Escort Max Radar Detector Finalists
A few weeks ago Ron Gividen from Escort Inc. called asking if I could come out to their corporate headquarters so they could give me a new product to test while I was on a 5-day vacation up in South Dakota.
I assumed that it was going to be some sort of new radar detector that they were going to release this fall. However as I had the privilege of doing some of the testing on some of their other pre-release products before, I knew that they would be very tight lipped until I signed off on all of their non-disclosure agreements.
On the morning of June 24th I arrived in Cincinnati, dubbed the radar capital of the world as the top three radar detector manufactures, Escort, Valentine 1 and Beltronics are all headquartered there.
After a quick tour of Escort’s showroom, I was ushered into a conference room with all the Escort bigwigs, so I knew immediately something BIG was up.
It was there that learned about Escort’s newest radar detector the Escort Passport Max which they were going to begin selling on June 10th 12:00 noon eastern.
Immediately after the conference I was given three units for my testing and review.
What Should I Do With the Other 2 Escort Max Detectors?
After I left Escort with my cache of Escort Max detectors I wanted to do something that was never done before, find two other hard-core radar detector fanatics to do their own unbiased review.
So I came up with the idea of selecting two reviewers by asking them writing a short 200-word comment on why they felt that they were the best candidates to review Escort’s newest product.
I also provided some tips on how they could increase their chances by following me on Twitter, sharing the Facebook posts about my review, joining my YouTube channel and subscribing to my newsletter.
I Was Overwhelmed By the Response
To be perfectly honest, I was expecting perhaps 25, so after reviewing the 200 plus entries as of last night, I knew that I had one of the hardest decisions I had ever had to make in front of me, whom should I choose?
To be totally honest I did think about turning this into some sort of raffle at the last minute, just so I could avoid making such a hard decision. However I felt that this was the chicken way out of it and went to work reading through all the responses, sending out a few e-mails followed up by a couple of telephone calls.
Thank You for Your Support!
First, before I announce who I chosen and why I first extend a honest and sincere thank you to all that took the time out of their busy schedule to everyone who submitted and shared their comments here on my blog, the various radar detector forums, Twitter, Facebook, Google + and YouTube!
To say I was blown away would be an understatement!
My 2 Reviewer’s of the Escort Max
#1 – Steve Paradissis aka HappyA$$: One of the founders of the “Guys of Lidar”, a member of the RadarDetector.net forum and according to his kids a V1 Zombie:
Here is Steve’s comment on why he felt he was qualified:
“I feel that I would be qualified to be one of your official testers of the new Passport Max because I’ve been a radar detector enthusiast since 1982 and I am as hard core as they come.
My first radar detector was the Cobra Trap shooter and since have owned MANY high end radar detectors such as: nine Valentine Ones, several Escort 8500’s and 8500 x50’s, a Bel GX65, an Escort 950CI, two Bel STiRs, two Bel STiR Pluses, a few Redlines, a handful of Whistlers and unfortunately, even one of those Rocky Mountain units that never worked when I started out. Yes I was one of those Rocky Mountain Radar suckers that was suckered into believing my unit jammed radar.
Roy, I was also one of your first members of your RadarDetector.net forum back in 2004, signing up the day you launched it and one of the principle founders of the “Guys of Lidar”, aka GOL.
I feel that with my 21 years of experience as a hard-core radar detector enthusiast, one that has used over two dozen radar detectors, it puts me in the unique position of being able to test the Escort Max and to provide our radar detector community with a totally unbiased review.
In the radar detector community I am highly respected. I have spent many years establishing this solid reputation by being unbiased and calling things the way I see them, in other words “keeping it real” as some call it. I have been searching for that perfect radar detector since 1982. Unfortunately I have yet to find it. The closest I have come to this impossible journey has been the Valentine One, but it even falls short to my stringent, high standards. Please allow me the opportunity and privilege to test out this Escort Max. With a name like that, my expectations are that it will be a game changer and perhaps the perfect radar detector I have been seeking to find since 1982.”
#2 – Stephen Bramell: is a self proclaimed “Gadget Geek” with an engineering degree and background.
Stephen also took that extra step by also creating a YouTube video explaining why he felt that he would be a good candidate for reviewing the Escort Max.
Here is Stephen’s on why he felt he was qualified:
“Why should I be chosen? Being a “gadget geek” with over 18 years IT experience, I love living life on the bleeding edge of technology & radar detectors are no exception. My primary passions are both speed countermeasure devices & mobile technology such as smart phones. As we have seen with the introduction of Escort Live!, the lines between the two are merging into one, creating an exciting array of new devices such as the Passport Max.
Currently I am using the innovative Passport iQ, which I absolutely love! I considered it my favorite of all time, until an ad revealed the Passport Max.
After digging into the technology behind this ground breaking device, I have become overwhelmed with disbelief at just how advanced this piece of engineering art truly is.
Finally, I would like to share that I also have vast product testing experience.
I have tested every version of Microsoft Windows since 3.1 as well as Office since 95. I have tested streaming media devices, printers, scanners, smart phones, hardware & software VoIP, hardware & software firewalls, navigational devices as well as smart phone apps, the list goes on & on. I wish I could go into more details of what I have tested, but due to NDA commitments I am unable too.
I know choosing two people from such as vast group of talented & knowledge individuals that make up your user community, is no easy task. I am truly thankful to just have the opportunity to be considered.”
Watch for Steven’s and Stephen’s Reviews of the Escort Max Here!
Congratulations Steven and Stephen your new Escort Max radar detectors will be shipped later today and I’m looking forward to post each of your reviews here on RadarDetector.org to share with our radar detector community!
