Cell Phones as Dash Cams

DashCamMan said:
Hi dirkzelf,

Very interesting. So the lower framerate appears to be a device issue not an app issue.

Thanks
Dash Cam Man

It appears to be so, yes. Don't like that AT AL! :x

Anyway, question remains: Anyone out there with a phone that actually does a good job??

dj
 
What the DailyRoads developer is talking about, is automatic refresh rate reducing on some of the devices.
What my phone was experiencing (and there are lots of others out there) is that the camera framework is just unable to record at full res with 30fps, no matter the lighting conditions (software, not hardware issues).

The 30fps issue was only apparent in CyanogenMod on my phone, whereas with stock (yuck!) it was ok, but still, DailyRoads limits itself at 20 fps without option to choose anything higher even if the phone would be capable of that.

About the night shots: Sony Exmor R ftw!

Edit: about the Galaxy S2 case: it was all about the linked libraries. Had one used special S2 libraries in his app for the S2, it had also been able to record 1080p30, just as the built-in video recorder did. It's possible and it has been done.
 
Hi Mikk36,

Thanks for sharing this. As more people use their phones as dash cams, I'm sure the apps will improve (or just market your app!).

I didn't realize some of the Sony Xperia cameras were using the Sony Exmor R CMOS. That is great since many of the high end dash cams are using the same censor. Perhaps the Sony Xperia T is the best available Smartphone to use as a dash cam today.

Dash Cam Man
 
DashCamMan said:
Hi Mikk36,

Thanks for sharing this. As more people use their phones as dash cams, I'm sure the apps will improve (or just market your app!).

I didn't realize some of the Sony Xperia cameras were using the Sony Exmor R CMOS. That is great since many of the high end dash cams are using the same censor. Perhaps the Sony Xperia T is the best available Smartphone to use as a dash cam today.

Dash Cam Man

Xperia T has it, but the S and P as well. Any reason to choose the T over the other 2?

dj
 
I retested the camera at night with 1080p, same evening, same route, same truck.


LGP990-1080P-23fps-NIGHT:
Recorded with standard LG P990 camera app it does actually record at 23 fps! So, the camera CAN do it, DailyRoads doesn't!



DAILYROADS-1080P-8fps-night:
Recorded on LG P990 with DailyRoads camera app with framerate set to high.......! Comes out at 8fps....!



So, there we have it, DailyRoads is NOT doing very well compared to the standard app......

Anyone know of a better app for this purpose?
 
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dirkzelf said:
Xperia T has it, but the S and P as well. Any reason to choose the T over the other 2?

dj

Hi dirkzelf,

The Xperia T is the flagship model but you are right, the specs of the S are pretty similar. The P has a slower processor and perhaps the camera is not the same quality (8MP instead of 12MP in the S and 13 MP in the T). However, I am not familiar with how the different models perform in real life so perhaps the more affordable models are just as good for dash cam purposes.

Dash Cam Man
 
Hi dirkzelf,

That is a dramatic difference, 8fps is way too low and you can see it in the quality. If I hear of a better app, I will post.

Dash Cam Man
 
DashCamMan said:
Hi dirkzelf,

That is a dramatic difference, 8fps is way too low and you can see it in the quality. If I hear of a better app, I will post.

Dash Cam Man


Anyone using AutoGuard?
 
I tried the free version of AutoGuard, but I'm afraid it performs just as low as Dailyroads.

DR drops to 8f/s, AG to 9. Both bitrates are about 1200-1400kb/s.

This while the standard Phone Camera App runs at 6500-9500kb/s and 24 f/s..... day AND night!

I'd wish someone could make the original app to record in a loop..... :?:

Maybe the payed version is better? Someone?

Or should I just need to buy me the F500LHD, I don't know...... I don't want to carry around even more stuff then what I have now.....

After browsing around on Google Play, I found this:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... lated_apps

I have installed the free app and I found a setting for night recording, where it tells me IF I want auto detect day/night and HOW TO set the prefixes for night recording..... fingers crossed. Testing tomorrow... :D
 
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dirkzelf said:
After browsing around on Google Play, I found this:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... lated_apps

I have installed the free app and I found a setting for night recording, where it tells me IF I want auto detect day/night and HOW TO set the prefixes for night recording..... fingers crossed. Testing tomorrow... :D

Well, in AUTO mode VideoReg performs about the same as DailyRoads, maybe even a little less......

Now I will test tomorrow in forced mode, so maybe it will record in 20, 24 or 30 f/s then .........

Later
 
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Hi Dirkzelf,

Let us know how it goes. I don't have an Android phone to test out apps but there seems to be quite a few available when searching for blackbox or dash cam. Unfortunately it is difficult to tell which app is any good without testing.

Dash Cam Man
 
When searching through Google Play only 3 apps seem to be popular: DailyRoads, AutoBoy and AutoGuard. The rest only have a small number of reviews.

Dash Cam Man
 
Here's a sample VideoReg 720p 8Mbps and yes 30 fps!


Need to work on lighting, which as you can see is pretty bad. I am trying to find out how to set that, there are so many settings you can change, am waiting for some info from the developer.

Later.

:cool:
 
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Hi dirkzelf,

Strange that it is so dark. If you can get it brighter and 30fps, you have likely found your app! Let us know.

Dash Cam Man
 
Well, I think this is it, the developer simply bought a phone like mine to test it out and to see if he can make some adjustments to bypass the restrictions of the phone...... how about that! If any program will work, it's this one.....

The darkness surprised me too..... hope we can get around it.

fngrs xxx

dj
 
If anyone is interested in an iPhone Dash Cam app, Witness Driving has good reviews. Note that I have not tested it out.

Dash Cam Man
 
Witness Driving is also available for Android, but the ratings there are not encouraging......

big con: no background recording, so you can't use internet, satnav etc, or even take a phone call without the program shutting down......

AND (if I am right) there is no free trial version

Both DailyRoads and VideoReg have background recording.
 
DashCamMan said:
If anyone is interested in an iPhone Dash Cam app, Witness Driving has good reviews. Note that I have not tested it out.

Dash Cam Man

Maybe an interesting point from the developer (under tag FAQ):

"Not many people realise that their iPhone camera is sensitive to infra-red light (try filming your TV remote). This means that your phone can can be turned into a cheap night-vision camera (there are apps but not sure how good they are). We did a few experiments to try and make it work for us but the problem is that there is so little infra-red light around at night that unless you had big infra-red headlights (or pilot an attack helicopter) it doesn’t show much."

Now, I wouldn't be me to check my LG P990 camera, guess what, it works too.....! I have an IR sensitive phone camera! :D

Check your phone: start camera application, record, and see if the IR transmitter from your TV remote lights up when you press any button

Maybe I'll get me some IR-headlights, and see what's going on then..... ah well, won't work in real life I guess.... :(

If anyone has any idea on this matter, join in please!
 
dirkzelf said:
If anyone has any idea on this matter, join in please!
Ir sensitivity is flexible term, but in this context it has nothing to do with FLIR system so you must not mix these two systems.
Next you must remember that when using ir light you cant see colours, so it is very difficult to use it as evidence to catch somebody. Then you need some kind or ir light source witch consume as much power as any visible spotlight.
Basicly, it might be a fun subject to play with, but have no real life usage.

I have removed ir blocker from my canon powershot A590 camera, but after some intresting test images camera is mostly forgotten.
But now i checked with my GS5000 test camera because at the moment it has a lens without ir blocker, and it turns out that these GS cameras can see ir light very fine, colours are lost but in exchange you could hide camera totally behind black ir filter material. Cheapest everyday ir pass filter is developed camera negative film, you can usually find short clip of it if you have negatives at your home, some say that computer floppy disk material works, but it doesn't.
This GS5000 is ugly because i removed those red plates for not to attract thieves, but camera really can see through that black negative film clip.
lh3.googleusercontent.com__ifkgVedmnHw_UMHCQQ4_5fI_AAAAAAAAANY_Y9s0rpJSbgc_s700_Dsc03753.jpg
 
Interesting, but what is actually the result when you record with this camera and with the negative on the lens?
 
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