Aukey DR-H1 Dashcam

[HPKA]

This was my second dashcam review, I think I got it a bit more dialed in this time. Again, originally written for Amazon and YouTube, but I'll add some bits for here.

And the text + links:

I review the Aukey DR-H1 Dashcam.

Amazon.ca Title: AUKEY Car Black Box, HD 1080P 140 Degree View Angle Rotatable Vehicle Traveling Data Recorder, Mini Covert Versatile Video Camera with G-Sensor WDR and Night Vision
Amazon.ca Link: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/B01BBFBU74--- Review Text ---

First things first, this review is of the DR-H1 Model of the Aukey Dashcam

This dashcam is a set and forget style device, all dashcams are to some extent, but this one in particular comes with all the necessary kit for permanent mounting. The two sided tape is 3M VHD Tape, the same stuff used for helmet mounted cameras for extreme sports. There are two power options, firstly simple power from a 12/24V socket, and then the necessary cables to wire into your fuse box and on your car in built screen if it has one. The device itself is solid, rotates vertically and has 4 control buttons.

Image quality is just top notch. The camera adapted quickly to changes in exposure and fine details (e.g. indicators/turn signals) and traffic lights were visible. Night driving was equally impressive, headlights did not dazzle the camera and under street lights, you could even see cracks in the road. By default, it produced 1920x1080 AVI files, each 3 minutes long and about 320MB in size. A 32GB SD (formatted) card should store around 280 minutes of footage, or 4.6hrs. Older files are deleted so no need to worry about maintaining it.

Overall, I really like it. It would work brilliantly as either a front or rear dashcam.

Pros:
* Outstanding image quality
* Great build quality
* Footage immediately playable in VLC
* Good mounting options
* Direct to fuse box with video wiring included, along with a 12/14V adapter (with a braided cable).

Cons:
* None, but an important note...

Note:
* Unless you're using the fuse box+video wiring, no real way to set the time or any options. For some people this won't bother them.

I was given a sample in exchange for an honest opinion.

Note that I cannot find a page for this on Aukey.com at the time of writing.

Sample video: http://www.mediafire.com/download/c6iyvebx3b9bjax/MOV_0012.AVI

Media Info:

General
Complete name                            : \\hfs\HomeVideos\Video Product Reviews\Aukey Dashcam\Night and Morning Driving\MOV_0012.AVI
Format                                   : AVI
Format/Info                              : Audio Video Interleave
File size                                : 320 MiB
Duration                                 : 3mn 0s
Overall bit rate                         : 14.9 Mbps
Mastered date                            : 2015-01-01 00:21:01

Video
ID                                       : 0
Format                                   : AVC
Format/Info                              : Advanced Video Codec
Format profile                           : High@L4
Format settings, CABAC                   : Yes
Format settings, ReFrames                : 1 frame
Format settings, GOP                     : M=1, N=15
Codec ID                                 : H264
Duration                                 : 2mn 59s
Bit rate                                 : 14.8 Mbps
Width                                    : 1 920 pixels
Height                                   : 1 080 pixels
Display aspect ratio                     : 16:9
Frame rate                               : 29.936 fps
Color space                              : YUV
Chroma subsampling                       : 4:2:0
Bit depth                                : 8 bits
Scan type                                : Progressive
Bits/(Pixel*Frame)                       : 0.238
Stream size                              : 317 MiB (99%)

Audio
ID                                       : 1
Format                                   : AAC
Format/Info                              : Advanced Audio Codec
Format profile                           : LC
Codec ID                                 : FF
Duration                                 : 3mn 0s
Bit rate                                 : 128 Kbps
Channel(s)                               : 2 channels
Channel positions                        : Front: L R
Sampling rate                            : 22.05 KHz
Frame rate                               : 21.533 fps (1024 spf)
Compression mode                         : Lossy
Stream size                              : 2.75 MiB (1%)
Alignment                                : Split accross interleaves
Interleave, duration                     : 46 ms (1.39 video frame)
Interleave, preload duration             : 139 ms

Screengrabs from a few videos:



My main thoughts and tips:

• Really, you need to use the fuse tap for continuous power (at 12v) and video output to something. Because there's no screen on the unit itself, there's no way to change the settings without a separate screen.
• If you don't give it continuous power, the time will reset (ergo my evening and morning screenshots are 23 minutes apart in the last case)
• With that in mind, the 3M VHD 2 sided tape makes sense
• No inbuilt screen might make this a good choice for a rear dashcam.
• I do think it's quite discrete when properly installed
• I personally like the video output but a few people disagree with me
• On the cigarette lighter charger (which has a USB port), I really like the braided cable

 

[jokiin]

• I personally like the video output but a few people disagree with me

it's 720p interpolated, they never look great

the 6 five star reviews are typical for this type of product, there's a thread on here already about Amazon reviews

 

[HPKA]

it's 720p interpolated, they never look great

Out of interest, how did you spot that? Seriously, I do want to spot stuff like that for my future reviews.

 

[jokiin]

I know the hardware, it also comes in some lower spec versions but giving the benefit of doubt that it is the 720p model and not one of the lower spec variants