Escort Passport 8500 X50 Radar Detector

Pros: Very sensitive yet with minimal false alarms.
Cons: It's expensive. Weird phone cord power connector. Bigger than other detectors (but not bad.)

I had tried the original Escort Passport back in the 80's and that thing falsed about every 30 seconds. Escort had the "try it for 30 days" program back then as well, so it got returned. Since then, I have owned different brands such as Whistler and ...

Pros: better detection then 7500
Cons: Where is the radar signal coming from?

I purchased the passport 7500 about a year ago and like that alot. I just sold that on ebay and purchased the 8500 I notice a huge difference in picking up K and Ka at least double the distance as before. It also will display how many volts your car it...

Pros: Good range, consitent pickup of signals
Cons: Expensive

This is deffinetly a review where its not worth it to drag it out way beyoned the very obvious statements about the unit. That is, so long as I make it over 200 words. The unit obviously carrys a pretty hefty price. I would have to say that it is most ...

Pros: GREAT PRODUCT, EXCELLENT COMPANY REPUTATION, VERY RELIABLE
Cons: TOO EXPENSIVE, BUT CHEAPER THAT SPEEDING TICKETS

I Have Owned Several Different Radar Detectors In The Past, But I Always Come Back To Escort Radar Detectors. I Always
Have Had Confidence In Them And They Are Very Reliable.
The 8500 Has A Lot Of Great Features, That Several Other
...

Pros: Buttons have a good stable feel
Cons: Radar counter is disappointing

I was disappointed with Escort 8500's radar counter. Instead of a number readout it only has two small vertical lines for Ka. If there's two radars, both vertical lines will light up. They call it Expert Mode. Sounds okay but for one big problem......

Pros: Offers comparable performance to the V1 at $100-150 less
Cons: Still expensive

After having a pretty bad experience with a cheapo, junk Whistler 1660, I bought this detector thinking I would be getting the best. I was not disappointed.

There's only one detector better than the 8500, the Valentine 1. Why didn't I buy a...

Pros: User friendly. Programmable. Loud detector.
Cons: Expensive. Expensive. Expensive. Poor radar detection.

I bought this detector believing all the other reviews I had heard about it, how it was the best, and twice as good as the Valentine 1 which is $100 more.

Listening to the hype I decided to invest the money. I used the detector for 2 weeks,...

Pros: nice design , easy to use , priced well
Cons: never went off when nailed with laser

bought mine brand new ( it was on ebay so who knows what i got ) but it was from a seller with good feedback and was selling alot of them , i was in a situation where i know i was hit with laser ..... however i never got a alert , one time i was the only car on the road , we came up a hill at night , the cop was sitting on the side road sideways and when our headlights hit him we could see he was pointing the laser gun at us ( held up to his eye like lasers are and not radar ) my 8500 is one the dash with a clear view of him , nothing . then as we go by him a car is coming up behind us , the cop then turns his lights on and pulls the car behind us over , luckily i wasn't speeding , however my 8500 never went off , i had a few occasions like this , so i sold it , now looking for something that wont let me down !!

Pros: No tickets, excellent KA coverage
Cons: unit broke, even with good care, poor rear coverage

I've had mine for 2 years...and not one ticket yet! I'll tell you my real life experience here in Arizona where there is photo radar and MC cops w/ radar traps everywhere you drive. I also exceed the speed limit and drive all my vehicles to their full potential on a daily basis. KA and KA pop reception is very good. The X50 will pick up parked photo radar units about 3/4 mile away. It picks up KA Pop about 99% of the time, but had one very close call where it didn't pick it up til 25 feet away from a MC patrolman. Here are the definite PROs: can buy at any best buy, better than 99% of the other detectors, excellent K, and KA coverage, and I've never gotten a ticket! Cons: a screw fell out after 12 months of use and I had to tape the unit back together, the audio alerts are not loud enough, the unit's circuit board went bad at about 28 months of use, not so good rear radar coverage. I'm off to buy a Valentine one!

Pros: sleek looks
Cons: worthless for laser, too many false alerts

I am fairly new to the escort brand; my girlfriend has a 7500 and i was amazed at how few falses she gets.  With the X band off, she gets only a rare K band false (and that is in a parking lot of store with a motion detector). My 8500 performed like this for the first month after I purchased it, but after that it has been terrible.  The same stores that never set it off are now setting it off.  Last week, I was speeding in the left lane, as soon as i get over the top of the hill, a cop is shooting LIDAR at my vehicle and the 8500 never went off.  This detector is useless against laser/LIDAR.  The falses it gets for K band make it unreliable.  I would not purchase this unit again.

Pros: Worked well in the beginning.
Cons: Design flaw causing unit to over heat. 

The Passport 8500 works well when it works.  They have a design flaw that costs $85 to fix!  IT OVER HEATS AND GOES INTO SAFE MODE in about a half hour.  Started after is was about 1 year old.  The fix is only fixing it with the same parts that didn't last in the first place, duh!  I am not the only one with this problem.  I personally know others, have seen it listed on the web as a problem and if you call Escort it is like, Oh yeah, we can fix it.  They should do a recall and fix it for free.  Will not buy another Escort they don't back what they sell.

Pros: Highway use great, no falsing. Very good detection of K, Ka bands, ok for laser
Cons: No adequate warning provided for photo radar that operates on Ka band

I have owned the X50 for one year now, I gave my wife my Bel 980.

The big difference between these two units is that the X50 rarely if ever falses whereas the Bel would regularly go off in the city and on the highway. The Bel seems to pick up other detectors operating out on the road.

The X50 does not pick up photo radar vans that operate in our area (Canada) until after you have gone by, the Bel would always give some advance warning, usually 20 yards. Fortunately, the vans are usually easy to spot, I guess I prefer less sensitivity to frequent falsing.

Pros: Mad style (blue display), well though out re-programming features and settings, superior range and detection.
Cons: None yet, believe me I'm looking for one.

I got this off of Ebay for $269, and it's awesome. I took it out of the box and drove around all day. I was tired of being on constant deferred adjudication for speeding tickets. Awesome range...just today, it picked up overhill, around a curve, and from a straight shot of highway at about 5 miles. If the cop shoots anyone with instant-on in front of you, you'll know it. It's really fun. It keeps the kids from fighting too (well, for the most part), as they're always looking for the cop.

Don't ask the wife, just do it. I wondered why I waited so long. You'll love it. It even interfaces with the Escort laser shifters.(Jammers) Need more money for that one...alot more.

Pros: Range, Detection, Easily customized
Cons: Does not indicate which direction the signal is from.

This radar is simply the best radar detected. As mentioned in previous reviews, the radar goes off quite frequently. This is due to the nature that places like starbucks and other places that use electronic doors use a form of radar called "X" band. I have never seen this band used in the form of traffic inforcement and can easily be turned off to avoid false alarms. The range on this radar is outstanding and I can assure you that you will have slowed down by the time the cop has either passed you or caught up with you. The screen is very easy to read (especially at night!) and the alerts are very distinct. Overall, this radar is a very good buy and worth every dollar. After a ticket for 85 mph in a 60mph could be $350 anyway- And that is just one ticket! Buy this radar if you want the best.

Pros: NONE
Cons: EVERTHING!

I have owned several Radars over 15 yrs but the worst is the Escort 8500! twice I had to send it in for repairs! and both times they failed! I spent a lot of money on the radar and shipping and 29.99 out the warranty repair! of the time I have had it, I might have used the radar abt six months only! DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT!