Escort Passport 9500ix Radar/Laser Detector (Black)
by Escort Inc.
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List Price: Our Price: $431.95 You Save: $68.00 (14%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $349.99 (click here) Category: Car Audio or Theater See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Escort Passport 9500ix Radar/Laser Detector (Black)
Customer Review: Goodbye, Valentine One!
Summary: 5 Stars
I have used many different detectors over the years and consider myself an expert in the field. If you're a long time radar detector user, the Escort 9500ix will completely blow your mind!
First, a little bit of background. For years, the Valentine One (V1 for short) was widely considered the best portable radar detector on the market, therefore it became the "gold standard" to which most other detectors would be compared to. It was a great detector with long range detection and directional arrows which would help the driver figure out where the different radar signals where coming from. It was also able to detect multiple signals at once, a nice feature that cheaper detectors (usually below $200) did not have. The biggest problem with it was the fact that it had so many false alarms (many of which, according to Valentine One's website, are to blame on cheaper radar detectors on the road) that most users would either start ignoring them or they would have to change the detector's settings to reduce its sensitivity (which in my view defies the purpose of buying a super-sensitive detector). I believe that because Valentine One had the main advantage at the time -the directional arrows- they became complacent and didn't work hard enough to find the next big technological improvement that would revolutionize radar detectors. Enter the Escort 9500ix. This detector uses GPS technology to automatically store false alarms so they never bother you again. It also has a pre-loaded database of all inductive loop systems (which are used by many speed cameras). It's basically a system which consists of two wires buried beneath the road surface and a computer that calculates the speed between the two wires, with a camera waiting at the end. V1 and all the other detectors on the market don't stand a chance against those threats. (Thankfully, those types of threats are not widespread at this point as far as I know but with the 9500 even if they were it wouldn't be a problem.)
GPS has made the Valentine One's directional arrows obsolete because now that false alarms have been eliminated on the 9500ix, if it goes off you KNOW it's a threat, regardless of where it's coming from.
Granted, the 9500ix is not for everyone. I would say it's more for the expert user. For most advanced users an Escort 8500 x50 or a V1 will be perfect. For more casual users even a Cobra or a Whistler will do the job (they saved me plenty of tickets over the years). But if you want the BEST protection available with mind-blowing features, spend the extra money and get the Escort 9500ix. You won't regret it. Its features include auto-volume control, which means it "listens" to the noise in the car and automatically adjusts the volume of the alerts. Also, because the 9500ix is GPS-enabled it knows exactly how fast you're going at any given point in time. So the faster you drive the further down the road it "sniffs" for radars, progressively increasing/decreasing its sensitivity as needed. How cool is that? This thing is light years ahead of most detectors in my view. Did I mention it automatically adjusts the brightness of the display according to the amount of light in the car? Of course, all the features mentioned above can also be manually adjusted. I believe that the Escort 9500ix is the new "Gold Standard" that other detectors should be compared to. The V1 just simply doesn't cut it anymore for expert users like myself. I have used many different detectors over the years and all I can say about this one is that driving will never be the same. Try the 9500 for a few days and, believe me, you will never go back to any other detector!
Customer Review: Best radar detector available today, hands down!
Summary: 5 Stars
I had been eyeballing this for a few months, but at the time $509 was a lot for a radar detector, but not when you compare it to the cost of a ticket plus raised insurance rates. As luck would have it, I caught it on Amazon for $409 (right at Xmas) and immediately bought it...Merry Christmas to me!
About the detector, I give it 5 stars for multiple reasons.
First, the form factor and mounting bracket are top notch. The blue text is a refreshing change from the circa 1980's red screens we've all seen. With the auto dimming feature, the text changes brightness based on the current lighting condition, and if you want, you can turn the text off (in the event a police car is following and you don't want him/her to see it through the rear window...handy for states that ban radar detectors). The buttons are easy to access and having a mute button on the chord is a nice addition.
As for the beeps, the initial beeps will be at the volume you set, but then they taper down as to not become annoying. Again, very nice feature.
The GPS is what sold me...having the ability to update the database of red light cameras (not that I would EVER run a red light), speed cameras and speed traps, as well as marking them yourself is a great idea. I find myself marking them whenever I come across one. It's nice to have a warning just incase you were thinking about trying to make that yellow light and risk it turning red (thus a ticket in the mail from the camera).
The speed sensor is very accurate...when an alarm goes off the unit will display your current speed...nice not having to glance down at your dash. The faster you drive, the more "alert" the unti becomes and warns you further in advance.
Also, the GPS feature allows the unit to remember where it detected a signal, and if it detects the same signal at the same location three times, it will automatically store it and the next time you drive past that location, it will display "Stored" and beep one time. This is handy to weed out false alarms that you may encouter if you take the same route everyday (e.g. your drive to work).
The voice recordings are a pleasant "human" sounding voice; not a watered-down Atari sounding computer simulation.
The mounting bracket is well built, sturdy and allows for easy attach/detach of the unit. With three settings to insert the tongue into the radar, I can always have it set level and not bouncing or rattling agains the glass when the car is in motion. I NEVER leave this in my car unnattended, so having the ability to remove and install quickly was important to me.
The chord is long enough to reach anywhere you want to mount the unit.
Overall this is a great unit and you will not be disappointed. Yeah, it's pricey, but if you want one that works well and saves you from a ticket, then it has served its purpose.
This is the fourth different radar I've owned and I don't see ever having to move to a new unit (all others in the past paled in comparison and seemed to give false alarms).
April 2010 update: Escort just released a single suction cup style windshield mount ($25) that is awesome! Now you can easily mount and unmount the detector from this mount, and also it adjust in infinite settings (vs. having to "bend" the stock style mount to get the right angle). If you purchase this radar, do yourself a favor and get the mount as well. It's not available on amazon (yet), but you can order it here: https://www.escortradar.com/store/product.php?productid=16219&cat=259&page=1.
Customer Review: Negative Reviewers: RTM. This Product Is GREAT!
Summary: 5 Stars
I read through all of the negative reviews and many of the positive ones as well as all the more recent comparisons I could find and then bought the 9500ix.
My prior detector was a Solo S2 that was stolen while I was deployed. I loved that one and so gave strong consideration to the Escort brand. I know folks who love their Valentines, but I was unimpressed by them.
I love it. The only thing I can conclude from the negative reviews is that they failed to read the manual before using it or are religiously devoted to the Valentine One.
1: Failing to alert on speed cams, red light cams, etc: No database is perfect. That's why this product has the ability to mark speed traps, cameras, etc. on the fly. I've used mine for two days and have already marked several types of locations either for flagging or for ignoring which seems to work perfectly.
2: Detection range: Flawless. More than enough, even in the city, to give me time to react but not so much I decide the thing is false-alerting. Within 5 minutes of installing it the thing gave me ample warning of a motorcycle cop approaching with K-Band going and I had almost a full minute to react. Valentine One touts it's very long-detection range. Great, but I don't really care if someone in the next county is pointing a RADAR gun along another road. The detection range on this is excellent without being useless.
3: Really? You're going to complain about the CASE? I don't WANT a ten-pound chunk of magnesium hanging off my windshield. The build quality on this is excellent, solid and...LIGHT.
4: The coiled cord. Eh. Gives me plenty of flexibility. In my Saturn I have to play some games to route it where I want to go, but this is a problem with any cord. Kinda silly to complain that they don't supply you with every kind of cord made when you purchase it.
5: The Display. Seems clear and easy to read to me. Complaints about it not showing the band? RTM again. I switched the voice off on mine and went with the Expert display which gives me a bar display of the strength and band of individual emitters. If I wanted to, I could set it to display the FREQUENCY of individual emitters. I like the quick visual display of my speed upon alert, but I can turn that off if I choose.
6: Display too bright. Press the BRT button to dim it down, or completely dark or set it to auto and let it dim itself at night. And for real? You're going to complain about that tiny little LED on the power adapter? THAT is too bright for you? May I suggest you wear your sunglasses at night? Moonlight must be actively painful. Or, try a piece of tape. I love having both the visual cue and a second mute button available on the adapter.
I LOVE the Auto-Learn feature. There's one stretch I drive through that I was unsure what was being alerted. Three trips through and the thing determined it was a false-alert and now...no more beeps there. I didn't even have to mark the location myself. Conveniently, it indicates it's blocking a signal there with a very unobtrusive rotating GPS symbol so that I can UNBLOCK it if I choose to.
I do a LOT of driving, both city and highway and this appears to be the best detector available for me. If you're a serious driver and exposed to a wide variety of threats, this is an outstanding, if expensive detector with an incredible array of features and highly configurable.
Orion
Customer Review: Incredible Product!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently purchased a Passport 9500ix and can honestly say it is by far the best detector I've ever owned. As a previous owner of several other brands including Cobra, Whistler and a V1, this one is light years ahead.
From the moment I mounted it in my car, (which was super easy with their mount) I knew this one was different. I proceeded to mount it on the glass and started driving it without even looking at the owner's manual. As I began to drive, I was alerted to several door openers that my other detectors didn't even see, which to me indicated that it was far more sensitive. On my way back home, along the same route, I was alerted once again to these same door openers. At this point I began to remember why I quit driving with a detector many years ago....false alarms! Now that I had a more sensitive detector, I was wondering if I could stand to hear all of this noise everyday.
The next day I went to work, (close to the same route as picking up my kids) and I was pleasantly surprised when I passed these same spots again. The 9500ix beeped once and displayed the word "stored". Not reading the owner's manual, I had no idea what this meant. When I arrived at work I grabbed the owner's manual and read it at lunch. To my surprise it meant that the 9500ix had locked out these locations, knowing they were false alarms. How cool is that? Now that they were locked out, I couldn't wait to drive by again and see what it would do. On my way home, sure enough no alerts. Only a small indicator in the upper right side of the display rotated, indicating it saw these false alarms but no audio alert was given.
The following day I was in route home from work enjoying my new detector when it began to register a Ka band radar alert. I'm not completely sure what the difference is between all of the radar bands, but I began to take notice and checked my speed. I drove almost a mile wondering if this was a false alarm. Sure enough, as I turned the corner, there was one of our local police officers sitting along the side of the road. I had sniffed out my first alert, and in plenty of time to check my speed.
As someone who has used several other brands and grew accustomed to false alarms, let me assure you this one is different. Better sensitivity without the constant beeping. I'm not sure why it took me so long to try a Passport, but I will say that I will not be driving without one ever again.
Customer Review: Expensive? Sure. Worth the Expense? Absolutely
Summary: 5 Stars
If I had to sum up how I feel about the Escort 9500ix in a just few words, it would be "this detector is absolutely incredible" and leave it and its five star rating at that. But, if I was looking at detectors and see the price of the Escort and read only "this detector is....", it wouldn't sell me, so I'll expand the review (please pardon that the examples I use relate to areas in and around the Twin Cities, but obviously they should apply to anywhere these situations may be encountered)
Why 5 stars? In short...
-Because it warned me of a couple of speed traps a little less than a mile out before I encountered the squads on 169 between Shakopee and LeSueur. This was of the utmost importance, not only because it saved me possible speeding tickets, but it also seemed to mollify my wife who was a little unsure that spending $500 on a "gadget" was a wise expenditure in this economy...
-Because the auto-learn feature absolutely works. For instance: There are two of those "your speed is" stationary speed notification signs on Ayd Mill Road, and after three passes it beeped and locked both those out, as well as a couple of consistenly false signals detected on Snelling Avenue (the GPS icon on the display spins, reassuring you that they are being picked up but are not being announced).
-Because you can update it with the latest speed and traffic light cameras across the country (not important in MN, but from what I've read from other reviewers vitally important in other states that use those methods to ticket.)
-Because it is extremely easy to use, and the blue LED display is very clear. Also, a feature on the smart cord indicates radar signal strength while in the "dark" mode, so you are not just hearing the initial announcement of a detection and then are left in the blind as to how close the signal source is.
-Perhaps most importantly; because it has been named "best in class" in the vast majority, if not all, of the independent reviews I read before shelling out $500 on a "gadget".
If you use a detector strictly for open highway use, I suppose you could get by with a more economical model, but if you want an effective, extremely long-range, GPS-enabled "Smart" radar detector for in-town and highway use, I humbly suggest you consider the 9500IX.