Dashcam updated recommendations please?

[EmilysDad]

...... help sort out a friends mooring solution ( neat idea solution that rises and falls with the waves ... oddly the sliders were made of plastic :-0, overpriced but it worked well)
Peter

A rope or 3 usually works quite well IIRC they're called spring rope/line ..... good enough for Grey Funnel Liners

 

[Wighty]

Hi John , thanks
I Just took a short break to get some Winter sun, and help sort out a friends mooring solution ( neat idea solution that rises and falls with the waves ... oddly the sliders were made of plastic :-0, overpriced but it worked well)
Peter

Welcome back buddy

 

[Submariner1]

I really, really liked the look of the Blackvue ... very Mercedes!
But was put off by “go pro” pricing model... every tiny part is £24 or more.

Other negative for me was the Parking mode, needs to be running at a 1A drain, so you have either a £34 volt meter, that switches off when a certain voltage is hit ( er after its hammered your battery ) or a £169 back up battery that only runs for 12 hours ... fine on a daily drive that will recharge it fully every day ... sadly wont suit me.
Plus for that money I would want to see 2160x 1440p not 1280 x 1080p

I need something with a configurable gyroscope / shockmeter that only turns on when it senses movement/impact in Parking mode, and preferably with an internal rechargeable battery that will power the hopefully ad hoc parking incident.

 

[Submariner1]

I just wondered has anyone rigged up a Go Pro, the Hero5 Session with stunning 4K has dropped to £199. It also has a 2160 x 1440 mode.

Only issue I see is no Parking mode

 

[Rotorhead500]

I just wondered has anyone rigged up a Go Pro, the Hero5 Session with stunning 4K has dropped to £199. It also has a 2160 x 1440 mode.

Only issue I see is no Parking mode

... or shock sensing.

 

[LostKiwi]

You could end up shooting yourself in the foot!

Or other places!

Christmas Eve my other half and I thought we would put some flowers on her parents grave. The church where they are buried is down a gated road about a mile long and crosses fields.
At the first gate she was feeling a little playful and decided to moon me.. then repeated at the second gate. Unfortunately she had forgotten about the dash cam which of course captured it all!
Her expression when I reminded her next day was priceless! Family thought it hilarious!

 

[John Laidlaw]

Or other places!

Christmas Eve my other half and I thought we would put some flowers on her parents grave. The church where they are buried is down a gated road about a mile long and crosses fields.
At the first gate she was feeling a little playful and decided to moon me.. then repeated at the second gate. Unfortunately she had forgotten about the dash cam which of course captured it all!
Her expression when I reminded her next day was priceless! Family thought it hilarious!

It was very funny on YouTube!

 

[Frosty149]

It was very funny on YouTube!

And the news channels, shame about the blurred out bits though.
I’m sure it’ll be on the highlights of 2017

 

[Stephen Brooks]

Regarding the C Class it all depends upon the age of your car. I had a Nextbase 312GW hard wired into my Feb 15 C Class by Halfords (from where I bought the camera). No problems at all, all worked fine, only slight irritation was that located on the passenger side by the RVM / black box the sunshade couldn’t be fully deployed since it interfered with the camera and no amount of repositioning would resolve the issue. It was still pretty high up the windscreen though.

But.....when I replaced my C Class with a new Sept 17 model I took it back to Halfords to have the camera hard wired in again. After a brief inspection Halfords refused to touch it!! Seems there has been a change in the electrics such that, I think, the necessary circuitry is now “always live” . Anyway they wouldn’t touch it by virtue of the fact that it would likely void any warranty. So short of asking the dealership to wire it in, at whatever cost, I now have a redundant dash cam. Hmmmm!

Good point about the sun visor - I had not thought of that.

 

[JBell]

The DR450 has now been superceded by the DR590 I believe - at about the same price.

http://www.thedashcamstore.com/blackvue-dr590-1ch-1080p-60fps-single-lens-dashcam/

http://www.thedashcamstore.com/blackvue/

 

[Ken_R]

I use the K1S. Review here:-
http://www.techmoan.com/blog/2015/3...t-rear-hidden-1080p-dash-camera.html#comments

Two very small cameras that feed to a storage device. I've had it for approaching 2 years and never had any problems. In fact, apart from the original 'playing' with the unit, it has sat in my glove box for the last 18 months, untouched, except for occasionally confirming that the camera batteries don't need changing, which they haven't.

In fact, it was this thread that prompted me to take the 'head' unit out, connect it to my PC via a USB cable, and clear the 'stored' segments.

There are reports of some reliability issues but, digging deeper, it is possible that these may relate to the Quality/Speed of the SD card purchased to work within the unit.

I made sure that I purchased mine from a UK based supplier to ensure that in the event of any problems, I could return it for refund/replacement.

 

[umblecumbuz]

I didn't realise that TheDashcamStore (links in JBell's post above) sold direct in the UK.
If they do, and there are no additional charges, then their prices are excellent.

 

[John Laidlaw]

I didn't realise that TheDashcamStore (links in JBell's post above) sold direct in the UK.
If they do, and there are no additional charges, then their prices are excellent.

Yes, saw that....I was amazed too! I might take a print out to Halfrauds though and get them to price match

 

[Ken_R]

I didn't realise that TheDashcamStore (links in JBell's post above) sold direct in the UK.
If they do, and there are no additional charges, then their prices are excellent.

Ah, but!

We can ship to virtually any address in the world although as stated below, we cannot offer refunds or accept returns on items shipped internationally. Note that there are restrictions on some products, and some products cannot be shipped to international destinations. If the product shipment is restricted, it will be stated on that product's page.

AND

Please be aware your country may assess an import duty/tax on your shipment. Any item and shipping cost that is paid to The Dashcam Store™ at time of checkout does not include any international duty/tax/VAT fee.

Think I'd stick with a UK supplier.

 

[Submariner1]

Dissapointed I cant use the Parking mode on the Blackvue 540 or 750S.
I just dont do enough mileage to a) avoid draining the cars battery, or b) recharge their battery pack.

Sadly their cameras are running all the time in Parking mode.

I basically need a dashcam with tha large internal battery, and a Parking mode that is triggered on by a shock sensor.
Or do without Parking protection.
Or
Just use a gopro ... great video quality
And then if needed in a rough area, manually switch it to Time Lapse (as an alternative to Parlking mode) ... and it lasts as long as it lasts.
But thats truly inconvenient. Its not a one button affair, more like switch video from looped 1080p, to 720p and then switch to time lapse. And I fear it would need to be dismounted from the suction mount or log i to the iphone to change the settings.
But could be used, £199 for the go pro, £28 for the suction mount, £17 for the charger and then add a big SD Card ...... so not that cheap.

Or just settle for a Dashcam running when driving
With a Blackvue 450 £129 ( btw still current) or the 750S at £235. The latter is easier to,set up with iphone “live view”.

 

[Submariner1]

... or shock sensing.

Yep only solution is to manually switch to “time lapse” . A pain and a bit hit and miss.

 

[Submariner1]

The DR450 has now been superceded by the DR590 I believe - at about the same price.

The DR590 has replaced the DR450, but there are no official UK disrtibuted 590s in the UK till end of Jan /begginning of March.
Apparently the 590 will have the new sensor, same as the 750, and wi fi, but no Cloud support.

 

[flowrider]

Dissapointed I cant use the Parking mode on the Blackvue 540 or 750S.
I just dont do enough mileage to a) avoid draining the cars battery, or b) recharge their battery pack.

Sadly their cameras are running all the time in Parking mode.

I basically need a dashcam with tha large internal battery, and a Parking mode that is triggered on by a shock sensor.
Or do without Parking protection.
Or
Just use a gopro ... great video quality
And then if needed in a rough area, manually switch it to Time Lapse (as an alternative to Parlking mode) ... and it lasts as long as it lasts.
But thats truly inconvenient. Its not a one button affair, more like switch video from looped 1080p, to 720p and then switch to time lapse. And I fear it would need to be dismounted from the suction mount or log i to the iphone to change the settings.
But could be used, £199 for the go pro, £28 for the suction mount, £17 for the charger and then add a big SD Card ...... so not that cheap.

Or just settle for a Dashcam running when driving
With a Blackvue 450 £129 ( btw still current) or the 750S at £235. The latter is easier to,set up with iphone “live view”.

The gopro does not make a good dashcam. The best dashcams are very stealthy, no lights and small, all things the gopro isn't. Plus any chancer that see's a £200 gopro stuck to the windscreen will be sorely tempted. I use a JooVuuX which is tiny and very stealthy plus its only £65.

https://www.joovuu.com/gb/home/307-joovuu-x.html

 

[umblecumbuz]

... The best dashcams are very stealthy, no lights and small ...

Not always.
I have a very prominent carcam in my rear window. It is bright silver coloured, deliberately, and my son is fitting a flashing led light to it.

Watching potential tailgaters back off when they see it is evidence that it is doing its intended job.

 

[Submariner1]

Not always.
I have a very prominent carcam in my rear window. It is bright silver coloured, deliberately, and my son is fitting a flashing led light to it.

Watching potential tailgaters back off when they see it is evidence that it is doing its intended job.

Both points of view are valid.
The high visibility style, might just stop the half decent chancers from doing a hit and run, if they think its all been recorded.
“As it is an offence to leave the scene of an accident without reporting it”.

Especially for John, just found the main Blackvue parent does sell direct! And ships by DHL priority to the UK for $31.
They sell the 590 for $135 i.e. £99 shipped £122; whereas the UK distributor will be pricing it at £180 .
And they are availble now. So a reasonable saving and obviously they as the parent co. Will warranty it.
If you are buying the big 2 Ch 750S even more of a saving. They are also much cheaper upgrading the cards.
Almost tempted me back to the blackvue 590. :-/