Hey guys, been away from the forum a while and just wanted to drop a line real quick.

I have been debating if I should move forward and pick up a Valentine1 and wanted to see what everyones thoughts are.

If you give me some pro's and con's about it if you own one it would really help me out.

 

I believe the valentine has an advantage over the escort series in that it tells you what direction the radar shot is coming from. However, it doesn't have GPS linked in to lock out false positives from automatic doors. I like the escort 9500ix better.

 

Does it matter what direction the radar is coming from anyway? If its a true signal you are going to slow up so they don't get ya regardless. Im not looking to wave and smile at the cop wherever he's hiding. Just picked up the 9500ix for $349 on an awesome Amazon daily deal and love this thing!

 

The arrows are just one method of sorting out what's a cop and what's an automatic door. GPS is another method and, to be fair, they both have their own benefits and drawbacks.

 

The GPS in the 9500ix does the work for you with its database and false lockouts, and automatically at that, so there is no guessing. And then all you are left with should be true cop alerts, which regardless of the direction you should be slowing down for or whats the point of the detector. Like I said I'm not looking to wave and I'm not trying to decipher signals, that what you did 10 years ago with detectors.

 

Generally speaking, yes, the GPS in the 9500ix is a superior solution to the false alert problem. However, it does require several drive-bys of the false radar source or a manual designation in order to function. This means that it's only useful AFTER you've already identified a radar signal as false. The V1, by pointing out where the signal is coming from, provides a better signal identification capability on initial detection.


What this all boils down to is that the V1 will give you a better picture of what's around you the first time you drive through an area. On any subsequent trips the 9500ix will be far superior because it will have already filtered out any false signals that were detected the first time.

 

I've had a V1 for 7-8 years and love it. False signals are rare, and usually distinguishable from actual radar. And the directional arrows are very useful. It's saved my *** on multiple occasions, but when it goes off you need to hit the brake fast & hard.

 

It is a matter of choice my boy and I go back and forth all the time, I use the escort 9500ci and he uses his Valentine... As far as range, and signal you will be protected... The 9500 just has more bells and whistles... And a newer interface, the Valentine design has not varied significantly over the years... I am personally a Bel/ Escort guy... Either way you won't be disappointed...

 

It all depends on what part of the states you live in. If you drive in a city often, like I do, we have automatic doors from walgreens and walmart all over the place. 9500ix is what we like to use around here.

V1 is far more superior and if you live in a rural area/suburbs then get the V1.

 

It's really too bad V1 has never kept up with technology. I believe they have a patent on the directional arrows. I find them handy because with a range so large, a lot of times the cop is on a road I'm not on (whether a parallel one or perpendicular). The arrows are handy to know when you're definitely past whatever the signal was.

It's too bad though, V1 is definitely losing out to a lot of other technologies. Even with GPS systems like Waze (iPhone app) where you can notify other users of the app where a cop is hiding. Someone should tie that in closely with radar (like the false positives detection) and then we would really have a system!

 

Waze is great. I do not use radar detectors but I do use Waze. Radar detectors are a waste of money.

 

The best thing about the V1 are the arrows! The worst is probably the sensitivity and noise!

 

Good luck!

 

I just made a trip to Florida and Escort live worked brilliantly going thru Georgia. That is the big advantage over valentine is the social network. If you're worrying about arrows, it points to which direction the cop was spotted even if they aren't shooting radar yet. Even my wife was amazed with the performance on the trip because here in Nashville it doesn't seem to be as many people with escort live. Plus the database of red light cameras.