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

moby2101 · 25-11-2018 12:16pm

+1 for Carcom
he fitted/hardwired a dashcam front and rear to my wife’s car.

Really good bloke, been in the business a long time and knows his stuff

Nevil1 · 25-11-2018 1:11pm

Perfect. Good to get a recommendation from someone who’s used them. Thanks!

mr_cochise · 25-11-2018 1:18pm

What kind of price range for the fitting lads?

punisher5112 · 25-11-2018 1:52pm

mr_cochise wrote: »

What kind of price range for the fitting lads?

I believe it's €35 in halfords

Gregor Samsa · 25-11-2018 8:01pm

Is there such a thing as a dashcam that has just the lens/ccd part of the camera mounted on the windscreen, and then a cable running to the processor/storage/etc that can be hidden away in the glove box/under the dash?

For screenless cameras (that need a power cable running to them anyway) I don’t see why the whole thing needs to be hanging off the window. It would be much more discrete with the small image capture part on the glass and the rest hidden away.

richieffff · 25-11-2018 9:20pm

phutyle wrote: »

Is there such a thing as a dashcam that has just the lens/ccd part of the camera mounted on the windscreen, and then a cable running to the processor/storage/etc that can be hidden away in the glove box/under the dash?

For screenless cameras (that need a power cable running to them anyway) I don’t see why the whole thing needs to be hanging off the window. It would be much more discrete with the small image capture part on the glass and the rest hidden away.

Something like the Koonlung K1S maybe?

I can't comment how good it actually is

25-11-2018 9:41pm

richieffff wrote: »

Something like the Koonlung K1S maybe?

I can't comment how good it actually is

Mixed reviews on Amazon, there is a cheaper unit that is probably a rebadged early release version of this camera and that has a lot of bad reviews.

Maybe the current ones have the bugs ironed out.

Personally, I would like something like this in the car as it is more discreet than most cameras on the market.

bazz26 · 26-11-2018 1:08am

YI Dash Cam with wide angle and 60fps down to £24.99 including free delivery when you select the promotion voucher:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01CXDP69G/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_1?smid=A3DUHD1BHNQJLB&psc=1

Have this dash cam myself for the last 6 months and it hasn't missed a beat, quality is quite good too.

worded · 26-11-2018 1:23am

bazz26 wrote: »

YI Dash Cam with wide angle and 60fps down to £24.99 including free delivery when you select the promotion voucher:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01CXDP69G/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_1?smid=A3DUHD1BHNQJLB&psc=1

Have this dash cam myself for the last 6 months and it hasn't missed a beat, quality is quite good too.

Does this include attachments needed like cables etc to get it fitted to the car ?

Thanks

wassie · 26-11-2018 1:26am

Installed a VIOFO a129 DUO from Amazon a month a ago and very satisfied with performance. 1080p 60fps front only or 30fps front & rear.
Super simple to DIY install myself and only required USB to power.

App is pretty solid - just need to ensure wifi settings on phone (particularly Android) are not set to switch to mobile data as phone will detect VIOFO wifi has no internet.

Going to install direct battery connection so I can get the parking incident detection up and running. Well featured for around €140 delivered with current 5% off voucher.

Ryath · 26-11-2018 1:47am

worded wrote: »

Does this include attachments needed like cables etc to get it fitted to the car ?

Thanks

Yea it comes with everything you need
Package Contents
1 x Car Dash Cam
1 x 3M Glue Pasted Bracket (Note: no suction mount)
1 x Car Charger
1 x USB cable

Have it since June very happy with it. Have it mounted with a suction mount though.

Might get it another trying to decide about getting one for my wife's car or the back screen of mine.

bazz26 · 26-11-2018 1:49am

worded wrote: »

Does this include attachments needed like cables etc to get it fitted to the car ?

Thanks

It comes with a double sided sticker for the windscreen and a 3m usb cable that plugs into the cigaret lighter/12v outlet for power. I bought this universal windscreen clamp instead:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06XQFP2RH/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The USB to cigaret lighter/12v outlet adapter that comes with it is not strong enough to power it so you will need to buy one locally for a few euro. The 3m usb cable is plenty long enough to run it from the top of the windscreen up under the car's trim and around and down the side of the dashboard to the outlet.

Some people have problems with certain SD cards but I bought this 32gb SD card and it hasn't given any problems. https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06XFSZGCC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I think formatting the card regularly helps prevent it getting corrupt and unusable. The camera will override old files as needed and save files where it detects an impact but I find anything over a month I don't need anyway.

Lord Nikon · 26-11-2018 6:29pm

Anyone use a GoPro as a dashcam? I do some mountain biking and was gonna get one for this, but mostly use it as a dashcam.

wassie · 26-11-2018 7:03pm

bazz26 wrote: »

Some people have problems with certain SD cards but I bought this 32gb SD card and it hasn't given any problems. https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06XFSZGCC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I think formatting the card regularly helps prevent it getting corrupt and unusable. The camera will override old files as needed and save files where it detects an impact but I find anything over a month I don't need anyway.

Memory card selection is actually fairly important, especially when recording in 1080p. A smaller capacity card means it will be written over more frequently and certain cards will fail as they are not designed to do so - especially avoid the Sandisk Ultra (I learnt the hard way - it failed after 2 weeks).

You should get a high endurance card designed for usage in a recording device such as a dashcam or security camera.

Good article here goes into detail.

garclo · 26-11-2018 11:01pm

Hi all,
Could anyone recommend a decent basic dashcam?
I dont know much about spec on them but I've been looking online and prices seem to go from about €15 up to hundreds.
I don't need anything fancy, I'd just like to have one for my commute as people seem to be getting crazier out there lately......must be the dark evenings.
Any recommendations appreciated!

OldMrBrennan83 · 26-11-2018 11:03pm

garclo wrote: »

Hi all,
Could anyone recommend a decent basic dashcam?
I dont know much about spec on them but I've been looking online and prices seem to go from about €15 up to hundreds.
I don't need anything fancy, I'd just like to have one for my commute as people seem to be getting crazier out there lately......must be the dark evenings.
Any recommendations appreciated!

This one was down to £25 earlier today so keep an eye on it for a drop again. Won't get better for the money.

(Buy the silver one, not the black one).

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01CXDP69G/

cormie · 27-11-2018 1:39am

Patww79 wrote: »

This one was down to £25 earlier today so keep an eye on it for a drop again. Won't get better for the money.

(Buy the silver one, not the black one).

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01CXDP69G/

Why the silver one over the black? I don't see a choice on the item page

OldMrBrennan83 · 27-11-2018 6:37am

cormie wrote: »

Why the silver one over the black? I don't see a choice on the item page

The black one has a narrower field of view and worse video quality. Just feels a whole lot cheaper to run through the menus on too.

cormie · 27-11-2018 6:57am

Thanks, so the link you provided is the silver one, right? The 165 degree angle one, and then the black one is another link? OR you have to specify silver or black on the one link you provided?

OldMrBrennan83 · 27-11-2018 7:14am

cormie wrote: »

Thanks, so the link you provided is the silver one, right? The 165 degree angle one, and then the black one is another link? OR you have to specify silver or black on the one link you provided?

Yeah that's the silver. That listing is ok but I've seen it where it's listed with a drop-down selection of silver or black and you'd think they're the same at first glance (black is 130°).

OldMrBrennan83 · 28-11-2018 3:45am

cormie wrote: »

Thanks, so the link you provided is the silver one, right? The 165 degree angle one, and then the black one is another link? OR you have to specify silver or black on the one link you provided?

Dropped below £29 now.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01CXDP69G/

cormie · 28-11-2018 6:32am

Thanks! I had actually already bought one before my last few posts, was just making sure I got the right one

inforfun · 28-11-2018 10:41am

1 thing with the Yi dashcam.
The usb charger i got with mine didnt work for me.
Now i have about 2 million of those things so easy to try another one and the camera started after that.

Might have to do with the size of the one that comes in the box. Looks a bit short and might not make the best of contacts because of it.

bazz26 · 28-11-2018 11:23am

Yeah, I had the same issue. I think the adapter that comes with it isn't powerful enough to charge it using the 12v outlet in the car. They are cheap enough to replace anyway, the likes of Mr Price, Dealz, etc have them.

Mantis Toboggan · 28-11-2018 11:26am

I'm thinking of buying a dashcam but don't want all the wires in the car, is is worth getting these hardwired into the car and am I better going to somewhere like halfords to get this done?

LovelySpuds · 28-11-2018 3:20pm

https://www.adverts.ie/car/audi/a3/2009-audi-a3-1-9tdi-sport/16798209

2009 Audi A3 Sport 1.9TDI in perfect condition.

-115bhp
-Imported from UK in December 2012, one previous Irish owner before me
-Timing belt and clutch done at 144,490 miles in May 2018
-Full service history and 2 keys
-Getting serviced this week as well as 2 new tyres for new owner
-Dual climate control
-Back 3 windows tinted professionally by Edge Signs in Cork
-Bodywork in very good condition for age with only a few small marks
-Extremely economical, can get up to 65+mpg

greenfield21 · 28-11-2018 11:34pm

Yeah thanks bought one, from the description the SD card can be 32/64 gb so like a 128gb wouldn't work in it?

bazz26 · 28-11-2018 11:48pm

Supports upto 64GB afaik.

Damien360 · 28-11-2018 11:50pm

Mantis Toboggan wrote: »

I'm thinking of buying a dashcam but don't want all the wires in the car, is is worth getting these hardwired into the car and am I better going to somewhere like halfords to get this done?

It's not difficult to fit these at all. If you are uncomfortable touching your car fuse board then it's best go to Halfords to fit. The hardest part is finding an Earth point to use. Too much plastic under the dash !

toyotafan · 29-11-2018 2:48pm

Hey Folks,
Thinking to treat myself with a Nextbase 512GW dashcam as price is dropped at Halfords at the moment.
I did some research for review from other people in Amazon and it is claimed that there are so many issue with this dashcam.

Would you recommend it for me to buy?
Ta

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

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