How do you reduce the dashboard glare?

First dashmat and if that are not a option then CPL filter, and i too would just leave CPL filter on all the time.

BUT i like the dashmat route so much i have tried to make my own as my little small car are not selling big enough for such extra options to be there for my car.
 
First of all you don't need a CPL. CPL means Circular Polarizer which is a linear polarizer stacked with a *circular* polarizer because DSLR cameras have trouble with linear polarized light. Circular doesn't refer to the shape of the filter contrary to popular belief.

That means you have TWO layers each of which causes light loss.

For a dash cam you only need a Linear Polarizer. It will let about twice as much light through as a CPL.

But of course any polarizer makes performance much worse at night... You're giving up valuable light. Passing cars and surroundings will be blurry, etc
 
Try with the dash mat first, you might find it is all you need. The best place I found for a dash mat is a place called Dash Designs and can be purchased through Amazon. I bought the brushed suede recommended by dashmellow, it's awesome.
 
Tinting won't help at all, because you need to eliminate a reflection, not glare.
At best it will just reduce all light going into the camera, possibly leading to motion blur.
A tinted strip in front of the camera will make the reflection relatively WORSE - you will be reducing light coming from what you want to see, but the dash and its reflection will be at the normal level. The signal to noise ratio will be worse, so to speak.
 
For more than 2 years now I've been saying that what people need to do is to eliminate the origin of the reflections, not the reflections. I know that many people don't fancy the idea of putting some sort of fabric or a brand-fit dashmat (if there's one available, if not they'll have to DIY anyway) over the dashboard but it's possible that there's no need to cover the whole dashboard to eliminate the reflections. Most of the time, speaker or vent grills won't reflect to areas of the video where they can hinder evidence or just plainly ruin the footage.
The best thing to do is to get a piece of black fabric and move it around the dashboard until you eliminate the reflections that matter and then figure out a way to make it look "good" on the dashboard. :)
 
For more than 2 years now I've been saying that what people need to do is to eliminate the origin of the reflections, not the reflections. I know that many people don't fancy the idea of putting some sort of fabric or a brand-fit dashmat (if there's one available, if not they'll have to DIY anyway) over the dashboard but it's possible that there's no need to cover the whole dashboard to eliminate the reflections. Most of the time, speaker or vent grills won't reflect to areas of the video where they can hinder evidence or just plainly ruin the footage.
The best thing to do is to get a piece of black fabric and move it around the dashboard until you eliminate the reflections that matter and then figure out a way to make it look "good" on the dashboard. :)

I agree completely. For the most part I pretty much gave up using polarizers after I installed a dash mat because it was so effective that I didn't really need one anymore. Now, I hardly even think about reflections anymore until I get a reminder. Here's an example from when I left a "Pay & Display" parking ticket on my dashmat and it was the only thing reflecting.

This is a good example of @Module 79L's remark about eliminating the origin of the reflections, not the reflections.

dashmat.jpg
 
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