Dash Cams really are over priced junk? F800

[kamkar]

Where i worked we made many a fine transmission, that was put on a plane for China for further assembly out there.
A lot of our stuff also whent to Israel, many of those series transmissions was individually tested first before shipping, got to be pretty presise when its for MRI scanners ASO, and you do not want to aim a ray cannon at a cancer tumor just to miss it.

Simple things like a gear reduction can get pretty complex and expensive, if you want the good stuff.

 

[ivantwilliams]

Some rather valid points in this thread. I have been researching dash cams for about a week, and I am even more lost now, than when I started.
Albeit, mildly thinking about a Thinkwave F800 Pro. But, that price; ugh...

 

[psyshack]

Some rather valid points in this thread. I have been researching dash cams for about a week, and I am even more lost now, than when I started.
Albeit, mildly thinking about a Thinkwave F800 Pro. But, that price; ugh...

Its a sea of insanity out there concerning dash cams. The whole journey to get to the F800 2 channel was flat out stupid, waste of time and money.

 

[RLS]

... The 1 min increment should be mergeable. There’s no way to link the videos on the PC viewer. This is absolutely stupid. This camera sucks. Total waste of money.

There are plenty of ways to link videos, whether it be on your computer, or even on your phone. For example, you can use GoPro’s video editing software to stitch videos, add effects, etc. Even on iPhone, you can use GoPro’s “Splice” app to make an awesome video of your track day! Just import the 1 minute clips that you want (Dropbox, lightning to SD/mSD reader, etc).

Btw, I usually avoid using software from each dashcam’s manufacturer (or I would have way too many) except when there’s a function that only works in that program.

As a car enthusiast myself, I would also be frustrated if valuable track footage had issues. Just wanted to chime in and help if I can

 

[RLS]

Its a sea of insanity out there concerning dash cams. The whole journey to get to the F800 2 channel was flat out stupid, waste of time and money.

I have the F800 Pro and so far, it’s been pretty reliable even during the 90F to 100F temps in SoCal recently. Mine is “hardwired” to Cellink Neos for the added parking mode. I regularly backup my video footage (ugh, I have way too many external hard drives lmao...), and always do a quick check for corrupt video, missing footage, etc. Haven’t noticed any issues... I’m using a 256GB Samsung Evo Select. Larger memory cards take longer to fill (obviously), which means they overwrite less often, etc.

If the F800 still has issues, I would recommend the Street Guardian SG9663DC if you don’t need Parking mode. If you do, then the Blackvue DR750S works pretty well (I have it in 3 cars, much better than the DR900S...sigh).

If you want Parking mode but don’t wanna go with a PMP or 12V battery source (LiFePO4 is the way to go, such as Cellink Neo), the Vicovation Opia2 is definitely one of the best— albeit it is not dual channel and is almost impossible to do a stealth install..., but it can be powered via a 5V portable battery pack for its parking mode (stick with 5V 1A ports though).

Anyways, there’s plenty of dashcams that are pretty reliable... many of which are from Korea and China. I have way too many dashcams; prob only a few models over the years that I don’t own (excluding super cheap or rebranded models etc).

Maybe you have been unlucky with the QC

 

[psyshack]

Well well well,,,, My oil Sammy S6 died. So what did I do? Jumped back into the iphone family. Haven't had a iphone since the iphone and then a 3 series. Been Samsung ever since. Now I can't get the iphone to sync up with the F800. The hot spot connects but does nothing, Wifi connects then disconnects.

I can see this F800 getting shot up at the range and the remaining parts being sent back to Thinkware. Can that company do anything right?

 

[DT MI]

Well well well,,,, My oil Sammy S6 died. So what did I do? Jumped back into the iphone family. Haven't had a iphone since the iphone and then a 3 series. Been Samsung ever since. Now I can't get the iphone to sync up with the F800. The hot spot connects but does nothing, Wifi connects then disconnects.

I can see this F800 getting shot up at the range and the remaining parts being sent back to Thinkware. Can that company do anything right?

Let's see - the F800 worked with the Samsung but not the iPhone, maybe the problem is NOT with the F800.

 

[psyshack]

Let's see - the F800 worked with the Samsung but not the iPhone, maybe the problem is NOT with the F800.

Ok so the F800 has been weak as can be in the interface dept from the get go. Slow sloppy horrible interface and connectivity. The F800 Pro folks are getting screwed to death. And maybe the problem is not the F800? Yeah

 

[IIAGDTR]

The big problem is most people dont give a damn where their stuff come from, as long as they can get it cheap. and denial are strong in these matters.

100% true. To most consumers low price rules. I am guilty of that some of the time but not for everything.

I would be willing to pay more for a highly reliable dash cam that met my needs, so far in over a year of looking and researching I am still hesitant to buy any of them. Now I am thinking of going with a budget cam so if it quits working I won't be as upset as I would be when my 4k expensive unit won't catch some punk keying my car in the parking lot in summertime.

 

[SawMaster]

What initially seems simple often isn't, and dashcams are like that too. It can be very confusing indeed, but there is a good way to find the cam that is right for you. First, decide what you want most from your cam. Maybe best daytime vids, maybe best at night, maybe a parking guard feature. Now list the other things you want in the order of their importance. See which cams fit that profile best, then see what the prices are. If you can't afford any like that, then change the list of "extra features" till you can find something that will serve your primary goal as good as is possible. Now research the forums here to see what actual cam owners are experiencing with that cam. If you feel that you will be able to deal with those issues, then you've got your cam.

Notice that I've put "budget" low on the list of priorities. Yes, price is important but you don't get what you don't pay for and it is more important that you get the cam you need than what it costs. If like me you'll never have enough for the more expensive cams then you have to do the best you can within your budget, compromising what you must to be able to get something which is better than nothing. There are good reliable cams out there which can be had in the $50 range if you wait on a sale, and nearly anyone can afford that. Some older but still OK designs can be found on sale for a bit less, but below this point you aren't going to get a decent cam because it costs that much to build a decent cam.

The perfect dashcam has never been built nor will it ever be built, so it's better to get most of what you want now than wait on something which may never happen.

Phil

 

[IIAGDTR]

The perfect dashcam has never been built nor will it ever be built, so it's better to get most of what you want now than wait on something which may never happen.
Phil

Agreed and that's a great narrative to help in the decision making. I had waited to see how the Waylens 360 and Blackvue 900 shook out, and not liking what I hearing. My #1 concern is having evidence of an accident since there are so many bad drivers in the wild. I would love to have front, rear, and an inside (lower res would be ok) cabin camera, but figure in a break-in I feel comfortable with insurance handling anything major. I rarely leave my car parked in a lot for very long so that mitigates the risk. I am retired and don't drive as much, in fact try to avoid anything remotely resembling a rush hour whenever possible and drive very little at night. I live in the south had summers are very hot and humid.

I am close to pulling the trigger on the A129 Duo, but also thinking of two A119Pros (or some other combo) as I would want to capture license plates and they seem to excel there.

 

[SawMaster]

Upstate SC here, so I understand hot summers and the need for supercaps in our dashcams instead of a battery. The Viofo "A" series cams have turned out to be very good dashcams with frequent firmware updates, new features added, and good customer service whether through these forums or direct. The A129 Duo is looking good right now overall, and should likely be as good as the other models PDQ. Street Guardian's SG9663DC is also well worth considering and IMHO is an even better cam overall. Great customer service and firmware updates. They are also close to releasing their "Dual Remote" cam which will be a game-changer in 2 channel cams. The Blackvue 900 isn't nearly as good as their 750 and may never be. Firmware updates are slow with them and many issues go unaddressed, but right now they have the best parking mode. Waylens has potential but I hesitate to recommend any newcomers to this game. Dashcams have to perform the hardest job under the worst conditions compared to almost any other cam, and to make one do that well takes a lot of knowledge and experience. Garmin is trying, but hasn't yet learned one very basic lesson in this game: many places are too hot for batteries and your dashcam should never shut down unintentionally ever no matter how hot it gets. The BV 900 is having similar heat-related issues, and neither one will ever get better until they switch to supercaps. When they do, then maybe they will be a good choice for us.

Plate capture is never a certainty with any cam, especially under less-than-ideal conditions. With a good lens, the correct sensor and processor for the job, and well-developed firmware devoted to getting the sharpest images you've got much better chances with this. None of that comes cheaply or easily. Some experimenting with telephoto lenses shows a lot of promise here, but those lenses also make for a narrow field of view so they should not be your primary cam. The A119 does about as good as good as you can expect with this, right up there with the Street Guardian cams. Blackvue only reaches this potential at slow speeds. Plate capture is the "Holy Grail" of dashcams, but might be a bit over-rated. In most situations, all you need to have is proof that you weren't at fault, with enough details seen to show how all the other cars involved acted too. In a hit-and-run, getting the plate can help find and prosecute the offender, but what affects you most in the end is how your own insuracnce company handles the crash. And nowadays a lot of cars here where I live have stolen plates, especially ones from other states, which makes tracking the driver nearly impossible. So yes, lets get the plates if we can but let's not worry too much if we don't because we can still prove everything else.

Many good choices out there for us today, and some not quite as good but OK overall. Low-light vids are better tham ever before by miles now. That's a lot better than things were even 5 years ago when I began getting into dashcams. It does make for harder choosing, but it also means you're more likely to get a good cam which does not disappoint. And with all that you can now get it at lower prices too. IMHO, none of the "premium" brands offers the value for the money that many mid-level priced cams do. Why spend 2-3 times as much to get at best a10% gain, with that gain being only in certain areas and not others? It's your money to spend so do as you wish but don't believe they hype that those cams are so very superior when they really aren't. See the vids and hear the comments from actual owners who have had the cams for awhile. Read these forums about the issues which have been found and what has been done to correct them. Learn for yourself, don't just blindly follow along with anyone no matter what others do or say. Just don't wait forever for the perfect cam and remember that any cam is better than none as long as it works.

Phil

 

[IIAGDTR]

Hey Phil...I had to check, thought you might be the author of some upstate youtube vids I watched a few days ago, "Bad Drivers of Greenville SC". We are moving to the area later this week from the lowcountry. What a PITA this moving business is.

I have already given a cursory glance at Street Guardian but will look at them more closely. I'll be busy for a while after the move so I can wait to check out the new model. Do you have a preferred reseller to recommend? Direct? Locally?

Yes, the heat issues of the DR900 made me step back, and when I watched some of the comparison videos it did not impress...though I am not sure how much is lost due to Youtube limitations. I like the idea that the cost of the Viofos are reasonable. Given how quickly new cams are released by the many manufacturers it will be good to not have a lot invested....the old can always go in the other vehicle.

I wonder if Garmin will improve and innovate? I use their sports watches and have used their nav systems way back...I have to think they have the resources and brain trust to do so. I suspect as some have said that all car manufacturers will have them at some point, likely in the beginning as an option.

I know this is a dashcam forum, but do you have a fav RD? I am even further down the fence about them, though the Uniden R3 would be the one I'd buy if I needed one today.

 

[VSGCowboy]

Plate capture is the "Holy Grail" of dashcams, but might be a bit over-rated. In most situations, all you need to have is proof that you weren't at fault, with enough details seen to show how all the other cars involved acted too. In a hit-and-run, getting the plate can help find and prosecute the offender, but what affects you most in the end is how your own insuracnce company handles the crash. And nowadays a lot of cars here where I live have stolen plates, especially ones from other states, which makes tracking the driver nearly impossible. So yes, lets get the plates if we can but let's not worry too much if we don't because we can still prove everything else.

EXACTLY!!!

99.9% of the time the ONLY purpose a dash cam serves is to show the police/insurance company who was at fault. The #1 priority anyone should have in a dash cam is reliability.

 

[SawMaster]

Not me, but I think they are also a member here. They're across town from me where the traffic is heavier and there are more highways. Much less traffic here but no saner. What you see in one posting on that channel happens in one or two days for me, and I'm on the road for an average of a half hour each day through the week. Somedays I see far more and far worse in a day than they get in a week, but it's a pretty realistic sampling of what goes on here. It can get totally nutso here.

For sellers Street Guardian USA has the SG products, Pier 28 and Spytec are good people to do business with. Amazon is good as long as you but from a companies official seller there, but watch closely as you may get redirected to a different seller during the process. Banggood and Gearbest are cheapest but risky, as fakes abound and after-sales service is almost non-exiestent. Once agzin the forums here can point you to a good seller.

Many cam owners post links to raw videos here on DCT, and with those you see exactly what the cam files show- no YT compression involved. But youtube can show in general what colors are like, what brightness and contrast are, and whether there's excessive motion blur or stability problems. A good place to start as long as you understand what YT does to the vids posted there.

No RD here as I do pretty close to the speed limit so I'm usually the slowest traffic out there and better targets abound. Valentine is the one to get from all that I hear. Nearly everyone here goes 5 over or more, sometimes a lot more, so with a bit of caution you won't get a ticket. But we've got older local residents who drive slow like it's still 1970 with almost no traffic around, going slow and not paying attention, and they pose a special hazard. This town has grown up from those sleepy days and you have to keep up with the times. We're a lot like Columbia or Charleston. Garmin is actually doing very well with it's cams except for the lack of supercaps and I like them. Just can't rely on them in our heat, and more's the shame of that since supercap conversions are said to be rather easy on the manufacturing end. I think you'll like it up here- a bit cooler usually and not any coastal humidity, but no sea-breezes either. Mountains and parks close by, and Greenville has a booming downtown and classy nightlife scene. Eastside rush-hour traffic here can be as packed and slow as an LA freeway, so you will need to know how to get around to avoid that, same as in any big city. I don't need to go there so I don't- problem solved for me!

Phil

 

[c4rc4m]

some of the best products are made in China, conversely so are some of the worst, you don't get what you don't pay for and unfortunately way too many buyers are fixated on things having to be as cheap as possible and constantly push for lower prices, it's not good for consumers as in many cases it's so bad that there is no longer even an option to buy something of decent quality that is built to last

Or could it just be many Chinese company owners are becoming greedy like those in the West? Doesn't China have some of the worst working conditions yet the highest concentrations of Million / Billionaires in the world?

I've noticed pricing etc myself outside of the sphere of dashcams. FIreworks have doubled in price in the last 5 or 6 years ie what was £50 then is now £100 now. That's a huge increase. On the quality side, I've been looking for a new bedside alarm clock (travel style). They're all junk that I've come across. Super thin cheap plastic and buttons that fail after 2 presses. I've bought 5 and returned 5 up to now, because of the cheap quality and at least 3 of those had the buttons break straight out of the box. The cheap quality also affects some big brands - one of the ones I returned for poor quality as a £30 Seiko!!!

 

[IIAGDTR]

We will be southeast of the city to be near some family who moved there, also have an uncle in Greer. I know people like to complain about growth but we all have to live somewhere and growth provides huge benefits to the economy.

The new SG sounds intriguing and I am looking into it, although I know initial release products often suffer from issues not uncovered or completely fixed in the testing process. Still from what I read these guys are working hard to make it as solid as possible and I can appreciate that.

I don't speed or drive recklessly but want an RD more for awareness, especially when traveling through small revenue-strapped SC towns. Also where we are moving I've read they are very strict, like ticketing for getting up to speed on interstate ramps. I know we all like to think we are good drivers but I think occasionally we all may have a second of misjudgment or in a circumstance that can result in what would be the very definition of "accident."

I am very much looking forward to being on more interesting roads to drive in the foothills and mountains. Also to trying out the Swamp Rabbit trail, hoping they keep extending it so it reaches us in the near future. Although we live on the coast, I much prefer the mountains to the beach and getting away from a direct hurricane hit is very appealing. Probably will be more interesting videos as well.

 

[country_hick]

Or could it just be many Chinese company owners are becoming greedy like those in the West? Doesn't China have some of the worst working conditions yet the highest concentrations of Million / Billionaires in the world?

I've noticed pricing etc myself outside of the sphere of dashcams. FIreworks have doubled in price in the last 5 or 6 years ie what was £50 then is now £100 now. That's a huge increase. On the quality side, I've been looking for a new bedside alarm clock (travel style). They're all junk that I've come across. Super thin cheap plastic and buttons that fail after 2 presses. I've bought 5 and returned 5 up to now, because of the cheap quality and at least 3 of those had the buttons break straight out of the box. The cheap quality also affects some big brands - one of the ones I returned for poor quality as a £30 Seiko!!!

The $ and probably many other currencies have lost much value in the last decade. You could be seeing the effects of government policies that create inflation instead of price gouging. When companies try to keep prices low when the money loses its value you will have to see lower quality products as a result.

I keep trying to understand why this time around companies lower quality and size (the 1 pound bag of M&M's is history) instead of increasing prices and keeping the same sizes and quality we are (or were) used to.

It was pointed out at a congressional hearing with the federal reserve that the fed has a dual mandate of job growth and price stability. However, the fed's policies double prices about every 10 years. How that creates any price stability I do not understand. Other countries do the same thing.

 

[SawMaster]

@IIAGDTR
Just heard on the local news that low-country flooding from the run-off of the hurricane is about to get serious with road closures expected. Still good up here with no problems expected.
Yeah, almost all of the small towns around here rely heavily on traffic tickets for income. Some are now doing this on the interstates that run through their city limits, which is legal but wasn't normally done in the past. Wellford, Mauldin, and Simpsonville are the worst with that. You're kinfolk here will tell you the same. But any small town here means going s-l-o-w and being extra cautious. Some of these towns have expanded past their old "city limits" signs without moving or replacing them, claiming a lack of funding. That can catch you out. AFAIK, none of the small towns have LIDAR, but some have "instant-on RADAR" so you need the best RD you can get, and even that may not CYA too well.

With the massive growth of Greenville City and nearby locations, everyone is playing "catch-up" for revenues in the surrounding areas because many of those "downtowners" live in the suburbs and are clogging and wearing out the outlying roads and other infrastructure. Greenville County (where I live) has ramped up enforcement of anything that will get them another ten cents of revenue. That's the economic downside of too-rapid growth. Were things different for me right now I'd be moving to Pickens county- hardly and services but low taxes and low hassles. Laurens county is similar. If you're inside any city limits here you're going to get scalped.

SG tends to have a low-key approach to the market, but makes great dashcams and has the best customer support in this game there is. You get your money's worth with them and more. They develop their products more thouroughly before release than anyone else, they won't release something with known problems as they test heavily first, and they never rest on their laurels like some cam makers do. Development is always going on there even long after a cam's first release. I rank them as one of two of the most reliable cams under all conditions that you can get, and of those two they have far more modern hardware. Do give them a close look.

Phil

 

[RLS]

Hey Phil...I had to check, thought you might be the author of some upstate youtube vids I watched a few days ago, "Bad Drivers of Greenville SC". We are moving to the area later this week from the lowcountry. What a PITA this moving business is.

I have already given a cursory glance at Street Guardian but will look at them more closely. I'll be busy for a while after the move so I can wait to check out the new model. Do you have a preferred reseller to recommend? Direct? Locally?

Yes, the heat issues of the DR900 made me step back, and when I watched some of the comparison videos it did not impress...though I am not sure how much is lost due to Youtube limitations. I like the idea that the cost of the Viofos are reasonable. Given how quickly new cams are released by the many manufacturers it will be good to not have a lot invested....the old can always go in the other vehicle.

I wonder if Garmin will improve and innovate? I use their sports watches and have used their nav systems way back...I have to think they have the resources and brain trust to do so. I suspect as some have said that all car manufacturers will have them at some point, likely in the beginning as an option.

I know this is a dashcam forum, but do you have a fav RD? I am even further down the fence about them, though the Uniden R3 would be the one I'd buy if I needed one today.

What are your requirements for a dashcam and RD?

I have basically every make/model dashcam available on the market, and have tried and tested them all in the hottest temperatures in SoCal (105F this recent summer).

Also, I run a R3 in 2 of my cars. It’s awesome to be able to pick up Ka band (used by CHP) at extreme distances, usually a solid 20 seconds before my Max360





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