Dash Cam for Cheap Car to Protect Baby

[nestingdashcam]

Hi everyone,

I am 36 weeks pregnant and in major nesting mode getting everything ready for my first baby. I've had dash cams in the past that were crappy brands from Amazon that would work for a few months and then start power cycling constantly and I am ready to invest in a good quality camera to protect my family.

I live in NJ so lots of bad drivers. Very safe neighborhood and never store valuables in the car so not as interested in parking modes. Also, both cars I plan to install these in are worth less than $5,000 and fully paid off so if someone were to ding my car while it is parked I would not care. The main purpose would be to have footage of an accident for insurance and piece of mind. My husband does not think it is necessary to have a rear camera since we already have a backup camera (which does not record) but I am more interested in dual coverage.

I am willing to shell out for the Thinkware U3000 since it is the premium recommendation from the best of 2024 list but a lot of the features seem to be centered around parking which is not as important to me so I wonder if that is the best use of $500 for my circumstance.

Would really appreciate some suggestions on which dash cam to get, thanks!

 

[Nigel]

The U3000 is only recommended if parking mode is really important, its image quality is not the best.

Rear cameras are not essential, but they are good for, in your words, "piece of mind", or more accurately "peace of mind", and worth a little extra as long as installation is not a problem. If someone is driving recklessly behind you then it is good to record their behaviour. The dashcam is not actually going to protect the baby, but being able to just pass everything to the insurance company and get it sorted easily and quickly without needing to argue is going to be good for the baby.

The main problem with cheap dashcams is that they contain lithium batteries that fail fairly quickly in hot weather, it is well worth paying the extra for a dashcam without lithium batteries, they will last far longer. Cheap Amazon dashcams that all have 5 star reviews are even worse since they have very cheap build quality and even cheaper components.

The current (around here) recommendation for your situation is the Viofo A229, either Plus or Pro model. They are pretty new, so long term reliability is not proven yet, but Viofo have a good reputation on that, they are available in 1, 2 or 3 channel models, the image quality is significantly better than the U3000, while the price is significantly less, they are easy to use, reasonably easy to install and well designed. Parking mode works well, but does flatten the battery much faster than the U3000.

An overview of the Viofo A229 and then a comparison with the U3000 and new Blackvue on image quality from Vortex Radar:

Edit: (I don't seem to be able to start the second video in the right place, was trying to start it at 3:24 for the comparison.)

 

[nestingdashcam]

Thanks so much for your detailed response!

Rear cameras are not essential, but they are good for, in your words, "piece of mind", or more accurately "peace of mind", and worth a little extra as long as installation is not a problem. If someone is driving recklessly behind you then it is good to record their behaviour. The dashcam is not actually going to protect the baby, but being able to just pass everything to the insurance company and get it sorted easily and quickly without needing to argue is going to be good for the baby.

Oops, yes definitely meant peace of mind. This is exactly my line of thinking as well. Car seat and defensive driving is going to protect the baby, dash cam is just so we don't have to take time away from the baby to argue with Geico! My husband has installed rear cams for the previous dash cams with success so that should not be a problem

The current (around here) recommendation for your situation is the Viofo A229, either Plus or Pro model. They are pretty new, so long term reliability is not proven yet, but Viofo have a good reputation on that, they are available in 1, 2 or 3 channel models, the image quality is significantly better than the U3000, while the price is significantly less, they are easy to use, reasonably easy to install and well designed.

Thanks for sharing these videos, they were so informative and I agree the Viofo A229 Pro looks like exactly what we need. Especially with the 3 channel capability to keep an eye on the baby.

 

[Nigel]

Especially with the 3 channel capability to keep an eye on the baby.

I was wondering if you might say that, other people have the same thought. Don't expect to be able to look at the dashcam screen to check the baby in the back seat while you are driving, that is not safe driving practice, and the screen isn't really big enough, although the A229 does have one of the bigger screens available, and you could potentially mount the interior camera near the baby for a good view (with a longer than standard cable). I'm not convinced that 3 channel is really useful in relation to the baby, I might be with your husband on that. I'm not saying you should't go for the 3ch, just don't expect too much from it.

Also consider getting the associated hard wire kit, it makes for a neater install, and removes problems if your car's accessory socket doesn't turn off with the ignition, although it complicates the install a little. When dealing with a baby, you do not want to have to remember to turn the camera off in order to avoid a flat battery!

Finally a Viofo brand memory card is recomended for these cameras, especially if using 3 channels, slower cards can cause unreliability. Otherwise check Viofo's recomendations on what cards not to use:

What memory card is recommended for a VIOFO dashcam?

Micro SD Cards play an important role in dashcams, but not all cards are suitable to be used in dashcams. The footage recorded by dash cams is saved on a micro SD card, which is an essential component of the dash cam setup. Here are some parame...

support.viofo.com

 

[Vortex Radar]

Welcome! At 36 weeks you’re very close! Good luck!

Yeah the Viofo A229 Pro is a pretty fantastic option. It doesn’t have the parking capabilities of the U3000, but given that you don’t need that and would also like an interior cam, the A229 Pro is a better fit and has way better video quality.

One other to consider if you really want an interior cam for the baby is the VanTrue N5. It has 4 cameras including front, rear, and 2 interior cams. You can have the second interior cam on the second row to make it easier to capture the baby, without the front seats and passengers obscuring the view. You can also have it in the back pointing forward which is nice when the baby is still tint and facing backwards in the car seat so a traditional interior cam won’t capture them.

 

[nestingdashcam]

I was wondering if you might say that, other people have the same thought. Don't expect to be able to look at the dashcam screen to check the baby in the back seat while you are driving, that is not safe driving practice, and the screen isn't really big enough, although the A229 does have one of the bigger screens available, and you could potentially mount the interior camera near the baby for a good view (with a longer than standard cable). I'm not convinced that 3 channel is really useful in relation to the baby, I might be with your husband on that. I'm not saying you should't go for the 3ch, just don't expect too much from it.

This is really good to know. We had purchased this baby camera from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/B0C39QS3D9 and I was planning to return it since the A229 has the interior camera but your reply has definitely made me wonder if we should keep it. Just seems like a lot of screens to keep track of, plus I wasn't certain how I was going to mount the interior cam that comes with the A229 to be able to see the baby when she is rear facing since it just comes with 3M adhesives rather than velcro. Good point about not checking the screen while driving. I wonder if the Amazon camera is slightly safer since the screen is bigger? The problem is that mirrors are not recommended since they could become a projectile and hurt the baby in the event of a collision but the same could be said about a camera. However, the one we bought is much smaller than a mirror would be and has the option to mount directly to the headrest supports but obviously could still break loose and hit baby. My counter to this is that anything loose in the car could hit her during a crash... Then there is the point to be made that mirrors and cameras are unnecessary and introduce more risk than they are worth by taking your eyes away from the road and potentially becoming dislodged. The joys of parenting in the age of information, I suppose.

Would love to hear your opinion on whether we should keep the amazon one to see her while she is rear facing. If we do keep the baby cam separate, I may downgrade to the old version of the A229 Plus since it is 2 channel and on sale for $180 on Amazon right now unless there is a good reason to shell out for the V2 Plus/Pro. I saw in the video you shared that the chips and everything are upgraded but for our purposes, I wonder if the older version is adequate?

Also consider getting the associated hard wire kit, it makes for a neater install, and removes problems if your car's accessory socket doesn't turn off with the ignition, although it complicates the install a little. When dealing with a baby, you do not want to have to remember to turn the camera off in order to avoid a flat battery!

We will for sure get the HK4 hard wire kit. I think part of our power cycling problems with our previous dash cams was related to using the wrong fuse but we have a multimeter now and I've read that can help us choose the right fuse slot.

Finally a Viofo brand memory card is recomended for these cameras, especially if using 3 channels, slower cards can cause unreliability. Otherwise check Viofo's recomendations on what cards not to use:

I was just reading up on this on the dash cam subreddit. Do you recommend the Viofo brand over the SanDisk Max Endurance? I am interested in saving a few $$ and I am more familiar with the SanDisk brand but if you think the Viofo SD card will be more compatible I think it's work the extra $6 to avoid the potential headache.

 

[nestingdashcam]

Welcome! At 36 weeks you’re very close! Good luck!

Thanks so much!! Getting very excited

One other to consider if you really want an interior cam for the baby is the VanTrue N5. It has 4 cameras including front, rear, and 2 interior cams. You can have the second interior cam on the second row to make it easier to capture the baby, without the front seats and passengers obscuring the view. You can also have it in the back pointing forward which is nice when the baby is still tint and facing backwards in the car seat so a traditional interior cam won’t capture them.

Wow this one looks like the Cadillac of family dash cams, thanks for sharing. I am interested for sure. I went into the pros and cons of having a camera on the baby in my reply to Nigel above. I wonder if you have any insight into this? Sounds like you may have personal experience

 

[kamkar]

Vantrue N5 is sweet in regard to capture cabin.

Mind you you should not watch child on small dashcam screen, if you feel something is up you should pull over in a safe place and tend to the child. ( the guy with no children thinks )

Volume warning !

PS : Do note here the N5 is mounted center on windscreen and up high, but doing so i had to remove my mirror for testing purpose as it would be illegal to put it lower where it could film below the mirror, also there it would not overlook cabin so good.
A option is to offset to a side ( R side ) so it can film past mirror.

 

[nestingdashcam]

Mind you you should not watch child on small dashcam screen, if you feel something is up you should pull over in a safe place and tend to the child. ( the guy with no children thinks )

Great point!

PS : Do note here the N5 is mounted center on windscreen and up high, but doing so i had to remove my mirror for testing purpose as it would be illegal to put it lower where it could film below the mirror, also there it would not overlook cabin so good.
A option is to offset to a side ( R side ) so it can film past mirror.

Good to know. Thanks for sharing! It is so clear and I can see how it would be nice to have both interior perspectives.

 

[kamkar]

Yes it is a fine system overall, but when you have 2 cameras in one unit, at least in the front, this do raise some challenges in installing it.
Mind you many cars today have a lot going on in the middle of the windscreen ( sensors ASO ) so chance are you cant install in that optimal place even if you wanted to, and so you have to offset to a side.
And the N5 front camera have the Interior camera on the right side of the unit, so it make sense to mount it on the right side of the sensor array so it can film past the mirror.
The front camera okay it will then also be a little offset, but as it is a wide angle camera this do not matter a whole lot in regard to its main duty of logging traffic / your own driving.

The viofo cameras, or at least some of them they are very nice in that the interior camera is a unit on its own, on a shorter wire, so this you can put anywhere along the top of the windscreen.
I have tested a few of those viofo cameras, and i put the interior on the stalk to my mirror that is mounted off the roof in my little JAP 5 door hatchback, that is the ultimate location, as high as possible and right in the middle of the car so to best overview the back seat.

O and welcome to the forum, and Congrats on the pending child, while i dont have any of my own i have been reserve dad to most of my little sisters kids as she have absolutely poor choice in men, some of them i have had to forcefully evict.
Kids when babies scare the living hell out of me, but once they get a little older and you can "mold " them it get more fun, mind you all my sisters kids have done all the things uncle Brian told them not to do and one of them even taken it to the extreme.

 

[Vortex Radar]

Wow this one looks like the Cadillac of family dash cams, thanks for sharing. I am interested for sure. I went into the pros and cons of having a camera on the baby in my reply to Nigel above. I wonder if you have any insight into this? Sounds like you may have personal experience

Mine are 4 and 2. tbh I haven’t found it super necessary to have a camera on a baby. I loved having a mirror on the rear headrest so I can look in my RVM, into that mirror, and see their faces when they’re flipped backwards in the car seat. This way I can see if they’re awake or asleep for example.

When the kids get older and face forward, I have been liking the interior cam to capture our interactions together, their expressions when they get excited, or when they say cute or funny things.

I’ve heard parents of older kids saying it can be helpful if kids start arguing and if they won’t admit who started it, you can point to the camera and ask if you need to check which can lead to them just telling you, haha.

So while a second interior baby cam may be helpful, I haven’t found it to be that important either while driving or for afterwards. The main cabin cam has become more helpful than I expected though.

 

[Nigel]

Would love to hear your opinion on whether we should keep the amazon one to see her while she is rear facing.

I have no experience of one of those, but that does have a big advantage that you can mount the screen somewhere convenient to look at, and it is a decent size screen, and I imagine you can easily put the camera in a good place for seeing enough detail of the rear facing baby, so I think I would choose that and a 2 channel dashcam rather than a 3 channel dashcam - mainly because the screen is so much easier to see at a very quick glance. It does look rather cheap and low resolution, but will be perfectly adequate quality for the task, well, it may have problems with visibility if the sun is on the screen.

It is probably illegal in this country, under laws to prevent distracting the driver, don't know if that is a consideration.

I tend to agree with Kamkar above, the safe approach is to pull over when you think it is necessary; while you are driving you should concentrate on the driving and stay safe. If you do see something that worries you on the camera monitor, what are you actually going to do? You have got to pull over.

In most cases the baby is simply going to go to sleep almost as soon as you start the engine, and there will be nothing to see. If there is a genuine problem then you will know to pull over, babies can "talk" very clearly!

If you are driving long distance, get your husband to look after the baby, or maybe do the driving!

The problem is that mirrors are not recommended since they could become a projectile and hurt the baby in the event of a collision but the same could be said about a camera.

Yes, projectiles in a crash are a serious issue. The A229 is fairly heavy but is well attached to the window, I have never heard of any issues. The remote cameras are pretty light, and I doubt would cause serious harm, although I wouldn't like one to hit the babies skull in a serious collision. The sticky pads will keep them secure anyway.

On your Amazon camera, I would want to make sure the camera is securely attached, that metal stand in some of the images is sharp and capable of causing damage when moving at speed, I have encountered one of them, and the camera itself has fairly sharp corners, unlike the Viofo internal cameras which are well rounded. The screen looks big enough to be dangerously heavy in a collision - make sure they are properly secured.

unless there is a good reason to shell out for the V2 Plus/Pro. I saw in the video you shared that the chips and everything are upgraded but for our purposes, I wonder if the older version is adequate?

The newer ones definitely have superior image quality, day and night. The old one is quite nice still, but it is a generation behind on the image sensors and has a few missing features, such as no voice control, so you can't say "Protect Video", you have to reach up and press the button, taking your eyes off the road. Given that you were looking at U3000 prices, I do recommend the newer cameras. If you want to save money, I would currently choose to go single channel with the Viofo A119 Mini 2 - a very popular dashcam.

I was just reading up on this on the dash cam subreddit. Do you recommend the Viofo brand over the SanDisk Max Endurance? I am interested in saving a few $$ and I am more familiar with the SanDisk brand but if you think the Viofo SD card will be more compatible I think it's work the extra $6 to avoid the potential headache.

For $6 extra I would go for the Viofo, it probably has twice the lifespan, so a good investment as well as being more reliable. If you are only using 2 channels then you don't need the very best quality memory card so I would be more relaxed about which card to use. It does seem very odd that Viofo produce a better memory card than the big memory card brands, but that does appear to be the case at the moment, they are supplying industrial quality cards at cheap prices, not expensive consumer quality cards, they genuinely are faster, more reliable and longer lifespan.

 

[Nigel]

When the kids get older and face forward, I have been liking the interior cam to capture our interactions together, their expressions when they get excited, or when they say cute or funny things.

Yes, those clips are some of the best video that gets posted, although I suspect most people wouldn't ever keep them like you do. Everyone is different.

 

[Vortex Radar]

Yes, those clips are some of the best video that gets posted, although I suspect most people wouldn't ever keep them like you do. Everyone is different.

lol sure everyone is different and I can really only speak to my own experience.

Now that I'm a parent though, 99% of the photos and videos on my phone now are of my kids. I shoot some videos for work, but I delete those clips when I'm done and keep the ones of my kids. I buy extra cloud storage now to save the photos and videos, we share photos daily in our family group chat, we use those photos for gifts in the future, to put on the TVs as screensavers when they idle, to look back on as the kids get older, for gifts like calendars, for holiday cards at the end of the year, etc. Dashcam video clips are just one more way to capture memorable events when they happen. Sure it's true that maybe not everyone will pull the footage when something memorable happens, but boy is it nice to have the option when it does. Don't underestimate the desire of a parent to have videos of their kids.

As for the dashcams, to save some money you can also consider the A229 Plus instead of the Pro. Nearly the same thing, but 2K for the front cam instead of 4K. Also an excellent cam, but for less $$.

 

[Panzer Platform]

@nestingdashcam
When I got into dash cams I thought a 2-CH Front & Rear would be “enough”, and interior cameras were “unnecessary”.
Now I think 4-CH Exterior (front, rear, left, right), and 2-CH Interior are a “good starting point”. Lol
Have a look at these screenshots to see the POV possibilities, and then you can see them “in action” and how I installed them;

 

[Panzer Platform]

@nestingdashcam
These are just my opinions we all know what they’re worth, and where I can stick ‘em. lol
Get a Viofo A229 Pro 3-CH.
Only use Viofo Brand SD Cards.
Mount the IR Interior camera on the rear window looking forward.
The 2.4” LCD screen is big enough to see if the baby is awake / asleep.
You will need optional 6M IR Interior “long” cable for this install, (included cable is only 1M);

VIOFO Rear Cable/Interior Cable for A229 PLUS/A229 PRO Dash Camera

VIOFO Rear Cable/Interior Cable for A229 Plus/A229 Pro Dash Camera. Rear Cable: Type-C to Type-C, the 2CH dashcam contains a 6M Cable by default. Interior Cable: 3.5mm Jack to Type-C, the 3CH dashcam contains a 1M Cable by default. This cable cannot be extended manually by connecting other USB...

viofo.com

$299 A229 Pro 3-CH
$19 HK4 Hardwire Kit & Fuse Taps
$38 256GB SD Card
$356 Total
Use 5% off promo code RCGUY229PRO provided by @rcg530
$356 - 5% off = $338

 

[nestingdashcam]

Wow what a lovely community you all have here! Everyone is so helpful

Mind you many cars today have a lot going on in the middle of the windscreen ( sensors ASO ) so chance are you cant install in that optimal place even if you wanted to, and so you have to offset to a side.

I wonder if this is true for our cars, one is a 2010 Ford Edge and one is a 2012 Nissan Altima and they do not have a ton of sensors on the windshield so I wonder if they are old enough for us to not run into this problem? Either way, this will be good to know when we are choosing where to install everything.

Mine are 4 and 2. tbh I haven’t found it super necessary to have a camera on a baby. I loved having a mirror on the rear headrest so I can look in my RVM, into that mirror, and see their faces when they’re flipped backwards in the car seat. This way I can see if they’re awake or asleep for example.

Awww what fun ages. This is really good to know! The only thing I am worried about with a mirror is that now they are recommending against them (was mentioned in our birth class and when we got the car seat inspected at the fire station) because of them becoming dislodged in an accident. I would imagine cameras are also frowned upon for the same reason but I guess I was thinking it may be better since they are smaller? So many dos and don'ts nowadays with parenting, it is exhausting keeping track of it all

I have no experience of one of those, but that does have a big advantage that you can mount the screen somewhere convenient to look at, and it is a decent size screen

All great points to take into consideration. Good to know about the V2 Plus/Pro being worth the extra money as well as the Viofo card!

Don't underestimate the desire of a parent to have videos of their kids.

I hadn't even thought about this use for an interior dash cam but it made me remember how much fun I had saving up videos of me and my husband going about our daily lives on our old dash cam. I then edited them together for Valentine's or our anniversary (can't remember it was many years ago) as a little gift. I am sure I will want to do the same when there are sweet and funny moments with the kids! Great point.

These are just my opinions we all know what they’re worth, and where I can stick ‘em. lol

You're opinions are much appreciated! Thanks for breaking it down and sharing the promo code. Your videos are very persuasive to prioritize the interior camera options.

 

[Nigel]

I hadn't even thought about this use for an interior dash cam but it made me remember how much fun I had saving up videos of me and my husband going about our daily lives on our old dash cam. I then edited them together for Valentine's or our anniversary (can't remember it was many years ago) as a little gift. I am sure I will want to do the same when there are sweet and funny moments with the kids! Great point.

It will be a bit easier with a decent camera - find the video in the camera's phone app, press download, it will appear in your phone photos app. (iPhone version).

The only thing I am worried about with a mirror is that now they are recommending against them (was mentioned in our birth class and when we got the car seat inspected at the fire station) because of them becoming dislodged in an accident. I would imagine cameras are also frowned upon for the same reason but I guess I was thinking it may be better since they are smaller?

The mirrors seem to be all sorts of weights, some claim to be half a Kg! Average seems to be about 150g, which is enough to do damage in a collision, if it gets free.

The impact "weight" increases with the square of speed, you don't need to be going very fast for a half Kg to become deadly to adults!

I just weighed a Viofo interior camera, or it might be a rear camera, they are pretty much identical, it weighs 31g (1.1oz), lighter than any mirror, much safer, and far less likely to get free because there isn't much energy to help it escape.