I can see how the automode would work in the 9500i because it can tell how fast you're going (GPS), but then how does the x50's automode work? :confuse:
The x50's "Auto" mode is a filtering algorithm that is, unfortunately, not speed-dependent. This is where the 9500i's GPS capabilities come into play, as a lot of us Escort fans/users have, in the past, complained about the slight temporal response delay in terms of reporting of the threat signal, when utilizing "Auto" mode, exclusively, for all driving conditions.
You can well imagine that that very slight delay/hesitation may not matter much in low-speed, city-driving scenarios, but that it would be of much more concern when at higher road-speeds, on the open highway.
With my x50, I used, for my daily commute, the "City" setting, with "LoX" preference, and had to remember to turn the unit over to "Highway" mode when in open-field. On the 9500i, I honestly am very comfortable just leaving it on "Auto" setting, and letting the GPS real-time speed compensation work its magic.
According to the wife-o-meter, the 9500i is more annoying than the x50 which she prefers, apparently, because of its decreased sensitivity. I think this unit is far superior to my 3 year old x50 as far as sensitivity, maybe even straying into V1 territory.
^ That's a very interesting observation - and I will have to log more highway (speed) miles, I think, in order to confirm that with my wifey. In-city, the combination of "Auto" mode with the few X-band locked-out spots I have makes for a near-noiseless commute, so definitely, I think this is more scenario-based.
With regard to your observation/comparison to our venerable Rev5 x50s, I'd totally agree - Ka-band sensitivity, overall, and also K-band off-axis sensitivity as well seem to be way up compared to my old Rev5 x50, which is about the same "vintage" as yours.
I still don't know that it's a match for the V1 just yet, particularly on the open highway, but definitely, Escort did make a progressive step in the right direction between the x50 and this new flagship.
In all fairness to V1 owners, I didn't own my V1 long enough to be able to compare it to the new 9500i. One things for sure, if the wife doesn't like the 9500i, she sure as heck wouldn't like the V1. :P
Does anyone know what band of radar is used with the blind spot detection feature offered on some vehicles? We may see more of this in the future, its a $200 option on some Mazdas now.
The radar-based systems, I believe, are in the range to cause falses on K-band. The Audi Q7, for example, uses a "24 GHz" frequency for their system, and it's known to present problems.
At the same time, similar laser-based cruise-control or predictive-safety systems found on many Lexus and Infiniti vehicles also can cause falses on both laser detectors as well as jammers.
The February 2008 Motor Trend magazine has a long article about their 11,306 mile north-south, east-west cross-country road test of a 2008 Chevy Malibu. Here's what they said about some of the tools that they took along:
^ Easy answer to the "which detector" question - the Valentine 1, as they openly listed.
I don't want to link to the Valentine 1 website, directly, here, as I don't know if that's against Forum policy , but you can easily obtain the V1, direct from the manufacturer, by simply Google'ing the detector name.
In any case:
Most true open-highway warriors will have a strong preference for the V1 due to its extreme sensitivity as well as directional-threat indication (for radar, this is unique to the V1), and, in cases where an active laser jammer is either out of financial reach or illegal (or simply beyond one's "moral/ethical" boundary), the V1's extreme laser sensitivity is a plus, too.
For raw sensitivity and unfiltered/"full" informational presentation, the V1 is nearly impossible to beat. Although it is, nevertheless, imperfect, it is so strong in the open-highway scenario that nearly 99% of drivers - even enthusiasts - will need no supplementation when detection is the question. Yes, there are those who actually run the V1 with the Bel STi-Driver (one of the truly rare "magical" combinations that do not cross-interfere with each other) or even use the V1 in conjunction with the remote-mounted Escort SR7/SRX units (to those in detector-legal areas, this is oftentimes considered the true gold-standard, as these two devices pair near perfectly to offer "full-circle" detection, and fills the holes left by the other in a complementary manner), but those are truly few and far in between.
The V1's only true weakness, in the open-highway scenario, is that of Spectre radar-detector-detector detectability (which will only matter for commercial vehicle operators or, alternatively, for those who live in detector-banned areas; nevertheless, even the use of the fully-cloaked Bel STi-Driver requires a certain amount of proper tactical execution and discretion).
Honestly, if my commute entailed routine open-highway travel, I'd definitely be a V1 user.
However, my commute is nearly 90% on local surface streets (and I'm factoring-in even my most typical highway-route errand running). And in as much as Escort's latest commercial video demonstrates (that kind of densely-packed non-LEO signal situation is very much akin to what I must run through, every day, during my commute), I truly need the 9500i's filtering capabilities. And yes, I am well-aware, as per our previous discussions, that the V1 can be programmed, in-depth (even more than to simply select between the various main operating modes), to greatly cut-down on such "annoyance" factors - but as you can read via the discussions here: http://www.radardetector.net/viewtopic.php?t=32993 , such extremes in terms of programming can cause dangerous oversights, as the original poster of that thread very well acknowledged (his goal, as a fellow enthusiast, was not to debate the "V1 versus 9500i" issue, but rather to show how easily one can manipulate such videos to further their own commercial propaganda).
There is no perfect detector - everything is a compromise. It's up to the end-user to determine what compromise best-fits their particular threat scenario.
---
Current rumors have it that the new remote-mounted units from Escort (introduced at this year's CES) may rival or even exceed the current-generation V1 in terms of raw sensitivity, but this remains both to be seen as well as need to be categorized differently, as such remote units offer not only not-insignificant advantages in being able to optimize on-vehicle positioning (particularly if "off-the-books" mounting/setup is taken into account), but are also, literally, many times more expensive than even these top-flight self-contained models.
I just finished reading the entire article - most entertaining! I must say that Mr Markus, et. al., certainly have a higher opinion of my fellow commuters here in Cleveland than either myself or most of my fellow driving-enthusiast friends. :P I wish I saw more of that kind of vehicular/driving courtesy.
One point I did want to address with regard to the little blurb about the V1.
Mr. Markus mentioned that it is able to discern the frequency of the threat. This is, while true, not completely so - yes, the basic X, K, and Ka-band differentiation, based on frequency, can be made, but the more advanced differentiation between actual, physical, frequncy of the signal is something that is currently the sole ground of the high-end Bel/Escort products, with "SpecDisplay."
I don't know if anyone has caught that new show on tru tv (formerly court tv) called speeders, but it's pretty interesting to see how the officers operate and who they pull over. In the vast majority of cases, the officer is using laser and none of the offenders are using countermeasures (from what I can see). It's also interesting to see how some people interact w/ the officers. I imagine acting "annoyed" that you got pulled over isn't going to help your case at all.
In my (very recent) experience.. If an officer is standing outside his car aiming a laser, and takes the time to get back in his car, and chase you down.... It really doesn't matter how you act... you are getting a ticket..
That isn't to say that you shouldn't be respectful and pleasant.. just that the laser operation is a whole different thing than radar.. There is no chance that the officer was sitting there eating a donut, and you happened to trip his radar detector..or, he was on his way home and you popped up.. He was making a conscious act to aim that laser detector at you, and then come after you..
Unless you have the mother of all excuses, you are getting ticketed..
On the plus side, I could call in and pay it with my credit card...
Of course, what's easier than calling in your credit card number and being done with it. I guess going on-line might be a better solution for those who don't like to talk to people. Why waste your time going to court?
I just keep "discovering" new features of the 9500i on a regular basis. You can set it to display your speed continually. Very handy in my GTI as the speedo is difficult to make out sometimes. It should have a huge speedo dead center! Not useful for measuring 0-60 times though, it takes a couple of seconds to "catch up" under hard acceleration. But it matches the speedo exactly during cruising.
I've seen an episode or two here and there, but just haven't been interested enough to keep-watch.
It really puts me off how many of those depicted interact with the officers. I have quite a number of friends in law-enforcement - some who are Troopers and other local, but who also pull traffic duty. It makes me cringe when I see what they have to go through every day, "at the office." Makes my day seem like a walk in the park, for at least my lab animals don't talk back to me, and the students are all well-behaved.
I must say, though, that every once in a while, one of those shows will get a clip or two posted to YouTube and the likes, and then get "cross-examined" by the various countermeasures enthusiasts. There are several incidences on, I believe, one of their first episodes, where the LIDAR enforcement scenario was highly suspect (i.e. could have been in-error).
For as many people who are getting their traffic cases thrown out because of evidence from their own "dash/car-cams," I would imagine that this show would supply some good evidence, too, and may not necessarily be making the enforcers' jobs any easier.
Please note that police LIDAR, just as with RADAR, is not immune to various error - both operator as well as equipment induced.
Yes, it can be a much more accurate speed-detection tool, but it must be used judiciously and with expertice, as well as without malice - and the instrument itself must be calibrated and maintained properly, just as with RADAR.
Also, the officer does not need to be out of his/her vehicle in order to use LIDAR.
It is very possible to use various portions of the vehicle's door/window-frame, armrest, dash, steering wheel, and even the data device mount (or the unit itself) in order to steady a LIDAR "gun" from inside the vehicle - even while belted and seated at the wheel, ready-to-go (preferably without the interference of the vehicle greenhouse glass, although, again, not necessarily so).
Although highly frowned upon, there have even been instances of enforcers utilizing their exterior - or even interior - rear-view mirrors to "bank shot" LIDAR.
-----
On a side-note:
As with what I wrote to upstatedoc above, I agree, there's no reason to be anything short of fully cooperative and completely courteous when pulled-over, even if you sincerely believe that the officer has made a mistake. Everyone's just human, and this person is just doing his/her job.
The one time where I was pulled-over for "speeding-stupid," I crested a hill without slowing - my detector didn't go off (and no detector would have), since it was Instant-On radar, until I was actually well-past the enforcer's patrol vehicle. As hard as I tried, I just couldn't shave-off speed fast enough.
I had signaled and safely pulled-over to the shoulder even before he even got his cruiser off the roadside runoff area.
We were both polite and courteous to each other, and he simply gave me my ticket and sent me on my way.
I knew I was at-fault, so I wasn't about to lie. Gotta pay to play. And that's what I get for, as I like to call it, "speeding stupid." :lemon:
It's certainly a "gadget filled" detector, and I can see why the Valentine group counterattacks, in its own marketing, the way that it does.
Certainly, to "purists," these gadgets/side-functions can be deemed to be un-necessary.
For me, the simple ability to turn my daily errands and commute into a noiseless one, without my need to take any action, is a blessing to those of us who have more demanding passengers. For me, the lock-out feature, as well as speed-sensitive sensitivity compensation, is all that I really need.
I couldn't find anything in the manual about the 9500i's "memory" It obviously can remember false alarms but can it remember legitimate signals? (i.e. for use later in court let's say) :confuse:
I think i may be getting false laser signals on my new 9500i. It appears to go off for no reason. I have the unit mounted low,center windshield (my usual spot) My x50 never did this. In fact, I think the x50's laser alert was triggered twice by police laser and a bunch of times by my cd player but there was always a definite source. My 9500i has laser alerted me probably half a dozen times in the last couple of weeks w/ no obvious source. There weren't even any vehicles near enough to me to cause interference from a "cruise control" or "lane change" beam. Anyone else w/ this problem?
Although the problem isn't exactly common, it's not uncommon, either.
Currently, speculation for the cause of this problem runs anywhere from RF interference (unfortunately, no real solution on this one) to electrical noise (where a snap-on ferrite choke should help cut down on the problem) to "other" causes (various IR sources, or even the "flickering" of modern vehicle's nav/entertainment system displays).
With the 9500i, an e-friend of mine (whom I met through the Legacy enthusiast's Forums) was also having this problem - even the ferrite choke would not solve the issue.
He eventually elected to send the unit back to Escort to have this issue addressed - the technician reported that the solution was to "de-tune" (further shield) the unit's laser receiver - and would likely reduce the unit's laser sensitivity by upwards of 30%.
Are the radar units that the police have able to switch back and forth from say, K to Ka band? The vast majority of law inforcement in my area (town,city,county,state) use Ka band but every once in a while I'll get "K'd" by the county sheriff. Maybe they're using an older unit?
I think my laser falses coincide with bursts of bright sunlight. Yesterday as I was driving around a long curve that was shaded, my laser alert went off as I hit a patch of bright sunlight. No other reason for it to go off. I wonder if I should send it back to Escort for a tune up?
My ZR3's rear sensor is very sensitive to such falsing (particularly when sunlight is being "strobed" - i.e. driving on tree-lined secondary streets).
Although I have not yet had any sunlight-induced issues with my 9500i, I have heard of this happening.
[ Aside: this also happens on some other active laser-jammers, in addition to the Escort ZR3 mentioned above. ]
Would I send the unit back to Escort?
I honestly don't know - supposedly (coming from a good friend of mine, who sent his unit back to Escort for persistent laser falsing), their "fix" will decrease the laser sensitivity of this unit by up to 1/3.
Where this will place you, in terms of the absolute laser sensitivity of this unit (i.e. will it be as "bad" as a Rev.5 x50?), is still currently an unknown.
The good thing, though, is that you're almost guaranteed a fix.
So it seems I can either live with laser falses (which scare the crap out of me) or opt for decreased sensitivity. Now the other conundrum is that I must have been living w/ decreased sensitivity with my x50 all along.....or is the x50's adequate? Where is my philosophy professor when I need him?
I think that when we bring up the comparison to our older x50s, we're not really going to be missing much, even if we got our 9500i's "fixed," if you will.
But does this mean that you are indeed compromising a lot of your protection?
It's hard to say, but I'm inclined to answer yes.
Still, having to live with persistent falses is a definite and BIG problem - it erodes the end-user's confidence in the detector, and causes desensitization, which can be a deadly problem even for advanced detector users.
There's a case on RD.net where a fellow detector enthusiast came forward and offered-up his tale of having disregarded his V1's warning, only to end with a ticket....
Particularly for a detector like the 9500i, where "the only alerts are the real ones," this is a big problem, IMveryHO.
I have had two Escort X50 detectors. Both have started, constantly, displaying laser alerts. Laser is not particularly used around Columbia, SC. Both started after 1 to 20 years of use. The one I am using in my Towncar goes off every time I excelerate. Is this a normal problem? I am considering either sending them back for refurbish or just getting new ones. Which would be better? The 9500i is out of my price range at this time, but could be a near future option.
You mean 1 to 2 years, right. 20-years would almost bring us to where all this stuff started!
No, the problem is definitely not "normal," even as the detectors "age." Although some will fall out-of-tune and suffer from various other "typical" small electrical problems due to their harsh use environment, it's still definitely NOT something that should be happening. Something is certainly wrong.
My 3+ year-old x50 still functions as well as the day I bought it, and there are many in the speed-detection countermeasures community who own detectors that are far older, again, with no such problems.
Something's definitely not Kosher.
You can do a little trouble-shooting, yourself --->
First, perform a "hard reset" of the unit. With the unit switched off via the rotary dial, press down on all three of the buttons on the detector's body, and while you're doing so, use the dial to power-up the unit. ( Note that after you perform such a "reset," you will need to go back through the unit's "Preferences" to re-tailor the unit to your end-user enabled settings, as this reset will take the unit back to factory-default settings. ) See if this doesn't take care of the problem, outright.
If that doesn't put a halt to such problems, let's try troubleshooting the detector-car axis.
First, will your detector false in the same manner in another vehicle? If not, then it's obvious that it's something to do with your car - have you changed vehicles recently? did you recently add new accessories (i.e. aftermarket nav/GPS screen or entertainment system/components)?
Also, if the detector is not falsing in other vehicles, you should try enabling the voltmeter function on the x50. See if, for some reason, the detector is pulling either insufficient or too much voltage. With the x50, anything less than about 10V of input or more than 14V could elicit such falsing issues (typically more common on the over-volt scenario [actually, laser-falsing with over-volt is a known problem with the x50], with unpredictable shut-downs more likely on the < 10V input scenario). Since the voltmeter function can be enabled while the detector is actively in-use, you should be able to keep an eye on things as you drive. See if provoking the accelerator will cause such voltage spikes.
Remember, though, that this isn't necessarily your vehicle's output voltage - this is what the detector "sees" on its line. If your 12V accessory socket is dirty, or if the wiring leading to it is faulty, then the detector may see less than vehicle voltage - don't immediately jump to the conclusion that your charging system is at-fault, but instead, work the problem backwards, from the detector. If under-voltage is an issue, try taking remedial steps with the socket and/or wiring leading to it, first, or bypass the entire issue by hardwiring (which itself should be undertaken, then, only after you make sure that the vehicle's charging system is good-to-go, as it would be illogical to pursue such a bypass if a dirty socket or faulty wiring leading to it are not your sole problems).
And even before you pursue the socket/wiring issue, you should, as logic dictates from "working backwards from the detector," check to see if your SmartCord could be at-fault. Since you have two detectors, you can try interchanging their SmartCords to see if it somehow solves the issue. And also along this line of logic, if your detector continues to false after you've transferred them to another test vehicle, you should also see if the issue can't be traced to the SmartCord(s). If you have a friend who has a non-faulty x50 (or any Bel/Escort detector that utilizes the RJ11 fitting power cords), you can try a cross-change, to see if you can isolate the issue.
Failing these, it would likely be best for you to send the detector(s) in to Escort for a fix.
Also, there are some cars that are just "electrically noisy."
Late-model Subarus, for example, are notorious for this - the Escort detectors often false when in these vehicles, and our sub-community have pursued such concerns to great depth:
Hopefully, you'll be able to read that without having to sign-up. I stopped "lurking" on the RD.net hobbyist community about a year ago, and until then, no registration was necessary to simply read/lurk.
As you can see, there are various means you can undertake to try to solve this problem.
But honestly, start with the easy stuff, first. Best of luck!
Yes, 2 not 20. (Fat fingers strike again) I will try the hard reset and see what happens. I have used it in other vehicles and the results were the same, maybe the false alert may have been less, but was still there. Thanks for the advise and tips. I will report back as to what happens.
Keep an eye on it - sometimes, the hard reset only "cures" things temporarily - alternatively, some detectors (totally random, production-line variances) just seem to require periodic resets in order to perform their best.
If it can't get out of "SELF CAL" mode (i.e. it gets stuck there) or displays the "SERV REQ" messages, send it in.
Honestly, my x50 is now more than 4 years old, and still works just as well as the day I bought it - and this is even considering the fact that it's been a 24/7 "live-in-car" detector, always exposed to the elements. I definitely got lucky.
Hope this does the trick for ya!
And hey, don't worry about your fingers! Mine are not exactly slender and delicate, either!
I just bought a Beltronics STI Driver. I'd rather not attract attention to myself and I pass through Virginia every so often. I have it mounted low on the windshield but it's all the way over on the driver's side so that it's a little more concealed. Does anyone have an idea of how this affects the performance of the detector? Thanks.
If you ask any seasoned RD user, they will tell you hardwired high for radar detection. Not so great for laser detection but if laser is a real threat in your area you probably should have laser jammers. Mounting up high also gives you a bit more "stealthiness". The STI is an excellent RD, immune to all of the radar detector detectors, good choice if you travel through areas where RD's are illegal. Let me know if you have any more questions, if I can't answer them the guys over on radardetector.net can!
Like [b]upstatedoc[/b] said, mounting high will give you, overall, better RADAR performance.
With the current crop of Bel detectors, LIDAR reception is not its strong-point, and while mounting low should help optimize "sure hit" reporting, the value of such an alert is already debatable (particularly with any noticeable corrective/remedial driving input on your part likely to be very noticeable to the enforcer, looking through the scope of his LIDAR device)....best-odds, thus, would still likely have you mounting the detector either high, or, better yet, mid-windshield (however, this is unacceptable in VA, as it would put the detector too-easy into the enforcer's line-of-sight, from outside-vehicle observations).
Low-mounting may allow you to bury the detector out-of-sight of the enforcer, when he/she is in-vehicle, to your periphery, but you need to make sure that the detector clears both your hoodline as well as any intrusions, such as a hood-scoop or the windshield wipers.
Even then, the detector is likely to rest in plain sight, on the dash, to any enforcer who might be walking up to your vehicle.....
Typically, a "high and tight" setup, against the headliner and the tint band (if you have one on your vehicle) will not only keep the detector out of the visual range of an enforcer sitting on your six (i.e. right up against your rear bumper, executing a stop), but also will put it out of their view as they approach the vehicle for your interview. There are several different methods to help accomplish such mounting (and hardwiring, which will fully conceal the wiring run), and thread such as this are a start:
Also, I'd also recommend that you install a hidden - but easily accessed, without overt movements in-cabin which may telegraph your intent (as well as un-necessarily raise the threat level of your roadside traffic stop!!!) - "kill switch," to surely cut-power to your detector, to insure that you have an intrusion-free interview.
Finally, remember, a detector is only a tool, and just because the detector itself is fully cloaked with respect to VG2 and Spectre RDDs does not mean that your driving practices may not, themselves, tip-off the enforcer as to the fact that you have a detector in-vehicle.
As anyone will tell you, I'm a fan of VEIL, and also highly respect its creator, [b]The VEIL Guy[/b], for his "tactical thinking" approach to speed-detection countermeasures. This is what he had to say, in his review of the Bel STi-Driver:
[quote] realize really astute officers will likely still be able to determine detector usage when your vehicle is targeted by their radar gun if you quickly decelerate (the normal response to an alert) which can be done visually - either by an abrupt drop of your vehicle's front-end under heavy breaking, a rapid decrease in speed readings on the radar gun, or from the rear by observing brake lights or by audio - listening to the rapid decrease in the RADAR's Doppler tone at point of trigger pull.
At any rate, be prepared with a good explanation as to how you "visually spotted" the officer at the same time he/she pulled the trigger...[/quote]
So think about how you're using your detector - and just perhaps, carry with you an el-cheapo Cobra that you scored off FleaBay (and remember to carry the power cord with you, too), to nicely hand-over to your friendly enforcer, if you actually get pulled-over. :P
That is the best response and dialog advice on how to use a detector. You are correct you will get pulled if your speed drops quickly after the device has already recorded your speed.
I try to drive in the right hand lanes and not be as obvious as other detector users. The first thing a trooper looks for is break lights or front ends dropping.
i dislike the escort solo cordless detector...this type of detector is the only one that i have recieved a speeding ticket with...i now have an 8500 x50 which has a quicker response time and overall just performs to a higher standard...u have to spend more but in the long run it works out way better than the solo...look at the comparisons between all escort and various comparable detectors...this will give u a good overview on quality and accuracy of your desired detector
Introducing "the Cobra iRadar S-Series, a remote detector that is hidden away behind the car’s front grille. It sends information to a mobile phone with the Cobra app inside the car."
Valentine 1 #1, Uniden #2. Also, Valentine has a website. They have a response there for some of the "negatives" in the article even though they were the highest rated.
Comments
You can well imagine that that very slight delay/hesitation may not matter much in low-speed, city-driving scenarios, but that it would be of much more concern when at higher road-speeds, on the open highway.
With my x50, I used, for my daily commute, the "City" setting, with "LoX" preference, and had to remember to turn the unit over to "Highway" mode when in open-field. On the 9500i, I honestly am very comfortable just leaving it on "Auto" setting, and letting the GPS real-time speed compensation work its magic.
With regard to your observation/comparison to our venerable Rev5 x50s, I'd totally agree - Ka-band sensitivity, overall, and also K-band off-axis sensitivity as well seem to be way up compared to my old Rev5 x50, which is about the same "vintage" as yours.
I still don't know that it's a match for the V1 just yet, particularly on the open highway, but definitely, Escort did make a progressive step in the right direction between the x50 and this new flagship.
The radar-based systems, I believe, are in the range to cause falses on K-band. The Audi Q7, for example, uses a "24 GHz" frequency for their system, and it's known to present problems.
At the same time, similar laser-based cruise-control or predictive-safety systems found on many Lexus and Infiniti vehicles also can cause falses on both laser detectors as well as jammers.
http://tinyurl.com/3b4ltf
That's the last of seven pages of the article on their website.
I don't want to link to the Valentine 1 website, directly, here, as I don't know if that's against Forum policy
In any case:
Most true open-highway warriors will have a strong preference for the V1 due to its extreme sensitivity as well as directional-threat indication (for radar, this is unique to the V1), and, in cases where an active laser jammer is either out of financial reach or illegal (or simply beyond one's "moral/ethical" boundary), the V1's extreme laser sensitivity is a plus, too.
For raw sensitivity and unfiltered/"full" informational presentation, the V1 is nearly impossible to beat. Although it is, nevertheless, imperfect, it is so strong in the open-highway scenario that nearly 99% of drivers - even enthusiasts - will need no supplementation when detection is the question. Yes, there are those who actually run the V1 with the Bel STi-Driver (one of the truly rare "magical" combinations that do not cross-interfere with each other) or even use the V1 in conjunction with the remote-mounted Escort SR7/SRX units (to those in detector-legal areas, this is oftentimes considered the true gold-standard, as these two devices pair near perfectly to offer "full-circle" detection, and fills the holes left by the other in a complementary manner), but those are truly few and far in between.
The V1's only true weakness, in the open-highway scenario, is that of Spectre radar-detector-detector detectability (which will only matter for commercial vehicle operators or, alternatively, for those who live in detector-banned areas; nevertheless, even the use of the fully-cloaked Bel STi-Driver requires a certain amount of proper tactical execution and discretion).
Honestly, if my commute entailed routine open-highway travel, I'd definitely be a V1 user.
However, my commute is nearly 90% on local surface streets (and I'm factoring-in even my most typical highway-route errand running). And in as much as Escort's latest commercial video demonstrates (that kind of densely-packed non-LEO signal situation is very much akin to what I must run through, every day, during my commute), I truly need the 9500i's filtering capabilities. And yes, I am well-aware, as per our previous discussions, that the V1 can be programmed, in-depth (even more than to simply select between the various main operating modes), to greatly cut-down on such "annoyance" factors - but as you can read via the discussions here: http://www.radardetector.net/viewtopic.php?t=32993 , such extremes in terms of programming can cause dangerous oversights, as the original poster of that thread very well acknowledged (his goal, as a fellow enthusiast, was not to debate the "V1 versus 9500i" issue, but rather to show how easily one can manipulate such videos to further their own commercial propaganda).
There is no perfect detector - everything is a compromise. It's up to the end-user to determine what compromise best-fits their particular threat scenario.
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Current rumors have it that the new remote-mounted units from Escort (introduced at this year's CES) may rival or even exceed the current-generation V1 in terms of raw sensitivity, but this remains both to be seen as well as need to be categorized differently, as such remote units offer not only not-insignificant advantages in being able to optimize on-vehicle positioning (particularly if "off-the-books" mounting/setup is taken into account), but are also, literally, many times more expensive than even these top-flight self-contained models.
I just finished reading the entire article - most entertaining! I must say that Mr Markus, et. al., certainly have a higher opinion of my fellow commuters here in Cleveland than either myself or most of my fellow driving-enthusiast friends. :P I wish I saw more of that kind of vehicular/driving courtesy.
One point I did want to address with regard to the little blurb about the V1.
Mr. Markus mentioned that it is able to discern the frequency of the threat. This is, while true, not completely so - yes, the basic X, K, and Ka-band differentiation, based on frequency, can be made, but the more advanced differentiation between actual, physical, frequncy of the signal is something that is currently the sole ground of the high-end Bel/Escort products, with "SpecDisplay."
That isn't to say that you shouldn't be respectful and pleasant.. just that the laser operation is a whole different thing than radar.. There is no chance that the officer was sitting there eating a donut, and you happened to trip his radar detector..or, he was on his way home and you popped up.. He was making a conscious act to aim that laser detector at you, and then come after you..
Unless you have the mother of all excuses, you are getting ticketed..
On the plus side, I could call in and pay it with my credit card...
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It really puts me off how many of those depicted interact with the officers.
I must say, though, that every once in a while, one of those shows will get a clip or two posted to YouTube and the likes, and then get "cross-examined" by the various countermeasures enthusiasts. There are several incidences on, I believe, one of their first episodes, where the LIDAR enforcement scenario was highly suspect (i.e. could have been in-error).
For as many people who are getting their traffic cases thrown out because of evidence from their own "dash/car-cams," I would imagine that this show would supply some good evidence, too, and may not necessarily be making the enforcers' jobs any easier.
Yes, it can be a much more accurate speed-detection tool, but it must be used judiciously and with expertice, as well as without malice - and the instrument itself must be calibrated and maintained properly, just as with RADAR.
Also, the officer does not need to be out of his/her vehicle in order to use LIDAR.
It is very possible to use various portions of the vehicle's door/window-frame, armrest, dash, steering wheel, and even the data device mount (or the unit itself) in order to steady a LIDAR "gun" from inside the vehicle - even while belted and seated at the wheel, ready-to-go (preferably without the interference of the vehicle greenhouse glass, although, again, not necessarily so).
Although highly frowned upon, there have even been instances of enforcers utilizing their exterior - or even interior - rear-view mirrors to "bank shot" LIDAR.
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On a side-note:
As with what I wrote to upstatedoc above, I agree, there's no reason to be anything short of fully cooperative and completely courteous when pulled-over, even if you sincerely believe that the officer has made a mistake. Everyone's just human, and this person is just doing his/her job.
The one time where I was pulled-over for "speeding-stupid," I crested a hill without slowing - my detector didn't go off (and no detector would have), since it was Instant-On radar, until I was actually well-past the enforcer's patrol vehicle. As hard as I tried, I just couldn't shave-off speed fast enough.
I had signaled and safely pulled-over to the shoulder even before he even got his cruiser off the roadside runoff area.
We were both polite and courteous to each other, and he simply gave me my ticket and sent me on my way.
I knew I was at-fault, so I wasn't about to lie.
Certainly, to "purists," these gadgets/side-functions can be deemed to be un-necessary.
For me, the simple ability to turn my daily errands and commute into a noiseless one, without my need to take any action, is a blessing to those of us who have more demanding passengers.
Who knows what stuff the Escort guys might come up with, when they finally release the USB-capabilities of this unit.......
Currently, speculation for the cause of this problem runs anywhere from RF interference (unfortunately, no real solution on this one) to electrical noise (where a snap-on ferrite choke should help cut down on the problem) to "other" causes (various IR sources, or even the "flickering" of modern vehicle's nav/entertainment system displays).
http://www.radardetector.net/viewtopic.php?t=26821&highlight=laser+false
With the 9500i, an e-friend of mine (whom I met through the Legacy enthusiast's Forums) was also having this problem - even the ferrite choke would not solve the issue.
He eventually elected to send the unit back to Escort to have this issue addressed - the technician reported that the solution was to "de-tune" (further shield) the unit's laser receiver - and would likely reduce the unit's laser sensitivity by upwards of 30%.
Are the radar units that the police have able to switch back and forth from say, K to Ka band? The vast majority of law inforcement in my area (town,city,county,state) use Ka band but every once in a while I'll get "K'd" by the county sheriff. Maybe they're using an older unit?
Unfortunately, this is beyond my shallow knowledge pool - my instinct, however, is to say no, that there are no "switchable band" devices.
Certainly, though, different departments will have different equipment, and this can even be *within* the department itself.
Local to me, for example, there are adjacent townships using K and Ka band, respectively, as well as one township which operates both K *and* Ka band.
My ZR3's rear sensor is very sensitive to such falsing (particularly when sunlight is being "strobed" - i.e. driving on tree-lined secondary streets).
Although I have not yet had any sunlight-induced issues with my 9500i, I have heard of this happening.
[ Aside: this also happens on some other active laser-jammers, in addition to the Escort ZR3 mentioned above. ]
Would I send the unit back to Escort?
I honestly don't know - supposedly (coming from a good friend of mine, who sent his unit back to Escort for persistent laser falsing), their "fix" will decrease the laser sensitivity of this unit by up to 1/3.
Where this will place you, in terms of the absolute laser sensitivity of this unit (i.e. will it be as "bad" as a Rev.5 x50?), is still currently an unknown.
The good thing, though, is that you're almost guaranteed a fix.
So it seems I can either live with laser falses (which scare the crap out of me) or opt for decreased sensitivity. Now the other conundrum is that I must have been living w/ decreased sensitivity with my x50 all along.....or is the x50's adequate? Where is my philosophy professor when I need him?
I think that when we bring up the comparison to our older x50s, we're not really going to be missing much, even if we got our 9500i's "fixed," if you will.
But does this mean that you are indeed compromising a lot of your protection?
It's hard to say, but I'm inclined to answer yes.
Still, having to live with persistent falses is a definite and BIG problem - it erodes the end-user's confidence in the detector, and causes desensitization, which can be a deadly problem even for advanced detector users.
There's a case on RD.net where a fellow detector enthusiast came forward and offered-up his tale of having disregarded his V1's warning, only to end with a ticket....
Particularly for a detector like the 9500i, where "the only alerts are the real ones," this is a big problem, IMveryHO.
You mean 1 to 2 years, right.
No, the problem is definitely not "normal," even as the detectors "age." Although some will fall out-of-tune and suffer from various other "typical" small electrical problems due to their harsh use environment, it's still definitely NOT something that should be happening. Something is certainly wrong.
My 3+ year-old x50 still functions as well as the day I bought it, and there are many in the speed-detection countermeasures community who own detectors that are far older, again, with no such problems.
Something's definitely not Kosher.
You can do a little trouble-shooting, yourself --->
First, perform a "hard reset" of the unit. With the unit switched off via the rotary dial, press down on all three of the buttons on the detector's body, and while you're doing so, use the dial to power-up the unit. ( Note that after you perform such a "reset," you will need to go back through the unit's "Preferences" to re-tailor the unit to your end-user enabled settings, as this reset will take the unit back to factory-default settings. ) See if this doesn't take care of the problem, outright.
If that doesn't put a halt to such problems, let's try troubleshooting the detector-car axis.
First, will your detector false in the same manner in another vehicle? If not, then it's obvious that it's something to do with your car - have you changed vehicles recently? did you recently add new accessories (i.e. aftermarket nav/GPS screen or entertainment system/components)?
Also, if the detector is not falsing in other vehicles, you should try enabling the voltmeter function on the x50. See if, for some reason, the detector is pulling either insufficient or too much voltage. With the x50, anything less than about 10V of input or more than 14V could elicit such falsing issues (typically more common on the over-volt scenario [actually, laser-falsing with over-volt is a known problem with the x50], with unpredictable shut-downs more likely on the < 10V input scenario). Since the voltmeter function can be enabled while the detector is actively in-use, you should be able to keep an eye on things as you drive. See if provoking the accelerator will cause such voltage spikes.
Remember, though, that this isn't necessarily your vehicle's output voltage - this is what the detector "sees" on its line. If your 12V accessory socket is dirty, or if the wiring leading to it is faulty, then the detector may see less than vehicle voltage - don't immediately jump to the conclusion that your charging system is at-fault, but instead, work the problem backwards, from the detector.
And even before you pursue the socket/wiring issue, you should, as logic dictates from "working backwards from the detector," check to see if your SmartCord could be at-fault. Since you have two detectors, you can try interchanging their SmartCords to see if it somehow solves the issue. And also along this line of logic, if your detector continues to false after you've transferred them to another test vehicle, you should also see if the issue can't be traced to the SmartCord(s). If you have a friend who has a non-faulty x50 (or any Bel/Escort detector that utilizes the RJ11 fitting power cords), you can try a cross-change, to see if you can isolate the issue.
Failing these, it would likely be best for you to send the detector(s) in to Escort for a fix.
Also, there are some cars that are just "electrically noisy."
Late-model Subarus, for example, are notorious for this - the Escort detectors often false when in these vehicles, and our sub-community have pursued such concerns to great depth:
http://www.radardetector.net/viewtopic.php?t=26821&highlight=armscrafter1
Hopefully, you'll be able to read that without having to sign-up. I stopped "lurking" on the RD.net hobbyist community about a year ago, and until then, no registration was necessary to simply read/lurk.
As you can see, there are various means you can undertake to try to solve this problem.
But honestly, start with the easy stuff, first.
Keep an eye on it - sometimes, the hard reset only "cures" things temporarily - alternatively, some detectors (totally random, production-line variances) just seem to require periodic resets in order to perform their best.
If it can't get out of "SELF CAL" mode (i.e. it gets stuck there) or displays the "SERV REQ" messages, send it in.
Honestly, my x50 is now more than 4 years old, and still works just as well as the day I bought it - and this is even considering the fact that it's been a 24/7 "live-in-car" detector, always exposed to the elements. I definitely got lucky.
Hope this does the trick for ya!
And hey, don't worry about your fingers! Mine are not exactly slender and delicate, either!
The STI is an excellent RD, immune to all of the radar detector detectors, good choice if you travel through areas where RD's are illegal. Let me know if you have any more questions, if I can't answer them the guys over on radardetector.net can!
With the current crop of Bel detectors, LIDAR reception is not its strong-point, and while mounting low should help optimize "sure hit" reporting, the value of such an alert is already debatable (particularly with any noticeable corrective/remedial driving input on your part likely to be very noticeable to the enforcer, looking through the scope of his LIDAR device)....best-odds, thus, would still likely have you mounting the detector either high, or, better yet, mid-windshield (however, this is unacceptable in VA, as it would put the detector too-easy into the enforcer's line-of-sight, from outside-vehicle observations).
Low-mounting may allow you to bury the detector out-of-sight of the enforcer, when he/she is in-vehicle, to your periphery, but you need to make sure that the detector clears both your hoodline as well as any intrusions, such as a hood-scoop or the windshield wipers.
Even then, the detector is likely to rest in plain sight, on the dash, to any enforcer who might be walking up to your vehicle.....
Typically, a "high and tight" setup, against the headliner and the tint band (if you have one on your vehicle) will not only keep the detector out of the visual range of an enforcer sitting on your six (i.e. right up against your rear bumper, executing a stop), but also will put it out of their view as they approach the vehicle for your interview. There are several different methods to help accomplish such mounting (and hardwiring, which will fully conceal the wiring run), and thread such as this are a start:
http://www.speedtraphunter.net/speeding-tickets-traffic-citations/984-windshield- -mount-illegal-california.html
Also, I'd also recommend that you install a hidden - but easily accessed, without overt movements in-cabin which may telegraph your intent (as well as un-necessarily raise the threat level of your roadside traffic stop!!!) - "kill switch," to surely cut-power to your detector, to insure that you have an intrusion-free interview.
Finally, remember, a detector is only a tool, and just because the detector itself is fully cloaked with respect to VG2 and Spectre RDDs does not mean that your driving practices may not, themselves, tip-off the enforcer as to the fact that you have a detector in-vehicle.
As anyone will tell you, I'm a fan of VEIL, and also highly respect its creator, [b]The VEIL Guy[/b], for his "tactical thinking" approach to speed-detection countermeasures.
[quote]
realize really astute officers will likely still be able to determine detector usage when your vehicle is targeted by their radar gun if you quickly decelerate (the normal response to an alert) which can be done visually - either by an abrupt drop of your vehicle's front-end under heavy breaking, a rapid decrease in speed readings on the radar gun, or from the rear by observing brake lights or by audio - listening to the rapid decrease in the RADAR's Doppler tone at point of trigger pull.
At any rate, be prepared with a good explanation as to how you "visually spotted" the officer at the same time he/she pulled the trigger...[/quote]
So think about how you're using your detector - and just perhaps, carry with you an el-cheapo Cobra that you scored off FleaBay (and remember to carry the power cord with you, too), to nicely hand-over to your friendly enforcer, if you actually get pulled-over. :P
I try to drive in the right hand lanes and not be as obvious as other detector users. The first thing a trooper looks for is break lights or front ends dropping.
For the Speedy, a Sneaky Radar Detector (NY Times)