Radar detector manufacturers
are constantly playing a game of catch-up with new technologies
designed to nab the lead-footed. "Pop" radar is a relatively new
instant-on technology that may make a whole generation of radar
detectors obsolete. These radar guns operate at low frequency until
they are switched on to determine a driver's speed with lightning-fast
accuracy. This leaves a radar detector little opportunity to scan and
detect the radar signal. Pop radar may sound ominous, but a new crop of
radar detectors--including the Escort Passport 8500 X50--offer Pop
radar detection. Escort claims that the 8500 X50 is the most powerful
and advanced radar detector ever, with the supreme sensitivity required
to detect low-frequency Pop radar.
Design
Mounting the 8500 in our test vehicle was easy and straightforward. A
small suction cup bracket slides into the unit's release mechanism and
easily attaches to the windshield with light pressure. The unit is
housed in a sturdy plastic case that's low profile and
compact--although it is larger and heavier than Escort's wireless
offering, the Solo S2.
The rear of the unit is dominated by a receiver window and there's a
rear-facing laser detector window designed to detect laser signals
emanating from behind the vehicle.
Digital Signal Processing (DSP) provides maximum range, with minimum false alarms. |
The Escort 8500 has a suprisingly simple control layout. Two buttons on
the top of the unit control sensitivity settings and display
brightness. They also double as selection buttons when the unit is in
programming mode. The left side of the unit sports a volume dial. A
mute button is positioned on the front panel next to the large,
horizontal LCD display which, during normal use, graphs the intensity
of the radar and laser signals the unit detects. Power is supplied by
an included Escort SmartCord, which plugs into a cigarette-lighter
power socket. The SmartCord features an alert LED, as well as a
built-in mute button-- two handy additions.
Features
The 8500 can detect all of the radar bands currently in use in North
America for speed detection, including the X, K and Ka bands. The unit
also features detection diodes for laser detection, but for the most
powerful protection from laser detection, Escort offers the ZR3 laser
jamming system, which is plug-and-play compatible with the 8500.
The feature that separates the 8500 from other Escort radar detectors,
as well as the entire previous generation of radar detector
technologies, is its Pop radar detection capabilities. Pop radar guns,
while still relatively rare in police departments, are used to identify
speeding vehicles in traffic. They provide little warning as the radar
signal idles at a low frequency until it transmits an extremely short,
high-frequency burst to "Pop" a target. The 8500 is equipped with a
highly sensitive receiving system and a digital signal processor
designed to pick up Pop signals from a safe distance. Pop detection is
not enabled by default in the 8500, however; users must turn it on in
the settings menu. Escort probably chose to disable Pop detection by
default because its increased sensitivity also increases false alerts.
However, first-time radar detector users might be in for a surprise if
they neglect to turn it on.
The Passport 8500 X50 provides 3 types of warning displays to choose from. |
Audio alerts are the most important feature of any radar detector, and
the 8500 doesn't disappoint in this department. Warning tones get
progressively louder as a threat approaches, and users can set the unit
to deliver warnings at preprogrammed volume levels. Each radar
band--including Pop radar--has a distinct tone, making it easy to
quickly discern threats. The 8500's "AutoMute" feature automatically
lowers the volume level of an alert after a period of time.
False alarms are one of the major annoyances of radar detector use. In
our tests, the 8500 was surprisingly adept at minimizing false alarms
from home garage door systems, as well as home and commercial security
systems that commonly operate on X-band radar. The unit's city
sensitivity setting decreases sensitivity to X-band sources, while the
highway setting does not. We found the unit's powerful
"AutoSensitivity" mode the most accurate, however, as it dynamically
filtered all types of radar signals and identified which sources were a
legitimate threat. We got a few false alarms, but for the most part,
annoying chirps from bogus X-band sources were uncommon.
The
8500 has nine built-in customizable settings. In the settings mode, the
LCD acts as a menu system that lets users control display brightness,
automatic mute, audio tones, and power-on modes. There are also
settings for disabling detection of selected bands. We liked the expert
mode settings, which allow a user to get a constant picture of the
intensity of all the radar bands in the area. The SpecDisplay, which is
a feature exclusive to the 8500, displays the actual numeric frequency
of the radar signal being received.
For those living in states
that prohibit use of a radar detector, the 8500 does include VG-2 radar
detector detector protection, which is designed to both alert the
driver and shut down the unit's oscillator.
On the Road
We used the 8500 on a 20-mile stretch of busy interstate and were
impressed with the low number of false alarms we received. Again, this
remarkable level of accuracy is due to the unit's AutoSensitivity
feature. While we encountered no police radar, other controlled tests
of the 8500's performance have put the reliable range of detection at 2
miles for all bands. Meanwhile, Pop mode tests place the reliable
detection range between 500 and 1000 feet.
- Well-designed controls and display features
- AutoSensitivity feature greatly reduces false alarms
- Highly accurate with massive detection range
The Passport 8500 has been hailed as the most revolutionary radar/laser
detector ever. Now, Escort is raising the bar again. The Passport 8500
X50, the next generation of the 25-year-old favorite, is the most
advanced and sophisticated radar and laser detector ever. The Passport
8500 X50's V-tuned radar receiver provides extreme detection range on
all police radar, conventional radar, and "instant-on" radar, including
the new POP X band mode, and up to 50 percent more range than the
original Passport 8500 on the all-important K and Ka bands. In
addition, the detector's digital signal processing (DSP) provides
maximum range with minimum false alarms. The unit also includes a
patented AutoSensitivity mode that intelligently distinguishes real
threats from other known sources of radar, virtually eliminating false
readings.
Passport 8500 X50's multiple high-performance laser sensors provide
maximum police radar (lidar) warning, with superior off-axis
protection. The detector also offers three high-resolution meter
modes--a standard bar graph, exclusive ExpertMeter, and SpecDisplay. In
ExpertMeter mode, the Passport 8500 X50 can identify band and relative
signal strength on up to eight radar signals simultaneously, while with
SpecDisplay, the Passport 8500 X50 will show you the actual frequency
of the radar signal. Adding to the unit's versatility is a
reprogrammable microprocessor, which can be re-worked to detect new
radar and laser threats.
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