Real quick:
Radar Detector Jammer Forum for all the info you could possibly want on every major brand/model of detector.
I own a V1 (at least 5 years now, probably longer) and will never switch. This summer I sent it in because some of the electronics inside gave up their magic smoke. It was out of warranty by many, many years. The Valentine folks fixed her up free of charge, and had it back to me in 1 week. All I paid was shipping to them. Customer service doesn't get much better than that. Mine is hardwired into my truck. All the pieces parts you need to do that are included with the unit when you buy. Lots of folks sell them on
ebay, but they're all used. Last I heard, the ONLY way to get a new V1 was to buy from Valentine directly. V1's website has a "serial number search" in which you can enter a serial number and see if it needs any upgrades. Many of the
ebay postings will give you the serial number so you can check it out yourself. NEVER buy one used without verifying the serial number, and if someone offers to sell you one without a serial number, run away. It's probably stolen, and V1 won't touch it no matter how much you offer to pay them to fix it.
Rock and FivePoint, the directional arrows are good for this reason. If K or Ka alerts sound, I immediately slow down. Once I do that, I know which way to look. If it's ahead of me, and I can get a visual on the patrolman, I know how to respond. If he's parked on the side of the road or in the median, I have to stay at a slower rate of speed for longer. However, if he's ahead of me heading towards me, I can speed up because his radar can't get an accurate read on oncoming traffic, so I can speed back up again. It's not an absolute MUST HAVE feature, but it's nice. Kinda like the folding mirrors on the truck. I could certainly live without them, but I enjoy that I do have them.
I've got no practical experience with the Bel or Escort, but I know Mike Valentine helped design the original Bel units. I'm sure they're all worth something, and just like everything else in this world, they all have pluses and minuses. I abuse the hell out of my V1, and she's never failed me in a pinch. The 1 ticket I got was with a smokey shooting Lidar, and like I've mentioned in other threads, laser warnings really just serve to give you notice that you will be receiving a ticket shortly.
Drive safe, out there...
~A