First Dash Cam

[fut1a]

I am considering a dashcam for the new car that will be arriving soon, and I have decided to go for the DR900S-2CH.

This would be our first dashcam so I don't know a lot about them.

My wife is a mobile hairdresser so she goes from house to house car park to car park and she has come back to find the car dented before now, hence that's why I would like a dashcam mainly for the parking mode.

Do you think the cam with the magic pro would be OK, or would I need to buy a battery pack? Obviously it starts to get. expensive if I would need a battery too

 

[blazn420]

Depends on your car, climate, and how long you need the camera to run.

 

[Nigel]

Do you think the cam with the magic pro would be OK

Depends on how many minutes you are driving each day, but given the job I would expect the car battery to do OK, at least on working days, especially if you are not worried about overnight.

 

[M8TJT]

But OP does not want the horrendous expense of a B124 (or what have you) if the car battery will be OK.
We all know the debatable advantages of a secondary battery. but that's not what the OP is asking.

@fut1a As said in post #2 and #3, whether the car's battery will 'do the job' depends on a number of factors.
In my considered opinion and to minimise initial outlay, your best bet is to get the cam and the Power Magic Pro (PMP) and just use it when required during the day and switch it off at night for added peace of mind that it is not 'running down' the car battery when not needed. In addition to that Idea, I would not buy the 900, as I would save a bunch of money by getting a 7502CH (like I have two of).

One 'problem' with these secondary batteries which is not frequently pointed out is that they need quite a good run in the car to fully recharge them which will also charge the car battery. My 'in a nutshell' is "What's the point of a horrendously expensive secondary battery when you have a much higher capacity primary battery 'to hand ' that you can 'protect. with a PMP and just will need the same 'recharge run' as the secondary battery?

 

[TVMA Doc]

But OP does not want the horrendous expense of a B124 (or what have you) if the car battery will be OK.
We all know the debatable advantages of a secondary battery. but that's not what the OP is asking.

@fut1a As said in post #2 and #3, whether the car's battery will 'do the job' depends on a number of factors.
In my considered opinion and to minimise initial outlay, your best bet is to get the cam and the Power Magic Pro (PMP) and just use it when required during the day and switch it off at night for added peace of mind that it is not 'running down' the car battery when not needed. In addition to that Idea, I would not buy the 900, as I would save a bunch of money by getting a 7502CH (like I have two of).

One 'problem' with these secondary batteries which is not frequently pointed out is that they need quite a good run in the car to fully recharge them which will also charge the car battery. My 'in a nutshell' is "What's the point of a horrendously expensive secondary battery when you have a much higher capacity primary battery 'to hand ' that you can 'protect. with a PMP and just will need the same 'recharge run' as the secondary battery?

The only use would be someone who drives a lot then does need that parking coverage for many hours. The last thing you want to do is over-discharge your car's battery or you will ruin it. As you stated, however, it doesn't appear that this is likely to be the case for the OP.

 

[M8TJT]

You will not 'over-discharge' your car's battery if you use a hard wire kit.
It's 'false news' put about by those who want to sell secondary batteries.

 

[eman006]

Given your wife's situation, running off your car's battery with the PMP would be my recommendation and turn off the motion detection when you get home. However, since it is your wife's car, if she parks for an extended amount of time, there is always the risk of the cam running down your battery to the lowest voltage set on the PMP and the car won't start. Not sure if you or your wife would feel comfortable for her safety if that were to happen, in which case, a secondary battery would be advisable. Way to avoid this is to set the PMP to the highest voltage cutoff setting. You may not get as many hours of coverage, but sounds like your wife wouldn't need it.

 

[eman006]

BTW +1 on M8TJT's comment about just getting a DR750S-2CH if you're only really concerned about parking mode recording. It'll save you money, and it may not draw as much power as the 4K resolution 900S.

 

[jokiin]

BTW +1 on M8TJT's comment about just getting a DR750S-2CH if you're only really concerned about parking mode recording. It'll save you money, and it may not draw as much power as the 4K resolution 900S.

750 is a better option if parking mode is important, uses less power but more importantly it runs a lot cooler

 

[M8TJT]

Given your wife's situation, running off your car's battery with the PMP would be my recommendation and turn off the motion detection when you get home. However, since it is your wife's car, if she parks for an extended amount of time, there is always the risk of the cam running down your battery to the lowest voltage set on the PMP and the car won't start. Not sure if you or your wife would feel comfortable for her safety if that were to happen, in which case, a secondary battery would be advisable. Way to avoid this is to set the PMP to the highest voltage cutoff setting. You may not get as many hours of coverage, but sounds like your wife wouldn't need it.

The lowest setting on the two PMPs that I have is 12V. Having it set to this will not discharge the battery below 12V thus will not affect the car's starting ability.
The other setting is 12.5V and if set to this, the cam will switch off PDQ because despite what people say, a fully charged battery will not take long to drop below 12.5V and thus the PMP will switch off the camera.

 

[Nigel]

The other setting is 12.5V and if set to this, the cam will switch off PDQ because despite what people say, a fully charged battery will not take long to drop below 12.5V and thus the PMP will switch off the camera.

That is because the tables people are reading are for batteries with zero load, disconnected for 30 minutes+, if you plug a dashcam in then the battery voltage will drop by .2 volts, so a cutoff voltage of 12.5V at the hardwire kit is actually a cut off voltage of 12.7V for the unloaded battery, and 12.7V is the no load voltage for a 100% full battery.

 

[M8TJT]

Agreed. I have always wondered why they chose 12V and 12.5V for the PMP rather than 11.5V and 12V. The car battery should not have great difficulty in starting the car as 11.5V providing the car is not a 'hard starter' but I would use the 12V cut off point.