Escort gave Redline 360c owners up to 24% more detection range with a firmware update as the company marked its 50th anniversary at SEMA 2026.
The story began in 1976. Two engineers, Mike Valentine and Jim Jaeger, built a working radar detector prototype inside a Kodak Brownie camera. That same year they founded Cincinnati Microwave. The first Escort detector followed in 1978.
“We have been at the forefront of innovation since day one,” said Jonas Forsberg, CEO of Escort Inc.
Forsberg said Escort built the first cordless detector, the first undetectable detector, the first detector with GPS and the first stealth detector.
The booth in the North Hall told that story. Escort displayed its major detectors from the early models through the current Redline. A 1977 Pontiac Trans Am sat in the booth with a vintage Escort on the dash.
New Range From Old Hardware
The bigger news came from a product dealers already know. Escort released the Redline 360c firmware update on Nov. 3. The company said testing showed up to 24% more range on Ka band and 21% more on K band. Updated algorithms help the detector find weaker radar signals at greater distances.
Forsberg said radar forum members wanted to know how Escort added range without hurting filtering or response time.
“We’ve managed to do it,” he said.
An earlier update this year focused on response time.
Forsberg said the Redline came out six years ago. He said the update shows what that hardware can still do.
“We can take six year old hardware, drive it with new firmware and push the limits,” Forsberg said. “We continue to engineer the existing products to give our new customers and existing customers the best experience.”
Redline 360c owners get the added range on the detector they already own. Firmware updates are also out for the Redline 360c International and MAXcam 360c. Escort also released fixes for the new Cobra RAD 390 and RAD 490i.
Owners can find the update on the firmware page at escortradar.com.
Escort’s 50th anniversary display runs through Nov. 6 in the North Hall at booth 11031.
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