Dash Cam

[JakeTheSnake]

Been thinking about getting a dash cam lately with all the bad drivers and road rage going on. Seens to be getting worse and worse.
Wanting one that has good video quality and can be turned to point out the side windows. Don't want to spend a bunch on it, but know you get what you pay for especially with electronics and cameras.
Been looking at the GitUp Git2P action camera, figured it can be used in a car or mounted on a bike as well. Has decent reviews and from watching videos in YouTube looks pretty good.
Anybody else have any additional recommendations in its price range?

$120 on Amazon.

[1wise1]

I went the opposite direction and got a $20 dollar dashcam from Fry's. Spent another 7 bucks for a 30 Gig memory card and plugged it in to the lighter socket..automatically comes on when I turn the key. It works great, mounts with a suction cup on windshield, swivels at the touch of a finger records good clear video and audio. I figured for the price I could chalk it up to stupidity and trash it if it was a piece of junk. Turns out its exactly what I wanted and for 5% of what I expected to pay.

[carlson1]

I went the opposite direction and got a $20 dollar dashcam from Fry's. Spent another 7 bucks for a 30 Gig memory card and plugged it in to the lighter socket..automatically comes on when I turn the key. It works great, mounts with a suction cup on windshield, swivels at the touch of a finger records good clear video and audio. I figured for the price I could chalk it up to stupidity and trash it if it was a piece of junk. Turns out its exactly what I wanted and for 5% of what I expected to pay.

What brand did you buy?

[LimaCharlie3]

Yes, I too ordered a $20 dash cam from Amazon over a year ago. 1080p, all the bells & whistles and swivels on the suction cup mount. Previously I'd bought a $14 model. It was ok, but difficult to operate and not near the video quality. I surmise that $20-30 is the quality point. Anything cheaper is gonna be temporary. When a particularly bad driver makes a bonehead move, I post that video on a Facebook page I made just for that, with the idea being you don't want a starring role on that page.
For $20, you can afford to mount front and rear and even a side view. The thing I notice about these cheap cams is the internal battery is gonna be cheap Chinese quality. It will barely last for the shut down after killing the vehicle ignition. Not a problem, but it's easy enough to replace the battery with something of quality. Or do what I did and plug it into an external usb cellphone battery that is also connected to the vehicle's 12v accessory. It's powered on 24/7, even when parked.

[oohrah]

The primary feature I'd recommend is to have an auto-record/auto-off feature, then you never have to worry about whether it is on when you need it. Also, a write-over old files is handy. I lost some video I wanted (not accident related) because mine stopped recording once the card was full. I'm looking for a new one that records both forward and rearward views.

You can get some cool video regardless of your reasons. I have one of a cop lighting up a red light runner, a near buzzard strike, and a night fireball meteor flashing across my windshield. Good luck with your choice.

[JakeTheSnake]

A few options I've noticed in researching cams:
Loop Recording - camera will fill memory card then start over-writing old recordings automatically.
Capacitors- many have capacitors instead of batteries for heat. Batteries don't stand up to being in a hot car very long. Sounds like only having power to shut down is a capacitor.
Motion detection or Parking Mode - will record when motion is detected for parking lot hit and runs.

I would not be comfortable leaving even the mount visible in the vehicle. I have seen people get their window smashed for a GPS mount left on the windshield.

[EastTexasRancher]

I have one, a Cobra. Love it.

I was at Costco yesterday, and they are selling a Garmin Nuvi with a built in dash cam. When my dash cam dies, I'm going to get one of these, as my Nuvi is 8 years old.

[RicoTX]

I use a Thinkware F5xx with the optional hardwire cable and also the rear camera. It's not cheap, but the quality is great, and it has WiFi and an app so you can download videos without removing the card. The hardwire let's you use the parking, motion detection, and incident feature. It has an automatic shutoff where you can set the voltage.

It's not for everyone, but it works great for me. Just FYI I drive a F150 4 four door truck and the rear camera just reached the back window. Most people don't notice the cameras. The front unit sits right under the mirror.

The only cable you see is just a few inches from the bottom of the mirror into the headliner gap.

Total cost is about $350. The back camera was $100 of the $350. I like that I have it set to view the inside of the bed and still see traffic behind me. Waiting for someone to steal my cooler or shovel I keep back there...

I've been thinking of buying a cheaper one that swivels to use in case of a traffic stop or other needs for side view.

[tomtexan]

I have two of these.

Very basic and only 720p HD, but they work. They are $19.99 each.

[The Annoyed Man]

I'm glad that someone started this thread. My wife and I had talked about getting dash cams a long time ago, and then somehow it just got put aside. Funny thing is, she brought it up again when we were on our trip to California in May, and we've been kicking it around ever since.

I'm not afraid to spend some money on a system like what RicoTX has, but neither do I want the system I buy to be too complicated to install or use. I'm not a particularly handy guy. If it is too complicated, my wife simply won't use it at all, and I won't use all the available features.

The main reason I'd be concerned about price is that I want to equip two different vehicles with a dash cam system.

[warnmar10]

I have one, a Cobra. Love it.

I was at Costco yesterday, and they are selling a Garmin Nuvi with a built in dash cam. When my dash cam dies, I'm going to get one of these, as my Nuvi is 8 years old.

I bought my Cobra at Costo. It's OK I suppose. It is 1080 but you won't be capturing license plate numbers unless you're ~20 feet or less.

It's funny, I see a lot less crazy stuff now that I have a camera than I did when I was inspired by all the craziness to get one.

FWIW - navigation is google on android. I have an 8" tablet, (Costo again,) dedicated to navigation. It's mounted with a RAM mount on the same RAM mount platform as my laptop.

[JakeTheSnake]

I figured the Gitup Git2 was a good deal in that it is a action cam that comes with many attachments and a waterproof case as well. Watched several videos comparing it with the GoPro and it does quite well at a 3rd the price.
I would just be weary of leaving a camera in the car due to smash & grab.
Also with the Texas heat a camera with a battery would not last long. The higher end cameras use capacitors instead of batteries for this reason.

Here is a sight I have been doing some reading on.
https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/

[mrvmax]

This will be the next one I get (I already have two others) , I like to pay a little more for the features and I like having a capacitor versus battery. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00X528FNE/_e ... I0XK5NIFK3

[mrvmax]

Here is some reading info and comparisons: https://www.carcamcentral.com/

[carlson1]

Looks like this is a good day to go and it is on sale.