Got the GoPro system for being one of the first 1000 ST's ordered (#54 of 1000); have yet to use it in the car, but use it for other video/pictures. Easy to use, rugged, dependable and good video/picture/sound quality.

 

Yea I almost forgot I got one of those also! Cool little camera that has a wide field of view. And just to rub it in alittle I also got a Tshirt, keychain, diecast St and a poster.

 

This video will help. It sparked a whole dashcam craze here in Toronto for those who visit a certain forum with a red flag.
dashcamtalk.com/ has pretty good reviews, if you choose to not go with the gopros.

Edit:

Itronics ITB-100HD
Good picture quality (bleh sound) for $200 to my door.
Won't recommend it now because price starts at $250+
Got it to save videos of horrible drivers and have a good laugh later. That, and to protect my (finally dropping) affordable insurance rate.

 

I have a Navcam Navig8r HD 720p - cheap & simple. Cost $A65-.
Most dash cams (including this 1) have a wide-angle lens to fit as much pic in as possible.

http://www.navig8r.com.au/products/Crashcam/NAVCAM-HD

 

We have one in each car permanently mounted, both the wife and I have a mini one. Tried cheap ones that claimed to be HD and they were rubbish. Both we have now give insurance discounts as well.

 

Dash cams get you discounts in CA? I did not know that....I thought they were illegal here.

Whered you get yours?

 

But on a serious note I dont like this idea of us all spying on each other, just to 1984 for me.

 

Just know that a dash cam can work for AND against you in the court of law.

 

I run my Go Pro on my dash every day, just incase I catch something cook, or god forbid an accident.

I have videos taken from my Go Pro here: http://www.youtube.com/user/justjoshinya5908/videos

 

Yes, I use a FineVu CR500HD w/Fine Safer

Yes, I have it hardwired to an always on fuse and hidden behind my mirror. It turns on automatically when the car is turned on, and then goes into a parking mode when the car is off so it can record tards that may hit the my car while parked

FINEVU CR500HD English Ver. - Canada&USA Authorized Distributor - reputable guy, I picked mine up in person.

Yes, excellent film quality but the cost is high. Personally I don't think a Go Pro would work as well for this application...better off with a dedicated Dash Cam.

 

I agree, go with a dedicated Dash Cam if you want something for daily use. I'm running a BlackVue DR380G in both of my vehicles and love having them recording all the strange stuff I see on the road on a daily basis.

I purchased my cameras from the same place as BCST, very reputable shop and they are quick to answer any questions you may have. BlackboxMyCar.com- Canada/USA Best Quality Dashcam Store

 

I drive a lot (@50K a year) between our three cars but most of the miles are put on my company car, the ST. I was involved in a pretty significant accident a couple months back and at first there were some questions on the police's part as to who ran the red light....the other party finally fessed up to it. But since I drive so much and a lot of it on the highway, with a bunch of crazy people, I keep thinking about getting a dash cam "just in case". I have done some research and if you do not want to spend a lot the G1W cam gets really good reviews and it is only around $50.00.

In my reading I have determined that buying a GPS based camera is not for me as I tend to drive above the posted speed limit and that the GPS information can be used against someone if there is an incident no matter who is at fault in said incident. While you can get an idea of speed without GPS it is not an exact speed so quite a bit more difficult to use it against you in a court of law.

Cheers,
Jim

 

Yea good point, the model I have does not include GPS (so no Speed) it's available as an option but that's not an option I would want nor should anyone here.

 

I two, one for the work car and one for the ST.


My work car has a BlackVue DR400hg, its a high end unit I bought 2~ years ago for $220. It still works but the heat here has slowly degraded the lens, it's a bit blurry and definitely isn't as sharp as it once was.

My ST has a Shadow GT680w, a cheaper unit at $90~, have had it for 6 months and works good so far. No complaints. I used to use a G1w (this is its generic name) but it died in me almost 8 months in.



In my opinion, right now the best dashcams are the cheapo $60-$80 ones, do your research on them. The reason is the shoddy QC and planned obsolesce, there isn't enough quality options that is worth the money for a 2+ year investment. At best, I'd say don't expect them to last more than a few years, and by that time, hopefully, there is a leader in service, quality and reliability. Right now its really a crapshoot, warranty's aren't worth it.



GoPro's work but I find that they're just asking to be stolen in plain sight. Dash cams are supposed to be discrete and a "set it and forget it" sort of device.

 

It's tough to see, but this is what I use:



My HD Handycam with a cruise cam mount. Not much bigger than the GoPro, but I can use it for other things and the position allows me to see the gauges and steering wheel angle on a track day.

 

If you want a good, quality, cheap dashcam, check out the G1W.

I researched a lot, and was unwilling to pay real money for a DVR system.

Complete Review of G1W-C CAPACITOR based dash camera NT96650 + AR0330 1080p / 30Fps | DashCamTalk

The Best Dash Cam | The Wirecutter


I have it hardwired in, using a 12V - Mini USB module. so it starts recording when car is on, and records for 30 sec after shutoff.

Amazon.com: RioRand(TM) DC to DC Converter Inverter 12V to 5V 3A 15W Power Supply for Car Vehicle with MINI USB: Electronics


Here are some vids. You can pause, and zoom in quite nicely on small things.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0y0iX6oI3YRWVJIMHFvNFRoclk/edit?usp=sharing

 

Could you give any more details on the hard wiring? Did you tap a certain fuse?

 

When I was doing my research on Dash Cams I came across the Black Vue. Picture quality was decent but reliability sux and it seems like that's the issue with many dash cams. Currently the big boys haven't entered the Dash cam business (Sony, Samsung, Go Pro, Moto, etc..) and created a reliable and useful dash cam. After all my research I just decided to go with an Action Cam until a good/reliable dash cam was released from a reputable brand.

 

I have an itronics itb 100hd and I love it. It's held up very well for around 2 years now and it has great video quality. Sound quality as mentioned earlier is not that great but it's good enough for me.

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk

 

I got a GoPro Hero3 Silver for Xmas and have been using it all the time when I'm driving (except when it gets too hot and it turns off on it's own). Here's a few vids I've recorded with it:

Boomba BOV in tunnel:

Following an FRS:

Almost crashing into the back end of another ST:

 

I got a GoPro Hero3 Silver for Xmas and have been using it all the time when I'm driving (except when it gets too hot and it turns off on it's own). Here's a few vids I've recorded with it:

Nice vids, the Go Pro definitely records well. Glad you didn't hit that ST, I think that would be a Cardinal sin or something. :big smile:

 

I just picked up switched 12V from my passenger side fuse box. Mind you I drive an MS3, so your tap location will vary.

I used an add a fuse, and picked up the closest chassis ground to where I mounted the module.

Ran wires up the A pillar, popped out the reading light console from the head liner, and mounted the module, with 3M dual lock. Ran the mini USB cable out from behind the headliner, and connected to camera.

Clean, and easy. I can snap some pics if you want, to give you an idea for your install if you'd like.

 

This is what I used http://www.focusst.org/forum/focus-...ctronics/13092-simple-instructions-hard-wiring-radar-detector-other-device.html

 

Cool, thanks. I'm up to speed with tapping the fuse box, just wasn't sure about the 12v-5v conversion. I guess using a simpler converter is easy enough!

 

Amazon.com : E-PRANCE New Mini 0801 Original Ambarella A2S60 Chip 5M pixel CMOS Car DVR Recorder + High Resolution Full HD 1080P 30 FPS, OV2710 + G-sensor License Plate + 135 Degree Wide Angle View + GPS Logger + Build-in 8GB Memory : Vehicle On Dash

This is the one I have. Once it was set up, it's all automated. Turns on and off automatically with ignition, and loop records on the SD card. When I see something stupid, I pop the card out and save the clip, but other than that, it's just set-and-forget. Thinking about getting a second one for the back window, actually. Here's a sample video I recorded of a police chase passing me on my way to work.

 

Damn, that was a legit police "chase". I was expecting someone to just get pulled over haha

 

I'm running a G1W-C, I got it from Foxoffer. It's a great cam, I am very happy with it.

 

I'm super happy with the standard G1W model (couldn't get a -C unfortunately). As some of you have seen in another thread, it just saved my ass with insurance and the cops on Wednesday.

 

If you want a good dash cam for the price, I really recommend the Ojocam. $130 got me the cam + GPS feature and a 32g memory card. I've also got a slightly better cam called Vico Marcus 3 I got I'm a group buy. IMO, you cannot go wrong with either.

 

Lots of my neighbors have dash cams. Oh wait, they're the popo.

 

I'm having issues with the 12v I hardwired under the dash, staying stuck to the plastic piece just behind/below the glove box lol. Damn thing keeps falling down. Apparently this 3m double sided tape isn't holding up very well with the heat.

 

So I ended up splicing the USB from the converter to the car charger, which has a mini USB on the end (easy, just a hot and ground wire). So I have:

Add-a-fuse (fuse 85 w/ 3a fuse) -> 12v-5v converter (ground line grounded) -> spliced into long mini USB -> camera

No dice. Not sure why, everything checks out on my end. They only thing I could think is using a 2a fuse, but 3 is the smallest I have right now. That shouldn't matter as amperage is drawn by the load. My splices are crimped and heat shrunk, I'm confident in my connections. Any ideas what could be wrong?

 

use the right pins on the usb?