Dash cam recommendations

[lloydyyy]

Hi folks. I've been mulling over the idea for a while but I've bitten the bullet and decided to buy a dash cam. I recently started a new job which involves a 95 mile round trip on the M4, and the number of near misses I see every day is shocking. So I'd like a dash cam to protect me in the event if I'm involved in a collision.

Nextbase seem to be the go-to brand for dash cams. I'm thinking of perhaps either the 312GW, 412GW or 512GW. The 512GW has a reflection-free polarising filter - is it worth it? I'm learning towards the 412GW or 512GW as they both have parking mode, but the 312GW and 412GW were Which? Best Buy in 2017. My local Halfords is offering a fitting service which includes hardwiring the dash cam.

Would be grateful for any advice 🙂

[dezwez]

1 hour ago, lloydyyy said:

Hi folks. I've been mulling over the idea for a while but I've bitten the bullet and decided to buy a dash cam. I recently started a new job which involves a 95 mile round trip on the M4, and the number of near misses I see every day is shocking. So I'd like a dash cam to protect me in the event if I'm involved in a collision.

Nextbase seem to be the go-to brand for dash cams. I'm thinking of perhaps either the 312GW, 412GW or 512GW. The 512GW has a reflection-free polarising filter - is it worth it? I'm learning towards the 412GW or 512GW as they both have parking mode, but the 312GW and 412GW were Which? Best Buy in 2017. My local Halfords is offering a fitting service which includes hardwiring the dash cam.

Would be grateful for any advice 🙂

I have the 512GW its not a bad picture day or night and you can add a rear camera for extra £50 to it  

[lloydyyy]

2 minutes ago, dezwez said:

I have the 512GW its not a bad picture day or night and you can add a rear camera for extra £50 to it  

The parking mode and reflection-free filter are drawing me to it. I noticed the rear camera as an extra option - I'll have a look a sample footage to see if it's any good. Not sure whether to ask Halfords to fit the camera, do it myself or get a local specialist to do it.

[dezwez]

2 minutes ago, lloydyyy said:

The parking mode and reflection-free filter are drawing me to it. I noticed the rear camera as an extra option - I'll have a look a sample footage to see if it's any good. Not sure whether to ask Halfords to fit the camera, do it myself or get a local specialist to do it.

I fitted it myself with a dashcam kit and it works well it will take up to 128 mb sd card and now I forget it there works so well I heard the is

a newer model out now with 4 k but it cost a bit

[Jonro2009]

I am running a Viofo A129 duo (front and rear) full 1080p all round and has parking mode etc. It also has a capacitor instead of an internal battery which is why I advise staying away from Nextbase - batteries fail in around 12-18months and cam needs replaced. 

[Luke4efc]

The nextbase range seem a bit overrated for the price. They're a little bulky and really stick out on the windscreen.

I've used the wedge shape once since (such as the A119s). You cant see it unless you look carefully, and it's less than £100 and offers better low light performance. Heck the 129 Duo is less than £150 and it comes with parking mode plus you get a rear camera. That is definitely better than the 512GW. 

[Jonro2009]

Just now, Luke4efc said:

The nextbase range seem a bit overrated for the price. They're a little bulky and really stick out on the windscreen.

I've used the wedge shape once since (such as the A119s). You cant see it unless you look carefully, and it's less than £100 and offers better low light performance. Heck the 129 Duo is less than £150 and it comes with parking mode plus you get a rear camera. That is definitely better than the 512GW. 

Beat you to it 😉 the Viofo A119s was on lightening deal today for £59 with the cpl filter. It should be on again soon

[lloydyyy]

53 minutes ago, Jonro2009 said:

Beat you to it 😉 the Viofo A119s was on lightening deal today for £59 with the cpl filter. It should be on again soon

Certainly seems like a worthy option. Is there a hardwire kit available?

[Jonro2009]

Yes there is, there is a viofo one and you can actually use any 2 wire kit.

[lloydyyy]

I'll definitely look at the Viofo A119s; I watched some sample footage in another thread earlier and was really impressed. Wondering now if it's worth getting the 129 Duo or just stick to the front-facing A119s.

[Jonro2009]

The footage from the A129 is better again when compared to the A119s.

A rear facing camera is almost as important as front facing in my view. Someone runs into the back of you and it's going to be their fault as a rule but it's going to show them on the phone or not paying attention etc. 

It's worth saving up and getting that one. 

[jace1969]

Yes 100% the A119 ones,i have the old A119 in front being 1440p and A119s in the back being better night vision as no head lights to help.

Don't look out of place on your window and stick out,not a fan of the square type or the mad £300 ones as you can see better out there for £200 cheaper.

[Nick Y]

Does anyone have any install pics for the Viofo A119/A129 as I'm thinking of purchasing one or the other (I'm leaning towards the A129 version as both cams are included).
I'd like to see where they have been fitted to a Fiesta (if possible) and also ask how people have wired them up, where the cables were routed etc (I will be buying the hardwire kit). 

[Jonro2009]

My focus but it's going to be a similar setup with you.

Take the feed for the rear camera above the headliner on the DRIVERS side and to the rear screen - this avoids disrupting the DAB antenna.

Take the power wires to the fusebox down the 'A' pillar on the passenger side down to the fusebox in the passenger footwell. 

Red wire to Bat+ fuse and yellow wire to ACC fuse. Black wire to earthing point. Job done

[Jonro2009]

Check amazon, the 129 was on a deal earlier

Dash Cam VIOFO A129 Duo Dual Full HD 1080P with Sony Sensor Both in Front and Rear Cameras Night Vision 2.0" LCD with 5GHz Wi-Fi GPS, Support Anti-glare Filter and bluetooth Remote, Parking Mode https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07DHKLH4F/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_IP0MCbR9ZAR8K

Deal ends at 1pm

[Nick Y]

Thanks for showing me Jon. I just went on and bought the A129. However, it is advertised as having BT remote but further down the page it says BT remote (not included) so I went and added it to my basket along with the polarized filter, the hardwire kit and a 128gb Sandisk memory card.  
Now I just need to figure out which type of powertap fuses to buy (I'm guessing they will ve micro fuses) and which fuses to tap to. 

[btmaldon]

I'm really happy with the quality of my 312GW. I have hardwired it in and replaced the silly sucker fitment with a stick on one. Gets a decent picture night or day.

[dezwez]

52 minutes ago, btmaldon said:

I'm really happy with the quality of my 312GW. I have hardwired it in and replaced the silly sucker fitment with a stick on one. Gets a decent picture night or day.

I had mine a few years now never had any problem's with it its a great picture night or day 512gw and I have a 312 gw in the back

[Jonro2009]

7 hours ago, Nick Y said:

Thanks for showing me Jon. I just went on and bought the A129. However, it is advertised as having BT remote but further down the page it says BT remote (not included) so I went and added it to my basket along with the polarized filter, the hardwire kit and a 128gb Sandisk memory card.  
Now I just need to figure out which type of powertap fuses to buy (I'm guessing they will ve micro fuses) and which fuses to tap to. 

Nice choices. As long as the card is one of the class 10 ones and high endurance you will be fine. I have a Samsung 256 in mine.

I got the BT button, which is why I've mounted the camera the way I have. I can't see the cam from the drivers seat, nor do I need to now I have the button. It is mounted just next to the switches for the elec window, but anywhere within reach and prominent is fine.

Make sure you update the Firmware when you get it, current version is 1.5 - without it park mode won't work.

I have mine set to remind me to format the card monthly to extend the card life. Set WDR to 'off' it's not required. Set the EV to '0' and leave WiFi off unless you are using it to transfer files, if left on then it lowers the bitrate. If you have a diesel then it's good practice to set the boot delay to 10s. 

Parking mode is best in either low bitrate or time lapse of about 10fps. With low bitrate you also get audio and the quality is fine, with time lapse you do not get audio.

Do you have a multimeter? That's your best bet for finding the right fuses for Bat+ and ACC. On the piggy back you use a 2.5A fuse I'll be best, 5 at most. If you are familiar with fuse taps then great, the existing fuse goes in the bottom slot, the new fuse for dash cam goes in top space. Any questions then just ask or PM me. Do not tap into fuses that link to safety systems ie airbags etc

File lengths are best at 1-3 mins, especially if you plan to use the app to send your files to your phone. A 5min file will take ages to download over the WiFi. 

[Nick Y]

The card I ordered is 128gb Sandisk ultra SDXC micro SD card with A1 app performance class 10 so it should be fine. 
I haven't ordered the fuse taps yet but can probably get them for when the camera is delivered by Tuesday. 
I do have a multimeter but not 100% certain about how to use it.
For transferring files I'll probably just take the card out and download to my laptop. 
 

[MrBee]

I also have a 512GW and the little rear camera to go with it and had it hard wired in from new. It performs very well in all conditions on both the front and rear cameras.

It was great until recently, the battery has finally died, which is rather displeasing as the thing is less than two years old and never been used much on the battery.

The issue now is, every time I start up, I have to tell the camera where I want the rear picture, left, right, etc.. I have forgotten to do this a few times now.

Today, for example, I popped to the local co-op, got back in the car, drove off, forgot to press the ok button, which is easy to do, as the camera sits behind the RVM so you cannot see it.

The result, of course, no recordings and the last recording, never finishes, as once you turn off the engine and remove the key, there is no residual power to shut down the camera properly, so the files are corrupted, and this is a problem because if you were in a crash, I suspect the recording of the impact would be corrupted too, due to having no power once the engine/power is disengaged.

Something to note too (as another poster mentioned) you are technically supposed to put a 'continuous', aka, High Endurance, class card your dashcam, the ones used for surveillance footage etc, I had a card fail, a SanDisk ultra, and made a support request for a replacement, I was told they are not obliged to replace any cards under warranty if they are used in dashcams, or any device that runs as a continuous recording, such as body cams, surveillance units etc, as this is classed as inappropriate usage and/or misuse.

I checked with Samsung, the same rules apply, as they do with a few others. The good news, these types of cards last far longer than the regular cards and are not that much more.

Overall though, the 512GW is a great camera, both front and rear work well and produce good quality imagery, and the latest Firmware improved a couple of things too, just a shame the battery is a letdown.

 

[dezwez]

I have the 512gw when the battery dies I will be replacing the battery myself I contacted nextbase and they sent me a how to but its for

the 312gw but they say its the same layout  

[MrBee]

Hi Del, yeah apparently its a common issue for some owners, my own unit has hardly ever been off the main power and powered on, I remove the card from the unit when I want to see what's on it too, so rarely hook it up to anything apart from the magnetic power thingy.

Nextbase says it is to do with re-charge cycles etc, but as I say, this must mean that some have sub-par batteries as mine is only 15 months old and starting failing about 3 months ago and is rarely used on battery, so should not have been charging.

It is, however, a cracking camera really, and otherwise happy with it, so I have been looking at the YT vids to see how it's done, the battery replacement that is.

Best wishes

MB

[dezwez]

As you say its a cracking camera just a pain to replace the battery 😊

[TomsFocus]

Would it be possible to replace the battery with a capacitor?  I chose a camera with a capacitor myself after battery issues on a previous one.  No idea if it's a reasonable retrofit though!