Best method to stay discrete and record road and interior? Multiple?

[Int13h]

Hi everyone! I would like advice on the best way to record both the road ahead as well as the interior of the cabin. With all of the happenings in the US lately, I think it's long overdue that I have something in place in case I get pulled over the by the police, run into someone with road rage, etc. From what I can tell, the dual-camera systems don't seem to be all that great, and that two single-camera systems would be a better option.

With that said, are there any cams that are discrete and allow the lens to be rotated to capture the driver and car interior? For example, could the lens on the B40/A118 or CDV300X rotate to capture the interior instead of the road? Or given the cylindrical shape of the 0805/0806, could it rotate to capture the interior? If there aren't any cameras that do this, what's the best way to use two cameras to capture the road and interior? Would be better to place them both on the windshield, each facing a different direction? Have one in the very rear of the car to record the interior? I feel like the rear would be more inconspicuous and less likely to be detected. Both will be hard-wired to power, and I feel like a stealthier solution would be better. Budget would be ideally less than $500, but I'm flexible.

So, what would be your ideal set up to record the road and interior while trying to remain inconspicuous? Thank you all so much for your help!

 

[dash riposki]

What kind of car?

 

[Int13h]

What kind of car?

Thanks for the reply. It's a Mercedez-Benz C300. There are plenty of pics out there, but the interior looks exactly like this: http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/sedans/112_0904_2009_mercedes_benz_c300_drive/photo_09.html

 

[niko]

There are many dashcams that can be rotated to record front and interior if needed, but your title says "discrete", - those daschams are not discrete !

As I understand, you want to record simultaneously front of the road and at the same time interior ?
For interior recording you have two ideas: 1. to mount camera on windshield facing interior and 2. to mount dashcam at rear windows facing front ?
Do you need rear dashcam ( mounted on rear windows, facing outside ) ?
Do you need a parking mode recording ?

Within your budget I think we can find you a good practical solution ( advice ), just need to know more about your needs.

 

[Int13h]

Hi Niko! Thanks for the reply. You seem to be quite the rock star around here! I just started reading a thread about your adventures developing the Panorama X2 system. I realize this may come across as somewhat paranoid, but here in the US we've recently had many cases of police killing citizens, usually unarmed. So, when I say "discrete", what I mean is a system that could potentially capture footage and remain inconspicuous enough that someone would not think to damage the camera or remove the storage card inside. Or, for example, they may notice a dash cam on the windshield, but not notice a second camera in the back capturing the interior of the vehicle (or any other location that would capture inside the car, particularly the driver). From browsing the Panorama X2 thread, it seems many people agree that the idea set up would be two small remote cameras with a "hidden" black box to capture them. I don't need a rear dashcam (facing outside) and while parking mode would be nice, it is not required. I plan on hard-wiring both of them into the car's power system.

In all, I am pretty flexible. I just want some system to record the road and the interior (from any position with a clear view), but still remain somewhat inconspicuous. This is why I thought a second, smaller dashcam in the rear might be advisable. Even if they see the one on the windshield and destroy/erase it, they would hopefully miss the one in the back capturing their actions. Thanks for all your help!

 

[niko]

Hi Niko! Thanks for the reply. You seem to be quite the rock star around here! I just started reading a thread about your adventures developing the Panorama X2 system. I realize this may come across as somewhat paranoid, but here in the US we've recently had many cases of police killing citizens, usually unarmed. So, when I say "discrete", what I mean is a system that could potentially capture footage and remain inconspicuous enough that someone would not think to damage the camera or remove the storage card inside. Or, for example, they may notice a dash cam on the windshield, but not notice a second camera in the back capturing the interior of the vehicle (or any other location that would capture inside the car, particularly the driver). From browsing the Panorama X2 thread, it seems many people agree that the idea set up would be two small remote cameras with a "hidden" black box to capture them. I don't need a rear dashcam (facing outside) and while parking mode would be nice, it is not required. I plan on hard-wiring both of them into the car's power system.

In all, I am pretty flexible. I just want some system to record the road and the interior (from any position with a clear view), but still remain somewhat inconspicuous. This is why I thought a second, smaller dashcam in the rear might be advisable. Even if they see the one on the windshield and destroy/erase it, they would hopefully miss the one in the back capturing their actions. Thanks for all your help!

We are all here stars with each one bringing some input to DCT community and product development . Without forums like this ( and other forums ), developers coould not succeed in what they are doing.

Just to confirm I understand your needed set-up like this:

- you want windshield dashcam to be discrete
- second dashcam has to be mounted somewhere at the back ( probably on rear windows ), but facing front view in order to record possible vandalism in case windshield dashcam will be stolen ?

you said "parking mode is not needed", but thinking about scene where someone brakes in, - they usually brake in when car is parked, so in this case you need a parking mode.
Or lets say if there will be some accident where you need to stop you car, or someone stops your car, you turn off ignition - then dashcam cuts off power to accessorie fuse ( where you usually hardwire common dashcam ), in this case again you will not have any recording.

Following this logic, you need dashcam with parking mode, based on capacitor with capability of pre-buffer recording and have battery discharge prevention device. Ideally would suit dual channel dashcam, there are plenty of them out there with such tech.specs. Unfortunately they all have bulky front camera ( main unit ) which attracts thieves.

The only solution to have both cameras stealthy with all other requirements listed above at the moment I see 2 set of Panorama X1 / Street Guardian SGZC12RC. If you contact @Pier28, I believe he can do you a deal on: 2pcs Panorama X1 + 1 MotoPark BDP + memory cards, so you will be more-less within your budget.

 

[Int13h]

Thanks Niko! You make an excellent point about parking mode. If I were pulled over by the police I wouldn't want to take the risk that turning off the ignition would cut off the recording, so I'll definitely need that feature. I wasn't aware of the Panorama X1 model. It looks like a great solution. I'll check it out and keep reading the forums to see what else I come across. Thanks so much!