The Radenso Pro M competes with the Escort Redline EX (now discontinued) for dominance in the high-performance segment. Aside from long range, the two are among a handful that can detect Gatso RT3 and Multaradar CD/CT radar, increasingly being used for red light and speed cameras.

Both use GPS to identify and lock out false alerts caused by commercial radar-controlled automatic door openers. Detectors treat door-opener radar as legit; without GPS, every detector alerts to it.

To lock out a door-opener radar, a button is pressed, storing the location and frequency to memory. In future encounters the detector knows to stay quiet. But if a new radar pops up nearby it's considered a threat and an alert will sound.

High-end Escorts do this automatically, a feature called AutoLearn. Others require a button-press.

Like the Escort, the Pro M has firmware to deal with Blind Spot Monitoring (BSM) systems. These use radar to spot vehicles in adjacent lanes and warn when a lane-change is dangerous.

Features

Aside from a lower price, the Radenso Pro M has a noticeably smaller footprint. It's barely half the size and one-third the weight of the Redline EX. Users who mount a detector high on the windshield may find the bite-sized Pro M better able to fit cramped spaces.

Like its lower-priced sibling, the XP, the Radenso Pro M has an OLED display with a black background. Large alphanumeric characters and good contrast keep it from washing out on sunny days, something that can't be said of many competing radar detectors.

Using its GPS, the Pro M warns of the red light and speed cameras used in 22 states. Like Escort GPS-enabled models, its camera alerts are directional.

This matters because red light cameras frequently monitor only traffic on a single street and transiting the intersection on the camera-free cross street carries no risk. With directional alerts the Radenso knows the camera isn't a threat and remains silent. In contrast, competing Uniden models alert regardless.

A USB port can be used to link the detector to a PC and download updates of red light and speed camera locations. Firmware revisions to meet future threats can be updated the same way, keeping the detector from becoming obsolete.

Unlike Escort, Radenso lets the user adjust radar sensitivity and set a threshold speed for the onset of audible alerts. Only visual alerts are given until the threshold speed is reached, then audible tones and voice alerts begin. This keeps it quieter at lower speeds when over-the-horizon range isn't needed.

Behavior

Auto City mode allows the adjustment of settings to make the Pro M more resistant to urban nuisance radar. For example, we experimented by setting the K-band City Filter to 40 percent sensitivity, with Low Speed Mute set at 35 mph and City Mode Speed to 50 mph. This shut off audible radar alerts below 35 mph and reduced K-band sensitivity by 40 percent, restoring full sensitivity at 50 mph. The concensus among our testers was that the strategy reduces false alarms from both door openers and BSM radar.

The downside to this adjustability is that it takes considerable knowledge to get it right. Amateurs will likely find the Escort approach far less risky.

Performance

At our Hill/Curve test site test site north of Phoenix, we verified Radenso's claim of performance parity with the Escort Redline EX. Here the Pro M slightly outpaced the Redline EX on K band and the two turned in nearly identical scores on both of the most widely used Ka bands.

The Verdict

The Pro M is designed for set-and-forget operation, but as enthusiast drivers we found favor with its array of user-adjustable settings.

With the Radenso a match for the Escort Redline EX in performance, its superior display not withstanding, the Escort probably will suit the typical driver far better.