Watch This Before Buying a Car Camera
January 28, 2019Disclosure: This is a professional review blog. Bear in mind that some of the links in this post are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase I will earn a commission. Keep in mind that I link these companies and their products because of their quality and not because of the commission I receive from your purchases. All of the products are tested thoroughly and high grades are received only by the best ones. I am an independent blogger and the reviews are done based on my own opinions.
With dash cameras becoming more affordable and accessible to the general population, it only makes sense to start looking into ones for yourself.
Unfortunately, when I did this for myself, I couldn’t find much information on which dashcams were best for which kind of vehicle. After a lot of research, I found that although many dashcams will work with any vehicle, there are certain features you should look for depending on your vehicle type. For example, a vehicle that is used for ridesharing apps, being able to view the inside of the vehicle along with the road is a valuable feature. Parking and reversing assistance may be helpful for large vehicles, especially if they have a trailer and motorcycles need a weather-resistant dashboard camera. No matter what type of vehicle you have, make sure that the dashcam you buy has loop recording, high-quality HD video, doesn’t rely on only battery power and that there is a time stamp on the video. Below I have given examples of specific dashcams for every vehicle type and the features I would look for with each.
What Features Should You Look for in a Dashcam For Your Car?
No matter what type of vehicle you have, there are some standard features you need to look for when shopping for dashcams.
These include video quality, power supply, loop recording, and the presence of a date and time stamp. For the best video quality, I would shoot for 1080p resolution HD webcams. You also want to ensure that your dashcam’s power supply is from your car itself, so you do not have to worry about batteries constantly running out. This could either be through plugging in your dashcam through your 12V socket (where the cigarette lighter would go) or through hardwiring. Loop recording means that the dashcam will delete old recordings as it records new recordings once its memory is full. Otherwise, your dashcam could only store a limited amount and you would have to manually delete what was stored to record more. The last thing you would want is for you to get into an accident and it not be recorded because you filled up your memory on the first half of your drive.
Note the Quality of the Image Taken
For those of you who want to install a car camera both for security and adventure purposes, choosing a camera with good quality shooting is very necessary. A good quality dashcam has at least 720 fps video resolution, making it easier for you to see remotely through the camera clearly and without interruption. Not only the quality of shooting during the day, but you also need to pay attention to the quality of images taken at night. Although the dashcam is usually equipped with a wide lens that can record images with wide angles, the high dynamic range feature that serves to record images in low light conditions is still needed.
These things need to be considered no matter what type of vehicle you have. The only specific feature you may want is for the dashcam to be more discrete if you are concerned with being detected while recording. Cars are generally closer to the ground and objects on the dash or hanging from the windshield may be more obvious to other drivers or pedestrians than it would be on a truck. A great example of a dashcam that meets all the basic features and is discrete is the THiEYE Safeel Zero Mini Dashcam. This dashcam is small, records in 1080p HD, and has a wide 170-degree viewing angle; enough to view several lanes of traffic at once. Emergency recording, loop recording, and night vision are some more great features the THiEYE Safeel Zero Mini Dashcam has. Making it even better, this dashcam is affordable!
What Kind of Dashcam Should You Get if You Have a Truck?
On top of all the base features, you should look for stated above, you may want to look for a dashcam that comes with a rear camera and parking assistance. Backing up with a large-sized vehicle, especially with a trailer, can be difficult. According to the Department of Transportation, it is estimated that there are 18,000 injuries or fatalities per year from vehicles backing into a pedestrian or bicyclist. To help avoid such accidents and for help backing up in general, the Toguard Dual Dashcam records and displays both the front and rear of your vehicle. The Toguard Dual Dashcam replaces your rearview mirror with a touch screen display and provides reversing and parking assistance. This dashcam records the very high resolution of 1280p HD and its built-in G-sensor recognizes collisions and saves them onto an “SOS File” so that they will not be recorded over.
If you work for a rideshare app, drive a bus, or drive a taxi, not only do you have to protect yourself from allegations relating to your vehicle doing something to someone outside of the vehicle, you also have to protect yourself from allegations from people inside of your vehicle. Having a dashcam that views both the inside and outside of your vehicle can be a lifesaver. You don’t have to worry about someone accusing you of hurting them, and you will have proof if anyone does damage to the interior of your vehicle. Having stored video recording of your car’s interior can quickly resolve nearly any dispute; especially if it includes audio. A great option for people who carry passengers for work is the Garmin Dash Cam 66W. This dashcam has a 180-degree field of view, 1440p HD lens, and is voice-activated. If you download the Garmin Drive app you can sync up to four cameras which is very useful in this situation. You can have one camera facing the road ahead, one facing the road behind, and another to record the occupants of your vehicle. All of the dashcams that you have synced will display your speed and timestamp on the recording. This helps validate your evidence if something were to go wrong. If you drive for rideshare apps that requires you use your phone while driving such as Uber or Lyft, it’s helpful that the Garmin Dashcam 66W comes with a dual USB power adapter so that you can have both your phone and the dashcam charging at the same time.
What Dashcam Features Are Best for Motorcycle Owners?
Dashcams for motorcycle or moped owners must have additional features. Unlike other vehicles, motorcycles and mopeds are exposed to the elements, and their dashcam will be too. You want to make sure your dashcam covering is made from a durable material such as solid aluminum and is waterproof. Another thing you have to consider is that your dashcam is vulnerable to people walking by. You want it to be as discreet as possible so that bystanders don’t steal it while it is parked. The BikerCam by Tachyon is made specifically for bikers. This dashcam comes with water and weatherproof covering, making it durable any day of the year. You can continuously charge your dashcam while you ride your motorcycle as it comes with a 12V adaptor. It can either be attached to your bike’s dashboard with the dashcam mount or on your mirror. The video below shows you footage from this Full-HD 1080p dashcam.
Installing a camera on the dashboard of a car, is more than just a passing trend, it’s a must-do for every driver. In addition to being a security factor, there are also those who deliberately set it up to record the condition of the road being traversed. Well, if you intend to buy a truck dash cam, first consider a few things below.
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