Best BMW Dash Cams

Best BMW Dash Cams

December 19, 2019 Off By Alex McDonald

Disclosure: 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.

BMWs are certainly fantastic vehicles and there is a reason that their name gets so much recognition. Despite this, there are still ways to improve your experience with a BMW and one of those ways is to get a dashcam. Among the many other advantages of having a dashcam, which you can read more about in the article written here, having a dashboard camera can help you have peace of mind in the event of an accident.

Top 5 Dashcams for BMW Owners

After some research and reaching out to BMW owners who have purchased a dash cam, I have compiled the top 5 dashboard cameras on the market currently. Each one provides different features to accommodate nearly anyone’s needs.

 

 

Vantrue N2 Pro

This dash cam records both the road in front of the vehicle along with the interior of the vehicle. When both cameras are rolling, both cameras run 1920 x 1080p HD at 30 frames per second. If you opt to turn off your interior camera, the front camera will run at an outstanding 2560 x 1440p HD at 30 frames per second or 1920 x 1080p at 60 frames per second. The front camera has a 170° viewing angle allowing you to record all the lanes of traffic in front of the vehicle, while the interior camera has a 140° viewing angle, more than enough to record the cabin. Both cameras come with night vision. The cabin camera is equipped with 4 infrared lights, further enhancing the cabin recording. When low visibility is detected inside of the cabin, the infrared LED lights will turn on automatically, providing safety for those in your vehicle while not hindering the driver’s ability to see. To top it off, this dashboard camera has a built-in microphone that captures high-quality audio without distortion. Besides the features of the camera itself, this dashcam has other features advantageous to a BMW owner. For one, this dashboard camera has a parking monitor that switches on when your car is parked. Through motion detection, the dashcam turns itself on when parked to record what is in front of the vehicle. This dashcam also has a time and date stamp as well as speed and location records if GPS is enabled.

 

Who Would Be Best Suited With This Dash Cam?

The Vantrue N2 Pro is best suited for someone who wants to not only be able to record the road in front of them in case of encountering a reckless driver or getting into an accident, but also to record the interior of their vehicle. BMW owners that are worried about their passenger’s behavior should definitely check this one out, especially if you use your BMW for a rideshare app such as Uber Luxury. The passengers of the vehicle can even be seen in the dark, with infrared lights automatically turning on allowing for better recording without hindering the driver’s vision. With this dashcam’s microphone, the conversations in the vehicle will also be recorded. If you do not like this feature, you can simply turn it off.

 

Who May This Dashcam Not Be The Best For?

If you want to be able to view the road behind you, this may not be the best dashcam for you. You will not be able to see the road behind you aside from what you can see through your BMW’s windows from the cabin camera. Also, if you want your dashboard camera to be permanently fixed to your vehicle, this is not the dash cam for you as this one fixes to your windshield with a suction cup.

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BMW Factory EuroActive Car Eye

                                                                     

 

The BMW Factory Advanced Car Eye originates from a BMW OEM, or original equipment manufacturer. This product’s Manufacturer Part Number is 66212457032 and will help to ensure you are getting the right product. This product kit comes with both a front and rear camera that is meant for all current generation (2011 and forward) BMWs. Other items in the BMW Factory Advanced Car Eye kit include a 32GB SD card, a USB adapter, a GPS unit, and adhesive pads. This dashcam is capable of seeing in the dark, functions with loop recording, has g-sensors, and back up sensors and alarms.

 

Who Would Be Best Suited With This Dash Cam?

This dash cam is perfect for those who want to keep their BMW acceptable with their local dealer. Since this dashboard camera is a product from a BMW original equipment manufacturer, there will be no problems with keeping up your vehicle’s warranty or following any policies relating to it. Also because of it originating from an original equipment manufacturer that works with BMW, you are able to get this dashcam installed at your local dealership. Getting this dashboard camera kit will not mean you have to lose features. You can view the road both ahead of and behind your vehicle in real-time and record high-quality videos useful for a variety of situations. This dashcam may be particularly of interest to those who want parking assistance.

 

Who May This Dashcam Not Be The Best For?

Those who have a BMW from a generation before 2011, is looking for a cheap option, or has a convertible or a car with a roller blind will not be able to use this dash cam kit. It also requires an AGM or lithium-ion battery, so if one is not already installed in your BMW, it will need to be. Those in Portugal and Luxembourg also can not use this dash cam, just like every dash cam as it is prohibited in those areas.

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Eonon SMEDIA

The Eonon SMEDIA dashcam Is a rearview mirror dashboard camera hybrid. This HD 1296p camera takes great video during the night and day time allowing you to review critical information such as street signs and license plate numbers. This dash cam replaces your rearview mirror and you can switch between a view of the road ahead and a view of the road behind by tapping the touch screen with one tap. This dashboard camera has been tested in all types of weather and environments including splash, water, and dust testing, ensuring that it will perform and produce valuable videos in inclement weather when it may be needed the most. This dash cam uses SD cards up to 128Gb and includes functions such as a g-sensor, loop recording, parking monitoring, and a lane departure warning system. Best of all, the wide-angle of the rear camera virtually eliminates your blind zone.

 

Who Would Be Best Suited With This Dash Cam?

Eonon SMEDIA is for people who want their dashboard camera to look as natural as possible. Since this dashcam replaces your review mirror, it will be very difficult for people passing by to realize that you have a dashcam and reduces your chances of being a victim of theft. Not only this, it will not change the aesthetics of the interior of your BMW much in comparison to other dash cam options. This dashcam has a 9.88 inch HP IPS touchscreen, and will automatically adjust the brightness based on the ambient light surrounding the vehicle. Eonon SMEDIA provides audible warnings when your vehicle begins to move out of its lane and it will automatically display a parking imagine while you’re backing up to help assist and ensure you don’t ding your BMW when parking in tight spaces.

 

Who May This Dashcam Not Be The Best For?

As you could imagine, you may want to reconsider this dashboard camera if you do not want to cover your standard rear-view mirror. Nothing with your rear-view mirror will change and you can go back to it at any time, but you will not be able to use it while using Eonon SMEDIA. It may take time to get used to but using this dashcam you can see far more of the road than you can with your standard rear-view mirror. This camera also takes a little more work to install and may not be the best option if you intend to be able to put your dash cam up and take it down often.

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BLACKVUE DR750S-1CH

The upgraded version of BlackVue DR750S-1CH is full HD at 1920 x 1080p and always records at 60 frames per second providing great video quality. With a 1 – year warranty and a 30 day “buy and try” warranty, you’re protected if you decide this dashboard camera is not the right fit for you or if it malfunctions. This sleek and compact dash cam also has great features besides the basics (loop recording, g-sensor, night vision) including BlackVue Cloud, audio recording and emergency alarm. The app that comes with this dash cam, free, also has unique and useful features such as remote viewing.

 

Who Would Be Best Suited With This Dash Cam?

This dash cam would be perfect for those who have others, such as children, drive their BMW. The BlackVue DR750S-1CH comes with a smartphone app that allows you to track your vehicle’s location, hear what is being said in the vehicle and view the dashcam’s view all in real-time. You can also playback remotely and set up alerts to make your phone notify you when there is an emergency event in your vehicle like an accident. You can also use your smartphone to talk to the passengers through the dash cam. All of these features can be turned off for your privacy. Another helpful part of the WIFI capabilities of the BlackVue DR750S-1CH is that your recordings can be stored in BlackVue’s Cloud, eliminating the need to remove the SD card every time you want to have access to your dash cam’s recordings.

 

Who May This Dashcam Not Be The Best For?

The BlackVue DR750S-1CH only comes with a front camera. If you need assistance with parking or want to have a view of the roads and scenes behind your BMW, this is not the dash cam for you. It may be possible to get a second additional dash cam to use as a rear viewing cam but this will take extra installation and more costs when you could just purchase a cam that does both.

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THINKWARE FA200

The THINKWARE FA200 comes with both a front camera (full HD at 1080p) and a rear camera (720p), both recording at 30 frames per second. This dash cam comes with hardwiring cables and a 16GB MicroSD card. Through THINKWARE’s Mobile Viewer App you are able to remotely download and view recordings, and change device settings from your phone. You can decide if you want to hardwire this dash cam. If you do, this dash cam comes with parking mode that will cause the dash cam to turn on and record anytime it senses an impact or if the motion detector is triggered. Additionally, when hardwired you can put on “time-lapse mode” which will turn on when the ignition is off. This causes the dash cam to record in a slower frame per second rate but it saves on energy and allows it to record for up to three days even with the relatively small amount of space on the SD card that comes with THINKWARE FA200. You can also opt to purchase and attach the TWA-SGM GPS antenna. This will not only cause your recordings to be embedded with the time, speed and location of your recordings but also alert you to red light cameras and speed cameras.

 

Who Would Be Best Suited With This Dash Cam?

If you want to be able to keep an eye on your BMW while it’s parked, this may be the dash cam for you. With this dash cam, you are able to store 3 days’ worth of recordings on the SD card without downloading them on the app while the car’s ignition is off. This may also be an attractive option for those who want to be warned about speed cameras and red-light cameras. This dash cam will warn you before you read the red light or speed camera so that you can act appropriately. The wide-angle view of both the front and rear camera allows you to see all lanes of traffic ahead and behind you, increasing your protection in case of an accident or other events.

 

Who May This Dashcam Not Be The Best For?

If you reside outside of the United States or Canada, this purchase is not available to you. The device, according to the sellers, will not work outside of the United States and Canada. This dash cam is also not the best option who wants to easily install their dash cam or put it up and take it down often. Installation is best done by professionals unless you have prior experience.

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Final Verdict

The best option when looking for a dashboard camera as a BMW owner is the BMW Factory EuroActive Car Eye. Not only can this dash cam be installed by your local BMW dealership, but this dash cam is also a product from a BMW original equipment manufacturer and will not impact your vehicle’s warranty. It is a very high – quality dash cam with great features. If this dashcam is cost prohibited for you, the Eonon SMEDIA may be a good option. It has many of the same features as the BMW Factory EuroActive Car Eye, but is less expensive and has some additional features that may prove useful but is not a factory piece of equipment.