Is there a Dash Cam that has front and rear cameras with an RCA/Composite connection to the rear camera?

[Skippman]

Hi All,

This will be going in a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. I've never owned a dash cam. Never really felt the need for one. I've been looking at replacing my backup camera which is currently a license plate frame style camera and would love to have a front facing camera for recording trail rides. That got me to thinking maybe it is worth getting a dash camera after all. I'm hoping those of you with vastly more experience than I can help me pick one. I don't need a camera with a display as I have a head unit that accepts RCA inputs.

Here are the features I need.
1. Decent front facing recording quality. (1080P+)
2. A backup camera that connects via RCA / Composite that I can split to use as a backup camera.
3. Several hours of recording time. (I know that is mostly SD Card dependent)

Here are the features I'd like to have.
1. Something that can be hard wired easily.
2. Something fairly compact (my front windshield isn't exactly huge).
3. Geotagging.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. I have a feeling the RCA video to the rear camera is going to be the dealbreaker for a dash cam but I'm hoping that maybe someone out there makes what I want. I have a habbit of knowing exactly what I want and finding out no one makes it.

Thanks for all the help!

 

[kamkar]

Welcome to the forum Skippyman.

NOT RCA, but some do use small thin coaxial cables, i think blackvue do and the Viofo A139 in 2 or 3 channel version use that kind of cable to the 1 or 2 remote cameras, and they are much more easy to install than 2 X thicker USB cables.

The pending Viofo A229 system ( dual 2K cameras ) also use this. the plugs they use as i recall are called MCX and are A LOT smaller than your regular RCA or phone plug. or even a USB C plug.

Using rear cameras / rear dash camaras are not super nice for reversing, first of all their ideal location on top of the glass, mean they are not that good especially with a sedan as the trunk will then to some degree block view, as for a SUV or the like with a more flat rear it can be used, but to get coverage directly behind the car you probably have to aim the camera more down that would be preferred with a dashcam for traffic.
Dashcam cameras in general are best aimed horizontal so you have a 50/50 split of land / sky at the horizon.


You will also need for the system to have a AV out, not entirely impossible, but i think these days some dont have that option, even if the rear camera are on a coaxial cable it is not analog, so you cant just plug it into a screen.

Also the rear cameras for the most will not have guide & distance lines in the footage, but i assume you can adjust to this, also reversing cameras are mirrored, you can also do this with dashcams but then for the regular driving aspect plates signs ASO will be mirrored.

Hard wire are not super hard, but there are some things to have in mind.
1: Daqshcam rear cameras have been seen to have a negative effect on DAB and or SAT radio, so before install it would be a good idea to do a test with the cable just draped along the intended route, if one side are not good, maybe the other are better, but best to find out before you prop the cable in for good.
2: you also have to thing about curtain airbags, you dont want to drape a cable in front of their direction of deployment, but behind or over the bag will be fine.

Most dashcams today have GPS as default, for the most used to watermark the speed on the footage, but some / most can also embed coordinates at the same time.
You can see the drive on a map in dedicated dashcam players that are either provided by the brand or generic ones like Dashcam viewer or others, still the model have to be supported but most popular ones are.

Personally i dont care using dedicated dashcam player, i know where i am driving, or dont feel a need for i would ever be required to prove that, so i just use a regular software player to just see the video, for the most pot player or VLC


IMO you are better off getting a proper reversing camera + LCD screen, these are actually pretty cheap, and of course a dashcam, no one should be without in this day and age.

Having a LCD screen connected to a AV out on a dashcam, and it running all the time, it might actually be illegal to have a video going on a screen the driver can see, it would be here in Denmark at least.
A proper reversing camera only come on when you engage reverse, but you can of course turn off the LCD on a dashcam connected LCD screen, but then you need to remember doing that.

With a 2 channel system you should at least get a 128 GB memory card, i do prefer 256Gb myself, which with the litle i drive mean i have footage going back weeks ( only drive about 30 minutes a day on average )

 

[Skippman]

I appreciate what you're saying about not co-mingling the backup camera and the dash camera. As it stands my backup camera I use now its at a 50/50 split of ground/sky.

My vehicle did not come with a backup camera. I installed one myself. It is connected to an aftermarket stereo through a RCA / composite video feed to the backup input. This gives me a 6.5" LCD display for backing up. What I want to do is have a backup camera that transmits NTSC video over composite that I can split between the dash cam and the head unit.

From what I understand in your above statement that's not something vendors support. All of the video interfaces between the rear camera and the dash cam are pure digital regardless of the media (composite, USB, proprietary cable, etc). If that's true I cannot use the same camera for the rear input on the dash cam and for backing up.

Regardless, any rear mounted camera on my Jeep will have to be mounted externally. My spare tire and the carrier for it almost completely block the rear window of the Jeep.