The Uniden DFR6 slots into the Uniden lineup a notch below the GPS-enabled DFR7. It has an OLED display with white fonts on a black background, making it more readable than some. Located below the display on the left is a button for audio muting and display brightness. Opposite it on the right is a button for City/Highway sensitivity modes. Both are backlit.
Four buttons to control on/off, audio volume and user menu are top-mounted and easy to locate.
The user guide is a 12-panel sheet folded into a 2-by-3-inch rectangle and printed in 4-point type. Reading glasses failed to make it legible and we were finally forced to use an 8-power magnifying glass. Most owners likely will opt to use it in factory-default trim as a consequence.
The DFR6 offers a basic set of features including three levels of display brightness and a choice of City or Highway sensitivity. City shuts off X band to reduce false alarms; switching to Highway restores it. Any of the radar bands or laser detection can also be disabled via the user menu.
The menu also offers some options that hint of potential in reducing false alarms. For example, K narrow and Ka narrow, at least according to the manual, reduce the bandwidth scanned.
In performance the Uniden DFR6 trailed the other non-GPS model, the R1, delivering less radar-detection range.
The Uniden DFR6 has an attractively low price and in fairness, its performance can't be compared to models that cost twice as much. Some high-risk drivers may be tempted to pony up additional bucks for a bit longer range; others will be happy as-is.
The Uniden DFR7 is the company's entry-level GPS-enabled model and identical visually with the DFR6. Like its sibling it has a black OLED display with white fonts. Unlike the latter it shows your speed at the left of the display and in the presence of a red light camera, an icon to represent that threat.
In addition to speed and vehicle voltage, it can also display an 8-point compass or, if you really want to know, the altitude.
Like most upscale detectors, the DFR7 will display a radar signal's digital frequency. This won't help on X or K band but the information can be useful on Ka. Police radar occupies only three slivers of this extraordinarily-wide band, enabling very knowledgeable users to identify legitimate threats at a glance.
Approaching a red light camera triggers a voice alert and a camera icon appears in the display. If the camera also looks for speeding, it adds Speed Camera to the display. Distance to the camera counts down as the distance closes and if you're speeding, a double-chime alert warns of the transgression.
Unlike the Radenso XP, the Uniden won't tell you what the posted limit is, only that you're somewhere over it. Also unlike the Radenso, the Uniden's camera alerts aren't directional. Even if you're on the cross street that's not camera-monitored, it goes off anyway.
Like the other Unidens, the DFR7 comes with a miniature user manual. After our experience with the DFR6 manual, we donned reading glasses and grabbed an 8-power magnifying glass before attempting to read it.
Compared to its non-GPS stablemate, the Uniden DFR7 offers some additional tools to help combat false alarms. Quiet Ride shuts off audible radar and laser alerts until a user-selected speed is reached. It's adjustable in 5 mph increments and be set to speeds up to 50 mph.
Two more features, K narrow and Ka narrow, reduce the bandwidth being scanned.
Performance
The Uniden DFR7 led the pack on K band, dropping back in Ka-band performance.
The Verdict
The Uniden DFR7 has some endearing qualities, protection from red light cameras among them. It's also priced competitively and offers a reasonable array of features for the money.
Uniden R1
Review Summary
Pro
- Good performance
- Decent feature set
- Effective windshield mount
Con
- Fuzzy display
- Sub-par audio tones
- Unreadable user manual
The Uniden R1 is billed as the company's premier high-performance model. The same detector is offered with GPS and dubbed the R3 ($399 MSRP).
Unlike previous Unidens, the R1 has a color OLED display. The default color is blue with other colors available including pink and purple.
Regardless of the color choice, the display is unacceptably fuzzy and looks out of place on an expensive piece of electronics.
Much of the R1 is borrowed from the DFR6, which includes switchgear and control layout.
The default audio tones are a collection of chirps, whistles and tweets. Eleven alternatives are available, none of them much better. Voice alerts are the other option.
Like the other Unidens tested, the R1's miniature owner manual has text so tiny that an 8-power magnifying glass was needed to read it.
Also like the other Unidens, the R1 offers K narrow and Ka narrow which, the instructions suggest, reduces the bandwidth being scanned and potentially reduces false alarms. We tried it both ways and noticed no difference in behavior.
Aside from the usual City and Highway modes, the R1 offers Advanced mode. This allows the user to adjust the sensitivity of each radar band. From the factory-default 100 percent, sensitivity can be lowered by as much as 70 percent, equal to -10.5 dB, a significant degree.
We experimented by dialing back K band to 60 percent and found that it had little effect. By lowering it to the minimum 30 percent we saw a modest reduction in the number of false alarms from door openers. This strategy also marginally reduced false alarms caused by Blind Spot Monitoring (BSM) radar in nearby cars.
K Filter is on by default and Ka filter can be user-activated. Each lowers sensitivity although after experimenting with the settings, any reduction in false alarms was imperceptible to our testers.
Another feature to reduce false alarms is Ka-band segmentation, allowing the user to select from 10 segments for the detector to scan.
Performance
The Uniden R1 displayed good sensitivity on K band, ranking second behind the leading Escort Redline EX. It finished fourth on 34.7 GHz Ka band, trailing the Radenso XP.
On 35.5 GHz Ka band the R1 finished a few feet ahead of the Escort iX and Radenso XP.
We also tested the R1 against our Spectre radar detector-detector and confirmed that it can't be detected. Drivers in Virginia, the only state that bans detectors, may find this trait useful.
The Verdict
We found the Uniden R1 to be a good-performing radar detector. It has a comprehensive set of features and enough adjustability to make it attractive to many enthusiasts.
We were disappointed by the low-rent color display that hampers its ability to convey information. And the laughable miniature owner manual seems to suggest that the manufacturer hasn't the interest to provide meaningful documentation.
In performance the Uniden R1 fares well at its price point. Still, competing models better able to communicate with the driver might be better alternatives.
Escort Passport Max Ci
Review Summary
Pro
- Outstanding sensitivity
- Red light camera alerts
- Extensive features
- Laser jammers
- Autolearn
Con
- Overspeed Alert
- Expensive
- Professional installation only
The Escort Passport Max Ci twins, the Ci ($2,995 MSRP) and Ci 360 ($3,495 MSRP) succeed the Passport 9500ci, the remote (built-in) model we considered the best ever.
Otherwise identical, the Max Ci 360 comes with two extra laser jammers, for the rear, and a rear radar antenna. This lets it indicate whether a radar or laser threat is coming from the front or rear, a feature introduced on the Max 360.
The Max Ci's thumb-sized control unit is backlit, making the buttons easy to locate at night. The module can be surface-mounted or concealed, often tucked away in the ash tray or console.
Users who prefer plug-and-play operation may opt for the factory-default Novice mode. This permits a choice of display colors; all other user preferences remain off limits.
Engaging Advanced mode allows access to the user settings. Meter mode offers the same options as the Escort Max 360C—Standard, Spec, Expert and Simple. Standard mode displays the radar band (X, K or Ka, or laser) plus a bar graph depicting signal strength.
In Spec mode the Max Ci can be set to numerically display a radar frequency, in gigahertz (the Max Ci 360 will show two, one for each antenna).
Simple Mode replaces the bar graphs and alphanumeric displays, showing only a rudimentary Caution or Slow Down warning instead. For non-nerds Simple mode is probably a wise choice. Strangely, it's accessible only by selecting Advanced mode and navigating through the Preferences menu.
The Escort Max Ci showed substantially better Ka-band range than its 9500ci forebear.
The Escort Max Ci showed substantially better Ka-band range than its 9500ci forebear.
Performance
The Max Ci clearly benefits from its new front radar antenna and revised signal processing. On the all-important Ka band, the Escort Passport Max Ci delivered nearly double the range of the Escort 9500ci, our previous record holder.
On the nearly-extinct X band the Escort Passport Max Ci was within a few feet of the 9500ci and it had 27 percent better K-band range. This makes the Max Ci the best-performing remote radar detector we've seen.
The Verdict
There's hardly any competition for the Max Ci. K40 sells a rebranded Korean model with low performance and ineffective laser jammers, leaving the Radenso RC-M as the only other choice.
