Dear ThinkWare...or whoever...

[Kicker0927]

Dear ThinkWare and all other dash cam manufacturers,

Im not saying my desires in a dash cam setup represent everyone’s, but I am perplexed. I have spent the last 2 months looking to purchase a new dash cam. I began looking due to the amount of damage my vehicle has sustained this last year. I have spent thousands removing door dings, repainting parts of my vehicle, and other minor cosmetic damage despite being overly cautious about where I park and how I drive.

After spending hundreds to fix another door ding recently I began researching and I have cautiously decided to order the new U1000 duo with radar module. I say cautiously because it seemed like every cam I looked at just didn’t seem to cut it in one way or another. Companies are sneaky about explaining how their cams and/or software function and there are few resources available to reference. Most reviews are from pros who are probably paid, get free cams, or they’re reviews written by the people who can’t get ahold of YOU to get their questions answered or problems resolved...so those haven’t been extremely reliable. Hell, I’ve tried reaching out plenty of times in the last 2 months with questions and I think I’ve gotten 2 questions answered in the last 8 weeks...and forget about reaching someone on the phone. After asking questions and reading through the user manual, my question today has to do with the radar module I ordered which like most dash cam related info seems to be shrouded in a cloud of mystery to many folks I’ve spoken to.

Why is the radar module only able to pick up footage in one direction? And if it senses movement 30’ in front of the vehicle, why not mount it facing forward from the rear window so it picks up movement to the side of the vehicle too. One of my reasons for choosing a premium dash cam was for better parking mode protection, mainly having pre-buffered video which might be able to prove fault.
Using the radar module seems to cut my protection in half from what I can tell!

I’m most concerned about door dings, someone walking near my car and gouging into the metal with their backpack or grocery cart, or someone pulling out next to my car and their vehicle scratching up against my bumper. Those are things that I’m forced to pay out of pocket to fix. Those are the things you discover on your vehicle a week after the fact and you have no idea what happened. I’m not worried about someone smashing into the front of my car at 30mph in a parking lot...those incidents produce plenty of witnesses, immediate obvious damage, and typically require you to use insurance anyways to fix due to the high cost of damage. I want protection against the idiots in the parking lot who are beating up my car and walking away.

I’m failing to understand why ThinkWare or any other cam manufacturer out there doesn’t see this. I want 4 channel camera systems. I want radar modules that protect 360 degrees. I want user-friendly hotspot cameras that communicate to my mobile devices.

I can’t believe in 2020 we haven’t figured out how to make a reliable 4 channel high resolution dash cam setup that doesn’t overheat or kill a car battery. Why do people have to get on forums like this to research how to piece together a system including extra batteries, hot spot devices, which sd cards to use, and learn how to become part time electricians and car electronic equipment installers just to have a mediocre dash cam setup that overheats and shuts off whenever the temp outside exceeds 90 degrees. Get it together!

Sincerely,
Frustrated and Near Broke Consumer

 

[jokiin]

paragraphs

 

[Iggy]

Kicker0927 your problem would be solved by leaving Naples Florida for a safe more friendly climate for your car.
Say Death Valley CA or the Great Salt Flats of NV.
Just sounds like you just need to buy a junker car and get some sleep Brother. lol

 

[Kicker0927]

Kicker0927 your problem would be solved by leaving Naples Florida for a safe more friendly climate for your car.
Say Death Valley CA or the Great Salt Flats of NV.
Just sounds like you just need to buy a junker car and get some sleep Brother. lol

Haha...yes, my car has taken a beating down here for sure! And I’ll never argue the ”more sleep” assessment!

 

[speedlever]

Honestly, being OCD about door dings and such will drive you nuts. While we'd all like to drive a pristine car, it's simply not practical unless you keep it as a museum piece... which immediately takes it out of the transportation mode for which it's intended.

Get a reliable old beater car and drive it around. The dings will not matter as much and you can keep your sanity. Hopefully.

 

[DockingPilot]

I dont know Kicker, I live in Naples too, well during season anyway, and dont have any dings or idiot parking lot damage. Where the heck you parking to sustain damage like that ?


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[Kicker0927]

I dont know Kicker, I live in Naples too, well during season anyway, and dont have any dings or idiot parking lot damage. Where the heck you parking to sustain damage like that ?


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Oh it’s terrible! I had to have my whole passenger side door repainted within 6 months of moving here. I narrowed it down to a couple areas. I worked at the Government Center for awhile and I believe a lot of it came from parking in that lot all day everyday as it was always full and cars were always coming and going. Also, parking at the end of the road near the beach entrances where people walk between cars with beach chairs, umbrellas, bags, kids. My dent guy said he makes a killing down here compared to Chicago where he is from. He also has a car full of cameras for that reason.

 

[Nigel]

If you get the footage you want, that isn't the end of your problems, you still need to organise repairs and the recovery of costs. Avoiding the problem in the first place is a wise move. Get yourself a little plastic electric city car for use in the problem areas and leave your pride and joy safely in the garage - cheap fuel, environmentally friendly, panels that don't get dented, more fun to drive on the short journeys, no worries.

 

[joe384]

I had a 17 year old car before my current one, I still looked after it and got upset if it got damaged. Whether it's brand new or 30 years old, it's still my property and has cost me money and so I would like people to show care around it (as I would myself).
People shouldn't have to live with their car getting damaged, if I manage to catch someone and they end up paying, maybe that might make them be a bit more careful driving around in their 1 ton+ pieces of metal.

After my car was written off, I bought a newer used car for several reasons:

* Better safety ratings
* Buying an older "junker" car is a huge risk, 95% of them haven't been looked after well by people who couldn't care less.
* I tend to keep my cars for a long time
* I prefer to know as much of the history of the car as possible, the older the car and more owners, more risk.

Running 2 cars is not particularly enviromentally friendly either, and I think there is still a lot of way to go with recycling electric car batteries.

 

[DockingPilot]

Oh it’s terrible! I had to have my whole passenger side door repainted within 6 months of moving here. I narrowed it down to a couple areas. I worked at the Government Center for awhile and I believe a lot of it came from parking in that lot all day everyday as it was always full and cars were always coming and going. Also, parking at the end of the road near the beach entrances where people walk between cars with beach chairs, umbrellas, bags, kids. My dent guy said he makes a killing down here compared to Chicago where he is from. He also has a car full of cameras for that reason.

Search: “ding bats” on Amazon.



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[Kicker0927]

I had a 17 year old car before my current one, I still looked after it and got upset if it got damaged. Whether it's brand new or 30 years old, it's still my property and has cost me money and so I would like people to show care around it (as I would myself).
People shouldn't have to live with their car getting damaged, if I manage to catch someone and they end up paying, maybe that might make them be a bit more careful driving around in their 1 ton+ pieces of metal.

After my car was written off, I bought a newer used car for several reasons:

* Better safety ratings
* Buying an older "junker" car is a huge risk, 95% of them haven't been looked after well by people who couldn't care less.
* I tend to keep my cars for a long time
* I prefer to know as much of the history of the car as possible, the older the car and more owners, more risk.

Running 2 cars is not particularly enviromentally friendly either, and I think there is still a lot of way to go with recycling electric car batteries.

Well said Joe, I just purchased a new car a couple months ago. It's not an Infinity or Bentley, but its what I could afford and it was new. I also intend to keep it for a long time. I park far away from others and give plenty of space when I am forced to park near anyone. I am very mindful when opening my doors and walking through rows of others' vehicles. So when I went outside the other day and found a quarter size dent in the side of my car I was absolutely livid to say the least. Oh what I would give to have footage of how that dent got there! LOL My previous car had a chunk of metal taken out of the passenger side door. It looked like someone took a chisel and hammer and just whacked it once. I had to buy touch up paint to fix it immediately because it was so deep into the metal that I was concerned about rust. Again, I would kill to have footage of what caused that! Anyways, I am very much interested in a 4ch system and I'm surprised at this point the bar hasn't been set higher for these companies to produce more reliable systems including 4ch, better 4K, built-in hotspot, and more user-friendly systems. I looked at the Viofo A129 and I had to laugh...its a great camera, but it's like looking at Walkman. I am looking forward to what 2020 brings in the world of dash cams, but right now I will see how well this U1000 works for me.

 

[Nigel]

I looked at the Viofo A129 and I had to laugh...its a great camera, but it's like looking at Walkman. I am looking forward to what 2020 brings in the world of dash cams,

Not sure why you compare the A129 to a Walkman, you may be mistaken about it's size like many people who have not seen one, essentially it is GoPro size. As for 2020, maybe you will prefer the A139 which should catch most door dings and has little resemblance to a Walkman!

 

[joe384]

Well said Joe, I just purchased a new car a couple months ago. It's not an Infinity or Bentley, but its what I could afford and it was new. I also intend to keep it for a long time. I park far away from others and give plenty of space when I am forced to park near anyone. I am very mindful when opening my doors and walking through rows of others' vehicles. So when I went outside the other day and found a quarter size dent in the side of my car I was absolutely livid to say the least. Oh what I would give to have footage of how that dent got there! LOL My previous car had a chunk of metal taken out of the passenger side door. It looked like someone took a chisel and hammer and just whacked it once. I had to buy touch up paint to fix it immediately because it was so deep into the metal that I was concerned about rust. Again, I would kill to have footage of what caused that! Anyways, I am very much interested in a 4ch system and I'm surprised at this point the bar hasn't been set higher for these companies to produce more reliable systems including 4ch, better 4K, built-in hotspot, and more user-friendly systems. I looked at the Viofo A129 and I had to laugh...its a great camera, but it's like looking at Walkman. I am looking forward to what 2020 brings in the world of dash cams, but right now I will see how well this U1000 works for me.

Unfortuately the main market is still single cameras (with dual ones starting to become popular) so thats where all the research, development and marketing goes.
There are some threads regarding side cams and 4ch setups on here that users have done themselves, but we are still a far away from having a decent well priced product that does 4ch, good parking mode, cloud, 4K etc all in one package.

I don't know what the A139 is.. Is this a real thing? A 3ch camera presumably?

 

[Nigel]

I don't know what the A139 is.. Is this a real thing? A 3ch camera presumably?

Still in development, but it will be a real thing. No specification has been released yet, but the A119 is 1 channel and the A129 2 channel...

 

[Jeremy Wong]

Maybe you can wait for this iNavi QXDmega 4ch? iNavi is Thinkware's parent company in Korea.

아이나비 - 내비게이션도 블랙박스도 역시 아이나비

www.inavi.com

 

[Kicker0927]

Very interesting stuff being posted. I’m glad at least a couple people “liked” my original post as I was beginning to feel like I was the only one who is a little confuses about the seemingly lacking or slow tech progress being made in the dash cam arena.

Anyways, regarding the A129 looking like a Walkman comment, I only meant it looks bulky and outdated. It’s not sleek looking. It looks like old tech. Visually, it is not appealing to me and when I am mounting it inside a new vehicle and within my view...I’d prefer something a little more stealthy and nicer looking. The Q1000 is a very nice looking unit in that way. I like to balance function with aesthetics. Either way I have also ordered a Viofo A129 Pro duo for comparison with the U1000. I would love to save the $$$ and use the Viofo till a reliable 4ch system comes out. Fingers crossed.

 

[Thinkware Dash Cam]

Dear ThinkWare and all other dash cam manufacturers,

Im not saying my desires in a dash cam setup represent everyone’s, but I am perplexed. I have spent the last 2 months looking to purchase a new dash cam. I began looking due to the amount of damage my vehicle has sustained this last year. I have spent thousands removing door dings, repainting parts of my vehicle, and other minor cosmetic damage despite being overly cautious about where I park and how I drive.

After spending hundreds to fix another door ding recently I began researching and I have cautiously decided to order the new U1000 duo with radar module. I say cautiously because it seemed like every cam I looked at just didn’t seem to cut it in one way or another. Companies are sneaky about explaining how their cams and/or software function and there are few resources available to reference. Most reviews are from pros who are probably paid, get free cams, or they’re reviews written by the people who can’t get ahold of YOU to get their questions answered or problems resolved...so those haven’t been extremely reliable. Hell, I’ve tried reaching out plenty of times in the last 2 months with questions and I think I’ve gotten 2 questions answered in the last 8 weeks...and forget about reaching someone on the phone. After asking questions and reading through the user manual, my question today has to do with the radar module I ordered which like most dash cam related info seems to be shrouded in a cloud of mystery to many folks I’ve spoken to.

Why is the radar module only able to pick up footage in one direction? And if it senses movement 30’ in front of the vehicle, why not mount it facing forward from the rear window so it picks up movement to the side of the vehicle too. One of my reasons for choosing a premium dash cam was for better parking mode protection, mainly having pre-buffered video which might be able to prove fault.
Using the radar module seems to cut my protection in half from what I can tell!

I’m most concerned about door dings, someone walking near my car and gouging into the metal with their backpack or grocery cart, or someone pulling out next to my car and their vehicle scratching up against my bumper. Those are things that I’m forced to pay out of pocket to fix. Those are the things you discover on your vehicle a week after the fact and you have no idea what happened. I’m not worried about someone smashing into the front of my car at 30mph in a parking lot...those incidents produce plenty of witnesses, immediate obvious damage, and typically require you to use insurance anyways to fix due to the high cost of damage. I want protection against the idiots in the parking lot who are beating up my car and walking away.

I’m failing to understand why ThinkWare or any other cam manufacturer out there doesn’t see this. I want 4 channel camera systems. I want radar modules that protect 360 degrees. I want user-friendly hotspot cameras that communicate to my mobile devices.

I can’t believe in 2020 we haven’t figured out how to make a reliable 4 channel high resolution dash cam setup that doesn’t overheat or kill a car battery. Why do people have to get on forums like this to research how to piece together a system including extra batteries, hot spot devices, which sd cards to use, and learn how to become part time electricians and car electronic equipment installers just to have a mediocre dash cam setup that overheats and shuts off whenever the temp outside exceeds 90 degrees. Get it together!

Sincerely,
Frustrated and Near Broke Consumer

We do have a 4 channel unit coming out in the Korean Domestic Market. We have shown our 4 channel system at CES last year and we will be showing it again this week at CES. We understand your frustration and we hope our solution will be available in the North American Market soon. The issue is not figuring out how to manufacture a 4 channel system, it's demand. Pretty tough to convince the higher ups to green light a 4 channel system as it will have significantly less demand compared to a budget two channel system.

Maybe you can wait for this iNavi QXDmega 4ch? iNavi is Thinkware's parent company in Korea.

아이나비 - 내비게이션도 블랙박스도 역시 아이나비

www.inavi.com

This is the same system we showed at SEMA last year and we will be showing at CES this week.

 

[kamkar]

If i had a nice car i would be so OCD about door dings too, not least since i as a Dane pay 2X of what most other people would pay for the same car.
But i never felt that way about my little Suzuki, even if i have paid too much for it too, but as it have always just been a A to B means of transport i don't mind much.
But don't get me wrong i do so very much hate people with so little class they just ding your car up and not even think twice about it, and i wish there was some way i could attitude adjust all those people on the earth.

 

[Butterfly]

I’m most concerned about door dings, someone walking near my car and gouging into the metal with their backpack or grocery cart, or someone pulling out next to my car and their vehicle scratching up against my bumper. Those are things that I’m forced to pay out of pocket to fix. Those are the things you discover on your vehicle a week after the fact and you have no idea what happened. I’m not worried about someone smashing into the front of my car at 30mph in a parking lot...those incidents produce plenty of witnesses, immediate obvious damage, and typically require you to use insurance anyways to fix due to the high cost of damage. I want protection against the idiots in the parking lot who are beating up my car and walking away.

I used to park where there is a lot of vehicle and people traffic. Not everyone is the same, so there will always be those who are careless with other people's property. I ended up having 2 vehicles. 1 for this specific reason, a vehicle that can have all those door dings, scratches from parking. The other one for everything else. Now that I am living somewhere else, I just park a bit more further to where I want to be, a place where there is a lot less vehicle and people traffic. I don't mind walking an extra 10-20 minutes to save me $$$ to repair those scratches.

I’m failing to understand why ThinkWare or any other cam manufacturer out there doesn’t see this. I want 4 channel camera systems. I want radar modules that protect 360 degrees. I want user-friendly hotspot cameras that communicate to my mobile devices.

I can’t believe in 2020 we haven’t figured out how to make a reliable 4 channel high resolution dash cam setup that doesn’t overheat or kill a car battery. Why do people have to get on forums like this to research how to piece together a system including extra batteries, hot spot devices, which sd cards to use, and learn how to become part time electricians and car electronic equipment installers just to have a mediocre dash cam setup that overheats and shuts off whenever the temp outside exceeds 90 degrees. Get it together!

They do see it and probably has a lot of ideas, it's just hard to get enough demands to be able to produce this kind of product. Also, the majority of users don't want to spend more then $200, so that also creates another problem.

 

[egonvdv]

if the dual U1000 already costs 600 euro, i fear the price of a thinkware 4 channel cam...