Barry asked for thread on Porsche Boxster Board http://www.986board.com/board/986board.htm they have several recent posts - one's on this hot issue bottom line is either are great - here is most recent comparison on their board:
In Response To: New Escort 8500 vs. Valentine 1 (Elga 2.5 & TOF)

1. The 8500 does not tell the driver from which direction the unit is receiving the
signal. Therefore, unlike the Valentine, the 8500 user does not know whether the
radar is in front, behind or at the side where it is virtually useless. Score one big
point for Valentine.

2. Part of the radartest.com scoring had to do with subjective aesthetics. In their
opinion, the Valentine was something akin to clunky while the 8500 was sleek. I
have never been one to find the Valentine appearance unsightly so my thought
here may be jaundiced. However, I was really surprised to see just how big the
8500 is. In the photos, at least as I view them, it appears to be a small, tapered
device. Upon opening the nicely leather clad carrying case, I was almost shocked
to see how long the device is. If you will take a five dollar bill from your pocket and
lay it on your desk so that the Lincoln Memorial is facing upward, the 8500 will
extend from the right hand side to the left and cover the three legs on the E. It is
also surprisingly heavy and you must install it so that the unit dangles from the two
suction cups and leans against the windshield.

3. Programability is hands down a winner for the 8500. It has features that Mike
Valentine only wishes. However, I am not sure that all these programable features
are worth $100 less than one pays for the Valentine. : D

4. Expert Meter on 8500 vs. Bogey Counter on Valentine. One of the features I
have always like about the V-1 is its ability to count just how many bogeys are
hitting the unit. I think it will register may 8 or more. Sometimes, however, the red
arrow is lighted to both sides, behind and maybe flashing ahead with the X, K and
Ka buttons lighted. In these situations, I just stomp on the brakes until all the
raucous noise and light stops. The 8500 Expert Meter provides the driver with
much more information, sans arrows however, which in this case are virtually
useless. The 8500 has a spectrum analyzer that will give a readout of two Ka
bands by strength of signal, two K bands by strength of signal and four X bands by
strength of signal. We all know the "2" rule so when two X bands are lighted, we
can pretty much be assured that this is a security device of some kind. What is
neat, however, is to know that there are two Ka bands, one strong and one weak.
The same goes for the K band which will read two K bands at the same time. In
fact, you might see this unit showing that it is reading one or more Ka bands, K
bands and X bands with the realtive strength of each band displayed in a window
that is clearly readable. For me, the Expert Meter is a big improvement over the
Valentine, especially because the Valentine makes the user decipher between
those tiny points of light vertically arranged along the right side of the unit.

5. Programability. This scored high with radartest.com and was a major fault of
the Bell 980. The 8500 really is easy to program, even for one so technologically
challenged as me. Just push down the two buttons on top of the unit for two
seconds and then use the left button to scroll through the menu. If there is anything
you want to change, use the right button. One of the first things I changed was the
City X sensitivity. This unit has a City button on top that has an adjustable X band
filter that does not interfere with the Ka and K bands. When driving in the city, just
hit the button and get low X filtration without bothering the other filters.

6. Autosound. I really like this. Once the unit starts chirping, the sound
automatically mutes until a new signal is received. The "smart cord" also has a
mute button on the cigarette plug. By the way, the unit comes equipped with a
cigarette plug adaptor that will make the unit stay in larger openings. Before
getting the Valentine hardwired into Elga, I always had a problem with the
Valentine plug falling out of the cigarette lighter.

7. Remote. A remote that can be hardwired in is available for about $30.
However, the remote only shows one red light and a mute button. The Valentine
remote is much more intelligent.

8. Sensitivity. This is the biggest selling point of the 8500 according to
radartest.com except for the laser and X bands. However, they say that X band
accounts for only fifteen percent of the radar units in America, the other 85% being
K and Ka. They also note that laser does not work in rain, fog, and conditions that
affect transmittal of the lidar light beam. I am looking forward to a road test next
week to see just how far down the road this 8500 does sense radar.

Bottom line: I am still in love with the directional signals of the Valentine one. The
8500 has more features and better features. I think many will find it easier to read.
For $100 less than the Valentine, it appears to be a real bargain if you can live
without the directional signals.

 

Doing a search on simply "V1," provided these links:
http://www.s2000online.com/forums/showthre...hp?threadid=175
http://www.s2000online.com/forums/showthre...p?threadid=1450

Here's one from the other place:
http://honda-acura.net/forum/Forum21/HTML/005050.html

 

Tanks Gregg, somehow I screwed up my search.

 

I received my 8500 just in time for a weekend trip down the coast to Big Sur. The 8500 was very quiet and came through big south of Carmel.

One big advantage of the 8500 vs. the V1 that is S2000 specific is that the 8500 can be locked away in the center console. I'm not sure if the V1 can even fit in the trunk of the S2000.

I heard some sad news in California this morning. The state just bought a whole fleet of traffic aircraft and video equipment to send images to police on the ground. At least we have roadsters and can look up at the sky.

 

"One big advantage of the 8500 vs. the V1 that is S2000 specific is that the 8500 can be locked away in the center console. I'm not sure if the V1 can even fit in the trunk of the S2000."

My V1 stores perfectly in the console door under the elastic strap... while I would love to have some of the features of the 8500, I am really hooked on the direction indicators, they have really helped me learn whats normal and whats not... epecially when it goes off in a normal location and then the bogey counter changes and the arrows change! Instant heads up to slow down for me. Now just get my sensors mounted in the mirror with the display integrated in the S2k's dash (hey it's digital right) and I would be estatic!!

 

also it used to be possible to buy a refurbed V1 by calling Valentine directly.. saving about 10%...

 

Zippy....

YES I removed the window frame cover. It actually was VERY easy and makes for a much more cosmetically pleasing look. To do it all you have to do is unscrew the screws that connect the sunvisors to the cover. Then, remove the cover over the interior light. Unscrew those screws inside, and pull the cover off.
Doing this allows you to run the wire from right behind the rear-view mirror arm all the way down to the plastic panel that runs along the step in on the floor and up under the dash. It makes for a virtually invisible mounting. I then mounted my V1 directly under the rear-view mirror. It is almost touching the bottom of the mirror. This allows for the maxximum rear detection and is the most discreet.