Crash cam advice (3 Viewers)

[27 TUG]

Hi looking to buy a crash cam simple to use would be good what’s the best one to buy please and thank you

 

[PP Bear]

Loads of info here, just seek and ye shall find

https://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/forum/search/648659/?q=Dash+Cams&o=relevance

 

[Geistguy]

May I suggest not to get tempted with the high end expensive makes, although good they are no better (in my opinion) than those costing less than £50 on well known web sites. I run 3, one each in the motorhome, car and motorcycle, the most I paid was £40. All work very well and give good, clear video.

 

[Guigsy]

May I suggest not to get tempted with the high end expensive makes, although good they are no better (in my opinion) than those costing less than £50 on well known web sites. I run 3, one each in the motorhome, car and motorcycle, the most I paid was £40. All work very well and give good, clear video.

I agree. Many of the branded models use the same internals and sensor as the budget versions. There's no significant difference between them.

I'd also prioritise reliability and mounting method over fancy features. It should be fit and forget. It doesn't need a big screen.

 

[scotjimland]

I have Nextbase 522GW 2K resolution, with a rear view camera that plugs into the USB socket on the side of the dash cam .. it's a telephoto lens that looks through the cabin and out the rear window.
You can also get a wide angle to record backseat passengers.. useful for taxi drivers

I hard wired to the OBD socket using the Nexbase OBD hardwire kit .. it is really easy.. .. plug and play..

No messing about looking for a fuse, and hard wired and you can use 'parking mode; .. so any bumps, it kicks into life recording both front and back ..

not going to get into a debate what is best.. or is it worth the cost.. all I know it works for me and has great video .. recommended..

and before anyone asks.. I did not notify my insurer ..

I purchased direct from Nextabse .

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Revolvor]

I wanted to replace my 322GW dash cam & I've just bought a Nextbase 622GW, direct from Nextbase. I got a good deal - Dashcam, Rear Dashcam on rear window, & a 128Gb Nextbase SD card, for the price of just the dashcam --- and then an additional 10% off.

However I'm not very impressed. The image is not much better than my old 322GW.

The software and App are rubbish. It's advertised as 4K and Image Stabilisation but it's actually 4K OR Image Stabilisation - you can't have both at the same time.

It has an SOS feature to alert emergency services if you have an accident, but the App has to always run in the background and Location services have to be Always On.

The touch screen is about as sensitive at a £5 kids toy from Temu, needing repeated taps to operate. Also, a lot of menus don't have a "back" button, so I have to turn the dash cam off and start again to get to another menu.

I saw the reviews for the camera, which are generally quite good, but unfortunately, I didn't look at the App reviews, which are nearly all 1*.

 

[scotjimland]

I didn't look at the App reviews, which are nearly all 1*.

agree.. the phone app is pretty bad .. gave up on it.

the touch screen is a bit insensitive, but once set up you don't need to use it much .. once set up it's play and forget .. a minor annoyance more than a deal breaker.

I have the 322G on my campervan .. and thought the resolution was poor hence buying the 522GW for the car, and thought it was a big improvement..

 

[Revolvor]

agree.. the phone app is pretty bad .. gave up on it.

the touch screen is a bit insensitive, but once set up you don't need to use it much .. once set up it's play and forget .. a minor annoyance more than a deal breaker.

I have the 322G on my campervan .. and thought the resolution was poor hence buying the 522GW for the car, and thought it was a big improvement..

Yes, I agree with what you say, which is why I haven't returned it. The mount on the 322GW was a bit flimsy, which affected picture quality. The 622GW is much more rigid. I haven't installed the rear camera yet. ( in my car)

 

[TDub49]

Hi looking to buy a crash cam simple to use would be good what’s the best one to buy please and thank you

This what Which? says about the Nextbase 222:

Great value, brilliant dash cam​

The Nextbase 222 is the cheapest dash cam in the Nextbase Series 2 range to get a Best Buy. It does very well for ease of use, as do most of the other models in the range. It also produces great footage - it has good detail and sharpness, particularly in the daytime. This is a fantastic low-priced model to put on your wishlist.

It's also really easy to use apparently.

 

[starquake]

I agree. Many of the branded models use the same internals and sensor as the budget versions. There's no significant difference between them.

I'd also prioritise reliability and mounting method over fancy features. It should be fit and forget. It doesn't need a big screen.

I actually disagree, as the improance of getting footage off camera when you have an accident shouldn't be thought of as lesser issue. We had a lesser model in one of our cars, and had a crash. We couldn't get footage off at roadside, meaning it had wiped by time we got to somewhere we could (as memory card had got filled with non-accients). THe Nextbase we have had since handles all that on the iphone trivially, you can get the pictures at ROADSIDE following an accident in seconds.

And ditto about the mounting method, a little known thing about the modern nextbases is the mount can be unclipped trivially (leaving a small square on window) allowing the Rekis blinds behind the small square. It's a 10 second job, disconnect power, push cam near bottom to left = unclip = done.

We usually use the silverscreen all year, so only have to do this if we at a place we WANT to use the internal blinds too, so it rarely happens.

These days a decent Nexbase is sub £100 ... my advice is to just get one, as it'll join your phone trivially and be a 2-3 click upload to Police as required.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Guigsy]

I actually disagree, as the improance of getting footage off camera when you have an accident shouldn't be thought of as lesser issue. We had a lesser model in one of our cars, and had a crash. We couldn't get footage off at roadside, meaning it had wiped by time we got to somewhere we could (as memory card had got filled with non-accients). THe Nextbase we have had since handles all that on the iphone trivially, you can get the pictures at ROADSIDE following an accident in seconds.

And ditto about the mounting method, a little known thing about the modern nextbases is the mount can be unclipped trivially (leaving a small square on window) allowing the Rekis blinds behind the small square. It's a 10 second job, disconnect power, push cam near bottom to left = unclip = done.

We usually use the silverscreen all year, so only have to do this if we at a place we WANT to use the internal blinds too, so it rarely happens.

These days a decent Nexbase is sub £100 ... my advice is to just get one, as it'll join your phone trivially and be a 2-3 click upload to Police as required.

The 32GB card I've got in mine lasts dozens of hours of driving. I'm not even sure if cards are still available that small? And pretty much every camera I've seen has a button to prevent wiping the last minute of footage.

 

[starquake]

The 32GB card I've got in mine lasts dozens of hours of driving. I'm not even sure if cards are still available that small? And pretty much every camera I've seen has a button to prevent wiping the last minute of footage.

Yeah we thought we'd pushed it, and it had a 32Gb card in. But over time the card had had that many incidents it was full so the button press had zero effect. Unfortunatly there was no led on the cheap chinese cam to tell us it was effeectively non-functional...

Should add the driver involved got away without points and a caution because of it, police who came after said even with numberplate without evidence not much they could do. (They attempted an overtake with us in same lane and with split seconds to spare we had to dive into ditch to avoid a head on collision). As such I won't rely on a cheap chinese cam make again, we've never had an issue with the Nextbases.

 

[Guigsy]

Automatic incident detection is not reliable enough. It triggering on potholes is not useful. It just fills the card and like you've seen, you end up with a non functional camera until you've done a bunch of unnecessary maintenance. It makes it less likely you've got a recording of an actual incident.

 

[SpeedyDux]

Automatic incident detection is not reliable enough. It triggering on potholes is not useful. It just fills the card and like you've seen, you end up with a non functional camera until you've done a bunch of unnecessary maintenance. It makes it less likely you've got a recording of an actual incident.

You can adjust the sensitivity on my cheapo dashcam. It only saves really big bumps. Image quality is HD and acceptable. I can't justify spending any more than £50. It is rugged, having survived falling on the floor many times. Getting the sucker to stick is an art.

The other thing that bothers me is continuous sound recording (unless I remember to turn it off). I wouldn't want my comments to be used in evidence!

 

[gus-lopez]

They attempted an overtake with us in same lane and with split seconds to spare we had to dive into ditch to avoid a head on collision).

I instilled in to both my daughter's "always hit the moving one" that way there is no argument .If you had hit them head on a dash cam would not have been needed as they'd be on your side of the road.
Also when I am travelling I turn the cameras on & they stay on until I return home, even if it is 2-3 months..

It triggering on potholes is not useful.

Unused to driving on roads with potholes I shall have to remember that for when I come to the UK later in the year.
* I have a next base 422 in the centre of the dash & a chinese camera on the right hand (passenger) side . at the rear I have a non recording high level camera , a number plate camera & another chinese rear facing recording camera.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Odd job]

It's important to get one with GPS then it will show your speed at the time of any incident