Bought my first dash cam - BlackVue DR500GW-HD

[Phoenix1]

There are so many unlicensed drivers here. There are 20,000 hit and runs in Los Angeles every year apparently, and LAPD doesn't care, and in fact LAPD has an official policy of not penalizing unlicensed drivers. What am I paying taxes for again?

I've concluded that needing a dashboard cam is yet another "tax" we have to pay who live in Los Angeles with its hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens who drive with no license or insurance and who usually hit and run.

A friend of mine was a victim of a hit-and-run last week. Fortunately no injuries, no damage, but still, it's a wake-up call.

There are also a lot of people here who do insurance scams. They target someone who drives an ok looking car and who has insurance (ie, white guys like me). They'll either cut in front and slam on the breaks, or they'll throw the car into reverse and back into the victim's car! I've even heard of people stepping out in front of a vehicle or pushing a child in front! I can believe it, and I will be in hell if I don't have a video to prove what happened.

I'm a good driver with a perfect record so this is something I can use to prove what happened.

 

[jokiin]

that's quite a scary stat, 20,000 hit and runs each year

you summed up nicely why this market is growing, sad reflection on the times we live in unfortunately

 

[Phoenix1]

you summed up nicely why this market is growing, sad reflection on the times we live in unfortunately

LA's unlicensed driver problems: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me ... 601.column

In 2012, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck and the Police Commission enacted a policy that makes it possible for unlicensed drivers to get their cars back almost immediately, rather than having to wait 30 days and pay as much as $1,200.

Beck called it "a fairness issue for people who don't have the opportunity to get licenses. And it is a chance to build ties with a community that feels marginalized and that my officers have a lot of contact with. It is good to show some sense of understanding of their plight."

Ok, let me understand - LAPD's official policy is to not penalize unlicensed drivers?

LA's hit and run epidimic: http://www.laweekly.com/2012-12-06/news ... ured/full/

"It's like a war zone out there," says Jeri Dye Lynch of Van Nuys, whose son, 16-year-old cross-country star Conor Lynch, was killed by a hit-and-run driver two years ago while jogging in the San Fernando Valley. "But there's nobody there to help. They just accept it as part of living in an urban environment."

As punishment for Conor Lynch's death, the 18-year-old hit-and-run driver did no jail time, largely because she eventually turned herself in.

But this is a different kind of killing and mayhem playing out in Los Angeles, and the Beck administration and Villaraigosa administration apparently are not paying attention to it — or putting many resources into it.

Since 2001, the city's hit-and-run rate has hovered at or near 50 percent of all vehicle crashes.

[img=float-left]https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/data/MetaMirrorCache/media.laweekly.com_los_angeles_hit_and_run_epidemic_4000_dead_injured.8395166.40.jpg[/img]

Wow, hit and run is a felony all by itself, and this person does hit-and-run and KILLS someone, and then does no jail time?

What makes me so mad is these laws will be enforced vigorously against me, a white legal taxpayer. If I drive without a license, goodbye car. If I kill someone, I'm going to jail, and I lose my career and my home.

[img=center]https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/data/MetaMirrorCache/media.laweekly.com_8395170.28.jpg[/img]

This is what ethnic cleansing looks like. I can't do much but I can get a dashcam.

 

[cube]

Wow Phoenix1 kind of shocking and scary to learn the roads are like that in Los Angeles and authorities don't care. 20,000 hit and runs is unacceptable even in a city as large as Los Angeles. It's good dashcam technology exists and can be employed but these social issues should be dealt with properly by the authorities and not allowed to be fostered or hidden and swept under the rug by them.

 

[Phoenix1]

Wow Phoenix1 kind of shocking and scary to learn the roads are like that in Los Angeles and authorities don't care. 20,000 hit and runs is unacceptable even in a city as large as Los Angeles.

And they account for half the accidents in the city! And Chief Beck has an official policy of allowing unlicensed drivers to drive! Why do I pay taxes? Why do I waste my money on a license and insurance? I can just let someone else pay for the damage if I have an accident!

It's good dashcam technology exists and can be employed but these social issues should be dealt with properly by the authorities and not allowed to be fostered or hidden and swept under the rug by them.

The social issue could be solved in one week if our leaders wanted to. Pull over every vehicle that doesn't have current reg. Impound every car that has an unlicensed / uninsured driver. Drivers who are unlicensed and don't speak English should be turned over to DHS and deported. Focus on low-income Hispanic areas. The problem would stop instantly. Crime would drop instantly. Unemployment would drop instantly. It would save the taxpayers a lot of money.

Why don't we do it? It's called ethnic cleansing. We whites are a minority here. Chief Beck can't do anything that would anger his boss Mayor Villaraigosa (likely the next governor of California). No one can win an election here if they piss off the Hispanic voter base, and enforcing laws against unlicensed drivers is extremely upsetting to the Hispanic voters here.

Let me try this in Mexico. I'll go there without papers, work without a work permit, and drive without a license, and see what happens. Hint: if I did any of those things I would be thrown into a Mexican prison. They would send me a strongly worded letter or give me free social services. No, they would put in prison. Why? Because they want to keep control of their society. Why don't we learn a lesson from them?

 

[ExMet]

Why? Because they want to keep control of their society.

How's that working out for them?

 

[Phoenix1]

How's it working for Mexico? At least they are not being colonized and turned into second class citizens in their own country. They may have their own crime problems but they don't have foreigners coming over and committing crimes.

Here in LA I see people on the roads without license plates, every day, and I'm not talking about new cars from the dealer! How does that work? How can someone drive even half a mile without a plate without getting pulled over and impounded?

If you saw how many hit-and-runs we have, how the city can no longer pave the roads or respond to police calls, how many unlicensed drivers are on the roads, and how we whites can't do anything about it, and won't ever be able to do anything because we're a divided minority, you might understand how I feel about this.

 

[ExMet]

How's it working for Mexico? At least they are not being colonized and turned into second class citizens in their own country. They may have their own crime problems but they don't have foreigners coming over and committing crimes.

Here in LA I see people on the roads without license plates, every day, and I'm not talking about new cars from the dealer! How does that work? How can someone drive even half a mile without a plate without getting pulled over and impounded?

If you saw how many hit-and-runs we have, how the city can no longer pave the roads or respond to police calls, how many unlicensed drivers are on the roads, and how we whites can't do anything about it, and won't ever be able to do anything because we're a divided minority, you might understand how I feel about this.

I understand better than you might think.

 

[horsepower]

Methinks this post has gotten off the topic slightly of the dashcam purchased...

 

[ExMet]

Methinks this post has gotten off the topic slightly of the dashcam purchased...

Yes. The OP should compensate us by posting an in depth review of his dashcam.

 

[Phoenix1]

Methinks this post has gotten off the topic slightly of the dashcam purchased...

Yes. The OP should compensate us by posting an in depth review of his dashcam.

You're right. I promise I will once it arrives and I try it out. Amazon says it has already shipped. I'll try it day and night and parking mode. That parking mode will be good because my garage has no cameras.

 

[Marcus]

Indeed, what is the "colour" balance like then ?? :lol: (sorry forgot you yanks call it Color )

 

[DashCamMan]

Yes...lets try to keep this on-topic. Looking forward to your review.

 

[Phoenix1]

Really annoying, I received a unit which was obviously refurbished. I requested a return and refund. What are some people thinking. If he had said, "this unit is a refurbished unit", then I would have known and it should have been factored into the price. It looks in good condition but I'm not going to pay top price for a top of the line unit which is refurbished. :evil:

 

[jokiin]

Really annoying, I received a unit which was obviously refurbished.

that's disappointing to say the least

 

[Phoenix1]

If it doesn't violate forum rules, can you recommend a vendor? It doesn't seem to be widely available here in the US yet. I bought it from SOLTECHSECURITY, as an Amazon vendor, and I returned it just now.

 

[DashCamMan]

Hi Phoenix1,

You can try Newegg. They are selling the DR500GW-HD for $300.

 

[Phoenix1]

I bought it from the vendor Luxury Black. He's right here in LA, he shipped immediately, and it arrived the next day. I'm right now sitting in Tom n Toms near Find It All audio installers on Vermont, waiting as they install it. I think this thing needs to be pro installed because I would not want to live with a thing plugged in to my cig adapter. He found a spot to install it where it will be completely invisible to the driver (me) when in use, because it's behind the mirror. The difficulty was there's a rain sensor, but still he found a good spot for it.

I'll let everyone know how this goes when it's done. I didn't test it all before installation, which I probably should have. Hope it will be ok.

While I was waiting I installed the Android app. A bit disappointing - it wanted too many permissions, and it didn't work with my phone, complaining that storage is not installed correctly. I'm thinking of maybe figuring out how the protocol works with the camera and doing my own app.

Does anyone know where I can get a copy of the viewer app for PC?

 

[DashCamMan]

Hi Phoenix1,

The viewer app should be on the SD card (assuming you have used it in the camera).

 

[venezian]

I know it's OT, but i'm from LA as well and exactly the reason why I got my came almost 2 years ago. LA drivers are a mixture of inexperienced and impatient asshole drivers. Stay safe.