[Closed] do you have a dashcam?

I've got a Blackvue 650 something or other.

Front and rear cameras, wifi so it downloads instantly to an app on my phone. Really useful as I can replay it straight away when a student does something wrong.

Very discreet. Front camera hides behind the interior mirror and the rear camera is tiny at the top of the rear window.

Not cheap, about £280, but worth every penny to me. I've caught some right idiots on it recently including 2 guys fighting at 6 pm on a main road...... 😀

I have a roadhawk as I'm addicted to spending money. Good quality video, hard wired to car battery and turns itself off it the battery starts to drop too much.

One thing I'd advise is if you are unfortunate enough to be in an accident that clearly shows the other driver is at fault, don't jump out and shout "I got that on camera mate". Keep it to yourself until you need to show the insurance etc. Have heard of at fault drivers grabbing the camera and making off with your vital evidence.

We've a cheapy job that plugs into the satnav (an external not in-dash sat nav). It records 30 minutes on a loop and stops recording in a high-G situation or if you press a button.

Useful here in Thailand to get you out of DWW situations. (driving while white). Friend was pulled over for 'swerving' by the policeman (who'd have been after a bribe). When he pointed at the dashcam the policeman suddenly couldn't speak English and waved him on.

I'd certainly get one. No idea if you have one that records the speed it can be used against you. I'd guess it isn't up to evidentiary (word?) standards. Ours doesn't though.

How does a dash cam help you with an uninsured driver ?

I've got a cheapo ebay job thats been running 24/7 in my company van for the last three years, although I do unplug it over the weekend.

Its set to a low frame rate so records about 50hrs in a big over-writing loop. They are currently selling the same version but with useless (and less discreet) night vision LEDs in some Esso stations.

I removed the big ugly suction mount, and drilled the rear view mirror bracket to accept the dashcam (its a van so no use for the mirror).

Its caught a few interesting things and a couple of very close near misses - one guy that looked but didn't see and just pulled across in front of me, and another who slowed to turn left, (resulting in me getting closer) then changed his mind and accelerated, then saw a level crossing closing so stamped on the brake, turned left and then had to stop half way off the road as he had left it so late he couldn't complete the turn without hitting the bollards in the middle of the junction.

The biggest selling point of a dashcam...it makes you think about how your driving would look, and encourages you to be more patient/courteous.

interesting reading, especially as mrs ex-p has just passed her test. id be wanting it to be as unobtrusive as possible tho.

1. ive already got dab radio plugged into my aux and fag lighter, also use a bluetooth adapter into fag lighter sometimes, does that just leave me with the hardwired option? is that a pro job to do?
2. id want it to be fit and forget plus discreet, wife uses a satnav which is pretty much permanently on display. can you get them nestling discreetly on top of or just under the rear view mirror rather than on an ugly sticky stand? dont want the car looking like the flight deck of a jumbo 😀

good thread.

Sadexpunk; see my link. About as unobtrusive as you can get without spending a fortune. Hardwiring is as easy as finding a switched ignition live. If you e ever installed an old fashioned car stereo before the days of plug n play then you'll not have a problem. Hardwire kits available cheap on th'bay.

you can also get adaptors that give multiple outlets from the lighter, though that may get a bit messy. But it would do for starters. I've also been thinking of getting one for some time, never got round to it, interested in the thread. May just buy the ebay one linked to above.

I haven't got one yet but looking at them, one of the things that puts me off is if they're attractive to thieves. Not sure I want the hassle of removing it all the time (even if that's an option) and having a £100-200 device clearly visible is a worry.

We have them in our cars due to working in & around Bradford where driving without insurance (or driving licence) is fairly common.

Bradford Taxis scare the crap out of me. It's like Automan from the 80s - reminds me I was going to get a dashcam before my next visit to Bradford 🙂

I keep looking into getting one. I want one of the ones where the wiring and mount is permanently in the car & the camera just clips onto the mount when you get in, rather than something permanently fitted.

I'd be happy to fit it myself, but as I drive my Wife's car now I am not convinced she'd be happy with me fiddling about with the wiring, so I'll probably have to find a place to get it fitted.

The Techmoan website has a good amount of reviews and seems quite balanced.

I have been using a Mobius Actioncam (about 50 pounds) in my car for the past two years. I have mounted it near the rear view mirror with wiring tucked down the A-pillar trim and hard wired into the fusebox - really not too difficult to fit. I think I used the Mobius helmet mount turned upside down to give the neatest install. Turns on automatically when the engine is started.

The mobius is a tiny camera, and it is discreetly mounted so not really visible from outside the car. So no concerns about theft.

As a few people above have said it loop records and any 3 minute segment can be permanently stored by pressing the right button.

I did look at the higher end cameras, but went for the Mobius as I just wanted a reliable small camera to take video footage. I was concerned that GPS or speed data from high end cameras could be used negatively in the event of an accident.

The main reason I got it is is that my personal car is insured under my work's insurance policy which has a fairly hefty excess, so in the event of a potential 50:50 accident I want to be able to prove all the blame lies with the other party.

I have had one accident since I have had the camera. Someone reversed off a driveway into the side of my car while I was stationary on the main road. The camera points forward so didn't show the actual impact, although it clearly show the car rock as it was hit, and that I was stationary at the time. The other driver admitted full liability so I didn't need to use the video footage anyway, but nice to know I had it if needed.

I have an ePrance 0803 dashcam, there are now newer/better ones. It really is a fit and forget device, small enough to be hidden infront of the rear view mirror, hardly visible outside the car. It runs from USB power, luckily my headunit has USB power at the rear, but also came with a 12v-5v converter you could hide in your dash. It records for 2 minutes after powerloss, although you can change this in settings. It has a load of settings that I'll never use. The quality is pretty good and records over previous footage once the card is filled.

My reason for getting one is I work on an industrial estate at the end of the road. When leaving, cars giving way to the road I'm on do not look right, there have been many near misses over the years and one day it won't be a miss. I'd like to have it on camera that you can clearly see the person did not look before entering the road.

Hardwiring is as easy as finding a switched ignition live.

If you e ever installed an old fashioned car stereo before the days of plug n play then you'll not have a problem

I used the hardwire kit supplied by Nextbase which will work with any Mini USB powered Dash Cam.

[url] http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/nextbase-dash-cam-hardwire-kit-a45tx [/url]

It just piggy backs an existing fuse within in the fuse box so no wire splicing. Fairly easy to find a switched live by finding a function that only comes on with the ignition i.e. wipers and piggy backing that fuse. Hardest part is removing some of the A pillar trims to route the wiring up to the head lining.

@flyingox How is the night recording on the camera you have? Also is the rear camera just powered via the cable that plugs into the main unit?

I have the ePrance camera in both of my cars. Having one brought down the insurance premium by more than the cost of the camera.

It turns on and starts recording when the car starts running and i just forget about it. It records in 5min chunks as a loop, so when the card is full it overwrites the oldest file. Each video file is 500mb.

glad of it went somone bumped into us on the motorway - he was claiming we stopped suddenly. the video has us all coming to a gentle stop in slow moving traffic, then 5 secs later the bump when, basically, his foot slipped off the clutch and the car jumped forward.

and captured this the other day:

sent it onto the police.

I don't think I'll commit fraud if that's Ok with you.

Hang on - it's not fraud if you are fully comp, is it? They still insure your car even if something is your fault?

On topic - did you dashcam users get a discount on insurance?

thinking about getting [url= http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mini-0801-1080P-HD-Car-DVR-Dash-Cam-Camera-Ambarella-A2S60-GPS-Track-UK-STOCK-/291684719289?hash=item43e9c39ab9:g:a1QAAOSwHQ9WZWlh ]this[/url], very discreet .. but I want the back of the car as well

Good thread. Interested in a dashcam after a few near misses over the bank holiday weekend with people pulling out in front of me etc.

My main concern, and as already touched upon above, is making it discreet by hiding wires.. People who have installed themselves how did you get the wires behind the A pillar internal panels - did you just "tuck" them in or remove the panel? I'm a bit nervous to touch anything with "AIRBAG" written on it... which seems to be pretty much everything in a modern car!

There are many updates to that camer, wolfenstein, up to the 80806 now?

At that sort of price why not just get two, one for the front & one for the back?

Easy to tuck wires behind trim panels. Airbags WILL NOT go off unless you apply a voltage to the connectors. The risk is (in theory) that this could be a static charge from your clothes. But only if you unplug and handle it. There is zero risk tucking wires behind panels that may also have airbags somewhere nearby.

Judging by youtube dashcam users are not very defensive drivers, don't plan ahead very well and have many incidents

But I'm guessing the vast majority of people who use dash cams, and who between them have millions of safe, uneventful journeys don't tend to post them on youtube.

Cheers molgrips - I'm less nervous about tucking wires now! I can't imagine an airbag directly in me bracket would be a pleasant experience..

molgrips - Member

On topic - did you dashcam users get a discount on insurance?

Not sure about normal drivers, but the FIL is a Taxi Driver, he gets £500 a year of his insurance for having one.

I'm personally 'not there yet' but I've considered it, you're in Cardiff as well aren't you?

Anyway, most major roundaouts in and around Cardiff have been optimised for traffic flow, each lane going is marked for a different exit and some of them are pretty counter intuitive if you don't read the road markings and/or signs.

Only a few hours ago I was at one near the Bay, 3 lanes, left and centre are signposted to turn left, there's also road markings. Right hand land is sign posted for going right - the actual road on the roundabout is a haze of lines and dots - but they show show you're meant to filter between lanes to get where you need to go etc.

I'm in the right lane, turning right, but I've got to follow the lines and filter in the centre lane of the roundabout (like I say, it's complex to say the least. Lights go green, driver in the middle lane drives go straight on (despite all road marking and signs showing that lane is left only) carves straight in front of, full emergency brake to miss her, and all I get in return was a barrage of abuse - if I'd braked a moment later we would have hit, I'd have go into the side or rear of her and more than likely been found at fault - because, well some people are arseholes and won't admit they used the wrong lane - this happens a couple of times a week for me.

I'd say only a third of locals take any notice of the signs, a third ignore them and use whatever lane the Highway Code said to use 20 years ago and a third use whichever has the shortest queue and barge in - the guy in the left lane did just that and only made it because we almost hit - it's crazy really.

you're in Cardiff as well aren't you?

Yes. Another favourite for not following the lanes is coming down the spur from the A48 dual carriageway to the end of Newport Rd.

However I've noticed that drivers in Cardiff are better than in a lot of major urban areas. Yes, really.

huckersneck - Member
There are many updates to that camer, wolfenstein, up to the 80806 now?

what do you mean updated? I assume you got one... can the GPS logger be deactivated?...I'm GPS data shy 😳

molgrips - Member

you're in Cardiff as well aren't you?

Yes. Another favourite for not following the lanes is coming down the spur from the A48 dual carriageway to the end of Newport Rd.

However I've noticed that drivers in Cardiff are better than in a lot of major urban areas. Yes, really.

Oh God yes, but of course once you're on Newport Road it's a sea of mild mannered driving and lane discipline - no wait, it's like the Chimp's Tea Party with Cars, Buses, Taxis and Motorbikes seemingly all trying to ram each other to get ahead.

without a dashcam we wouldn't see this

[url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/video_and_audio/headlines/35984537 ]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/video_and_audio/headlines/35984537[/url]

I have the A118 cheap ebay thing on both mine and the wife's car.

Couple of things to watch out for.

Some cams are happier with certain cards and not so happy with others.
Mine is ok with a Sandisk, but had chewed up a Samsung and left it unusable. Wife's seems ok with a Samsung. 32gb last for hours of recording.

As a result I try to check the card in a laptop to make sure it's working periodically. I also format the card in the camera whenever I remember.

Second thing is the adapter creates interference on the radio. If you're going to hard wire it in then every time you turn on the ignition you'll get extra hiss. It's ok if the signal is very strong, but noticeable if the signal is just medium strength. This is even with moving all the cables to the opposite side of the car as the radio aerial.

Or this;

I just use a VIRB. No wires unless on a long journey, looped recording, full HD and can use it for other activities.
With any dashcam, it's beneficial to have a mic to shout a reg no into, even HD cameras can miss picking up the reg if the angle is wrong or the screen has a bit of rain on it.

True, but haven't come across a dashcam [i]without[/i] a mic TBH.

On topic - did you dashcam users get a discount on insurance?

Next base from Halfords, £150 and hard wired into car. Fit and forget and it stores memory that can't be overwritten in the event of a high G loading (i.e. if there's an accident).
Wife got hit head on (on her side of the road) and the guy put his hands up for driving not he wrong side of the road. Police, ambulance were both in attendance and her back is still iffy 6 months later. My Discovery was written off.
Pictures were taken of my Discovery alloy being pressed into the wooden bank on the near side, where my wife had taken avoiding action and the guy made a statement admitting he was on the wrong side of the road to the Police. There were no white lines in the middle of the road and no CCTV. His insurers tried to claim 50/50!!!
Cameras fitted to all our cars now.

wolfenstein - Member

huckersneck - Member
There are many updates to that camer, wolfenstein, up to the 80806 now?

what do you mean updated? I assume you got one... can the GPS logger be deactivated?...I'm GPS data shy

Mother of God! I apologise for the terrible spelling etc. in my post.

I don't have one of these cameras but kept an eye on them for a while, as I generally move towards getting one. I seem to remember that the GPS capability was in the mount rather than the camera itself? So you can therefore choose what capabilities you want in your system.

Assume it could always be used against you though too!

His insurers tried to claim 50/50!!!

My dash cam and rear cam set up arrived t'day (see the flying Ox's link on first page), looks good, simple to use and the picture quality is decent - I'll get it hardwired in to my van t'morn.

@somafunk.. im looking at that as well dude.. can you comment on pictures at low light...and can it be fitted with tape and not suction cup thingy?

im also interested in how unobtrusive it can be, and how easy to wire up.....

Shit!……in my pinot noir addled confusion i seem to have refreshed the page instead of posting the carefully thought out few paragraphs of review i had typed - bugger……….. 😉

Never mind, Yes it's worth it,
Yes the the picture quality is fine
The rear camera is decent enough for it's purpose, and it's handy as an aid to reversing my van.
Camera quality is surprisingly decent and very solid in use, the functions are easy to access.
I imagine if you have on ounce of mechanical aptitude you will be able to use/bodge the many aftermarket mounts to get it to fit as you wish.

review over, got wine to finish and tea to get.

Some useful info there Somafunk, cheers. Think I'm going to order one of those in the near future. Plan is to plug it into the power socket in the boot and run wire along the top of the doors inside to the rear view mirror. Do you reckon the wires supplied are long enough for this or do they assume you'll plug it into the front ciggy lighter?

plug it into the power socket in the boot and run wire along the top of the doors inside to the rear view mirror