Three days ago I purchased the Thinkware X300 dashcam along with the optional rear camera. Primarily I was after a backup camera for my camper van and I decided the X300's LCD was large enough for comfortable viewing by the driver. This combination was a bonus for me as it provides front/rear dashcam loop recording (1080p front, 720p rear) as well as a continuous live-view from the rear camera (selectable front/rear) for an assist when backing up.
I found the system was very easy to install (I spent most of my time hiding cables within the interior trim). The Thinkware software is necessary for simultaneous viewing of the recordings of front and rear cameras on a desktop/laptop. In standard AVI editing/viewing applications only the footage from the front camera is viewable. At the default settings the 1080p video is good quality (sharp and clear in detailed areas) other than a few compression artifacts/squares in plain areas (road/sky). I have not yet tried out the system at night or at dusk, but it seems to work fine in a dark garage.
So far I am happy with the X300, but I have a few quibbles:
- the LCD is touch sensitive which is great, but this also makes it very easy to accidentally change the tilt of the camera.
- I dislike microSD cards - they are just way too tiny for man-hands. Incidentally, a 16GB (class10) microSD card with a USB adapter and an SD adapter are included with the X300.
- I need to play with the accelerometer sensitivity adjustment as my shocks seem a little too harsh and set off the impact incident recording on railroad crossings and bumpy pavement. The sensitivity adjustment is easy enough to do on the touch screen - I just need to find the right setting so that my shocks don't set off these false impact incidents.
