Just curious - seems like it's hard to find a good manufacturer out there; most of them are fly by night Chinese crap but there are some good ones, especially from Korea. Anyone using a dash cam that they like?

 

Bump for an item I'd like to add to my automobiles as well. I see so many dash cams but the pictures are horrible. I'm looking for one with a good FPS rate, at least 720p, IR, onboard memory and expandable memory as well. So, if anyone has hit pay dirt, spread the wealth to those of us waiting to pull the trigger on one.

 

I'm curious. Other than YouTube fodder, why would you need a dash cam? In case of an accident and you need to have proof?

 

I have one because there are certain demographics targeted by accident/fraud scammers here in Florida: older people (not me) and expensive cars. These aren't that expensive, however, most think they are and that we owners have money. Anyhow, I have had my dash cam for 3 years, never had any issue, and I check it every month or 2 to be sure it is recording. Quality is very good. It uses popular SD memory, and overwrites itself when full. I will check the make/model later when I have a moment.

 

Have been using the Lukas (Korean) cam for the past several months. Video and sound quality are great, it includes a GPS reference and allows zoom on frozen frames in case you wanted to see a license number. Installation relatively easy, but mine came with only Korean language instructions. This was easily overcome by going to their website and getting English instructions. Would recommend a 32gb card, as the supplied 8gb fills up quickly.

My reason for using one is because in this part of the country, driving courtesy and skill seems to be deteriorating rapidly, and the police do not want to be bothered unless there is injury or worse. My cam faces forward, which is okay for tracking other drivers who recklessly dart in front with no signals (common occurrence here) and Lukas also makes a rear-facing camera in case of a rear-end accident.

 

On the fraud note,
when i first got my xk8 I was parked on the side of PCH on a very busy day. A guy beside me in the traffic lane stopped and held up traffic while signaling to me with a nod as if he was letting me feed in. As soon as i started entering the lane he jumped forward and swiped me, luckily I noticed and pulled to my right and he hit only my tire and wheel and a little scuffing to my fender. He then jumped right out with a clipboard and everything as if he was prepared.
At the time I was very worried that it was a setup and that this car was a big target for such things. Since then I have given serious consideration toward buying a dash cam even though it would not have helped in that case.
I now react with great trepidation whenever someone surrenders the right of way to me.

 

Waterloo, what was the outcome of that encounter? Did he try to make a claim against you?

 

Ya he made a claim, he was in an SUV and probably had little to no damage, it was hard to tell because his vehicle was white and was already real scuffed up all around. It appeared to me like his tire was what hit my car and that's why my car fared as well as it did.

After it occurred I told him I thought he was stopping to let me out. He just said no and gave me the clipboard with the pen for my info.

We were disturbing traffic so the encounter was really fast. I can't say if it was a scam, it could have been an honest misunderstanding but his quick take off after holding up traffic just seemed unnatural to me.

Also, I don't know if this makes it more suspicious or less, but he was driving someone elses suv and happened to have their insurance and registration for the vehicle with him on the clipboard, neither of which matched his drivers license last name.

 

Checkout the videos on this thread.

 

Guess that pays for a $100 camera.

 

The link is the camera I have, but no longer available. They do make newer products now, a bit more expensive now. I would buy the brand again. Mine also has gps with date and time stamp. I have it wired into an ignition switched source with the wire running up the right a-pillar, under the header console, and camera is mounted on windshield just under/behind review mirror. From the drivers seat I can't even see it.

 

There is a lot of good information on this site:

Dash Cam Talk

Generally, the Korean made ones are a bit better than the Chinese ones in terms of quality, and believe it or not eBay is a better place to find cameras than Amazon. But see for yourself about the reviews. I'm considering this one:
Innovv C1 | Dash Cam Talk

Nice thing about it is there is a loop-function switch that can be set so the video will record over older video after so many hours. It also can be set to wake up when parked (if someone bumps into your car). Rear view would be nice, but usually when someone hits you from behind it's pretty clear who's fault it is, so forward view is my priority.

The only thing I am a bit worried about with any of these cams is heat - if you park it in the sun you should probably have it set up for quick disconnect - even putting it in the door pocket all day could cool it by a five to ten degrees versus leaving it in direct sunlight. That said, the one I'm looking at is so cheap if it fails after a year or two it's not a huge deal to replace it.

As to why I'd want it - see the videos on Youtube. Dash cams are huge in Russia as a scam-prevention tool and courts there give much more weight to video testimony versus eyewitnesses. The scammers are truly on the run. Eventually it will catch on in the US but the legal status is a bit of a patch work - cops in particular are treating the "camera" as the new "gun" so be mindful of whatever laws exist in your state. In NH a few years back some small town bozos charged a couple of people with wiretapping for having their cell phone video recorder going during a roadside stop (charges were dropped - as they almost always are in these bull$hit "wiretap" cases).

If/when the Supreme Court gets a hold of this and determines that "No, there is nothing wrong with recording cops the same way they record you when they pull you over" we may even see car manufacturers start to incorporate dash cams as an option (I'd buy it).

 

Which model are you using & which one has the rear-view? I've heard they are pretty good but a few complaints about focus.

 

Waterloo, Yes, I'd say it has a certain aroma about it.

 

I know of someone who uses an old smartphone. You could take an old smart phone and turn it into a dedicated dash-cam/media player, there are apps to do this. I thought about trying it because I can also use it to run Torque and get actual temp readings and such, but then realized strapping a smartphone to a windshield in some of the neighborhoods I park in would create more problems than it would solve.

 

[QUOTE=BurgXK8;898557]There is a lot of good information on this site:

Dash Cam Talk



Nice thing about it is there is a loop-function switch that can be set so the video will record over older video after so many hours. It also can be set to wake up when parked (if someone bumps into your car). Rear view would be nice, but usually when someone hits you from behind it's pretty clear who's fault it is, so forward view is my priority.

The only thing I am a bit worried about with any of these cams is heat - if you park it in the sun you should probably have it set up for quick disconnect - even putting it in the door pocket all day could cool it by a five to ten degrees versus leaving it in direct sunlight. That said, the one I'm looking at is so cheap if it fails after a year or two it's not a huge deal to replace it.

The Lukas models have the loop-function built in. They also come with a choice of high-temp adhesive or normal. Plus, the camera is easily detachable in seconds. Think the price was $200 from Amazon. And yes, it also has the 'sleep' function to avoid draining the battery.

 

The LK-7900 model. No complaints about the focus on this one.

 

Exactly! I use my smartphone for too many other things - GPS, Torque, Pandora, actually talking to people, etc. And I like the idea of a camera running while it is parked.

 

Thanks. They have a 2 channel version of that camera for front and rear view also; but it gets a bit pricey.