Directional notice ability, sensitivity, ruggedness (I change cars every 6 to 7 month), ease of use, instruction manual.

Mute control can get a little bit hard to press

Do to my work I am constantly on the road (and enjoy enthusiastic driving), and I can say without any doubt that my Valentine 1 has saved me from several dozens of citations. In fact the only ticket that I have received since I bought my unit was a day that I was using a company pool car without my V1. In fact I have been (more than once) doing some friendly sport highway driving with someone using a different type of detector that left them without sufficient advance notification to correct there driving before coming up to our very efficient highway patrol.
So, is Valentine 1 the best radar detector out there, well I don’t know, but I can surely say that it is a great tool for keeping you and your insurance rates safe and under control.
Remember as stated in the Valentine 1 book, this is a tool, one that you have to learn to use. This device is not design to detect police shield, it is design to detect certain radar (and laser) frequencies use among other things for speed detecting police devices. Yes, this means that you have to read the entire owners manual, web page and information regarding the use and function of the systems your local law enforcement uses. Only then you will be able to get the most out of this or any other device.
Be safe (for you, your family and others) and enjoy our great highways,

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A long time ago I use to own a Passport radar detector and even though I prefer my Valentine 1, I have nothing bad to say about it.

Still the best detector out there with the fewest compromises.

Lots of negative rhetoric from V-1 detractors like Craig Peterson.

If you read the previous negative reviews on the Valentine, it would seem that many of them are from the same person, many on the same date! Similar spelling/grammatical errors, etc. They also repeat verbatim, some of the rhetoric from Craig Peterson's comments from previous reviews and sources! Would it even possibly from Peterson himself, purposely inserting errors, and pretending to be someone else to seed the thread with negatives? I used to respect Mr. Peterson's work, and follow his recommendations, however since owing the Valentine that he has so repeated bashed and passed off as inferior and out-dated on various forums and in print, I question his motives and integrity. Read some questionable ethics on a trusted Radar Detector Site: http://guysoflidar.com/march-2007/sabotage.html . This behavior is simply shocking! Many of the comments on another trusted site, http://www.laserveil.com/valentine/one/ (at the end of the review) would seem to be rebuttal directed at Peterson as well. It's my belief that Craig Peterson regularly searches the 'net to find references to his name and / or Valentine for the opportunity to post negative reviews and defend his otherwise indefensible statements about Mike Valentine and the V-1. I am in no way connected to Valentine Research, nor to the industry and as a psychotherapist, and avid car enthusiast, make only observations about behavior that I find questionable. My apologies in advance to Mr. Peterson if I'm off-base, but I think others need to be informed about a pattern of questionable ethics so that they can make up their own minds about what to believe in reviews about radar detectors. My apologies to everyone else for entering 2 reviews.

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Original Fuzzbuster, Whistler, K40, about 9 different BEL models, Escort 8500, Newer Fuzzbuster, Escort 8500 x50

Easy to interpret, arrows, bogey counter, solid construction, full control on the remote display, range, product support, up-gradability.

Aftermarket accessories availability. easy to interpret tones, arrows, bogey counter, programmability, solid construction, full control on the remote display, auto-dimming display, detection range, product support, up-gradability.

I've had my V-1 for 10 years now. I bought into Craig Peterson's reviews back in the early '90s and had gone on his recommendations and purchased various BELs which I had always previously been loyal to (1st detector was an original Fuzz Buster). That changed in 1998 after I tried a colleague's 5 year old V-1. I've been a believer ever since! A few years ago I swapped with a friend for 1 week, his Escort 8500. Small and difficult to interpret display, and 'beep' gave me little information. I couldn't wait to get back my V-1. Now, years later, I figure it's time to up-grade my V-1 for $189. I'm using an 8500 x50 until my new V-1 comes back to me and after a week, I'm a bit under whelmed. The 8500 x50 still has a small and difficult to interpret display, and in 'Expert' mode, hits of X and K come up almost simultaneously in areas with door openers. Knowing some of these as multiple signals on my V-1, the counts on the 8500 are quite inaccurate. Signal ramp-up is very poor, showing low signal strength and suddenly jumping to a solid tone, then inexplicably stopping and jumping to full again. Normally this would indicate an 'instant-on' hit, but with the 8500, you can't tell what it is! As for the famed low falsing of the Escort, it reacts in my daily drives almost as much as my V-1 to door openers, but the 'beep' doesn't tell me anything, so becomes very annoying! Even my daughter thinks that the 8500 x50 is more annoying to live with than the V-1. I can't say much yet about absolute range compared to the V-1, but I know my old V-1 was exceptional. I'd have to say that given the choice of my 10 year old V-1 to the new 8500 x50, I'd probably have to choose the V-1. I was considering the new Escort 9500i, but I've heard many reports of the units occasionally 'Locking out' real police radar when it's set to ignore door openers. Also, I'm a big fan of the Arrows which has saved my butt several times over the years. Another thing to consider is that because of the basic design being so stable, there are many aftermarket accessory makers that market things like remote switches, coloured displays, displays integrated into rear-view mirrors, etc. that are not available for any other radar detector! I'm hoping I love my new V-1 as much, if not more. Even the price is no longer a weakness as several other detectors are priced higher than the Valentine. And with the reasonably priced up-grade to a brand-new unit, where with previous detectors I'd have to give or throw them away, the V-1 seems like a bargain.

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Band indicator should have different coloured LEDs (available aftermarket), not as modern looking as others (function over form), no auto-mute option for those that would like it.

Laser, K, KA, band notice

Price is high

Excellent Product, Found Great information from RadarReviews.Net before deciding to purchase this unit!

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Escort Passport

Ka/K detection distance better than 8500. Laser detection excellent. Loud audible tone even with windows down or radio on. Bogey Counter and Arrows a MUST have.

Magnesium case gets damm hot in the summer when you pull it down to hide the V1. Can burn your fingers. Watch it!

Believe in Santa and Fairies too? Lots of people say this about V1 or that about Passport 8500. Funny thing is I don't personally know any of them or their crediblity. I enjoy driving everywhere and anywhere and consider myself a very serious speeder but not a stupid one. NO ONE should speed in school zones or busy areas including myself. Here's what I did. Bought both the V1 and the 8500 in Jan 2002. Mounted both of them about 2-3" apart from each other same height on my windshield. They DO NOT interfere with each other. Both models excellent on avoiding that mess. Drove from Dallas to Austin on a Saturday morning and back the same day just to find the better detector at around 95mph. By time we(wife and I)got back to Dallas the V1 had outscored the 8500 16:2 V1 picked up radar 3 different times on cross streets a good 2/3s of a mile in them when the 8500 didn't even make a beep. My wife kept score by which radar beeped first but only gave the point after the visual confirmation on the actual cop. V1 was always about 2-3 seconds ahead of 8500. Although the 8500 did have less false alarms than the V1 it wasn't anything extreme. Both are excellent performers and highly recommended. The arrows and the bogey counter are a MUST for the serious speeder and not for the typical 5+mph driver who can do without them and brags about speeding but never getting caught. Only $100 difference between them and the V1 is well worth it. When we finally made it home from Austin I asked my wife which radar I will keep and she said,"Keep the Valentine and send the other one packing". My wife of all people told me this. She is into cooking and garden/yard work and knows nothing of magazine articles or all the hype between V1/8500 but after our real world comparisson even she knew which was the better deal. In Dec. of '02 I gave my wife her own V1 for X-mas and she loves it. Both my wife and I are heavy footed but thanks to V1 we've avoided Ka and Laser happy cops which has more than made up for the $800 spent on the two V1s. In the market for a radar then purchase both units. Both have 30 day refund policies. Test them on the highway or your everyday commute route. The 8500 will be more quiet than the V1 but less sensetive too. Test both units for yourself but like me you will see which is the better deal.

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Passport 8500

Diectional signals, loudness, sensitivity, adjustable mute feature, bogey count

Difficult to tell what band it is reading, the bogey count is cool but too much real estate is given to it and not enough for the band type, price is quite high-but still worth it

This is the best radar detector available period. I bought one of the originals the first month they came out and used it for years. I bought a new one about 10 months ago and am so glad I did. In the interm I used a lower line Bel. It was great for the money but the Val 1 still rocks. The directional signals are invaluable, the sound is loud enough to (usually) hear over my stereo, and the mute functionality is great.

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Escort, Passport, Bel, Uniden,

Excellent range on all bands. The V1 seemed to pickup faster than my old 8500 on all bands (X,K,Ka). And of course, the infamous arrows.

Mike needs to re-design the V1. A drop in price would also be nice..but as the saying goes "...you pay for what you get." I don't find any other weakness in the V1.

Great radar. I personally like the V1 over the 8500, which was also a top-end radar. But I just needed more information about cops, speed traps, etc. So I invested in the V1 (w/concealed unit display). From first impressions of the V1, it works just as good as the 8500..if not better. For people that want more info. on the custom hardwiring w/concealed unit display, check out my '03 TL-S site at: http://www.cardomain.com/id/illogic.

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Passport 8500 & 7500.

Long range detection means a little more confidence when driving in light / very light traffic. Bogey count and arrows have alerted me to closely-spaced stationary and moving traps.

Would like to turn off x-band all together. Laser detection is now succeptible to the red brake-lights of some new SUV's. Not able to distinguish non-police sources of K/KA (such as slow-moving or service vehicles, temporary alpha-numeric sign boards, etc). Band indicators use the same color (red) LED (at night it's hard to tell which band is the threat - different colored LED's would be nice). Need a good way to mount it to the dashboard without using duct tape on the bottom.

I loved my Valentine. Used it all the time I drove for the past 3 years. Too bad an unmarked OPP Impala with 2 female cops nabbed it. I suspect they had Spectre. Funny - I had a bad feeling about that car in my rear-view before they flipped the lights. If radar detectors can't be completely invisible to Spectre (and MD-3 - what's that?) then they ought to have an intermittent mode where they operate for a few seconds and go silent (turn off) for some user-defined time (15 to 60 seconds). That ought to make them less detectible. Look here for more info: http://www.speedzones.com/

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Am now looking at Cobra 9870 because it has pretty good specs, is invisible to Spectre-1 and detects Spectre-2 (but is not invisible to it). Haven't read Cobra reviews yet (that's next).

great detection. easy to use. Direction arrows. After the learning curve, easy to understand alarms. Logical placement of controls. Seems like lot of thought was put into designing the hardware components ie. windshield mount is simple and easy to use.

Learning curve higher than with units with voice. LEDS hard to read @night. Price is a little expensive -my 2nd choice is the 8500.

Great Product and worth the money. I was looking to replace an older unit (non v1) that was not working properly. The V1 came recommended by a few of my Porsche and BMW enthusiast friends. In fact, I see many V1s at the PCA events. I am amazed at how well this unit works. I was driving SB on Fullerton Road (N. Harbor Blvd. @ the crest) from Roland Heights into Fullerton (Ca). There is usually police radar set up at the middle of the downgrade where the church is (about 8/10 mile from the crest to the curch). As I crested the hill, my V1 started going off on KA band with a strength of 2 leds. I thought, what a piece of junk as I thought the radar was set near the church. As I progressed past the church, the KA alarms got stronger and the direction arrow pointed straight ahead. I finally got the the bottom of the hill (7/10 miles from the church) and rounded a right hand sweeper. I looked to my right and saw the the Police Vehicle hidden on a side street with radar pointed up the hill. I thought amazing; what a unit. My other choice was the 8500. I'm sure its also a great unit but i'll stick to the v1.

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Old generation Escorts and Passports when Mike V. was still @Escort. Few Bel 800 series. Uniden and other low pricepoint units.

Arrows / counter combo separates the V1 from the 8500 and Bel units. Range is similar for all 3, but the V1 just gives you more info and it's easy to "read" and understand.

None Price is not a weakness if you're smart enough to sell your old unit on Ebay, then buy a new one. Resale value on the V1 is wicked.

After 4 yrs of using a V1, I can't see myself using anything else. ANY detector without arrows annoys me... In response to Bill Hidden 1 page back, you sold your V1 for $75???? That's weird...I sold my 3 yr old V1.7 V1 for $357 on Ebay, then turned around and bought a brand new "return" unit for $359 from V1. I see Peterson is here spewing his BS :-O

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Cobra, Whistler