4x dash cam video test: Dod "neutral" VF300W vs LS300W, LS650W, DL-5

[niko]

you have the product in your hands, just tell us. Does either feel sturdier/flimsier than the other? Just look at the plastic. it's either the same plastic or not. If it's a clearly cheaper plastic, than it's going to be less reliable. If neither are falling apart on your now, it's unlikely they will in the near future.

The whole 'you never know' thing is so dumb, sorry. I remember people recommending certain SSDs as 'reliable' just because they'd been out for 3 years, when higher quality SSDs came out with non-crap sandforce drivers but no one would recommend them because 'they weren't sure on their reliability' simply because they hadn't been out for 3 years. If reports of breaks are minimum at launch, and they are known to use equal or higher quality parts ,then they're going to be reliable. You don't need to have something for 3 years to know if it's reliable or not.

We all get you haven't had the cam for 3 years, can't know for 100% certain, but for crying out loud just drop the cam on a carpet floor and tell us if it feels like a piece of crap or fairly well built, that's all. It's not a total mystery here.

Thanks for your input on the viewing angle, I'm going to take that to mean the higher viewing angle is complete crap unless you want a rear cam or side angle supplementary cams.

I know about the 12mb/s vs 15mb/s of the vf300w vs gt300w, but as you know, much more than that to a cam. You also have much more experience with the cams, maybe it's clear to you when you view the videos on your computer or on the cam screens the difference in video quality that we can't see. As it seems to me, the vf300w and gt300w have identical video quality, so much so that there's times I swear the vf300w has higher quality video (probably more viewing angle, for example that license plate pic you show, the vf300w can clearly see while the gt300w can't, i imagine that's due to glare and not video quality).

I would not say my point can be named "crap". For me they all look and feel ok for the price you pay and time I had them in hand.
I dont want to take a responcibility of a product that I have not had for longer period test-run. I am not manufacturer or representing anybody. I do tests, review, share my first impressions and later people can decide them selves.
Try to imagine scenario where I am recommending something 100%, you buy that product, after 1-2 month there might be some problem abd you will blame me for my wrong recommendations? No, thanks ! Nobody can guarantee how long what lasts, even if it would be 1000usd dash cam.
I had some really cheap dah cams that still lasts till today with no problems and also sone so called "high-end" 250-300usd that giving me pain in the . . . ., but for others same products can give positove results ( maybe bad / good luck plays role) ?

Maximum confident recommendation with no head akes what so ever I can give to Panorama2. As well as most other buyers did not yet complained about reluability or video quality issues.

From all 4 tested i had about 6 month ls300w with no problems. ( some others had few complaints if you read ls300w thread, but no complains from me ).
From other 3 dash cams i have a hope and fancy vf300w, but also like DL-5 for it size and it does not disturb me street lights fuzziness, all other vital data can be read and it has 15Mbps bitrate which give less noise.
So for every person there are different priorities.

 

[Belial88]

I would not say my point can be named "crap". For me they all look and feel ok for the price you pay and time I had them in hand.

Is there a noticeable difference between vf300 and gt300? My impression I got from you was that you can't tell any difference in build quality, and now, we also know we can't tell any difference in video quality, right? I understand, right, god forbid, something might happen in 20 years and you never know. Sure, great. I just want to know, given what you know now, and your impression now, is there really any noticeable difference between the two.

or is there a noticeable difference, that you judge to be acceptable for the price difference? Because you never said that, I just want things to be clear.

I dont want to take a responcibility of a product that I have not had for longer period test-run.

yes of course of course, god forbid you recommend the gt300w and it turns out that in exactly 101.352 years, it causes your brain to develop a slight build-up of vitamin C in the back and cause a headache if it happens to be a full moon. We are totally aware you aren't liable for this. Now, please, enough with the absurd disclaimers. Given your impression of what you've seen so far, do you have any expectation of a difference in reliability (beyond past experience based on 'get what you pay for')? Do they have any difference in build quality noticeable to you?

I mean it's pretty straightforward, I wouldn't blame you if I bought one and it fell apart in 6 months. But if it seems sturdy enough today, then that won't likely happen...

Try to imagine scenario where I am recommending something 100%, you buy that product, after 1-2 month there might be some problem abd you will blame me for my wrong recommendations? No, thanks ! Nobody can guarantee how long what lasts, even if it would be 1000usd dash cam.

In such a scenario, you'd call that guy a ridiculous douchebag and be done with it, I don't understand your hang-up. I could still blame you if I bought a Panorama 2 because they happen to cause cancer to midgets and we don't know this until 6 months later. But there would be no reasonable expectation to expect that.

Something like, if there is no evidence or reason to believe in god, why would you be agnostic...

. As well as most other buyers did not yet complained about reluability or video quality issues.

Has there been any such complaints of the gt300w or vf300w? No, right, nonesofar as the usual firmware issues and maybe 1-2 complaints from idiots like with any product, right?

I dont see anything about the DL-5 anywhere, I dont know what that is. it isnt on foxoffer or aliexpress. I just ignored it because it appears to have much lower video quality in the videos (not talking about the camera flaring)

You have this uncanny ability, niko, to just never give a straight answer on anything. You are the most noncommittal person I've ever seen on the internet.

How are you even alive with choices like what pair of socks to wear for the day upon you early on the day?

 

[niko]

Is there a noticeable difference between vf300 and gt300? My impression I got from you was that you can't tell any difference in build quality, and now, we also know we can't tell any difference in video quality, right? I understand, right, god forbid, something might happen in 20 years and you never know. Sure, great. I just want to know, given what you know now, and your impression now, is there really any noticeable difference between the two.

or is there a noticeable difference, that you judge to be acceptable for the price difference? Because you never said that, I just want things to be clear.



yes of course of course, god forbid you recommend the gt300w and it turns out that in exactly 101.352 years, it causes your brain to develop a slight build-up of vitamin C in the back and cause a headache if it happens to be a full moon. We are totally aware you aren't liable for this. Now, please, enough with the absurd disclaimers. Given your impression of what you've seen so far, do you have any expectation of a difference in reliability (beyond past experience based on 'get what you pay for')? Do they have any difference in build quality noticeable to you?

I mean it's pretty straightforward, I wouldn't blame you if I bought one and it fell apart in 6 months. But if it seems sturdy enough today, then that won't likely happen...



In such a scenario, you'd call that guy a ridiculous douchebag and be done with it, I don't understand your hang-up. I could still blame you if I bought a Panorama 2 because they happen to cause cancer to midgets and we don't know this until 6 months later. But there would be no reasonable expectation to expect that.

Something like, if there is no evidence or reason to believe in god, why would you be agnostic...



Has there been any such complaints of the gt300w or vf300w? No, right, nonesofar as the usual firmware issues and maybe 1-2 complaints from idiots like with any product, right?

I dont see anything about the DL-5 anywhere, I dont know what that is. it isnt on foxoffer or aliexpress. I just ignored it because it appears to have much lower video quality in the videos (not talking about the camera flaring)

You have this uncanny ability, niko, to just never give a straight answer on anything. You are the most noncommittal person I've ever seen on the internet.

How are you even alive with choices like what pair of socks to wear for the day upon you early on the day?

"thanks", - now I see your "intelligence" and "respect".

 

[Belial88]

word. So after 5000 words of disclaimers, can you give a stance on the vf300w vs gt300w? If not on build quality, then at least on video quality and personal intuition. There's no wrong answer, they both seem like very similar and competitive models. As far as I can tell, I see no reason why anyone would pick the gt300w vs the vf300w considering the ~40% price difference and seemingly identical performance and build quality.

No one is going to come after you in 2 months and say Darn you, I'm so mad you didn't recommend the other clone instead of this clone!

 

[Belial88]

Kain says that the difference between the ls3000 (which I believe is just a vf300w) is a lot different than the gt300w.

Niko, can you tell us if the video quality seems much different to you? From viewing the youtube videos you uploaded, they look exactly the same. Are we not getting an accurate comparison because of the upload?

 

[cheap_newbie]

niko in your post you name the cams like this
"
Some screenshots:

Top Left: DOD LS300W,
Top Right: GL650W,
Bottom Left: VF300W,
Bottom Right: DL-5,
"
with the gl650w you mean actually the ls650w, right? as stated in thread name
why are you calling it with different name?
it confuses me....im also interested in that one but one single digit or number difference in the name can really mean alot and may hint to a different cam
could you clear that up for me and maybe correct it in your fisrt post?
thx

 

[niko]

niko in your post you name the cams like this
"
Some screenshots:

Top Left: DOD LS300W,
Top Right: GL650W,
Bottom Left: VF300W,
Bottom Right: DL-5,
"
with the gl650w you mean actually the ls650w, right? as stated in thread name
why are you calling it with different name?
it confuses me....im also interested in that one but one single digit or number difference in the name can really mean alot and may hint to a different cam
could you clear that up for me and maybe correct it in your fisrt post?
thx

Title says ls650w. From left to right picture also says ls650w (From left to right: DL-5, VF300W, LS650W, Dod LS300W). Later was mis-print "gt650". Will change it now.

 

[cheap_newbie]

thanks... i probably will get the ls650w n next few days for a relative...
your comparison was really helpful...those extra wide angle looks really cool and the night picture quality wasnt bad too : )

 

[niko]

thanks... i probably will get the ls650w n next few days for a relative...
your comparison was really helpful...those extra wide angle looks really cool and the night picture quality wasnt bad too : )

I am glad review helped you.
Actually that wide lens angle on ls650w is not that very much wider from others tested if you look still pictures.
Maybe downside is a little buf bigger size than other dash cams, but its up to individual user

 

[cheap_newbie]

yes its not much but covers a bit more left and right side in front of vehicle which can be handy as those are dangerzones for pedestrians und bycycles and bikes....
and of course people that behave like pigs and try to pull in right directly in front of you or dont let you enter a lane by blocking....had some cases and on g1w their blocking looked like normal driving because was out of angle
the full hd resolution is anyway really good and will not suffer from a little more content : )

 

[Belial88]

niko had said that the wide angle lens is a bad thing earlier, you lose too much depth, like to view license plates. It'd make it a good 2nd rear cam or side cams but not for a main cam. I mean in the video it looks clear to me that the 650w really lacks detail.

Based on niko's findings I don't see why anyone would get anything other than the identically performing but 40% cheaper vf300w.

 

[ursamajor]

niko had said that the wide angle lens is a bad thing earlier...
I mean in the video it looks clear to me that the 650w really lacks detail.

Wide angle is not bad.
Look another videos on youtube, you'll change your mind. I was almost convinced to order a VF300W, then I look on Youtube and saw more videos. It's possible that the lens of the tested unit of niko's LS650W haven't been fine tuned.

 

[Belial88]

Could you link a video? There's a ton of youtube videos, you'd have to tell me what you saw that influenced your opinion. We're basically in the same boat here, I think it'd be very odd if we bought different cams than eachother. We should be buying the exact same cam here.

I think niko's direct comparison is really the only trustworthy video, since things like how the uploader uploaded, his computer, etc, can influence the quality of the video. You really need an exact same testing, ideally at same time, to showcase the difference in cams.

I mean it's obviously going to be true that wider angle = less detail, more in shot, it's just a matter of sacrifice and which you prefer. But for a front facing dash cam I think the detail is more important rather than wide angle. If you want wide angle, than you need to get a higher quality dash cam like the powerruc panorama, asking a gt300w to go wide angle is asking too much. It only records in 1080@15mb's, it's not enough to capture enough quality for a wide angle shot. It's just asking too much of the tool, you're stretching it. It won't be a good panorama cam, it'll just be a very mediocre cam that doesn't do wide angle or detail very well.

 

[ursamajor]

We already talk about wide angle. There's no loss of detail, but the objects are virtually far. That means that you can see, on a wide angle camera, the plate numbers from a distance just a little bit smaller than from a narrower angle camera. On the other hand and not at all without importance, you'll have videos with more useful action.

 

[niko]

Mobius vs LS300W vs Panorama2 ( 154 degree wide angle ), - still can read all vital data, + advantage of having wider FOV.

 

[Belial88]

We already talk about wide angle. There's no loss of detail, but the objects are virtually far. That means that you can see, on a wide angle camera, the plate numbers from a distance just a little bit smaller than from a narrower angle camera. On the other hand and not at all without importance, you'll have videos with more useful action.

Of course there's loss in detail, it's physically impossible for there not to be. It's the same 1900x1080 pixels @15mb's birate being reported, it will have the exact same amount of detail reported as any other 1080@15mbs image. If you compare a 1080p@15mbs vs 1080p@15mbs with a larger viewing area, then detail will be lost as each pixel is 'spread' further.

The question is if it's a large loss in detail, in which I believe the answer is yes as the GT300w is only so good a budget cam. If you really want detail AND panorama, get the powerruc.

The video you post of the 650w, I mean it's still a great cam, it's a gt300w clone after all. I just think if you want a panorama cam, get the powerruc. If you want a half decent cam, then a gt300w is sufficient. But if you want both, gotta pay more.

As you can see clearly in Niko's last picture posted, there's a loss of detail in the panorama cam. It's only because that cam is much higher quality, that it's image quality is competitive, but even still it's lower quality than the above cams per same area. If you take the same cam and stretch it, it's going to be much worse.

I mean you can see in niko's original video that the 650w is noticeably worse. Even the vf300w isn't noticeably worse than the gt300w.

I think the 650w would make for a great supplemental/rear cam, as you don't need detail as much and just want to capture as much as possible, but for a dedicated cam I think either go with the vf300w or get a real panorama cam. I mean the powerruc is highly regarded for a reason.

 

[ursamajor]

You didn't understand what I meant. If that AUDI car was half meter (maybe less) close to the car with Powerucc panorama (wide angle) camera, you would have the SAME quality of details as of non-panorama camera. Ie, the panorama camera can do what other camera do, but the narrow field camera cannot catch so much action scene at a time. For me THAT'S essential.
Buy what you want to buy, but do it faster, don't split hairs, because you could have the surprise that the camera you wish could be discontinued.

On the other hand I suspect that Exxmor sensor use a different algorithm of noise reduction who make images softer than images from Aptina sensors.

You have two images extracted from a LS650W video. I believe they are good enough, IMHO.

 

[Belial88]

You didn't understand what I meant. If that AUDI car was half meter (maybe less) close to the car with Powerucc panorama (wide angle) camera, you would have the SAME quality of details as of non-panorama camera. Ie, the panorama camera can do what other camera do, but the narrow field camera cannot catch so much action scene at a time. For me THAT'S essential.
Buy what you want to buy, but do it faster, don't split hairs, because you could have the surprise that the camera you wish could be discontinued.

Yea i mean it's a trade off, viewing angle vs detail. But like in the pictures shown in the OP, I think the 650w has a dramatic reduction in video quality compared to the 300w. It looks darker and it's definitely harder to see stuff. It's extremely noticeable, even not when side by side.

The powerruc panorama appears to have very similar quality to the 300w, with a wider viewing angle. I'm sure if it had the same viewing angle, the difference in detail against a 300w would be very dramatic.

It's confusing when you say panorama, because I don't know if you mean the powerruc panorama or panorama = wide viewing angle.

Based on niko's view uploads, it appears to me that the 650w just has too low a video quality to be worth it over the 300w. I'd be inclined to buy it for a rear or side/supplemental dash cam (although i'd probably just go for a cheap cam like a k6000, or maybe find a cheapo panorama like the g2w). I'd much prefer more detail at night of a vf300w. I'd lose a bit of viewing angle, but they are just mid-range cams. There's always the powerruc if I really wanted detail + panorama.

I mean the 650w in the videos not only has lower quality than the vf300w, but comparable to the DL-5 and G1W. Looks exactly like DL-5 really.

 

[jokiin]

You have two images extracted from a LS650W video. I believe they are good enough, IMHO.

really that's what it's all about, if you can see the detail then that's fine

 

[ursamajor]

Belial88, still you didn't understand. Take 2 samples of a VF300W and a LS650W. Peak one frame from each video, in which the cars should have the same aparent size (as you can see on your TV, monitor etc.) and you'll see that the detail is the same, ignoring the losses caused by the compression... What prevents you from reading plates when the car is close to you? In my samples photos the cars are far enough (about 3-4 car lenghts), but I could peak it when the car was at 2 car lenghts and the reading was much, much better. I believe that it's more important to have wide angle than reading the plates from half meter farther.