Friend of mine had her brand new car damaged overnight parked in her park at home.
She rents a unit.
I've suggested a Dash Cam, I assume front/rear is best?
Viofo A129 Plus
It seems to be the most recommended model
$220 is cheapest ATM on Amazon.
Does she need an SD card? She has a brand new Ford SUV.
How are they powered?
Does the unit just stick to the windscreen?
Sorry, I've never owned a dash cam and I'm just trying to help her out.
Thank you
Hi,
So you're not recommending Viofo?
Any model for Blackvue? Thanks
I have had good success with Blackvue's entry-level model previously the DR-450 now the DR-590. But depending on your budget some of Blackvue's models are upwards of $700 but have 4k, Wifi, and a lot more features.
But make sure which every dashcam you buy uses a Capacitor instead of a Lithium battery. Lithium batteries have a bad tendency of swelling when exposed to high heat for prolonged periods of time. A capacitor is better suited to Australian conditions, especially the heat. With that being said, just because a dashcam uses a capacitor it may not be a good quality capacitor.
If possible buy from a reputable company. Even if it's a bit pricey (within reason depending on your budget), you will be grateful to have the footage should the need arise. A cheap dashcam may record, but if you have an accident there is a chance the footage has not been recorded or there is issue with recording, etc.
700 or 900. Comes down to price. Also need to find a good installer.
You’ll need a hardwire kit (connects to the car battery)
Basically, she'll have to pay someone to install?
Err, not a cheap process is it!
Err, not a cheap process is it!
Weigh up the costs of repeated break-ins…
Friend of mine had her brand new car damaged overnight parked in her park at home.
break-ins ?
they'll just snatch the dashcam instead
@dcep: My car was just entered/broken into yesterday night. They stole medication, prescriptions, a CD, and some other random little shit, and and and my Blackbvue DR750S-2CH 😢 I'm honestly absolutely devastated, and what really irks me is they will most likely not be caught and punished 😢
Luckily they didn't check my boot, as I had about $250 of new fishing gear in it…..
I used MatthewJ off airtasker for several cars now… very pro and great $
"I used MatthewJ off airtasker ……."
Would he be in Melbourne? Not sure that will work for the O/P in Adelaide?
I’m in Melbourne, and Got an A119 installed the other day for $95. Hardwired to the battery, wires hidden
If neither of you know much about her car, look to get one professionally installed to have the wires hidden, properly hardwired etc
Don't just simply have one plugged into the 12v socket…
is the car visible from her unit ?
get a cctv/ip cam
Nope
I used to suggest viofo A129 but the last two units I got for presents for friends they both reported issues where it keeps prompting to reformat card, especially if they turn off the engine, then turn it back on again within a short time.
She'll prob need to look into hardwiring it in as well so it's always recording. If not done properly there is a chance this can also sap the car battery if not driven regularly at distance to recharge it.
Yeah,
Looks like it'll be an expensive process now
You want the Duo version of Viofo A129 Plus. If you want front and rear. You just missed some good sales.
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/product/viofo-a129-plus-duo
Hardwire Kit $30, SD card $50 to $100. Installation $150 to $250.
Yeah,
This only happened last night.
I installed a 129 Plus Duo on my own car recently by reading up and watching videos, especially this one and the part 2 version.
Had to buy the voltage tester, crimper and a spanner just for the install process.
Whilst I love saving money, it did take a lot of time and effort for me as I have zero experience with it.
I also damaged the rear camera because I left too much loose cable, so had to buy a new rear camera and reinstall it again, but luckily I claimed on my insurance and got the full price back (not just the cost of the rear camera).
If you don't have time and/or confidence to faff around, get it installed by an auto electrician.
FYI - "Plus" version doesn't have "buffered" parking mode. So you'll need to get the normal or Pro version if you want that.
Oh, you need two fuse taps also. They are $5 to $10 each…or maybe an auto electrician will supply those.
Don't spend more than Viofo A129 for dash cam, it's set and forget product. Not much return in investment. Unless you in Russia, all you need is a insurance or at least OzB account.
For installation instructions, YouTube covers most car brands.
Hardwarinng isn't that difficult either , you can get a fuse by pass from Aliexpress.
It is difficult. Is it brain surgery? No, but it still hard.
Viofo A129 Duo Plus is good value. Ofc the Blackvues are better, but is more expensive. Get someone from Airtasker to install them. I got MatthewJ from Airtasker for under $150 onsite installation. All up cost me around $370 hardwired installed.
Very happy with my Viofo a129. Front and back cameras. Lucky for me, my VW constantly supplies power to the cigarette lighter so I didn't need to get it hardwired in.
2 accidents. 2 runners. Got them both. Save me thousands and the priceless taste of sweet, sweet justice.
I think you are mad if you don't have a dash cam.
I was arrested for unlawful homicide and the dash cam proved invaluable when it matched up with my statement of events.
I had Viofo at the time - I have since installed a significant upgrade.
No I won't be providing footage.
For those that had dashcam hardwired, how much did it cost you? I’ve got a thinkware u1000 (front and rear)and was going through local auto electricians here in Adelaide and been getting quotes from $290 to $795!
125 onsite installation from airtasker
She has a brand new Ford SUV.
There's a lot of people out there who think SUVs are cringe and intentionally damage them. She should consider buying a sedan.
The word 'cringe' is cringy.
Recommend the A129 Plus , it records in 1440p (2k) in parking mode also (the Duo and Pro only do 1080p which i find often is not enough)
The Pro Duo does have buffered parking and is helpful mostly if you have to leave your vehicle unattended for the whole day and its in a secure location but still records in 1080p which is enough but not great ,for night time visibility or low-light conditions the Plus Duo is the best out of the 3 and should reliably get the footage you need , Additionally The rear camera is the same 1080p across all the models the only thing that differs is the front so you would want to try and park your car in a position beneficial to the direction of the best recording camera which would be the front (i.e reverse in)
Realistically you want it set to Low Bitrate recording so it records at 30fps with sound , with a 2K QHD Dash Cam its ideal to have a 128GB Endurance SD Card at the minimum or 256GB if more recorded footage is required.
It has to be hard-wired to enable parking mode so you will need this, then the install of the camera itself should cost you between $150-200 depending on your car as some are more difficult then others due to access and removal of trim pieces , at the end of the day its a simple cable run job with some improvisation and the hardest part being to determine a constant 12v connection when the car is off , but easy to find with a multimeter.
Another important thing to note is the camera will constantly draw power , a very small amount but constant , if the car is not daily driven or is daily driven but less then 20 minutes a day the Hardwired Dash Cam will drain the car battery faster and you will end up with a flat from running out of charge down the track so there are 2 option's
A. Drive more often
B. invest in a small battery charger and charge it every so often (depending on your car battery size , a smaller battery might need a top up every 3 months vs a larger battery every 6 etc)
One important thing to note , on the hardwire kit (V3) there is a simple switch on the plug that allows the camera to turn off if your battery reaches a low voltage point (so it does not cause a flat) , but if the driver does not realize the battery is low in charge the camera won't record in parking mode until the car battery is recharged or is turned on next which defeats the purpose of having it hard-wired in the first place. The only solution is options A or B above.
If you needed to "temporarily hardwire" the camera not using the V3 kit for overnight use you could use a Suitable Powerbank with Temperature and Short Circuit protection (which doubles as a jump starter as well), it will easily last 12+ hours of constant recording but you will need to obviously recharge it daily so it may not be ideal, you don't have to choose this power bank but just showing it to you to give you an idea , for anyone else reading don't fit just any powerbank to your dash-cam unless it comes with the protections aforementioned otherwise you risk your car going up in flames because the battery can potentially get quite hot , especially if done during the day. if your car goes up in flames i am near 100% certain your insurance would be null and void.
If money is not an issue, can't go past Blackvue keep an eye out for sales. Repco will sometimes have a %25 off sale.
DDpai Mola N3, $90 through Aliexpress but no local warranty support if something goes wrong. But you will have the option of 2k recording.
SD Card. Make sure you buy an Endurance SD Card preferably Samsung. Avoid using regular SD Cards as they are not designed to be used in Dashcams for continuous recording.
In my personal opinion, I would avoid Dashcam's with a screen and opt for a model without a screen as it's more discreet and there is one less chance of something going wrong.