4K: Gimmick or Truly Sensational Video?

[DroMike]

As I mentioned elsewhere in these forums, I'm almost certain to purchase the new BV DR900S 2-channel dashcam. Although the price is $100 higher than the DR750S, in every video I've seen the detail of enhanced, still images of license plates is better than all other compared cameras. This convinces me that purchasing the DR900 would be a wise decision (unless the upcoming 2-channel Viofo A129 knocks my socks off for the value its low price will certainly make it).

But here's where I'm unable to reconcile things: I own a 55" TV that can show 4K content. While I don't watch 4K regularly, I HAVE seen some 4K smart channel content with nature videos, usually from drones flying over scenic areas in the world. These videos are truly breathtaking with such life-like detail it makes me feel I'm actually there. For example, I see clearly defined and separate blades of grass blowing in the wind, and streams of water so real you feel you could dip your hands in and taste it, that sort of thing; all EASILY leaps and bounds better than the 1080 TV content I see daily.

The DR900 series of dashcams claim they are 4K resolution, which I believe means it is four times better than 1080HD cams. However, in none of the DR900 videos did I feel they compared to the 4K TV videos or were greatly improved over, say, a DR750, or flagship cams from Thinkware, Garmin or Viofo. As I said, the enhanced still-pictures of license plates on the DR900 are certainly clearer, but not the moving videos.

That said, has anybody else been significantly impressed with the 4K videos of the 900s or feel they are as spectacular as they're marketed to be or what you thought they'd be? Are we being sold some snake oil or am I simply missing some technological point here (for example, unlike my TV, it's technically not possible to see 4K content on a cell phone or computer*)? Thoughts?


*and if this is the case, since almost nobody would play back their vehicle's videos on a 4K TV, I'd wonder if paying extra for a 4K dashcam would be a waste of money in the first place...

 

[M8TJT]

That said, has anybody else been significantly impressed with the 4K videos of the 900s or feel they are as spectacular as they're marketed to be or what you thought they'd be? Are we being sold some snake oil or am I simply missing some technological point here (for example, unlike my TV, it's technically not possible to see 4K content on a cell phone or computer*)? Thoughts?
*and if this is the case, since almost nobody would play back their vehicle's videos on a 4K TV, I'd wonder if paying extra for a 4K dashcam would be a waste of money in the first place...

Possibly 4k would be an advantage when zooming in to read number plates. But think of the size of memory that you would need to store all that lovely 4k video that you are never going to use.

 

[Nigel]

These videos are truly breathtaking with such life-like detail it makes me feel I'm actually there. For example, I see clearly defined and separate blades of grass blowing in the wind, and streams of water so real you feel you could dip your hands in and taste it, that sort of thing; all EASILY leaps and bounds better than the 1080 TV content I see daily.

If that is what you want, then this is the dashcam you need:

But the expense is hard to justify unless you are making millions from using the footage in major movies.

How much is it worth spending on your dashcam?

 

[Paul Iddon]

This is my 4K from the Nextbase 612 Elite 4k dashcam. Play this on your tv in 4k...

Paul.

 

[M8TJT]

How quickly does it gobble up SD cards though? Example?

 

[Paul Iddon]

I use a 64gb card and due to shall we say a lack of incidents that is plenty.

Paul.

 

[TonyM]

One problem with most 4k cameras is that they don't use a high enough bitrate to maintain detail on moving scenes. 4k sounds nice, but if it's just 4k worth of compression artefacts then it's not much use. Another common problem with 4k is that the pixel size is so small that the sensors are not particularly sensitive, which impacts on their low light performance.

I have two 4k action cameras and they record a decent driving video in good light, at 60Mbps to 100Mbps bitrate. At night and even in cloudy conditions I get better results from my A119 or other 1080p cameras.

As I recall the 900s bitrate is fairly low, although it does use h265. I would recommend finding a raw video sample and playing it at home on your 4k TV before buying the 900s.

 

[jokiin]

Their highest bitrate is 25mbit in H.264 or H.265, day results are decent, not the best in low light situations though

 

[DroMike]

Wow -- great food for thought everybody with information that makes sense. I'm starting to rethink my plans of spending that type of money for technology that may very well exceed its practicalities. Maybe simply the tried and true BV DR750S (w/robust feature set and solid performance) would be plenty enough and for almost 3/4 the cost. of the DR900S....

 

[SR45]

Agree DroMike. Just changed my pe-order from a 900 S 1channel to the 750S 1 channel. I’ll wait another couple years until this 4K technology takes hold.

 

[DroMike]

Agree DroMike. Just changed my pe-order from a 900 S 1channel to the 750S 1 channel. I’ll wait another couple years until this 4K technology takes hold.

That's probably the wise and prescient thing to do and (if not for me at least wanting to see what the upcoming Viofo A129 has to offer) I have a strong mind to do the same. After all -- while not inexpensive -- the 750 is the best choice available for a quality dashcam consisting of well-appointed user-desired features. If it helps, and to the extent you aren't aware, be advised that BBMC posted on their website:

"As a special for BlackboxMyCar customers, those who order the DR750S-2CH now will have an option to upgrade to the DR900 for the price difference and a service fee. Simply contact us and we’ll get this in writing for you. "

I'd bet dollars to donuts that will apply similarly to the 1-channel version (all you'd need to do is ask/email to confirm). If so, and should you later have buyer's remorse wishing you'd purchased the 900, there's probably that little loophole for you! Thanks to BBMC, either way, you win!

 

[SR45]

Saw a couple short reviews of the A129 and was actually impressed. But I don’t want to wait any longer since I’m going on a trip pretty soon and I need something with Wi-Fi. I don’t have a computer anymore. I have only an Apple iPad/iPhone 8+, and sometimes they’re kind of finicky as far as uploading video. As long as the 750S does it’s job, I’m a happy camper.

 

[DroMike]

How ironic, that's my situation as well - an impending driving trip with the little "Should I get this, or wait for that?" dilemma. Well, you (or I) could also go to what I jokingly refer to as the CLL (Costco Lending Library). This is because Costco's return policy is so liberal. They actually sell the BV 650 online. You could buy it, install it, and if you don't like it because you feel the 750 would be better, or the A129 finally becomes available, simply return it. I personally feel it needs to be something I'm truly considering keeping, but if you evaluate it in good faith and find it not to your liking for any reason, it's entirely ethical to return it and go another direction. At best, you might find you like the 650 enough to keep it, and at worse it would simply buy you some more time until the A129 comes out (and if you then get the 750, since I think all the cords are the same, it'd be easy to merely swap out the camera/head unit and return everything else in virtually pristine unopened packaging). Anyway, should you want to go directly to the 750 route, I have no doubt you will love it.

BTW, try these discount codes for your purchase: On BBMC, "VORTEX20" for $20 off, and on BlackVue's website, "eastcoastjeepsrt10" for 10% off. Both worked for me in my test check-outs. I presume the authorization comes because they are both from separate prolific YouTube reviewers in the dashcam world. I'd recommend Googling their videos (very informative), even on your iPhone. OK, that's my PSA of the day. ;-)

 

[SR45]

Used the vortex20 $20 off code on the 900S, so I believe they will transfer that to the 750S as well. Crossing fingers. Good luck with your decision, I’ve already made mine and if I don’t like it I will return it within the return. I’m gonna test the heck out of it once it arrives.

 

[DroMike]

Thanks -- and congrats on your purchase (I'm jealous)!

 

[Street Guardian USA]

Their highest bitrate is 25mbit in H.264 or H.265, day results are decent, not the best in low light situations though

+1, 4K options today are only nice if low light/night performance is not a priority for you. Progress marches on and I'm sure we'll see bigger 4K sensors with proper top-notch night performance at some point.

 

[c4rc4m]

There are some 4K low light sensors out there but they're only starting to emerge and I doubt they'll hit dashcams any time too soon.

Probably the best current single solution for a manufacturer is 2 sensors and 2 lenses 4K for day and 2k for night. But then the cost goes through the roof as 2 sensors and supporting boards, 2 lenses, the brain that decides which one to power and when, plus so does the size of the cam. Probably cheaper and simpler to run 2 cams side by side, a 4K and a 2k or 1080P which combined with the likely enthusiast only appeal, is why I don't think anyone is going to produce one any time soon.

As for bit rates, personally I think many current cams are too low at @ 10mbs rate which many seem to have @ 1080P or 2K. Makes for good write times and SD card life, but on the other hand, the picture becomes smudged or blocky when there's too much detail to process eg a lot of grass, bushes or trees, or a very detailed road surface eg one where the individual stones can be picked out. COuldn't comment on 4K @ 25mbs as haven't seen it. Suffice to say, I'd prefer to see the low resolutions in that region.

 

[M8TJT]

Well, you (or I) could also go to what I jokingly refer to as the CLL (Costco Lending Library). This is because Costco's return policy is so liberal. They actually sell the BV 650 online. You could buy it, install it, and if you don't like it because you feel the 750 would be better, or the A129 finally becomes available, simply return it.

That is not limited to the CLL. If you buy pretty much anything online from anywhere you get exactly the same return rights. Basically, if you don't like it, send it back. You may or may not have to pay return postage depending on vendor's Ts & Cs.

 

[TonyM]

Probably cheaper and simpler to run 2 cams side by side, a 4K and a 2k or 1080P which combined with the likely enthusiast only appeal, is why I don't think anyone is going to produce one any time soon.

I'm probably going to run a 4k action camera for a while over the summer months alongside my factory sample A129. The 4k camera does fairly well in good light, but the 1080p A129 is better all-round in varying lighting conditions.

As for bit rates, personally I think many current cams are too low at @ 10mbs rate which many seem to have @ 1080P or 2K. Makes for good write times and SD card life, but on the other hand, the picture becomes smudged or blocky when there's too much detail to process eg a lot of grass, bushes or trees, or a very detailed road surface eg one where the individual stones can be picked out.

I agree with you on the effect of low bitrate on video detail. However one benefit of lower bitrate is increased reliability which is very important in a dashcam. I'm testing a 2k camera at the moment which can run at a very high 60Mbps bitrate and has very good detail retention, but it is having some issues with certain microSD cards. Likewise the GitUp F1 4k camera that I have been testing is not 100% compatible with some cards at higher bitrates, such as my Samsung Evo+ U3 cards.

With most dual camera setups, there is a compromise on bitrate as the single DSP chip is having to encode two video streams at once. However I notice that the 900s front camera bitrates in the dual channel model are identical to those in the single channel model. Of course that might change in a future firmware update.

 

[Ralph2]

Well, you (or I) could also go to what I jokingly refer to as the CLL (Costco Lending Library). This is because Costco's return policy is so liberal. <snip> it's entirely ethical to return it and go another direction.<snip>

If.. the intent is to use it as a lending library.. not so sure about the "ethical" part. There is no "free" lunch".. and your actions raise the prices for the rest of us.. and eventually that honest perk.. gets removed.