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

Max Power

Can anyone recommend me one?

Are they easy to install?

Mod note - this technical thread is for three things only:
acquirement, installation and operation of dash cams.
Do not post your dash videos or argue over small stuff.

Only post if you are committed to buying and have questions, general chat will be removed.

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Comments

Toyotafanboi

AndyBoBandy wrote: »

I've been using a G1W in rental cars this year and I think it's a great little camera, as good as the mini 0806 I have, as well as the DDPai M6 Plus that just replaced the 0806

at a guess I'd say the G1W would have a far superior picture quality than the one shown above,

Here is a sample video recorded with the G1W earlier this year.

It might be priced lower end, but it's certainly not a low end camera.

Also, in order to get that camera for €25, you have to buy 2 thus spending €50, I'd rather spend €42 on a very good quality proven reliable camera (100's of online reviews), then spend €50 for 2 that could be ok, or could be shíte.

Also, LED lights on a dashcam are about as useful as a chocolate kettle, yet on the above box, it's shown that LED lights are one of its key features!!

I've set it all up there now. The hardest part is getting it from SD to laptop and then from laptop to interweb from my point of view, i've never done anything like that before but i'm curious as to how the quality will be.

The camera says 1080p which is the same as the one you linked. It's just dusk now and and pressing night mode didn't illuminate the LED's but the image on the back of the camera improved greatly so the must be the IR type like you see on security cams etc which may still be poor, it'l be interesting get to see.

2x for €50 from my point of view meant it was good to get two, one front, one rear facing. My biggest gripe is I only had enough cable to get to the top of the A-pillar from the 12v socket in the armrest and not to behind the rear view mirror which I would have liked.

And, looks like they only cost me €47 now :pac:

ml100

Patww79 wrote: »

There really is no way of going wrong with these things. Red to + and black to -. So long as you've the right fuse or wire then you're sorted, and with the internet that's easy found. Certainly not worth paying to have done, unless it's to avoid the hassle of doing it.

As pat said hard to go wrong when wiring it, I used a piggy back fuse holder one like this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01E3PQWUE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_tC.zybPA0FTXR

Found an empty permanent live slot in the fuse box and used it, I've since moved it to a switched live slot, took about 45 minutes, most of that time was routing the cable, lots of video's on
YouTube to show how, the fuse box on a golf is on the side of the dash board on the drivers side (small panel to remove when the drivers door is open) so really easy to do.

ml100

Here's a picture of the fuse box with the ddpai wiring kit fitted to a switched live fuse slot, car is 2011 vw golf.

grogi

ml100 wrote: »

Here's a picture of the fuse box with the ddpai wiring kit fitted to a switched live fuse slot, car is 2011 vw golf.

How much current does it draw in parking mode?

Senecio

The issue with the DDPai hardware kit (& most other hardware kits) is that the voltage cutout is set to 11.6v. It is set far too low to start most modern engines. They really should be set at 12.4v or higher.

If you really want to use the parking mode off a non switched fuse then you really need to be using something like this in place of the DDPai kit.

https://www.blackvue.com/power-magic-pro/

Or better still this. But it is twice the price of the camera itself.

http://www.techmoan.com/blog/2016/5/27/dashcam-battery-pack-lets-you-record-whilst-parked.html

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

Cortina_MK_IV

It's £99 on Halford's UK site so that's €116 give or take. The one I might get (Nextbase Duo) was €40 cheaper on UK site also over the Christmas I'm sure but now back to near parity. I'm certain prices shifted.

Hal1

Just seen this in bargains alerts thread,

http://www.checkargos.com/product/5987238

Nextbase 101 Dash Cam with 8GB SD Card.
Buy at Argos.ie - €51.99

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

ironclaw

Senecio wrote: »

The issue with the DDPai hardware kit (& most other hardware kits) is that the voltage cutout is set to 11.6v. It is set far too low to start most modern engines. They really should be set at 12.4v or higher.

If you really want to use the parking mode off a non switched fuse then you really need to be using something like this in place of the DDPai kit.

https://www.blackvue.com/power-magic-pro/

Or better still this. But it is twice the price of the camera itself.

http://www.techmoan.com/blog/2016/5/27/dashcam-battery-pack-lets-you-record-whilst-parked.html

If you are handy with a soldering iron, you can make any of these kits with a charge unit and a sealed 12V battery for peanuts. A back up car alarm battery will also do the same job.

5500

Anyone shed some light as to what the "e dog" update/function is on the ddpai?

grogi

5500 wrote: »

Anyone shed some light as to what the "e dog" update/function is on the ddpai?

Warnings about speed cameras. Useless in here.

5500

grogi wrote: »

Warnings about speed cameras. Useless in here.

Thanks, I installed this last night and gave it a run today but the picture quality seems on the bad side to me, kind of pixelated and not like any of the online youtube video's of it, is there any specific settings to use? (Im using a class 10 32gb sandisk micro sd if thats makes any difference)

I updated to the latest firmware via the app and also did a reset via the button on the back to make sure but image quality still looks the same

grogi

ironclaw wrote: »

If you are handy with a soldering iron, you can make any of these kits with a charge unit and a sealed 12V battery for peanuts. A back up car alarm battery will also do the same job.

That's my plan. But I have no idea how to prevent discharging the main battery... Would need to disconnect the dash-battery from the main battery when the voltage goes below 13V (alternator is not charging).

-- thinks when writing the above ---

A simple relay controlled by the on-key power would do...

xtraxtra

any recommendations for a 50-75 quid budget.... do not want iphone/android connectivity, cheers

54and56

Hi all,

I'd appreciate feedback on this footage in terms of quality. As this is my first Dashcam I really don't know what to expect quality wise. I was initially impressed with the footage but then realised it's quite hard to see the number plate of the car in front and its not that far in front!!

Here is a still taken from the above clip which no matter how much I zoom in on I can only made out the "D" in the number plate and that's primarily due to familiarity rather than picture clarity!!

I also took the following stills whilst parked/standing still and once again whilst there is more clarity than the still from the moving video I'm not that impressed with the ability to read the number plates which for me is one of the main functions of I wanted from a dashcam.

and

My M6+ is located towards the top of my windscreen (as generally recommended) and the video settings are max 1440p resolution and the Blu Ray cinema mode 2.4:1 so I think that's as good as it gets.

Any thoughts? Am I being too critical/expecting too much?

5500

Je_suis_Jean did you purchase your's from Amazon? I just got one and it's a bit worse than your own in that you can actually see pixel's on video's off my one. Despite knocking off bluray/2k ect I'm less than impressed and isn't what I expected.

I was previously using an sj4000wifi action cam which appear's much clearer in comparison and can make out reg's where the DDpai cant. I'm going to return mine to amazon either way's and look at a different model

54and56

Thanks OSI,

OSI wrote: »

I would suggest setting it to 1080P 30FPS and dropping any gimmicky "Blu ray" mode or similar that you have set.

Didn't think there was anything gimmicky about choosing the Bluray 2.4:1 aspet ratio over the widescreen 16:9 option but will make the change including to 1080P as you suggest and see if it improves things.

OSI wrote: »

Also worth remembering that YouTube does a ****ty job of compressing video.

True but I downloaded to my laptop first and the image quality/ability to read number plates isn't much better using the original/raw file Vs the compressed YouTube version.

I'll make the changes you suggest. Fingers crossed it works.

54and56

5500 wrote: »

Je_suis_Jean did you purchase your's from Amazon?

Yes, my wife purchased from a reseller on Amazon as a Xmas prezzie. I wish she'd purchased from the DDpai shop on amazon (I'd be more confident about the source of the unit and support etc) but she didn't so I'll give it a good chance to improve via the tweaks OSI suggests above before starting down the road of looking for support/warranty etc.

rameire

in one car im using the ddpai m6 plus which i got before christmas from here link to amazon
quality seems good. got it delivered within one week. cant complain and connection to LG android phone has no problems.

in car number 2, I had the iPass Black ITB-100HD FULL HD .
quality on this is just superb, but I borked it when updating the software on it recently. im hoping somebody may know of a fix for this cam. otherwise I may have to get a new cam.

cormie

rameire wrote: »

in car number 2, I had the iPass Black ITB-100HD FULL HD .
quality on this is just superb, but I borked it when updating the software on it recently. im hoping somebody may know of a fix for this cam. otherwise I may have to get a new cam.

Where did you get this? I have the iTronics ITB-100HD. Are they the same? I think mine were about $200 but this was about 3/4 years ago at least I think. Would have thought dashcams would have advanced leaps and bounds by then, but you're saying it's still better than the one you got just recently? Mine still seem to be going strong, although I haven't had to review any footage in a while!

rameire

cormie wrote: »

Where did you get this? I have the iTronics ITB-100HD. Are they the same? I think mine were about $200 but this was about 3/4 years ago at least I think. Would have thought dashcams would have advanced leaps and bounds by then, but you're saying it's still better than the one you got just recently? Mine still seem to be going strong, although I haven't had to review any footage in a while!

I got this off the same guy you recommended 3 or 4 years ago I think.
its the same. the clarity on the image is still good. Ive never had a problem with it until I messed with it.

cormie

Haha, ahhh yeah, I think I remember you asking about

If there's anything I can do to help, let me know. Not sure would you be able to copy something from my device?

rameire

cheers, its to do with the update, the power was disconnected midway through the update. I have all the old files and new files, might get another version of the Itronics.

cormie

Ah, so them warnings ARE there for a reason

Best of luck sorting it!

josip

Is reading number plates so important ?
You'll only want the reg in a hit and run scenario and I can only recall one dashcam vid posted here where that happened. (The guy getting sideswiped at the airport-M1 roundabout where the night time footage wasn't sufficient to identify the car)
I'd be very happy with the quality of image you've posted, way better than my 720p.

VictorRomeo

Cortina_MK_IV wrote: »

It's £99 on Halford's UK site so that's €116 give or take. The one I might get (Nextbase Duo) was €40 cheaper on UK site also over the Christmas I'm sure but now back to near parity. I'm certain prices shifted.

I just had a Nextbase 412GW installed today at Halfords in Newry. The retail in down here is €149 but £99 up there. However for £139, they'll install it - supply and fit a Nextbase hardwire kit as part of the price - and include a case and an 8gb Sandisk card. I think this was a pretty decent price and worth the spin up from Dublin. I should add that I priced a 312GW supply and fit in Dublin - cost was about €160 inc the hardwire kit however installation lead time was a week. It was walk-in in Newry...

5500

Je_suis_Jean wrote: »

Yes, my wife purchased from a reseller on Amazon as a Xmas prezzie. I wish she'd purchased from the DDpai shop on amazon (I'd be more confident about the source of the unit and support etc) but she didn't so I'll give it a good chance to improve via the tweaks OSI suggests above before starting down the road of looking for support/warranty etc.

Same as myself, wankaku was the seller i believe, wonder if mine is from the same store as yours and if it could be a dodgy batch, even on the different settings mine is the same, I've also tried playing the videos on different players eg vlc, cyber link ect and they are the same, definitely not the same quality as others I've seen on YouTube though

AndyBoBandy

LIGHTNING wrote: »

The hello chime on my ddpai m6 plus is still distorted even after a reset, its quite annoying I'd have to say.

I think that's down to the device battery having very minimal charge in it at start up, as most initial power draw will be for the actual camera itself, and as a result, audio messages might suffer.

I get the distorted sound most times I start the car when it hasn't been driven for a while, and also again on shutdown if I've only driven a short distance.

Then, if I've driven around for an hour or so, and stop for an hour, I don't get the distortion again when I start the car as it seems there is still enough charge held in it to handle all functions (including any chimes)

This is all pointing to low power in the unit after a long period without use. But as long as the camera records as it should, I don't really care.

As a side note, I'm not using the supplied power adapter with my DDPai, I'm using the power supply that I had in place for my previous main dash cam, a mini 0806, as it was already in place and tucked away nicely under the trim.