WindShield Witness rip off or value?

CamFreak

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Lately, I've been seeing some other forums have discussions about the WindShield Witness dash cam. http://www.windshieldwitness.com

They claim "Made in USA", but I notice the chip set is Zoran Coach 12v from China. My old, now replaced $50 DVR-207 GS, contained the Zoran Coach made in China. Windshield Witness is about $160 to close to $200. Am skeptical because I can't find any independent reviews -- such as Dash Cam Talk -- for the Windshield Witness.

On close examination, however, the "Made in USA" appears to be false in that all the selling firm has is a "Trademark" for the name. This seems to me to be very misleading in that a Trademark protects only the name for potentially rebranding cheap China or Korean origin dash cams. In short, is this dash cam for real?
 
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I have no experience with the WindShield Witness, but just a few things i notice.
The time stamping on videos 1 and 7 from the seller video page look like the time stamp from the Powerucc PanoramaII witch also uses a Zoran Coach chip.

I thought i seen the case before, but the closest I could find again was a Vacron VVA-CBE05A witch still looks a little different.

I also find it slightly interesting that they mention "GPS is NOT your best friend. "
and say that
"In the pursuit of protecting oneself from a fraudulent accident claim, it is hands-down, not in the drivers best interests to have the rate of travel recorded/displayed on video. This is the reason for our electing to provide only G-Sensor statistics (with G-Sensor activated file locking), along with date and time, recorded and displayed. "
When the videos they use show a Blank KMH instead of going we would not recommend GPS, for X reason, but we have it available.

Also a PanoramaII goes for $190 dollars on eBay from shpkorea and WindShield Witness want $170 with a card.
Until someone who might know more or has tested it chimes in I would say get the PanoramaII and have a tried and tested rated Best all around camera for only a little more money if you want a Zoran Coach device.

Also site says Field of view is 145 degrees the P2 has 140 and the MateGo MG300W has 154.

Says that you should get 9+ hours or recording time on a 32GB card. Using the Recording time Calc here the bit rate would have to be 8 to get 9.1 hours of recording time and the bit rate on the P2 is 12.

Says " Your system may include a full sized SDHC or a Mini Sized card, at our discretion. " You should never use an adapter with a microSD card in a DashCam for an extended period of time because the Adapter may not meet the same heat and speed requirements that the DashCam needs.
 
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Lately, I've been seeing some other forums, mostly RV, discuss the WindShield Witness dash cam. http://www.windshieldwitness.com
They claim "Made in USA", but I notice the chip set is Zoran Coach 12v. My old, now replaced $50 DVR-702 GS, contained the Zoran Coach made in China. Windshield Witness is about $150. Is Windshield Witness playing on words because the Zoran headquarters is in the USA? Am all the more skeptical because I can't find any independent reviews -- such as Dash Cam Talk -- for the Windshield Witness. In short, is this dash cam a $50 or $60 Chinese cam being marketed for three times that amount?

Thats Matego MG188, Made in China.
I have Matego MG300 and can say built quality is high ( hardware wise ).
 
It looks very shady, I'd stay away from it.
 
You never know unless you try. Maybe they have tuned up firmware to produce good video quality? So its just test-n-try. But for same price range there are plenty of other tested / confirmed reliable dashcams out there. I guess there is no point of "inventing a wheel" ;)
 
I hope you are right. Matego is very reliable. Did you have a problem with yours? My windshield witness works fine in my RV. Bought it over a year ago from here http://www.windshieldwitness.com and it came with extra car cord and window mount for my SUV. I tell everyone how good it works for me.
 
old codger, Too bad that you didn't see this thread before making your purchase. As Xybone mentioned, that vendor looks a bit shady and probably best to be avoided. Checkyourlights has the best advice, if you plan to spend that amount of money, you might as well get a dash cam that has some high end componets, such as a Sony Exmor imager, that will provide improved video quality. After reading the link you provided, I can see that the Windshield Witness has a rather common Omnivision OV2715 CMOS (imager). These can be found in good dash cams at a fraction of what that vendor charged you. Regardless, we members on DCT are too late to help you now. But, since your unit is being reliable, there is some apparent consolation for paying an excessive price. Perhaps others can benefit from your experience and make better decisions such as for the highly regarded GIW for the $50 to $60 price range or for the Panorama II G for around $200. Or, for one of the several other reviewed cams presented within DCT.
 
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It's DashCam soup out there with similar spec cameras and clones popping up all over the place. I agree that the cheapest option is often times not the best long term investment.
The best products are backed by a factory/developer that have their non-stop innovation/support gears turning.
 
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old codger, we members on DCT are too late to help you now. Perhaps others can benefit from your experience and make better decisions.
Insults are not called for. Help is not needed. I made the right decision. I have 1080 P and reliable. I bought it also because there is no battery to die in two years. My windshield witness is a value and not a rip off.
 
old codger, No insult intended and am sorry that you took it as such. Just trying to be helpful because reliability, capacitor instead of a battery, 1080p, vendor support, etc., are not unique in this era of dash cams.

Matter of fact, Chinese made trademarked name labels are common, so that similar dash cams can have a wide range of pricing.

The highly regarded G1W-C sells for about $60. The dash cam you bought for about $160 has similar features. For me the value call is rather easy, but it's your money, not mine. And, again, I'm sorry if these opinions, or facts, upset you. Let's move on and enjoy DCT.
 
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the value call is rather easy, but it's your money, not mine.
You cannot help yourself. Back from our road trip and I find another insult and bad advice and you want to quickly move on. Not so fast CamFreak. I will pray for you. You imply I wasted money. I did not. You imply my camera is equal to the G1. It is not. You imply I made a bad value judgment. I did not. People that bought your G1w-c say it was not a good value. One out of close to four buyers gives it only one star and are unhappy with it. That is near a 25% problem. Thank God above for the internet. http://www.amazon.com/G1W-C-1080P-H-264-Capacitor-Model/product-reviews/B00JJ3SQRI Good I did not buy your G1. It is inexpensive and not highly regarded. My camera was tested by the company before it was shipped to me and works perfect over a year now. That is strong value. No complaints. No problems. Not unhappy. Very satisfied. It was and is a good value purchase and that is that. You spend on what is important to you and I will spend on what is important to me and may God bless you. Enjoy your Mobius. I will now move on and enjoy DCT.
 
You ... ... People that bought your G1w-c say it was not a good value. One out of close to four buyers gives it only one star and are unhappy with it. That is near a 25% problem. Thank God above for the internet. http://www.amazon.com/G1W-C-1080P-H-264-Capacitor-Model/product-reviews/B00JJ3SQRI ... ... .

Those Amazon reviews for the most part are unreliable and, especially for dash cameras, are heavily biased by phony reviews and reviews of cheap fakes. You might enjoy reading threads on this forum regarding Amazon reviews. It's very informative for what tactics some vendors, and their supporters, do to promote their product. Just saying that hanging your hat on the "Amazon reviews" peg is shaky at best.
 
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