reminding me to go slow, even if it is a false alarm from a gas station. A couple of times it has saved me when I was going at 50 mph in a 45 mph zone, I heard the chirp of Ka band and slowed down as the cops may be in "revenue overdrive" and may give a ticket even for 5 miles over. However, it detects the police car when you're almost next to it so it will be too late to slow down if I was driving at 60mph. I've learned the key is to drive safe and never more than 10-12 miles over speed limit. Sometimes when you may be in a tearing hurry and tempted to drive fast the radar will chirp and remind you to slow down, even if you just passed a gas station!
Customer Review: Worth money, 3x over.
Summary: 5 Stars
I have owned three X50's now, within the last 3 1/2 years. One of them, the first, has never failed me, never died, had 'service' issues, heat or cold sensitivity and has saved my wallet hundreds of times over.
I have had three because one was stolen from my vehicle, and I loved it so much, that very morning I bought a new one. The price then was still over $300.00. I have total trust in both my current X50's and have used other detectors before, including the Valentine model. The arrows, though nice, were not a deciding factor considering my location. If maybe you lived in a more populated area, it might be helpful.
The range on this, I have not read an exact distance, but I have picked up, on slightly hilly terrain, cops in a speed trap from approx. 5 miles away. I heard the beep, slowed down, hit the silence button and waited to pass the cop. I went over a few hills, and sitting at the top of one, unseen from the spot of detection at first, was 3 cops. Two with KA (highway patrol) and one with K band (local sheriff). It has great range, needless to say.
The display on this is easy to see day and night, especially if you take into effect that you can dim the display, or change how the display is shown. Instead of a dull Highway showing, you can press a button, and it will say HD in a dull red. Perfect for night driving, for your own vision, and so officers dont see that dead give-away red light on your dash or in the window.
There are alot of other features I like about the X50, but they are covered in other reviews, and range from its size, to how easy it is to swap from one vehicle to another if needed. I recommend this item 100%, as I have not had a single problem with the 3 I have had. I own two vehicles, both always have my X50 on, and are both continually saving me from hefty tickets. It has paid for itself more times then I can remember.
For those who claim its junk, I bought my first from a Flying-J Travel Center. It has worked since day one, traveled across and around the US several times over, and in Dallas Texas, during 108+ degree temps, still kept me safe from tickets.
You can buy a nice selection of accessories for it, which I suggest=
Escort Direct Wire SmartCord as it makes muting the beep much easier for vehicles where an outlet is out of easy reach. I use it for both my vehicles.
Customer Review: Nice Unit But About Same As Previous Version
Summary: 5 Stars
I had the previous version of the 8500 -- without the POP detection. My girfrielnd got a hefty ticket in a double fine zone so I gave her my old one and bought this new one. For a while, though, I compared them side by side just to see if there was any noticable difference in sensitivity.
I had to separate them by about a foot or so to keep them from either triggering each other or suppressing each other from detecting radar. I have a spot in my commute with a permanent speed trap and speed display near a school, with rolling hills, and where my detector would reliably go off at just about the same spot every time.
Anyway, for sensitivity, I can't spot a difference. This version and the old version are virtually identical in response. One thing about this new one with POP is that even though it still alarms in the same place, the signal strength indicator bounces up higher initially and the tone is also more rapid (just as if it was receiving a higher level signal). But it still goes off at about the same place. I suspect this simulates POP since when it first alarms, it is getting a weak signal. But there doesn't appear to be any added sensitivity - they just seem to make the alarm indicate high signal strength than it is really getting. It does get your attention more than just the intermittent beep, however.
Don't know if that is all the POP circuit does or not, but that's all it seems to do.
Other than that, it's virtually the same as the old unit. If you have the previous version, I don't see any reason to upgrade. In every other scenario I encountered when testing the two units side by side, they both basically alarmed at the same time and gave equal notice.
That said, it still gives me lots of notice -- unless laser is being used. For laser, when they tag you with that, any detector is probably just going to tell you you have already been busted if you are speeding. I have yet to have the laser warning on the Escort give me any notice that another driver was tagged. On the other hand, the guys using laser, at least where I live, tend to wait until they can see the whites of your eyes. I have already identified them and slowed down well before. No radar signal with a car on the side of the road and an officer standing beside it is a pretty good warning you are about to be checked with laser.
Customer Review: Beware, it doesn't work when it gets hot
Summary: 1 Stars
When this unit is in direct sun light for too long, it stops working, but you will never know it until you get a ticket. In other words, the display says that it is on, and there is no radar, so it looks like it is working correctly, but it won't beep when there is radar anymore. The only way you know if this is happening is if you power cycle the unit, when it powers on, it won't stop beeping. The way to fix this is to put it in the shade (i.e. on the floor or under your seat) or better yet, put it directly in front of your air conditioning vent until it cools off.
One morning it was sunny and about 80 degrees outside, I had my air conditioning on, and I would hardly be considered an extremely hot day. I drove past a nice bush on the side of the highway that was hiding officer friendly from the highway patrol, who was doing radar. Not a peep at all from the radar detector. Evidently it decided to stop working again with no prior notice. Officer friendly gave me a speeding ticket for $240... this is your state sanctioned highway robbery at work. It is not like it is 120 degrees outside either. Considering that I don't use this in extreme temperatures, my conclusion is that this radar detector does not operate correctly in the normal operating temperature where it would typically be used, it is a design flaw. You might as well make a ski jacket that only operates correctly if the ambient temperature is over 50 degrees, and not mention anything about this to the consumer before they buy it.
The other problem with this radar detector is that my state uses photo radar vans on the highway. They don't use laser, they use K-band radar. This radar detector does not pick up these photo radar vans until you are right along side the van. When you are there, you have already been clocked. What good is the radar detector if it doesn't warn you before you get clocked?
In all fairness, the radar detector has saved me from several tickets, but I am disappointed with the quality. This can not possibly be the best radar detector that is out there. Escort used to make a good product, I don't know what happened to their quality control, and in particular I can't understand why this product doesn't even work when it is sunny and over 80 degrees outside.
Customer Review: Does everything I needed it to
Summary: 5 Stars
First of all, I am a military brat who has lived and driven in other countries. The only reason that is relevant is because for every state/country I have lived in, there is only one that has provided me the unpleasant experience of having to deal with the police; that place is the Commonwealth of Virginia (where detectors are illegal coincidentally).
After purchasing this detector and joining radardetectors.net, I have finally gotten a leg up on the money machine that is law enforcement. People complain about the sensitivity of this detector, but one must consider that radar bounces and if there is a car or truck ahead of you, they will soak up much of the radar signal and your warning time will be reduced accordingly; add to that the terrain and possible corners and you still have an element of possible capture. Also, one cannot speed with impunity, some caution is required to be able to drive recklessly and still not get caught. I have even found my awareness increase as well as a drop in the overall speed of my driving. The only time I speed up is if I get passed by someone who is driving above the limit; i follow at the distance of 1/4 mi, and if he's tagged by radar/lidar, then I get a warning sound and have enough time to slow down.
While it isnt a device that provides a shield and it wont detect a police cruiser that doesnt have it's speed detection equipment on, the X50 has served me well. The farthest distance it has given a warning was somewhere between 1/4 and 1/2 miles away from the cop. I dont get too many intermittent false detections, even though I dont change from the highway setting. The design is sleek enough where it doesnt stand out when placed in my car (there's nothing worse than not being able to hide your use of a detector due to a bulky design), the smart cord works extremely well, the cloaking device has held up to electronic scrutiny (I have no fear of the police scanning me and finding its' signal); all in all, the detector is a nice all round package and deserves to be among the top detectors on the market.