Dash cams, what to get and where to get it (Q&A only)

Nino Brown

cormie wrote: »

Is that the lukas? I think I saw that video, it seemed to create a strange white outline on the shadows of the cars?

Yeah, I never noticed that before, that's weird.

cormie

Same on yours or just the Californian sunshine or wherever it was shot?

Nino Brown

cormie wrote: »

Same on yours or just the Californian sunshine or wherever it was shot?

We'd need a bit of sun to get shadows!, I've never noticed it before. A couple of different lens filters come with the camera tho, so it could be whatever filter that guy is using.

cerastes

where can I get a small amount of 3M VHB tape, quick google reveals amazon and ebay, but I dont need a roll, for something like that, its nearly as handy if I can pick it up in a bricks and mortar shop, Im in Dublin.
Also, bricks and mortar for a tidy inline fuse, I havent found motor factors have a selection of stuff I can peruse.
If Im hardwiring, should I have a filter before I connect to the camera or something to regulate the voltage output to a steady 12v?

Nino Brown

cerastes wrote: »

Also, bricks and mortar for a tidy inline fuse, I havent found motor factors have a selection of stuff I can peruse.
If Im hardwiring, should I have a filter before I connect to the camera or something to regulate the voltage output to a steady 12v?

Whats the inline fuse for? Will the fuse you're wiring it from not do the job?

What camera are you hardwiring wiring in? A lot of them aren't 12V, so be careful with that if you plan on cutting off the plug.
If you still have the 12V plug on the camera wire, I'd leave it on and wire it into a fuse box, that will take care of all your regulation, and step down the voltage if required.
Or you could buy a regulator, they're very good but not cheap, they'll also allow you to leave the camera on constantly, and it will turn itself off if the battery drops below a set voltage.

cerastes

Nino Brown wrote: »

Whats the inline fuse for? Will the fuse you're wiring it from not do the job?

What camera are you hardwiring wiring in? A lot of them aren't 12V, so be careful with that if you plan on cutting off the plug.
If you still have the 12V plug on the camera wire, I'd leave it on and wire it into a fuse box, that will take care of all your regulation, and step down the voltage if required.
Or you could buy a regulator, they're very good but not cheap, they'll also allow you to leave the camera on constantly, and it will turn itself off if the battery drops below a set voltage.

the plug is already off, its second hand and was wired in previously,
I wanted to put an inline fuse to protect the cam, Im not sure what the fuse rating is to the 12v (lighter) connection, probably 10A, I can check but the max current draw is 250mA for the camera, so I wanted put an inline fuse as an added protection.

Any ideas on where to get a suitable double sided sticky tape local here or £M VHB?

XsApollo

Being lazy here but can someone recommend me a dash cam?
I know nothing about them.
would prefer to get it wired in rather than cig lighter powered all the time.
The car is an Audi A6 if that matters.
I see mentions of shock and motion sensors which turn the camera on when the car is parked.
i'd like to have that if possible.

cheers

First Up

XsApollo wrote: »

Being lazy here but can someone recommend me a dash cam?
I know nothing about them.
would prefer to get it wired in rather than cig lighter powered all the time.
The car is an Audi A6 if that matters.
I see mentions of shock and motion sensors which turn the camera on when the car is parked.
i'd like to have that if possible.

cheers

I'm in a similar situation. I got a present of a dash-cam for Christmas (having expressed interest) but the retailer (Halfords) doesn't seem to know too much about the one they sell. And the manual is a joke.

This thread seems to be mainly for people who like getting under the bonnet. I just want something I can turn on and play back without messing around.

diomed

I bought the LS430W from dod-tech.co.uk last week and used it for the first time on a drive from Stillorgan-Newbridge-Stillorgan yesterday leaving at 13:30 and arriving back at 17:30 so a bit of daylight and dark driving.

I hooked it up to my PC in the last hour and after a bit of swearing as I couldn't run the files (probably my stupidity) I now have the files. It records a file every three minutes so I have 31 files of three minutes each. It is a bit sad but I am watching each file. The twilight driving comes up fairly bright on replay.

I bought the 64 Gb datacard at the same time as buying the unit.

Although I have never used any other dashcam I am very happy with this. I didn't know it recorded sound as well. There are a few sighs and coughs on the replay.

Nino Brown

First Up wrote: »

I'm in a similar situation. I got a present of a dash-cam for Christmas (having expressed interest) but the retailer (Halfords) doesn't seem to know too much about the one they sell. And the manual is a joke.

This thread seems to be mainly for people who like getting under the bonnet. I just want something I can turn on and play back without messing around.

Most cameras are pretty straight forward once their installed. Just take the memory card, stick in a laptop and watch the video..that's it. You don;t even have to wire them into the car, usually you just plug them in and they turn on, whats the problem with your one?

brokenarms

First Up wrote: »

I'm in a similar situation. I got a present of a dash-cam for Christmas (having expressed interest) but the retailer (Halfords) doesn't seem to know too much about the one they sell. And the manual is a joke.

This thread seems to be mainly for people who like getting under the bonnet. I just want something I can turn on and play back without messing around.

Not at all. First up.

All these things require is a 12 socket which nearly every car has. In fact that all I use and will continue to use after I upgrade.

Plug them in.
Sucker cup them to your window and away you go.

Use you computer to retrieve the vid files the same way you plug in any phone or camera.

If you need any more advise in laymans terms, simply ask on here.

Nino Brown

diomed wrote: »

I hooked it up to my PC in the last hour and after a bit of swearing as I couldn't run the files (probably my stupidity) I now have the files.

Did you have trouble getting DOD player to work because you needed to download the k-lite codec pack? I had that trouble with my DOD.

diomed

Nino Brown wrote: »

Did you have trouble getting DOD player to work because you needed to download the k-lite codec pack? I had that trouble with my DOD.

I wasn't sure if there was a problem, or if was me. The instruction leaflet is brief.
I downloaded DirectX 10 to my PC from Microsoft as I thought my graphics software might be out of date.
After pressing the on/off button on the Dashcam and the button beside it (actually the same button, a rocker type button) my PC to recognised it as an external drive. The DOD unit screen lit up bright blue with the words "Mass Storage"
I viewed the files using Windows Media Player, not the software that comes with the DOD Dashcam.

Nino Brown

diomed wrote: »

I wasn't sure if there was a problem, or if was me. The instruction leaflet is brief.
I downloaded DirectX 10 to my PC from Microsoft as I thought my graphics software might be out of date.
After pressing the on/off button on the Dashcam and the button beside it (actually the same button, a rocker type button) my PC to recognised it as an external drive. The DOD unit screen lit up bright blue with the words "Mass Storage"
I viewed the files using Windows Media Player, not the software that comes with the DOD Dashcam.

Ah yeah mine worked in media player too, but the dod player is better, because it will play them all in sequence, and display your GPS position on google maps and the g-sensor data too.

First Up

Appreciate the help. It seems to record OK. Power it through the cig lighter. Still not clear on how to upload. Would have expected a cable in the box to connect to PC but nothing and nothing in manual. Saw reference to card reader and will check that out.
I'm not a techno-phobe but dash cam technology and familiarity still seems to be at the pioneering stage.

diomed

Thanks. I'll play them there if I can get in again. I'm stumbling around a bit, and just happy to see something.

Seamus1964

XsApollo wrote: »

Being lazy here but can someone recommend me a dash cam?
I know nothing about them.
would prefer to get it wired in rather than cig lighter powered all the time.
The car is an Audi A6 if that matters.
I see mentions of shock and motion sensors which turn the camera on when the car is parked.
i'd like to have that if possible.

cheers

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Panasonic-CY-VRP112T-112T-Car-Cam-1080P-8G-WDR-GPS-G-Sensor-Same-DOD-LS430W-/221357863162?pt=Camcorders_Professional_Video_Cameras&hash=item3389f4f0fa

You can't go wrong..
And they are made specially for Audi A6 ( after 2004 year models )

Nino Brown

First Up wrote: »

Appreciate the help. It seems to record OK. Power it through the cig lighter. Still not clear on how to upload. Would have expected a cable in the box to connect to PC but nothing and nothing in manual. Saw reference to card reader and will check that out.
I'm not a techno-phobe but dash cam technology and familiarity still seems to be at the pioneering stage.

A lot of them have usb connectors, but it's more hassle than it's worth taking the camera out of the car every time. Then you have to re-mount the camera in the car every time. The easiest way it to turn off the camera, and take out the SD or micro SD card, I think the halfords uses an SD card. If you don't have an SD card reader on your laptop, then you need an adapter like this guy

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Portable-SDHC-SD-MMC-Memory-Card-Reader-to-USB-2-0-Adapter-/171190666553?pt=US_Memory_Card_Readers_Adapters&hash=item27dbc24539

Then you can view the files on your PC just like you'd watch any other video file

Nino Brown

Seamus1964 wrote: »

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Panasonic-CY-VRP112T-112T-Car-Cam-1080P-8G-WDR-GPS-G-Sensor-Same-DOD-LS430W-/221357863162?pt=Camcorders_Professional_Video_Cameras&hash=item3389f4f0fa

You can't go wrong..
And they are made specially for Audi A6 ( after 2004 year models )

Nice looking camera! Don't forget the VAT

diomed

Nino Brown wrote: »

Ah yeah mine worked in media player too, but the dod player is better, because it will play them all in sequence, and display your GPS position on google maps and the g-sensor data too.

I forgot that the DOD icon was on the desktop.

In the last few minutes I found out
(1) to play all the files you have to click File/Open on the menu and select all the files by clicking the first file then Ctrl-A to select all files.
(2) there is a fast forward on the DOD menu so I can zoom through the footage.

TheChizler

Anyone got this in the past, any good?

http://www.livingsocial.com/deals/1007441-car-black-box-video-recorder?ref=mobile-email-share-pre-purchase

rocky

No, it's crap. At least it doesn't pretend to be 720p.

cerastes

TheChizler wrote: »

Anyone got this in the past, any good?

http://www.livingsocial.com/deals/1007441-car-black-box-video-recorder?ref=mobile-email-share-pre-purchase

28? whats the deal with that?

XsApollo

Seamus1964 wrote: »

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Panasonic-CY-VRP112T-112T-Car-Cam-1080P-8G-WDR-GPS-G-Sensor-Same-DOD-LS430W-/221357863162?pt=Camcorders_Professional_Video_Cameras&hash=item3389f4f0fa

You can't go wrong..
And they are made specially for Audi A6 ( after 2004 year models )

Thanks Seamus,
That a nice camera.

How do you know its specially made for an A6?

XsApollo

Seamus1964 wrote: »

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Panasonic-CY-VRP112T-112T-Car-Cam-1080P-8G-WDR-GPS-G-Sensor-Same-DOD-LS430W-/221357863162?pt=Camcorders_Professional_Video_Cameras&hash=item3389f4f0fa

You can't go wrong..
And they are made specially for Audi A6 ( after 2004 year models )

Ordered today.
Will see how it goes

Irish Stones

Do you have any review or opinion about this one ?
http://www.amazon.com/HP-F210-DashBoard-Accident-Recorder/dp/B00EEHN7BO

Looks very like the Panasonic CY-VRP112T.
Thanks!

Nino Brown

I've read they're not actually Panasonic or HP, the name is just licensed, they do look like they're made in the same place which would support this. And this reviewer says both camera's are "disasters".

http://www.carcamcentral.com/articles/2013-dash-cameras-and-trends

Irish Stones

Nino Brown wrote: »

I've read they're not actually Panasonic or HP, the name is just licensed, they do look like they're made in the same place which would support this. And this reviewer says both camera's are "disasters".

My suspects were that those cameras were made by someone that brands them accordingly, the menus are the same, the buttons below the LCD panel are the same and so on.
But the sample videos on YouTube are quite good, the features of the software are amazing and customers on Amazon left good (on average) reviews.
The HP model is available in Europe, the Panasonic seems to be available in Australia only, so the HP is cheaper because there aren't customs duties to be paid (at least for us Italians, our customs is a pain in the neck!).

Do you have a link for the review you talk about?

themacdaddy

I was gonna purchases the Mini 0801 then I seen this one with the new Ambarella A7 chip. Do you think there will be much difference?

Irish Stones

themacdaddy wrote: »

I was gonna purchases the Mini 0801 then I seen this one with the new Ambarella A7 chip. Do you think there will be much difference?

I checked this out a few days ago, but the quality of the video was low, more it was a little jerky. Seen on YouTube, though, don't know how reliable those sample videos are.

Nino Brown

Irish Stones wrote: »

My suspects were that those cameras were made by someone that brands them accordingly, the menus are the same, the buttons below the LCD panel are the same and so on.
But the sample videos on YouTube are quite good, the features of the software are amazing and customers on Amazon left good (on average) reviews.
The HP model is available in Europe, the Panasonic seems to be available in Australia only, so the HP is cheaper because there aren't customs duties to be paid (at least for us Italians, our customs is a pain in the neck!).

Do you have a link for the review you talk about?

sorry, added to original post

brokenarms

Im going to get one of these. They look great.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo76bkytA3o

Irish Stones

themacdaddy wrote: »

I was gonna purchases the Mini 0801 then I seen this one with the new Ambarella A7 chip. Do you think there will be much difference?

This seems good to me. It seems we have to wait four to six weeks before getting hold of it, though
I would have liked a camera that could allow me to set the frame rate to a lower value that 30 fps. Something that could be set from 1 fps to 30 fps would have been great.
The GoPro cams allow this, but are much more expensive and not dedicated to this purpose.

Average-Ro

Irish Stones wrote: »

This seems good to me. It seems we have to wait four to six weeks before getting hold of it, though
I would have liked a camera that could allow me to set the frame rate to a lower value that 30 fps. Something that could be set from 1 fps to 30 fps would have been great.
The GoPro cams allow this, but are much more expensive and not dedicated to this purpose.

Why do you want to be able to change the frame rate? Just out of curiosity:)

Irish Stones

Average-Ro wrote: »

Why do you want to be able to change the frame rate? Just out of curiosity:)

One of the reasons could be to save space in the memory
A frame rate of, say, 5 fps could be still enough to see and understand what happens around, but the memory card can store 6 times more recording.
At 10 fps the video is still recognisable but the recording time is three times more.
At the moment I have a ER-130V, not available anymore on the market, that has a variable frame rate.
By the way, does anyone know what is the file size for each minute of recording for the Mini 0801?

Nino Brown

Irish Stones wrote: »

One of the reasons could be to save space in the memory
A frame rate of, say, 5 fps could be still enough to see and understand what happens around, but the memory card can store 6 times more recording.

But they record over themselves in a loop, so why worry about memory?

gman2k

I think the 0801 does around 80mb per 1min @ 30fps

Irish Stones

Nino Brown wrote: »

But they record over themselves in a loop, so why worry about memory?

Because in certain occasions I wouldn't like to have the older files deleted or overwritten. This happens when I'm on holiday and I'd like to keep the whole travel saved for later reviews
If I haven't misunderstood, these devices allow users to choose between overwrite and stop when full, don't they?

gman2k wrote: »

I think the 0801 does around 80mb per 1min @ 30fps

Thanks! Very useful info

Nino Brown

Irish Stones wrote: »

Because in certain occasions I wouldn't like to have the older files deleted or overwritten. This happens when I'm on holiday and I'd like to keep the whole travel saved for later reviews
If I haven't misunderstood, these devices allow users to choose between overwrite and stop when full, don't they?

I can't speak for all of them, but it seems most do allow you turn off loop recording.
In accident situations the incident won't be recorded over on most dashcams, and if your on holiday you could just take the card out and transfer the files to your laptop after each trip and you're good to go.

brokenarms

Hi have a 32gb card in my one . 720p cam. It uses the whole 32 gb in around 4 hours. Which is a pain as I work 8 hours on the road. Unless I lock the file I want to keep it will overwrite it.

gman2k

brokenarms wrote: »

Hi have a 32gb card in my one . 720p cam. It uses the whole 32 gb in around 4 hours. Which is a pain as I work 8 hours on the road. Unless I lock the file I want to keep it will overwrite it.

Why would you need that much video stored?
Surely a smaller card, with looped recording is more useful? If an incident occurs that warrants saving, then it's easy to save...

brokenarms

gman2k wrote: »

Why would you need that much video stored?
Surely a smaller card, with looped recording is more useful? If an incident occurs that warrants saving, then it's easy to save...

Well I had it anyway. I would like 64gb+ TBH.

It would mean I would have proof of delivery in my line of work if questioned the next day. I may have 250 drops in one day.

Red Nissan

gman2k wrote: »

Why would you need that much video stored?
...

If you've a good camera, rerunning the trips can be fascinating. Only problem is getting the time to watch it all again

Nino Brown

brokenarms wrote: »

Well I had it anyway. I would like 64gb+ TBH.

It would mean I would have proof of delivery in my line of work if questioned the next day. I may have 250 drops in one day.

Some take 128GB's now.

Nino Brown

gman2k wrote: »

Why would you need that much video stored?
Surely a smaller card, with looped recording is more useful? If an incident occurs that warrants saving, then it's easy to save...

Exactly, most actually auto save in the event of a crash, or even heavy braking.

Irish Stones

brokenarms wrote: »

Hi have a 32gb card in my one . 720p cam. It uses the whole 32 gb in around 4 hours. Which is a pain as I work 8 hours on the road. Unless I lock the file I want to keep it will overwrite it.

That is more than 80 MB per minute, and we're talking 720p cam, what would happen with a 1080p cam?

Nino Brown wrote: »

and if your on holiday you could just take the card out and transfer the files to your laptop after each trip and you're good to go.

That could be a solution. If the cam could be set at a lower frame rate this problem would be partially solved.

Nino Brown

Irish Stones wrote: »

That is more than 80 MB per minute, and we're talking 720p cam, what would happen with a 1080p cam?

My Cam is 1080p, a 3min clip is 208MB at 30fps

Irish Stones wrote: »

That could be a solution. If the cam could be set at a lower frame rate this problem would be partially solved.

The LK7900 allows you set the frame rate from 5-30fps.

Irish Stones

Nino Brown wrote: »

The LK7900 allows you set the frame rate from 5-30fps.

I found the manual at this link

http://www.lukashd.com/gnuboard4/bbs/board.php?bo_table=eng_setupmanual&wr_id=6

but it doesn't say anything about the frame rate...

Another thing. All these dash cams start recording when the vehicle is turned on, probably because the power at the cigarette lighter in on in that moment.
My car (Opel Astra 2004) has the cig lighter always on, even when the car is without key. This sounds like a problem...

Nino Brown

Irish Stones wrote: »

I found the manual at this link

http://www.lukashd.com/gnuboard4/bbs/board.php?bo_table=eng_setupmanual&wr_id=6

but it doesn't say anything about the frame rate...

Another thing. All these dash cams start recording when the vehicle is turned on, probably because the power at the cigarette lighter in on in that moment.
My car (Opel Astra 2004) has the cig lighter always on, even when the car is without key. This sounds like a problem...

Here's the first page of the options menu on the Lukas, 5,10,15 fps are greyed out, maybe there's other settings I need to change to make them available.

I used to drive a focus, and the cigarette lighters are always on in them too. It wasn't a problem, the camera was just always on.

The Lukas is designed to be always on all the time anyway, and you can get regulator kit with them I described earlier in this thread so that you don't use the cigarette lighter at all.

Moneymaker

Hi lads, the old fella is looking to get a dash cam for about 40-50 euros.

I'm gonna read back through the thread but you can make any recommendations?