Aukey DR-01 or BlueSkySea B1W?

[Xybone]

I can get the Aukey for around $50 on Amazon if I use a code and the BSS B1W for around $50 on AliExpress ($48 for both devices to be exact). Both don't include the price of an SD card (of course) so I was wondering, which one should I go for?

BSS is a new kid on the scene with very terrible audio and Aukey seems more established (their quick charge car chargers have been chugging for years with no issues), but I like the form factor of the BSS more.

What I'm really looking for is good software and good image quality. What do y'all recommend?

Thanks!

 

[kamkar]

I am just now working on testing on the B1W and tonight my focus have been on the audio, and there the B1W have some problems, they are not there if you are stopped, but driving little bumps in the road get amplified badly.
I am so far inclined to think its a matter of how the microphone in the B1W are installed, it could also be the housing design/build have something to say in this.
I am just about to upload the session #2 of this audio test, so have a look in the review subforum in a little while.

Personally audio matter little to me, maybe due to me having several cameras so one of them will capture what i need for sure.
But i prefer to mute the audio track anyway, and i for sure have to for sensitive American ears, here in Denmark we care little for such things.

 

[SawMaster]

BlueSkySea has been in the dashcam business for at least a few years now; Aukey is the newcomer here though they've done other electronics awhile. Both are good reliable companies I've had my B1W about a month and I love it (note that it's audio is off). The vids are good day and night, the Android app works excellently, it's reliable, and the form-factor very discreet. The firmware updates have been timely and show they are listening to their customers

I've been following along the audio problems which BSS is aware of and with my minor studio background I know it can be resolved, but the how, when, and what of that is still pending. If the processor allows tuning the audio range, a firmware update will probably do it- if not it may take a mic change which will require some experimenting on their end since AFAIK there are no specific low-cut/hi-pass mic's in these small sizes This issue isn't in the usual realm of cam design engineers so ut may take some time to sort out- all we can do is wait and see.

Phil

 

[Nigel]

If you have a quiet car then the B1W audio isn't a problem. In noisy cars it is easily distorted. The audio on the Aukey is not reported to be good either, having a similar issue with noisy environments, these are both cheap cameras.

Otherwise the B1W is a very good camera for the price and so far seems very reliable. I would expect the B1W to do better with number plates and I assume the Aukey has a battery? In which case the B1W with it's super capacitor definitely wins.

 

[estore009]

Audio problem is very weird,my engineer can not repeat this audio problem from road test;
Anyway,we still work to do more test (different cars,different power sources) to figure out what is the problem!

 

[kamkar]

I think its something mechanical, maybe the microphone in some cameras touch the housing or something like that.
The microphone itself are just fine, but when you start to drive it somehow catch a lot of noise,maybe due to microphone rubbing up against the housing.

 

[Xybone]

I decided to get the Aukey, just because it was from Amazon (so I can get a refund if I don't like it) and I didn't know when the code would expire.

Working fine at the moment, the bit rate seemed a lil low in today's rain though. Brightness and FPS were fine though, and I could read license plates from pretty far away. The buttons are nice and tactile, the screen is bright enough to read in overcast weather.

I'm also worrying about warranty and returns since I'll he buying the B1W off AliExpress (unless someone can suggest an eBay listing at the same price as Ali.)

So far, I'm loving how the Aukey came with a USB plug and cigarette lighter with dual USB ports (I don't have any extra ports in my car but I have a couple free USB ports in my charger). But I'm not liking how they put the L head facing to the right instead of to the left. It's also a major PITA to remove from the mount so I can get to the SD card.

Software seems fine on the Aukey, if a lil sluggish. What I don't like is how the clip split time is 3, 5, or 10 minutes with no in-between there's also no "stop/start recording" button, which means if I lock a file, I'm stuck with the full three minutes instead of a few seconds after the incident and whatever I recorded before. That means I have to edit the video when I pull it off the camera, ugh. Thinking about returning it for that one reason - seems stupid but I don't grab videos off my card until I accumulate quite a bit, so that feature is pretty important to me.

We'll see how it goes after a while.

 

[estore009]

@Xybone You can PM me for ebay purchase link,and this car charger from B1W has dual USB ports also,you can charger you mobile phone through it.

 

[TonyM]

I've had both the DR01 and the B1W. I bought the DR01 from amazon and later returned it. I did not like the mount design and noticed quite a bit of vibration driving over rough surfaces. I even had jello when the engine was idling.

@Nigel both cameras have a capacitor. I think the video quality of both cameras is good at low speed. They both have a low bitrate and struggle with higher speed motion.

For me the main difference is the physical format. The DR01 has a screen and buttons. The B1W is more discreet but needs a mobile phone app for changing settings. Each buyer will have their own preference on this.

The other notable difference is that the B1W is being developed, using feedback from members here on DCT. With the DR01 you may not see any firmware updates.

 

[Xybone]

Is

@Xybone You can PM me for ebay purchase link,and this car charger from B1W has dual USB ports also,you can charger you mobile phone through it.

Is it this listing? https://www.ebay.com/itm/112625120459If so, the one on Ali is $47, meaning this is $7 more expensive than the one on Ali and the Aukey dashcam.

It's not the same unfortunately. I have an FM transmitter (no aux in my car) that doubles as a car charger and a quick charge car charger for my phone. My FM transmitter's port is not being used so if the camera came with a detachable head (like the Aukey), I could just plug it straight into the FM transmitter, bypassing the need to buy a separate cable.

I've had both the DR01 and the B1W. I bought the DR01 from amazon and later returned it. I did not like the mount design and noticed quite a bit of vibration driving over rough surfaces. I even had jello when the engine was idling.

@Nigel both cameras have a capacitor. I think the video quality of both cameras is good at low speed. They both have a low bitrate and struggle with higher speed motion.

For me the main difference is the physical format. The DR01 has a screen and buttons. The B1W is more discreet but needs a mobile phone app for changing settings. Each buyer will have their own preference on this.

The other notable difference is that the B1W is being developed, using feedback from members here on DCT. With the DR01 you may not see any firmware updates.

Hmm, definitely will keep that in mind. If the audio issues get sorted before my return period is up, I might just buy the B1W instead. Even as small as the Aukey is, it's still pretty big in my windshield.

 

[estore009]

Is

Is it this listing? https://www.ebay.com/itm/112625120459If so, the one on Ali is $47, meaning this is $7 more expensive than the one on Ali and the Aukey dashcam.

It's not the same unfortunately. I have an FM transmitter (no aux in my car) that doubles as a car charger and a quick charge car charger for my phone. My FM transmitter's port is not being used so if the camera came with a detachable head (like the Aukey), I could just plug it straight into the FM transmitter, bypassing the need to buy a separate cable.



Hmm, definitely will keep that in mind. If the audio issues get sorted before my return period is up, I might just buy the B1W instead. Even as small as the Aukey is, it's still pretty big in my windshield.

Ebay commission is much higher than Aliexpress,ebay/amazon price is higher than Aliexpress;
And for its audio problem,we are still doing more test to sort it out!
Regards,
Vicky

 

[Xybone]

The DR-02 was on sale for $51 so I decided to jump on that and return my DR-01.

But it performed very well (much better than I expected) during today's pretty heavy rain in the afternoon and evening. Videos were crisp and license plates were readable. The mount had a bit of a jello effect when accelerating or going over parts of the highways with loads of potholes but other than that, no issues.

 

[Harsh]

Dual channel is DR02 D.

 

[estore009]

Dual channel is DR02 D.

I made a mistake on its module,sorry!