Best quality video with full HD and Ambarella in $100-$150 range?

MamaBear2015

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Nov 25, 2015
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Location
Denver
Country
United States
Dash Cam
Vicovation Marcus MF-2
Early this year, I wanted to put front and back cams in both of our cars, but wanted to try a pair out on mine first. I found Vicovation's Marcus 2 cams on Amazon, for $135 each and bought a pair. I was busy and it took me a couple of months to get them to the installer but since then, the video quality is JUST superb!

You can see a short video from my cam, at https://www.facebook.com/UniversalI...787971364623/1353786134698140/?type=3&theater with a guy running a red light. There's also a screen capture there, where I can even identify his plate number.

The Ambarella is apparently only part of the equation with these things. One thing I've learned to look for, when I go through youtube videos for checking these things out, is the road just in front of the car, when driving at decent speeds. If that area becomes blurry or grainy, it appears that the processor isn't keeping up - isn't fast enough? But these Marcus 2's seem best with that too. I'm impressed. They even add GPS location to the video, which is nice but not crucial.

The problem is, that they were apparently discontinued after that, and Vicovation's other cams cost WAY more!

So I've been looking for 2 more cams for the other car, but the videos I've been seeing, even on highly rated ones on Amazon, are not so good. I guess the Marcus 2 is a tough act to follow, in that price range?

So what would you forum folks recommend?
 
The Ausdom A261 and AD282 have ambarella processors and pretty nice video. They're frequently on Amazon at a good price. (Just checked, both under $90 currently)
 
VicoVation also has their new budget camera, the MF1. It has the Ambarella A12. Sells for the same price as the Marcus 2 did.
 
The Ausdom A261 and AD282 have ambarella processors and pretty nice video. They're frequently on Amazon at a good price. (Just checked, both under $90 currently)

Not so much. I looked at the video at
in full screen 1080p and it has that gravely look on the road in the foreground, which I THINK may be a slow processor. Ick.
 
You can't watch YouTube videos at full screen. No dash camera footage will look good. It's difficult to judge video on YouTube in general since they compress the video so much. Best to view raw footage whenever possible.
 
VicoVation also has their new budget camera, the MF1. It has the Ambarella A12. Sells for the same price as the Marcus 2 did.

Thanks! I really like the MF3 but it looks like it costs much more - around $200, and 50% of reviews are bad, citing problems? Where is the MF2? Not on Amazon?
 
They are not making the MF2 anymore. There is only a couple of Amazon reviews for the MF3, so I wouldn't rely on just those two. The MF1 is new, so no reviews yet. It's $140.
 
You can't watch YouTube videos at full screen. No dash camera footage will look good. It's difficult to judge video on YouTube in general since they compress the video so much. Best to view raw footage whenever possible.

Then there'd be no way to evaluate any of them.

...
Wait...
Is this one full quality? It's not YouTube:
 
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20178314f273-7654-4b7c-a5e7-c1c071536ab7.png

no, it didnt require me to install anything.
 
I do basic comparisons with YouTube because of convenience. Even with the video compression major differences can be seen and things like brightness, a cam's adaptation to changes in lighting, the FOV, along with it's basic focus will be clear enough there to decide if further investigation is warranted. After that you will have more time to look at the raw files that matter most.

Phil
 
me either, I downloaded the files without an issue

OK, the site is a spam baiter, that pops up all kinds of download demands. I got past it.

The video of the MF1 above is very nice, and on par with the Marcus 2's that I have now. My only concern is that it was made by Vicovation as a demo video, not by independent sources, and because the unit is so new, I'm not finding many videos by independent sources yet, it seems. Thanks guys!

I found this one
and downloaded it, and the MF1 isn't so good while moving.
 
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OK, the site is a spam baiter, that pops up all kinds of download demands. I got past it.

.

I never got any kind of popups, I don't use any kind of popup blocker at all either, just Chrome with all default settings, maybe worth running a malware scan on your computer in case you have something going on behind the scenes
 
Early this year, I wanted to put front and back cams in both of our cars, but wanted to try a pair out on mine first. I found Vicovation's Marcus 2 cams on Amazon, for $135 each and bought a pair. I was busy and it took me a couple of months to get them to the installer but since then, the video quality is JUST superb!

You can see a short video from my cam, at https://www.facebook.com/UniversalI...787971364623/1353786134698140/?type=3&theater with a guy running a red light. There's also a screen capture there, where I can even identify his plate number.

The Ambarella is apparently only part of the equation with these things. One thing I've learned to look for, when I go through youtube videos for checking these things out, is the road just in front of the car, when driving at decent speeds. If that area becomes blurry or grainy, it appears that the processor isn't keeping up - isn't fast enough? But these Marcus 2's seem best with that too. I'm impressed. They even add GPS location to the video, which is nice but not crucial.

The problem is, that they were apparently discontinued after that, and Vicovation's other cams cost WAY more!

So I've been looking for 2 more cams for the other car, but the videos I've been seeing, even on highly rated ones on Amazon, are not so good. I guess the Marcus 2 is a tough act to follow, in that price range?

So what would you forum folks recommend?
Have you looked at some Shenzhen DOME A12 based products? They are usually in this price range.
http://www.szdome.com/product-default-cid-77-1.html
 
Image quality depends on sensor more than chipset.
Camera with 60 fps will capture moving object easier and not too blurry.
Dont limit your choice in ambarella chipset.
 
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