Dash Cams

[wjbarricklow]

Anybody use a good dashcam? I know a lot of you guys are in the trades and drive a lot.

I had a $35 camera that lasted for like two years. I've bought a couple of more expensive ones since then, and they crapped out after a few months. I don't mind spending a couple hundred for something reliable and durable if I need to.

I might get a dual front/rear camera for my car as well.

I want a good GPS that shows speed, too. Unless maybe there's an app that will work with a phone or tablet.

[jaytwillerham]

Just get a helmet with a go pro camera taped on it.

[Flame Red]

There are two basic ways to go.

You can go cheap, and find a cheap crappy Chinese made POS or maybe find a used GoPro. It works.

Or you can go high end if you have a lot of money and want the best. The latest rage is the Owl dash cam. But it requires a data cell subscription and cloud service. Besides the cost and service fee, the only down side is that the rear camera records EVERYTHING you do inside the car. There is no separate rear camera. These are great for capturing parking lot incidents where you are not present as the Owl can send you the alert to your cell in real time.

I have a Blackvue 900S-2 channel. The downside besides the massive expense is that it only uploads to their free cloud service when connected to wifi. But it provides 4k resolution and you can easily read license plates and can provide great mug shots to the cops when the illegal's do their favorite pass-time here in Crime Hills in O-town and ram you car and flee afterwards as they have no license, no insurance, and don't own the car!

Either way, you may want a backup battery for these. The bad part is the backup li-ion batteries are extremely expensive also! But without them you only get a few minutes of recording when you park your car in the hood.

Of course the risk of any high end stuff is the local buzzards will bash you windshield to steal the expensive camera systems!

[Slartibartfast]

you definitely get what you pay for, a friend was on the turnpike
and a commercial pickup truck swiped his right front fender when
changing lanes. the truck then hauled butt and fled, it was all
captured on his $50 dashcam but the resolution was so poor the
cops could not read the tag or signs on the truck.

[Jimmy]

I’m surprised that anyone still buys dashcams. There are so many good ios and android apps that do this and do it well, multifunctioning with all your other phone functions. Here is a link to some of them:

https://www.geckoandfly.com/20737/best- ... p-android/

[lakelandman]

I don't like use my phone due Florida summer heat it's cheaper to get a dash cam like Vantrue I like keep the two separate..

[Tenzing_Norgay]

I’m surprised that anyone still buys dashcams. There are so many good ios and android apps that do this and do it well, multifunctioning with all your other phone functions. Here is a link to some of them:

https://www.geckoandfly.com/20737/best- ... p-android/

Having to set-up and mess with your phone every time you need to drive somewhere is a pain. A dash-cam, permanently mounted and wired to the ignition, is a truly "hands free" deal.

There is an entire website dedicated to dashcams, including reviews and forums. Some folks even post their footage of incidents and accidents:

https://dashboardcamerareviews.com

Words of wisdom from the site you linked:

Dedicated Car Dashcam vs Smartphone Dash Cam App

Although indeed there are apps available for iPhone, Android and Blackberry, there are some significant disadvantages to turn your smartphone into a dashboard camera.

Smartphone has a smaller Field of View, meaning to say you capture less details. This is important because the whole point of having a dash cam is to capture as much details as possible. Most smartphone comes with a Medium / Standard FOV, whereas a dedicated DashCam has a wide FOV. This is a hardware issue, no app can ever solve this.

Dedicated Dash Cam comes with a sensitive sensor for night time shooting, smartphone doesn’t have a night mode.
Possible overheating or locking up due to long hours of usage.

Shortened lifespan of smartphone and SD-memory card, because smartphones are not build to record video non-stop, it might break at any moment, if you are unlucky, it might break when you needed it the most.

The only advantage you have is money. You do not have a spend a single cent if you already own an old unused smartphone. Works great on Android 8.0 Oreo / Android 9.0 [ Popsicle, Pancakes or Pie ] smartphones such as Samsung Galaxy, Huawei Mate, Oppo, Vivo, XiaoMi, and Nokia.

[P5 Guy]

Wouldn't having a dash-cam make your car a target for break-in?

[Tenzing_Norgay]

Wouldn't having a dash-cam make your car a target for break-in?

No. Mine is discreet, tucked in tight above the rear view mirror, almost blending in. You'd really have to be looking for it.

[lakelandman]

Wouldn't having a dash-cam make your car a target for break-in?

No. Mine is discreet, tucked in tight above the rear view mirror, almost blending in. You'd really have to be looking for it.

1+ plus same here had mine for years.