Escort Live Review
“Escort Live! will make you the most intelligent and safest driver in history” – Radar Roy 2011
You’re driving down the highway without a care in the world and all of a sudden out of the corner of your eye you spot an officer pointing some hand held device right at you.
Instinctively you jam on the brakes just as your radar detector begins alerting, but it’s too late….
You just been shot and got with either laser or an instant on radar gun.
Now sitting there on the side of the highway as the officer pens out your speeding ticket you think to yourself:
“Why hasn’t someone come out with a device that we could simply plug into our radar detector that would not only share radar and laser alerts with other users, but also enable drivers to warn each other of impeding speed traps?”
Escort Live Review
>> Check out our 45 Minute Live Broadcast from SEMA with Escort Reviewing the Escort Live <<
Well today there is such a device and it is called Escort Live!
Escort Live! is a Bluetooth device that is installed into a power cord that plugs into your cigarette lighter and your compatible Escort or Beltronics radar detector.
Escort Live! then interfaces with your iPhone or Android mobile phone through a free Bluetooth application that then connects you to a worldwide community of drivers just like yourself.
As a member of the Escort Live! community you share alerts from your radar detector while also sharing “cop spotted” alerts, mobile photo enforcement cameras and other speed traps in real time.
Your radar detector and smart phone is also interfaced with Escort’s Defender database of all the fixed photo enforcement cameras in North America.
Setting up Escort Live! with your smart phone and Escort/Beltronics radar detector is very easy and only takes minutes.
First you plug it into your cigarette lighter and connect the power cable to your compatible Escort or Beltronics radar detector.
Next, you download the Escort Live! application either for your iPhone or Android phone then activate the Bluetooth connection between your Escort Live! and Smart Phone
Now launch Escort Live! and you joined Escort’s army of the most intelligent and safest drivers in history.
Here are some of the most notable features of Escort Live!
- The ability to share radar and laser alerts in real time with other members of the Escort Live! community.
- The ability to share “cop spotted” alerts in real time with other members of the Escort Live! community.
- The ability to share mobile photo enforcement and other speed traps with other members of the Escort Live! community.
- The ability to forever lock out known false alert locations from your radar detector.
- GPS technology for your non GPS featured Escort/Beltronics radar detectors such as the Escort 8500 X50, the Bel STi, the Escort Redline, the Beltronics Magnum.
- Interface with Escort’s Defender database of fixed photo enforcement cameras through North America.
- The ability to program, update your compatible Escort/Beltronics radar detector through the Escort Live! program.
- Voice alerts through your smart device, warns you of impeding threats.
- No need to purchase a new radar detector! Just download the application and connect your compatible Escort/Beltronics radar detector.
- And much, much more…
Frequently Asked Questions About Escort Live!
- Why is Escort Live! so different from Cobra’s iRadar. Well I can basically answer this in one word, performance. Cobra’s radar detector products are notorious for having low performance and poor filtering while Escort’s products are known for having high performance and great filtering. What does this mean for the driver? Well the ability to respond to alerts in sufficient time and not being bothered by a barrage of false alerts. Escort Live! also shares its information with other Escort Live! users in real time, joining you into a community of like-minded drivers who are all watching out for each other. Escort calls it “Social Media for the road” while I call it “becoming part of a community of the safest and most intelligent drivers in the world”.
- Wouldn’t my iPhone or Android screen become littered with alerts from all these other drivers and their alerts? No, because Escort understands that just because an officer is there now, chances are he isn’t going to be there in another hour.Fresh alerts are marked in red and then change to orange and then yellow before they disappear off the screen in an hour. However if another Escort Live! user encounters the officer at this same location within this time frame they can make an update by simply pressing the “cop spotted” button on the smart cord or on the smart phone screen.
- Is this information all anonymous? Yes, at this time all the information Escort is collecting is anonymous. However at some point as the network grows Escort may allow users to log in and mark their locations with their usernames and then the ability to share this information on other social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter. However I don’t expect this to happen for at least another year.
- Does Escort Live! have a Direct Wire cord yet for my dash mounted radar detector? Not yet but this is coming soon, perhaps after the 1st of the year.
- I have a remote Escort/Beltronics radar detector; will Escort Live! have something for me too? Yes, but again not during the initial launch. I suspect that your remote mounted radar detector would be supported within the 2nd quarter of 2012
What is my bottom line recommendation for Escort Live!?
Buy it!
I have tested hundreds of speed counter measure devices during my 40+ year career and I have never seen a product such as Escort Live!.
Escort Live! will forever change how you think and will use a radar detector forever.
Unfortunately, Escort is NOT supporting customers who have to hardwire their detectors. Loser.
The Escort Live direct wire will come out after the 1st of the year
If you want to hard wire it just by a cig lighter extention cord and cut the male end off. You’ll be left with a positive and negative wire. Add a fuse to the positive wire and now you can hard wire the extention in. Plug your smart cord into the female end and hide it anywhere you like.
@ SimpleMan I was going to suggest the same thing but someone would screw up the wiring and I didn’t want to be the 1st person to buy someone else a Escort Live . No this would be super easy to do. I would just go buy one of those female plugs Radio Shack sells and connect to the fuse box. Thanks for the comment!
I can’t believe 3 people gave this is a negative vote. You’ve got something against electricity and the laws of physics?
You need to repost this as an ADVERTISEMENT, not a review. Then you need to hang your head in shame. The product may indeed be good, but only stupid people will not realize that you have accepted some sort of payment and/or consideration from Escort in exchange for posting this fawning drivel. Perhaps the makers of the Ghost radar detector refused to pay to play, since you singled them out by name in a very uncalled for and random way.
Believe what you may Criss, we take no payment for our reviews or product endorsements from the manufactures.
Criss. If they can’t manufacture something with FCC approval, then you know the company is shady. In Roy We Trust!
I called Escort and asked about a straight cord for the Redline Live and they told me it was not currently available, and that the current coiled cord could not be spliced. I’m considering a Radio Shack 6′ extension telephone cord with a double ended, “thru” female connector, which still might work fine. I just haven’t tried it. I will.
They certainly don’t want you messing with the coiled power cord for some unknown reason, although I can’t see where that would affect anything. The Bluetooth unit is in the end of that power plug.
With that in mind, I am going to consider remoting the power connection source to where I can mount the detector in the same place where I always have, unseen, out of sight. If I can’t extend the coiled cord for whatever reason, just put the needed extension on the power source. That should give the same results although it might not look as nice.
I just went on a little 700+ mile trip to visit relatives for Christmas and I bought the RedLine with the Escort Live cord. I love the way the thing extends the user interface of the radar detector, giving you access to more information at once than the led display can by itself. I was surprised to have absolutely NO connection problems with the Bluetooth and my iPhone. The thing connects INSTANTLY every time which is more than I can say for my headsets and other custom BT accessories. This has to be the most reliable BT device that I’ve ever seen when it comes to maintaining a connection.
The main problem right now seems to be that there aren’t enough people using it. I just drove 700 or so miles from MI to GA, mostly on major interstates, and didn’t see any alerts on the map from other users. Either their servers aren’t working or there just aren’t near enough people using the thing yet. Perhaps Escort is also timing out the alerts too quickly, or requiring too many confirmation reports before displaying to other users. It seems like I should have seen something from other users over that distance on major roads and interstates.
I hope Escort will do something like sell the cords at cost or give a bunch away in some sort of promotion or something to rapidly grow the number of online users so that the service will have more obvious value and get the critical mass of users going to get massive growth started. I don’t know what the right solution is but I hope Escort’s marketing people will come up with something good.
The software user interface is actually quite good, but it could use some enhancements to avoid the need to, for example, tap a tiny button to bring up the manual reporting (cop spotted, etc) menu. The more features they add to the software to help people make sense of which alerts are important (perhaps some advice based on detected frequencies) the more people will want the app and will eventually get into the social aspect even if they weren’t primarily buying it for that originally.
Regarding the HARD WIRING issue: You don’t even really need a female dc socket to make your own hardwire cable, and you certainly don’t need to take anything apart or cut any cords. Any cable for something that has any sophistication to it beyond being a wire, fuse, and male connector, I refuse to cut up or damage at all. What I did with my GPS was strip about one foot of appropriate gauge wire, then wrap that like crazy all over the cigar connector ground terminals so there’re was no chance of a bad or high resistance connection, then wrap all of that very tightly with layers of electrical tape. After thoroughly insulating the ground side from the outside world, I wrapped uninsulated wire all over the tip connector including jamming some in around the tip to ensure good contact, then I wrapped the crap out of that with electrical tape. Finally I very soundly wrapped the insulated part of the wires up and taped them over and under a layer of tape to make sure that pulling on them had no chance of pulling out anything. After that I was left with a socket with some serious tape on the connector with a + and gnd wire coming out of the end that I could crimp to whatever. Because the cord was long enough I was able to stash the connector/adapter part up under the dashboard along with excess wire and zip tie it like crazy to a secure location. While I don’t think this is an unreasonable solution if you make a lot of effort to ensure that the uninsulated part of the wire is in very secure contact with the terminals, and you’ve seriously wrapped insulation around each individually so there’s no chance of the wires shorting, I can image this being something that some people would do a poor job of resulting in problems. So using a cigar lighter socket-on-cord from radio shack, along with a bunch of duct tape to hold the thing in, might be a more idiot proof solution. Anyway, turning a male connector into two wires isn’t that difficult.
If the Escort cable is too short to get the adapter/interface/socket part to some convenient location then note that the detector side of the cable is just a RJ12 6 pin connector so you should be able to just buy a standard RJ12 female-to-male extension cable to get the connector dongle thing as far away as needed. If everything is done non destructively like this then if you remove all the tape and clean off some sticky stuff then the Escort cable is back to its original condition, no damage done.
Of course all of this MUST be done solidly with very solid connections and an appropriately rated fuse in the circuit. Because its too easy for people to mess this up it’s not the sort of thing that manufacturers are going to support, and don’t ask me to help
@Robert; thank you for your review! Yes it is a little bit lonely out there now but I have come across a couple new hot spots in and around Phx from a couple users so its a start
Ok …. question? My Passport power cord has 4 wires, a black, a res, a green, and a bare wire. I want to wire my Passport directly, and since I have an auto-diming mirror on my vehicle, I could use that as my power source. If I cut the factory cigarette lighter power cord down to say 9 inches, do I need to fuse it since the mirror is already fused? Any idea which of the 4 wires is power and which is ground?
Yes, Scentis I would recommend a fuse. Not sure what the amperage of your mirror is but if it is over 2 amps you would risk frying your detector
Looks promising. I wonder if this effectively adds GPS functionality to units like the Redline so that the selective mute function for known false alerts.
I also wonder just how many active users would be required to make the system effective in a given area. I’ve seen similar cloud functionality in GPS units used to crowd source traffic data. No idea how well that works or how many active users it requires to make it happen.
I’d love to have a Redline, but the lack of GPS filtering of false alerts has held me back. I have the 9500ix hardwired, but might just be willing to step up to a Redline with Escort Live. Holding off until I know more, but the Redline package deal looks pretty tempting on the Escort website.
@ SojournerMoon Yes, The Escort Live makes your “dumb” non GPS equipped radar detector like your STi, Redline, 8500 x50 and RX65 into a smart device that will filter out false alerts, give you access to the Defender database and more. The Escort Live community will be a little thin for the 1st couple months, that is why they are having a special promotion on it for the next couple months. Buy it now to save $100 + or wait and pay allot more!
if Escort build a tiny bluetooth adaptor between the phone jack and detector which is capable with existing (mark: which is existing, not a completely new) direct wire, that would be so cool.
How will this help if a cop is hiding at a known false location?
@ Andy Good question Andy. The Escort Live can determine the exact frequency of the false alert that you mark and it is extremely unlikely that a real officer would be transmitting on this same exact frequency.
Only problem I see here is that my 9500xi does not alert 80% of the time with laser because I being shot at the bumper, Thanks goodness for blinder protection.
@ nick Gotcha, thought you ment the radar antenna. Yes, the laser transponders are difficult to put on a Vette. If you do get it installed and working please share some photos
I have been using iRadar for little while now it is sort of the same thing. It connects your phone and your radar detector via Bluetooth. It has a database of known speed traps, red light cameras, and as well as user reports. I think a little competition and review of both units to test both the knowledge in their databases and the detectors themselves to see which one is the best is needed.
Cobra Radar Dectectors are cheap crap. I had 3 different ones recently before I bought the 9500ix. They usually alerted by the time I already had the cop in my sights.
I ordered a Redline today with Escort Live because my old Passport X50 wouldn’t support it. When it came to a direct wire cord their response was they had no idea if they’d be making one or not. The Android Escort Live won’t ship until December and they noted my file that a direct-wire was preferred….hopefully enough pressure will get them to take notice of this issue.
Roy…go to bat for us please!
I was told by the engineers that they would be working on a direct wire version
This seems like it would only help in areas where a lot of people have this device. The 9500ci or the Bel STi-R would be just as effective when coupled with LI’s or Blinders and a can of Veil. If the officer is using instant on Ka, and waits for you to turn on his radar gun, then you can detect it when someone else goes past. If it is a road that people rarely go on, chances are that the people who do go on that road won’t have escort live. Great idea though, it just seems that a different package would be more ideal.
If one were to implement Escort Live on a compatible Smartphone to enable the GPS functionality, why would a more full-featured “smart” detector like the Escort 9500ix be necessary? Wouldn’t the Escort 8500 x50 be an adequate partner to Escort Live?
If Escort Live is poised to become the “killer app” that radar detection has been waiting for I am interested in know what the best pairing(s) might be in terms of modern dash mounted radar detector with Escort Live.
@ Matt The 8500 x50 would make a perfect partner to the Escort Live effectively turning your dumb detector into a smart detector at a much cheaper price. I am currently testing the units with Redlines
Roy, my 8500 has just gone up again. It seems like I’ve had it better than 6 years. Before I replace it I’d like to ask a question. Doesn’t a GPS enabled unit sound safer in the vehicle to operate than a non-GPS enabled unit with a cell phone tethered?
@ Fred J Not sure if I understand your question Fred “sound safer”. The units will have the same type of audible warnings and with Escort Live if you’re on your phone you will receive a short audible voice alert through the phone. You can deactivate these alerts if you do desire.
As an 8500 X50 user, the 9500ix is well worth the upgrade to get rid of extraneous signals, automatic dimming, red light camera alerts, and false alert learning.
That’s precisely why I went with the Redline over the 9500…with Escort Liev running with a Redline you get all the advantages of the GPS functions of the 9500 coupled with the superior detecting ability of the Redline. You just can’t miss with this one-two punch. I forgot to add in most earlier post…I dug up an old Passport 3500 I bought back in 1990 or so and that was worth $80 in trade-in on my new Redline…plus they packages Escort Live in with my Redline for $39, not $79. I have no idea how long that’s going to be available but if you’re sitting on the fence with it trying to decide…I’d jump in with both feet.
Any plans for ValentineOne (V1) compatibility?
Preferably/sppecifically for Android?
Yes I am a V1 & Motorola Droid2 owner & Trapster (Android App user) constantly in pursuuit of the Bigger & Brighter Rainbow.
@AdMan The Lab Rat The V1 would not support the Escort Live as there has to be a 2-way link between the detector and the device. There are some outside vendors that are looking to make such a device and V1 is updating their detectors to support these outside devices
I think Cheetah makes a product that works with the Valentine one, also http://radaractive.com/ works great, and probably has a better user base than the Escort version ever will.
@ Max Thanks Max I hadn’t heard from the Cheetah guys in awhile, the phone numbers I had for them are not working anymore. I will follow-up to see if its these guys.
I would love to jump on board with Escort Live. I know of a few known speed traps that my Redline does not detect in advance until it is too late (State Police usually are situated here using I/O Ka). However, I bought a blendmount to mount the Redline to my rearview mirror (love it by the way) and I installed the direct wire as well. Running a cigarette lighter smart-cord up to my rear view mirror isn’t something I’d be willing to deal with (as I would probably hit the cord with my arm / rip out the plug by accident). When the Direct Wire version of this comes out, will it have the same low-low introductory price? Or if I wait on Direct Wire, am I looking at spending way more? Also, just to confirm, using Escort Live with a Redline – I am still completely stealth to RDDs, correct?
Can’t wait for this product! I was considering a 9500ix to filter false alerts, but I went with the Redline for superior range and performance and now I can have both! 🙂
@ Giuseppe Don’t know about the price, that is something we can ask during the Live Broadcast next week.
Escort had me, then lost me. I just noticed the “fine print” in the Escort webpage saying that the device comes with an “ESCORT Live! Subscription through 2012.” This means we have to pay subscription fees from here on out? And those of us in the beginning will get something that is poorly supported (because of lack of other people in my area)? Sounds like a deal breaker to me.
Fact is, Escort is getting free data from my detector and phone, both of which are at my cost… and now they want to charge me for this?
This is going to stifle adoption of this technology very quickly…
@ Schwinn The subscription is for the Defender data which is also a subscription service on all of Escort smart devices.
Their website also says: “This combination of technologies gives you access to the most powerful driver alert network – the patented ESCORT Live! (subscription may apply).” which does not apply to just the Defender data.
The defender DB comes with the Live subscription
To clarify….is it just the Defender database of red light and speed cameras that requires the subscription? Will the Escort Live smartphone app work without the subscription?
@ Rob Good question, will need to find out next week. The units I have all have the subscription.
Can a cell phone maintain two different bluetooth connections at once?
I’m wondering if I will lose hands free phone czpability whilst my android phone is bluetooth connected to Escort Live.
@ Buford Wilson I have the understanding that the iPhone will handle multiple connections at once, but not sure. Will ask during the conference call
I had iRadar for Android with my DroidX and it would not support two Bluetooth connection, which is why I sent it back. I can not loose my Bluetooth speaker.
Dear Schaumburg Guy. The iRadar application does support having two bluetooth connections. I have the Samsung Epic 4G and my android phone connects to both the iRadar105 and the handsfree in my car. However, it is possible that different phone manufacturers may handle bluetooth connections differently.
The short answer is “probably.”
The long answer is “it depends on your phone.”
I had the same exact question. I have BlueTooth in my car and pipe the audio through the speakers for hands free calling. I didn’t want to sacrifice this for Escort Live. I have an iPhone 4.
From what I can find, the BlueTooth specification states you should be able to create a network with up to 7 independent devices simultaneously.
“Each device in a piconet can also simultaneously communicate with up to seven other devices within that single piconet and each device can also belong to several piconets simultaneously.” http://bluetooth.com/Pages/Basics.aspx
It also appears that a single device can belong to more than one network (“piconet”) simultaneously. The main limitation is that there is not a lot of bandwidth on BlueTooth, and it’d have to be shared between all the devices connected. Therefore, you probably don’t want more than 3-4 devices connected at a time.
Of course that’s the specification. Each manufacturer is responsible for implementing BlueTooth per specs, and to be honest, BlueTooth is a very complicated and klugy system. It’s actually a wonder that it works at all.
For example, only recently did Apple open up the iPhone to connections to devices other than BT headsets. The hardware was fully capable of it, but the software was not permitting it. Same with A2DP, which is a part of the more recent BT specs. Other handsets from other manufacturers may behave better or worse.
I have seen mention of multiple simultaneous BT connections with an iPad, so it seems logical that the iPhone, at least as of iPhone 4 and later, ought to be able to do the same. You’d also think that they’d test it with an iPhone pretty much first, since that’s their target market, and hands free BT calling is pretty much mandatory in some states. It’d be one of those major design flaws that shouldn’t have made it out of brainstorming phase.
I’m willing to bet that it’ll work just fine with my iPhone 4. I have a BT keyboard, so I suppose I could also try pairing it and seeing if it will work with my BT headset on. You might try something similar.
Since there appears to be a hard connect between the iPhone and the power connector, I wonder why USB wasn’t used instead of Bluetooth … then simulataneous Bluetooth connections would be a moot point.
I dont see how this is any better than Trapster. With near 14 million users. With the latest update its simple as well as intuitive to use. They no longer use “trapmaps”. All that is required now is to download ap, start it on your smart phone, select what alerts you want, and bingo, it will follow you where ever you go via gps. Had it for a few years now. Best of all, its FREE.
Please dont get me wrong. I think Escort is the BEST in the business at detecting radar. (I have a redline) I just dont see how this LIVE service will be any better. Plus, how long before it builds up a user level of 14 million?
A better use of their substantial resources would have been to design a way to alert to the gps domes that more and more LE uses today to keep track of their units.
Sam
@ Sambogoode I have used both and there is a big difference. 1st you don’t have to press buttons if it is a laser or Ka alert. The info gets uploaded automatically. Second it makes your “dumb” radar detector smart by now filtering out false alerts, providing GPS capabilities, and sharing of info across the network.
Will this add-on ever be compatible with the 9500ci? It may be a bit redundant with the 9500’s laser shifters, but I figure it couldn’t hurt to have an extra measure of protection, especially from instant-on.
@Jonathan Yes, the 1st roll out is for the dash mounted units, that should be finished in the 1st quarter of 2012 They will then roll this out to the remote units
I would like to know if you believe this would be as good as the STiR Plus and which would be the better setup, Escort Live with Redline or 9500ix? Please let me know what you think
@ Scott great question. The STi R would be a better detector but would not have the Live reporting until Escort makes a module for their remotes which should be in 4 months or so.
Ok so the Redline, or the 9500ix for live, but which would be better? Also with live is it a better deal then STi-R Plus or even the 9500ci? Price wise of course but I do a lot of Driving, I can live with a installed unit in my car, but also have it on the window would be good to have the live. Is Escort looking to add this to the 9500ci?
@Scott Depends on which unit would be better for you. If you drive in the city my choice would be the 9500ix because of the filtering. If you’re a road warrior and spend most of your time on the open road it would be the Redline
But didn’t you say that with Escort live, the redline or any other product without gps will get gps functionality and radar filtering?
@ Tony, sorry on mobile so I cannot see the post that you’re referencing, but yes, Escort Live will give you the photo enforcement database and the filtering
Interesting new service and I will subscribe. I’m curious if the ‘live’ service works without a detector attached. I use a 9500 in my private vehicle but can’t in my work truck. It would be a major improvement on smartphone aps such as ‘Trapster’ and the like. It would allow a user to contribute when they have a detector but still take advantage of the community at other times.
@Anthony Currently the service will work but you will get a message that you do not have a radar detector attached. I hope that they will get rid of this NAG screen
Is it sharing false alerts also? I would say it is the same as trapster app or am I wrong?
@Dmitri Its like a trapster app that connects to your detector and shares that info too
Great stuff guys – good thinking.
Will it work and be available in New Zealand?
Cheers and keep up the good work.
@Andy Mayhew not for some time Andy, sorry
Remind me not to give ideas on the here without patenting them first. 🙁 Oh well, at least someone actually built it. Now the question is, “how much for the subscription to the database?”
I just contacted Escort asking for details on the subscription price for escort live beyond 2012, they refused to answer. Stating no other smart phone app will have the customer base they have? I for one will no be a customer until I know what the cost for the subscription will be? So much for the huge customer base they think they’ll have if the cost is prohibitive.
So thinking that they state “Save a $100 by preordering the cable and subscription, reading between the lines, sounds like a $100 subscription rate in the future?? Perhaps maybe more? Doubt if they can count on me to supply free data to their social sharing service if it’s above 9.95 per year. so much for their HUGE sharing customer base then. I’ll stand alone, worked well so far.
Now we need countermeasures for police using aircraft to spot speeders. I got nailed the other day 2 miles before the waiting police cars, which were lined up to usher speeders to the side of the road. Escort Live needs aircraft button with 3 mile wide alerting area. LOL!
I am confused about the costs to run all this stuff.
There is the cost of the Escort Radar ~$80
Never having an iphone4 (but will soon for my standard phone), does one pay for downloading the app?
WyoTbird implies there will be a monthly subscription price involved?
Can somebody clear the confusion? If not why would I want to buy into technology with open ended pricing?
@ j_iliz the iPhone app is free. The Special we have on our site includes 1 year subscription. After the year is up then you would have the yearly subscription kicks in. There is NO official price yet for the subscription but I suspect it would be in line with their other services, around $39 a year
How does Escort Live work when you’re listening to Pandora through you Iphone? Or what happens when phone call comes in? Does the Escort live application work in the background?
@james Yes, the Live would work in the background. When a call comes in would get voice alerts during you call which is pretty cool. Same thing in other apps
Just to clarrify, so people don’t misinterpret the response. This answer would depend on the multi-tasking abilities of your smartphone. IPhones have multi-tasking so Escort Live will continue to run in the background. The answer is different for Androind phones. If your Android device is running a pre-“Ice Cream” OS version, (e.g. my 2-year-old Samsung Galaxy tab), the background application will stop. So, when a call comes in, Escort Live stops running.
Thanks Frank
I purchased an IQ a few months back and was pretty annoyed when I called escort and was told that this will not work with Escort’s “latest and greatest.”
What gives? My IQ power cord will power my friend’s 9500. Is escort going to address this issue in the future or am I SOL?
@ WV driver, Escort IQ will not support the Escort Live because the way it was designed. The plan is that they would be including the features of the Escort Live into the IQ at some juncture
Not sure if you’ve covered this but does the app would use up my data when I’m using it just like the pandora and the foscam apps that I have. When I turned off my phone, I forgot to close out the foscam app and after two hurs, my data plan was already used up. Thanks
Once you’re out of range with Bluetooth your phone will close the application and notify you
do you know how much of data it would use up, say I use it for about an hour? I guess I may have to change my data plan to unlimited:( anyway, I just downloaded the app and waiting for my cord and another escort 9500ix(limited RACE edition)….it’s a great detector!!!
@ john, I’m sorry, I don’t know. I have unlimited text and phone on my phone
it’s ok. I guess I’ll find out once I get the new cord
This is an honest question…
Does Radar Roy work for “Escort”?
or is “Escort” really as good as he says?
@ Mike W. and here is an honest answer, no I don’t
After reading your reviews, I decided to pick up a 9500ix – the first RD detector I’ve had in over a decade. So far am very pleased with it. Your review of Escort Live further piqued my interest, but I ultimately decided to pass on it – at least for now. Why? Because even the Escort rep I spoke with on the phone couldn’t answer my questions – namely, what are the long-term subscription costs to the service. How Escort can be providing a new service, offering it at an “early adopter discount”, yet not able to inform users what to expect after the included first year subscription ends is absolutely mind-boggling. So, do I save a few bucks and hope that long-term costs are reasonable? Or do I wait for Escort to provide the information that should have been available all along, and eat the additional $60 charge.
Sounds to me like Escort is trying to sucker a bunch of people into paying to beta-test a new product.
@ Charlie O – Glad you like the 9500ix – Yes, Escort is still up in the air about the subscription for their Live product but I have heard they are expecting it to be around $39 a year. Please DON’T hold me to that
@ Roy – thanks for the response. I’m going to hold off for now at least – eventually they’ll verify the pricing AND provide a DirectWire option. Personally, I’d rather pay a bit more up front and not be tied to a subscription model; as expressed in some of the posts above, going the subscription route is going limit adoption, which will make the service less valuable overall. It will be interesting to see which route Escort takes, and whether or not it will be appealing enough to get me off the sidelines.
Great idea, BUT requiring a smart phone? bleh. Integrate whole deal into a system like the passport IQ with a database of past radar contacts depicted as graphics on a real-time map and i will be impressed.
This looks like a whale of a system. Fantastic actually. But it has a whale of a plug-in and cord. That thing is massive. I am not even sure if it will plug into my Corvette’s cigarette lighter because my car has very limited space around the plug. I haven’t had a cigarette lighter plug in for years. I use a direct wire from the back of my rear-view mirror … turns on/off with the ignition. Very convenient and totally out of the way. I do NOT want to go back to a massive plug-in and wire.
I am confused about what has been batted around as an Escort Live “direct wire option” coming out early next year (rumor). What would that look like? My main question is will future models of Escort detectors have all of this capability just built into the unit? Like a RedLine Plus? That way I could buy a unit with it built in and use my existing visor mount and direct wire configuration!
They are planning on coming out with a direct wire version, hope to see a mockup at CES next month
Roy,
Do you know if Escort plans on adding Live to the IQ?
@phil. from my understanding no as the IQ couldn’t support it
I am a trucker and recieved a c.s.a. Warning in ohio for 3mph over 6weeks ago without a citation. Just arrived home after racing to boston and back to ohio to cover a important load.Christmas eve i get back to find that my company has sent me a letter that if i recieve 2 more violations, even 1 mile over, they will decertify my my lease. I found you radar roy this morning….i like the beltronics R plus and the smartphone app. Question i have is does it detect radar and laser when interfaced with detector and upload the info automaticlly or does the user have to imput the locations in? I love the concept if its automatic and there were enough users. Im thinking this is so new that when enough people get wind of its ability laser and radar will be all but obsolite. Can truckers use this smartphone technology without using a detector ? I think not.
Hi James and sorry about your Christmas gift. As a trucker you would need to have a radar detector that is undetectable by police.
Police use a device called the Spectre and it can sniff out 99% of all radar detectors made today with the exception of the Escort Redline, the Bel STi, the Bel STi r Plus and the Escort 9500ci.
You didn’t say if you own your own rig or if you drive a company rig.
If it is your own truck I would ask that you check out the STi R Plus. It is a remote install. I had one installed on our Freight liner motor home.
If you drive a company rig then I would recommend the Escort Redline
As far as laser, you would have to go with the Laser Interceptor high power and install it. If it isn’t your rig then you are SOL as you would be spending over a grand for that unit
Yes i own my rig Roy, finally got the title last month 2007 w900L studio.beautiful.with the c.s.a. Standards hitting hard i never wanted a radar detector till now to save my livelyhood. My question is about the smartphone app and the new system “escort live” after its installed with the bel sti r plus, will it automatically along with everyone elses system upload speed trap info live or does each person who has signed up to escort live have to manually input speed trap locations? Also do you see this escort live systen catching on so as to be extreamly effective ? I would think thetrucking community would love something like this.Thanks Roy.
It would take about a year for this to start catching up for the trucking community
Escort/Bel is planning on coming out with a device for the remote units this spring
However if you don’t want to wait and you don’t mind the dash mounted unit, go with the Escort Redline and the Live, they are running a limited time special now:
http://go.radardetector.org/escortlive
Does anyone have an ideal of how many Escort live units have been sold?? I got mine for Andriod and according to the serial number i’m number 34.
On a recent 12 hour trip I used 65% of my data plan – about 120mb. I am now switching to the unlimited plan! I didn’t get any warnings from the Escort Live app, so the number of subscribers must be pretty small at the moment.
What part of the country you in KDC?
To supplement my previous post, I estimate Escort Live! used about 10MB per hour on my trip, which was from Colorado to New Mexico and back.
My power chord S/N is less than 400, maybe that’s the number been sold so far?!
When I checked on my droid two days ago for the Escort Live APP it showed over 10,000 downloads
I have a 9500IX and have been interested in purchasing the Escort Live subscription, but am waiting on the direct wire option to become available. Does anyone know specifically when that will be? Alternatively, I have a mobile installer who can follow the previous advice given here regarding the work around wiring, with the Escort Live coiled cord that is the only thing available now. I want to go with a blend mount for my 9500IX and want a direct wire set up. What’s my best course of action? Thanks.
While at CES I spoke to Escorts President and he said that they will have the direct wire version “real soon”
Thanks, Roy. That settles it, I’ll wait until I hear there is the direct wire option for this. Now all I need is a blend mount for an ’09 Cadillac CTS-V.
Any update to this? I’m still holding out on the Escort Live product until the direct wire set up is being offered. Thanks.
Other then this is a top priority no. They have not released a date yet
Might be a great product but so far it only partially works with my Motorola Atrix 4G. Both the app which I downloaded for android is the latest and the phone is at the latest version 2.3.4 gingerbread. The phone connects with the cord but there is no speed read out or speed limit working. Nor does the screen work completely on a radar hit ( no sound) or displat as seen in there add. The map is moving , plus I can change features on the 9500ix but thats all so far.
Hopefully Escort will get this fixed reeal soon !
Here’s the killer on the Escort Live besides no hardwired solution:
If you are paired with your Escort Live, you cannot pair with your car’s BT.
That won’t fly for me.
They are working on a direct wire version now….
My Droid3 phone pairs with both the escort 9500ix as well as my 2007 Lexus RX350 at the same time. Sounds like the phone and not the app.
That is interesting and encouraging. I thought that a BT pairing was unique and not packet coded like WiFi. I haven’t tried to network over BT to multiple devices yet.
I think I need to do more research.
I am using a Escort 7500 with a hide-away pannel and straight power cord. What is the dector doing in this new scheme and will my old but very functional 7500 work with the new device and my iPhone (or `droid 3.2 tablet)?
Wow, you have an old unit there
No, it will not work with the Escort Live
Also your detector will not detect the newer digital bands very well
Time for an upgrade??
escort live work amazing so glad i got it.
I spoke to escort directly today.
I was told 2 more months before a direct wire was available for the live unit. You could however get a jack pass through and another cable to just extend the wire. It would work just the same. This was from escort tech support. They predict in a year this will be hammered out of all bugs and used alot more.
Robert, thanks for the update. I had a call scheduled with them on Monday
Saw someone else posted this question, but did not see a response, will expand on it.
How is data transfered via phone network, is it on your data plan or SMS text? That being answered, how long is a spot identified for on the network? 1 hr, 3 hrs, 24 hrs? Most traps are set for a few hours at most. When does the network remove warning?
it is on your data plan so it maybe a good idea to have an unlimited plan
Do you know how long a trap post remains active on the network? Say someone posts spot at 10:00AM, you are passing trough at 3PM, will that notice still get sent?
Will stay active for 1 hour, then it is removed
So with Escort Live I’m going to be paying for the Defender database, isn’t that the same thing I’m already paying for on my 9500ix?
Yes, but that’s for the 9500ix
I understand what you’re saying
That’s what they would say however….
So any update with the passport IQ?
With live? They came out in the beginning no, not supported by Live
will escort Live work with the beltronics v8?
No
I would never pay $99 for the escort live service (escort live service plus cable)!!! this service should be free since you already pay five hundred plus dollars for the radar detector and the users are the ones doing the work by reporting the police. the only thing they should be charging for is the escort live cable which is $29 but for now I’m gonna stick to the FREE WAZE APPLICATION WHERE YOU CAN REPORT POLICE SPEED TRAPS, ALSO HAS TRAFFIC INFO AND NAVIGATION. When escort charges 29 dollars for it I will get it. ALSO THE APP IS LACKING A LOT OF USERS WITHOUT USERS THE APP IS USELESS. THE REASON FOR THE LACK OF USERS IS PRICE FOR SERVICE PLUS THE CABLE.
So I assume that I’d have to have a smartphone with a data plan to utilize this? If that’s the case, how much of my allotted data would be used up on average during a billing cycle? I’ve foregone having a smartphone mainly since the offered plan pricing is way beyond what I’m willing to pay, in which case this would do me no good if I require a phone such as that.
No you do not NEED the smartphone and/or that data plan to use the Smart radar. The display module that you attach to the mirror will provide you with your typical radar detector alerts. The smartphone however will provide you with real time information from other SmartRadar users however
Hi Radar Roy,
I have spotted a few officers running what seemed to be CO KA and my Redline has been what I feel is slower to react. They were about 1/2 mile away, directly in front of me. I use a BlendMount to hang my detector and I have had better performance in the past. It was a few seconds before I picked up the radar gun. I understand perhaps the officer waited until he saw me to turn on the gun, or any number of factors could have come in to play but that begs the question..
— In your testing, did you feel that adding Escort Live in to the mix slowed down the reaction time of the Radar Detector itself?
Like I said I am running an Escort Redline with a BlendMount. I am using Escort Live, Direct Wired and the Android App.
Thanks!
-Joe
No, Escort Live will not effect performance. Remember radar is directional, so if the beam is pointed away from you it will take longer to detect.
Whilst I am here, reading the comments, I might as well chip in as I see some negative marks here.
I have tried trapster, waze and the free, month-to-month-cable-free version of Escort Live before buying the full version of Escort Live.
Escort Live wins.
Here is why
Trapster and Waze are nice.. however.. the LAST thing I want to do while I am driving is fumble about some user interface while I am DRIVING. I found myself using it less and less and just listening via bluetooth for things that others have posted. This was especially true for Waze because reporting a police trap, or reporting heavy traffic was several taps in order to do it. Now imagine… you see a cop.. first thing you do.. is go for your cell phone? No.
Trapster – This was okay – it runs a little slower on my droid and anyone can report anything and they don’t even need to be in a car to do it. You can use the web interface which can create a lot of false positives for people on the road. Moreover, the alert expiration is close to never.
Furthermore, if you live in less populated area. Less populated meaning.. not a MAJOR metropolitan area.. you will have a limited user community to rely on.
Let’s move on to Escort Live.. I have the direct wire version running in to my center console.. I see a cop, I press a button next to my cup holder. One button. Done. Or, if my Redline picks up KA.. no buttons required. On the user communite complaint, the MAIN reason I bought Escort Live in the first place is because I was torn when I bought the Redline between the Redline and 9500ix. Do I want Range/Stealth.. or GPS / Locking out false alerts? well.. with Escort Live, I can have my cake and eat it too. There aren’t a lot of fellow Escort Live users in my area – however in the morning and afternoon commute, we have the major highways covered which is enough for me.
So to complain about $50/yr over a service that may save a $300 laser ticket? AND I can run Highway mode everywhere I go for the best range with 0 false alerts? AND reporting is quick, accurate and easy? Where do i sign up?
In response to the comment above my question in Radar Roy – when you buy the cable, it comes with a 1-year subscription; you aren’t incurring two initial costs. If you are still on the fence about it.. do what I did..
I installed the app on my phone – without the cable, paid for 1 month and drove around with it on. I received the traps that other users reported. If you find a lot of people are reporting in your area and that it is helpful to you. Go buy the wire.. if it is useless.. you are only out 5 bucks.
Joe (and Radar Roy)
Your response above is fantastic. I was on the fence between Redline and 9500ix as well. Your review of Escort Live (and 1 month trial before purchasing a smart cord) were key to my decision. It cleared it up. I will be purchasing Redline. Thanks so much.
FTBCommuter
P.S. Radar Roy’s install videos are fantastic. Thanks for taking the time to make them. They gave me a physical feel for the components before I purchased. Thank you.
Make sure you use the link here and discount code radarroy for 10% off
@Brian Peterson – Escort Live does not pair with your phone as an audio device, that is why you can pair your bluetooth headset AND Escort Live at the same time. This was a major MUST for myself as well.
For me – I had a problem hearing the Redline because I’d have the windows down, music up.. so ideally, I would have my bluetooth in my ear and Escort Live goes off and tells me “Ka band alert” and I hear that and take action. This works like a champ though.
Roy,
I recently ready your review of the newest Passport Max. I was so impressed that I decided to upgrade.
I recall reading previously that the Bell STiR Plus was the baddest hombre on the block as detectors go. I know one is concealed and one is not, but I am interested in how the performed against one another. Can you comment to this?
Thanks.
Deputy Joe
These are the two best units out there. The Max as slightly better range and a lot better filtering. I would suspect that they will release a concealed version of their Max next fall
“Why hasn’t someone come out with a device that we could simply plug into our radar detector [cell phone] that would not only share radar and laser alerts with other users, but also enable drivers to warn each other of impeding speed traps?”
Wayz already does this… for free.
It seems to me that Escort has shot themselves in the foot by expecting people to pay a subscription fee for this service. While community based reporting offers significant advantages, asking buyers of their (already expensive) hardware sees self-defeating. IMO, if Escort wanted to create market share and dominate their competition they’d offer this service for free.
I’m posting this as a long time, multiple Escort owner who’s considering a Max. The subscription service has me looking very closely at alternatives – such as the V1 with YaV1 and Wayz.