Are there any dashcams that do not use 5V for power?

[McFuzz]

Howdy,

I am planning on buying two dashcams for both my cars. I haven't zero'd down on which exact one I'd want, but I am planning to hard wire the cameras to a non constant 12v outlet.

As such, I got one major question: are there any models out there that DO NOT use 5v (i.e. USB based power) but rather straight up 12v?

The slightly less important question is - are these cameras smart enough to resume recording upon power restoration (I will get one with a capacitor)?


Bonus question: My cars are an Audi A4 and Audi A6, both of which have ginormous batteries (lets just say they can power in car entertainment and exterior lighting while cranking/starting without skipping a beat) - does anyone have experience with those and perhaps can comment on hard wiring to a constant 12v source?

Thanks!

 

[jokiin]

our SGZC series cameras are all 12v models, likewise quite a lot of the Korean models are 12v in, Lukas, Blackvue etc, plenty of choices available

 

[McFuzz]

our SGZC series cameras are all 12v models, likewise quite a lot of the Korean models are 12v in, Lukas, Blackvue etc, plenty of choices available

I assume your model and the others can then directly tie to an add-a-fuse circuit, correct?

 

[Street Guardian USA]

You can hard wire the following products directly to 12v

SGZC12SS, SGZC12SG, SGZC12RC

 

[jokiin]

I assume your model and the others can then directly tie to an add-a-fuse circuit, correct?

correct

 

[McFuzz]

You can hard wire the following products directly to 12v

SGZC12SS, SGZC12SG, SGZC12RC

So I assume any one of these has the auto-stop functionality (i.e. car is off - goes into standby mode)? Could you comment on battery draw in stand by mode? Again - both my car has ginormous batteries, but there could be instances where I would not drive one for 2-3 days... would I be better off disconnecting the camera from the power or...?

 

[Street Guardian USA]

So I assume any one of these has the auto-stop functionality (i.e. car is off - goes into standby mode)? Could you comment on battery draw in stand by mode? Again - both my car has ginormous batteries, but there could be instances where I would not drive one for 2-3 days... would I be better off disconnecting the camera from the power or...?

They all have motion detection (parking mode) with 5 seconds of pre-buffer so nothing is missed in the moments leading up to the motion or g-sensor trigger. All you need to do is hard wire it to a battery discharge prevention device so you can safely leave it powered after the engine is shut off and you walk away form the car. You could risk hooking up straight to constant unswitched battery with out any BDP monitoring, but the risk is on you then. (I know some do this with huge trucks etc) If it's going to be a long long time you could always unplug it, but then you get zero protection at all.

 

[McFuzz]

They all have motion detection (parking mode) with 5 seconds of pre-buffer so nothing is missed in the moments leading up to the motion or g-sensor trigger. All you need to do is hard wire it to a battery discharge prevention device so you can safely leave it powered after the engine is shut off and you walk away form the car. You could risk hooking up straight to constant unswitched battery with out any BDP monitoring, but the risk is on you then. (I know some do this with huge trucks etc) If it's going to be a long long time you could always unplug it, but then you get zero protection at all.

When it is not driven, it's always in my garage so there's no real need to have it plugged in but point taken. Do you guys make a BDP?

Also - one of my fellow C7 (the generation designation of my A6) mentioned an interesting situation where have a front and rear dashcam caused disruption in his smart key operation. Long story short - the cameras were emitting FM frequency transmissions that screwed up with the key and caused the car to pop-up "No key found" errors while driving! So - question is: do your cameras conform to part 15 of the US FCC rules?

Thanks!

 

[Street Guardian USA]

When it is not driven, it's always in my garage so there's no real need to have it plugged in but point taken. Do you guys make a BDP?

Also - one of my fellow C7 (the generation designation of my A6) mentioned an interesting situation where have a front and rear dashcam caused disruption in his smart key operation. Long story short - the cameras were emitting FM frequency transmissions that screwed up with the key and caused the car to pop-up "No key found" errors while driving! So - question is: do your cameras conform to part 15 of the US FCC rules?

Thanks!

Search for PANOBDP motopark multi safe

With the press of a button you can switch between switched ACC and un switched BAT power since it comes with three wire power.

Some of the cheaper products out there can cause interference.

All the SGxxxxxx products are good to go with a combination of EMI coating and or quality controlled Spectrum analyzed RF spike free PCB components/construction. (No problems)

 

[SawMaster]

do your cameras conform to part 15 of the US FCC rules?

Unlike "UL listing" where a lab does tests, FCC "Part 15" compliance is just a manufacturer's assertion that it meets the standards- nobody tests anything so lots of electronics are not compliant although they say they are. Even then, Part 15 offers you almost no protection against interference with any other given electronics which may be sensitive to the exact RFI given off by another device and little else- both can be truly compliant and still result in a fail.

Some interference with dashcams has been traced to the 5V power supplies, some has been cured with shielded power cabling, some have added shielding inside the cam case, some have moved the cam and/or cabling. Some have had to use a different cam as their preferred one's problems couldn't be resolved. Even though you don't have radio reception problems keep dashcams away from the antenna since some cars use it for keyless locking, providing a path for RFI to enter the system.

By using a cam with a direct 12V feed you've eliminated one major source of problems so try the other solutions. The SG cams are well-shielded and operable from 12V plus they are good dashcams so I'd give them a try. With a big battery you should have a few days reserve capacity if parking mode is used when the car is stopped, but a BDP is always recommended just in case. Use components recommended by folks here- they've been tried and some cheaper stuff may not work as well or as safely.

Phil

 

[McFuzz]

When the cameras are in park mode - does just buffer a bit if footage without any recording and when the sensor is triggered then write it to memory? Is that the basic principle?

 

[Street Guardian USA]

do your cameras conform to part 15 of the US FCC rules? Thanks!

All our products have CE certification. Adding FCC certification is done via Declaration of Conformity or TCB, and they already have CE which is recognized as already being tested.

 

[Street Guardian USA]

When the cameras are in park mode - does just buffer a bit if footage without any recording and when the sensor is triggered then write it to memory? Is that the basic principle?

That's correct it buffers 5 seconds in internal memory until the trigger event occurs, then the past 5 seconds plus ongoing recording is saved to the memory card.

 

[McFuzz]

That's correct it buffers 5 seconds in internal memory until the trigger event occurs, then the past 5 seconds plus ongoing recording is saved to the memory card.

So I'd assume power consumption is barely any different than when running in normal recording mode, correct?

 

[Street Guardian USA]

So I'd assume power consumption is barely any different than when running in normal recording mode, correct?

That's correct

 

[SawMaster]

Someone measured the Mobius (which doesn't pre-buffer) and found the current drawn during 'motion detect' was essentially the same as during recording. My best guess is that all cameras will be similar.

Where motion detect's advantage lies is that you're not having to view the entire time saved on the card while parked if you discover damage- only the times someone was near your car. And your SD card has less writing going onto it, making it last longer before you need to replace it. So pre-buffered motion detect is worth having if you really need protection while parked.

Phil

 

[Module 79L]

So I assume any one of these has the auto-stop functionality (i.e. car is off - goes into standby mode)? Could you comment on battery draw in stand by mode? Again - both my car has ginormous batteries, but there could be instances where I would not drive one for 2-3 days... would I be better off disconnecting the camera from the power or...?

Everybody assumed you were asking about parking mode but is it just me or what you're asking is what happens to the camera when you cut its power off? If so, it doesn't go into standby mode, it just shuts down, so no battery draw.

 

[McFuzz]

Everybody assumed you were asking about parking mode but is it just me or what you're asking is what happens to the camera when you cut its power off? If so, it doesn't go into standby mode, it just shuts down, so no battery draw.

I actually meant the former; but this is good to know as well. I'd assume that when the car shuts off, the camera has enough logic to detect the slight drop in input voltage and realize "oh snap power is off, going into motion detection mode"?

 

[Street Guardian USA]

There is no logic/communication between the battery discharge prevention device and the camera. All you need to do is turn Motion Detection on, and it's all good after that.

 

[McFuzz]

There is no logic/communication between the battery discharge prevention device and the camera. All you need to do is turn Motion Detection on, and it's all good after that.

Oh so it is not automatic? So theoretically - if I have it connected to a constant source, park and leave, the camera could be recording non stop unless I specifically enable motion-detection mode before I leave?