I tried, I failed. Truck driver needs cam...

[gear grinder]

I have been searching for months now to find the perfect camera for my needs and cant see to get the same answer twice.

Here is what i want:

wide agle lens to capture as much in front of me as i can
great motion/vibration recording. So if I find out I got hit in the night I can trust the camera recorded it.
the best video quality I can get. Being able to read license plates is a must.
the best night and day video capturing. tho i do most of my driving at night
set and forget.
64gig+ sd card for the most amount of capture time i can get. 12 hours plus before looping would be great
must run on cig lighter or usb no direct wires to the batteries of the truck
something i can see and know the camera is working. led or screen or something
can handle the temps. tho for the most part the camera will live in 65-80 degree temps as i will be in the truck

things i would like but not a deal breaker:
gps
wifi
app for viewing and controlng the functions of the camera
screen


things i dont care about
price
size

doest what i want exsist? Am i asking too much out of a single device and that is why i cant seem to find it?

all input is appreciated!!!

 

[jokiin]

no camera will see licence plates under all conditions, Panorama S will fill all your basic needs, or the G version (SGZC12SG) if you want GPS, both will support up to 512gb memory cards (76 hours recording), 128gb cards are far better bang for buck though and will get you around 19 hours of recording

 

[CheckYourLights]

no camera will see licence plates under all conditions, Panorama S will fill all your basic needs, or the G version (SGZC12SG) if you want GPS, both will support up to 512gb memory cards (76 hours recording), 128gb cards are far better bang for buck though and will get you around 19 hours of recording

This. I was in the middle of typing about the same thing. Thanks for saving my fingers though.

You probably even have it on your paste button by now.

 

[jokiin]

This. I was in the middle of typing about the same thing. Thanks for saving my fingers though.

You probably even have it on your paste button by now.

actually I don't normally recommend products I have something to do with (I have no association with the Panorama S though when it comes down to it but it is closely related to our version so same same), not because I don't want to recommend our products of course, but I would normally just mention them along with other suitable models and let the person work out what suits them, in this case though I was a bit pushed to think of alternatives, anything else comes up short on some of the basics

 

[CheckYourLights]

I don't normally recommend products I have something to do with

Yeah I know. I just meant because more often then not they are the best camera for the situation. Unless budget or extra small application is a must I always love to go back to the Vs B40 video Niko posted and be wowed.

 

[Dashmellow]

actually I don't normally recommend products I have something to do with

I for one really admire your approach to this. Of course, having probably seen my remarks on this issue elsewhere, you probably already know that!

 

[DashCamMan]

For night driving cameras with the Sony Exmor IMX322 seem to perform the best now.

Note that you are looking for wide angle lens and ability to read license plates. Wide angle lens make everything look farther away and makes it harder to read license plates. Most of the higher end cameras that are good at night have wider lenses making it harder to read license plates, especially at night.

 

[Dashmellow]

Seems like the SG9665GC with its 135 degree FOV and Sony Exmor IMX322 would be a good candidate here. The lens is in a nice FOV "sweet spot" .

 

[jokiin]

Seems like the SG9665GC with its 135 degree FOV and Sony Exmor IMX322 would be a good candidate here. The lens is in a nice FOV "sweet spot" .

video quality it does a great job, I don't know that it's the ideal camera for a truck as the mounting options are somewhat limited and it might not work for some vehicle models, the Panorama based models are much more flexible in that regard, wanting to do 12 hours of video also points to the other models, the touch screen and full size SD card are also nice to haves for truck drivers

 

[Dashmellow]

video quality it does a great job, I don't know that it's the ideal camera for a truck as the mounting options are somewhat limited and it might not work for some vehicle models, the Panorama based models are much more flexible in that regard, wanting to do 12 hours of video also points to the other models, the touch screen and full size SD card are also nice to haves for truck drivers

Good points, it was just a thought based on the sensor and FOV requirements.

 

[jokiin]

yeah as I mentioned there's a couple of other cameras that probably tick a few boxes but I think the Panorama based models had more boxes ticked plus a couple of other things that were't even considered/known that make them solid candidates for this application

 

[Dashmellow]

The Panorama always ticks a lot of boxes. I do wish it had a more versatile mount though. If not for the mounts, because of my own unique requirements I would probably own a Panorama by now. In fact the mount might be a challenge depending on the particular type of truck the OP may want to install it in.

 

[jokiin]

The Panorama always ticks a lot of boxes. I do wish it had a more versatile mount though. If not for the mounts, because of my own unique requirements I would probably own a Panorama by now. In fact the mount might be a challenge depending on the particular type of truck the OP may want to install it in.

yeah when it comes to mounting and form factor if the guy said he had a Miata I don't think I'd be point toward the Panorama product, horses for courses, in a truck though where size/form factor etc isn't as critical there are wider choices and some of these things become much less of an issue, from the mounting perspective with the full kit @Pier28 supply the camera with 4 different mounts, I'd be confident that you'd have at least 1 of those mounts that would suit this application regardless of which type of truck it is

 

[gear grinder]

so it seem like every one likes the panorama g version. i noticed in one comment that mounting may be a problem. assuming i can get this to work on my phone i will attach a image of about where i am going to mount it. it will need to be suction cup mounted as that i swap trucks every 6 months to a year. will the supplied cups work? truck is a 2014 freightliner cascadia ifthat helps.

once the screen is shut off does the blue led continue to flash to show it is still recording?

i had hoped to see other camera options listed but it seems that this one is the best out there.

 

[Dashmellow]

It looks like mounting should present no problem but you will likely experience better results with the camera mounted more to the top of the windshield than the bottom.

 

[jokiin]

mounting won't be a problem with your vehicle

yes there is visual indication that the camera is recording even if the screen is off

 

[tooshy]

You have two requirements here that completely contradict each other: "wide agle lens to capture as much in front of me as i can" and "Being able to read license plates is a must."
Having a very wide angle lens means all the vehicles will appear much further away and you will have less detail, especially for the license plates.
The narrower the lens, the better the license plate reading will be as the vehicles will appear closer.

 

[Street Guardian USA]

Full size SD means you can use a wifi enabled SD card as well. I don't know of any wifi SD cards over 32GB though. It would make more sense to get a OTG memory card reader if you have an android or camera connection kit for iPad. (with a much larger card) Direct is so much faster than wifi too. The G comes with an OTG reader in the box.

 

[dashy]

Get two panoramas and mount one on the very right and one on the very left of the windscreen, fit each with 128 gb and don't look back.
Mount them towards the bottom of you windscreen.
I am not sure if a panorama X2. (120 deg lens) would work better or not, I only have experience with panorama II.

I have been thinking of getting a second panorama for months now.

I have a vertical windscreen in my truck and a normal style windscreen in Mazda 323, the Akron mount has been awsome for 1 1/2 years.