Late 2017 multi camera options ?

Talay

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Back in 2016 I looked at 2 channel cameras and basically came to the conclusion that the technology wasn't really there and that using multiples of good cameras was probably the way forward. In 2017, I still think this is the case. Am I right ?

Again back in 2016 the Cellink B was an overseas purchase from who knows where into the UK. Today, you can buy it from Amazon and if it breaks, Amazon will give you a new one or your money back. Ebay pretty much the same. So have we fixed the battery side now ? I'd say so, at least with current technology.

So which cameras ?

I looked at a Techmoan video today about the DDPai M6+ and I really liked it. Add a Cellink B and we're in business aren't we ? Add another for front and back coverage wired to another battery ?


Anyway, that is where I am. What I really want to ask is whether there is anything better ?

Not really concerned about budget as all seem reasonable. I hesitated due to the battery issues and the ability to record when I'm not in the car. I think the DDPai M6+ solves that issue but would you recommend a better setup ?
 
I have a mini 0906, definitely worth considering. See the mini 0906 section.

I've also used a Gitup G3 in the car, it's an action camera not a dashcam but does work, has all the dashcam features and in dual sensor mode has an adjustable front FOV and higher image quality in daylight instead of the 0906 starlight sensor which is considerably better at night. Rear sensors are the same and interchangeable.

They are both new so somewhat unproven but so far have both worked well.
 
I think plenty people (myself included) actually do prefer to have two separate cams as opposed to a 2-channel cam... because although features are limited (can't press the event-save in the back because my arms aren't long enough), you get to choose the quality of the cam in the rear. and it's usually a LOT cheaper!
 
When I f0und this site it took me longer than 3 months to buy my first camera

I soon realized by the members with multiple units I was not going down that path and only wanted one
 
I have a mini 0906, definitely worth considering. See the mini 0906 section.

I've also used a Gitup G3 in the car, it's an action camera not a dashcam but does work, has all the dashcam features and in dual sensor mode has an adjustable front FOV and higher image quality in daylight instead of the 0906 starlight sensor which is considerably better at night. Rear sensors are the same and interchangeable.

They are both new so somewhat unproven but so far have both worked well.

I can't work out what the 0906 is really offering to be honest and the G3 seems very heavily focussed on the forward camera and the "slave" as they call it is much lower spec.

I think plenty people (myself included) actually do prefer to have two separate cams as opposed to a 2-channel cam... because although features are limited (can't press the event-save in the back because my arms aren't long enough), you get to choose the quality of the cam in the rear. and it's usually a LOT cheaper!

Perhaps with the DDPai M6+ you could have both buttons on the dash and press both at the same time ?

I agree about the rear camera though inmost 2 channel setups. My gut feel is that the developers think the price point for a decent 2 channel camera is beyond what most would pay. Discussion seems to back that up as many posters ask for something cheap versus something good. Illogical to me given the cost of the car and I suspect thee folk have expensive phones and other toys !
 
When I f0und this site it took me longer than 3 months to buy my first camera

I soon realized by the members with multiple units I was not going down that path and only wanted one

I know !

However, my failure to launch was due to battery issues (now possibly overcome) and the lack of a 4/6 channel system which would send video clips via wi-fi when I wasn't in the or around the car.

I don't think we are there yet with a real 4/6 channel system and the best I think we can get is 2 x Cellink B plus 4 cameras, 2 bigger for front and back and small for left and right.

However, what I fail to understand is that as my cars have multiple external cameras already wired into the onboard screens, why we cannot have manufacturers just add an option for adding these to a dash cam. I mean, we even have a second mini engine in the cars to provide remote heating which must be infinitely more complicated !
 
I don't think we are there yet with a real 4/6 channel system and the best I think we can get is 2 x Cellink B plus 4 cameras, 2 bigger for front and back and small for left and right.

The up and coming soon to be released SG DC has my attention because of the potential for side recording
 
As I often say, you don't get what you don't pay for. and when you consider 2ch cams it takes a lot more effort to create a good one than with single channel cams. Blacksys was hit-and-miss on quality with their first 2ch but maybe their new one is better. The Mini 0906 is reasonably priced and well-specced but questionable in the long term. Only the new SG offering seems to offer good cams on both ends having good performance though as us usual for most SG products it isn't cheap.

There are still no consumer-grade 2ch cams which can offer performance equal to 2 single cams on both ends, and none which offer the possibility of adding more cams. That kind of thing lies only in the realm of the truck-cams offered to professional drivers which cost a king's ransom to buy, and even most of those have limitations I consider unreasonable. A new approach to dashcams starting with a blank sheet of paper is needed but we will not see that because of what that costs and how difficult such an approach is to take :(

We have seem more improvement and progress overall in the last year or so than ever before, and we now have more good cams at good prices; 2ch cams especially so :)
IMHO we're not likely to see this much progress happening this quickly over the next year or two unless someone is developing substantially better chips and systems to work with rather than incrementally improved versions of the same old stuff which is what we've been saddled with for several years now. I think that is what will be necessary to go much further than we've gone now. Perhaps the newer cars with factory-equipment cams will provide a path forward if it doesn't kill off the aftermarket manufacturers.

Other than waiting to see a 'track record' become established for the new cams, it's a very good time to be a dashcam enthusiast right now :D

Phil
 
I think the thinkware F770 is great especially for parking modes, plates are still very readable as I do this almost daily, where I live around 15-20% of cars are without tax/mot/insurance at least one but often 2 or 3 things!!
My friends now fit 12v 12-15a/h AGM batteries to power cams if they need to, under £40, easy to set up.
One thing that drove me towards the F770 was the rear cam is same quality as front at 1080p, even through tinted rear window I find it good, though I would love a 4 cam set up with side cameras that would be really nice to have I think there needs to be a serious rethink with manufacturers asking/listening to customers needs/wants.
 
I think the thinkware F770 is great especially for parking modes, plates are still very readable as I do this almost daily, where I live around 15-20% of cars are without tax/mot/insurance at least one but often 2 or 3 things!!
My friends now fit 12v 12-15a/h AGM batteries to power cams if they need to, under £40, easy to set up.
One thing that drove me towards the F770 was the rear cam is same quality as front at 1080p, even through tinted rear window I find it good, though I would love a 4 cam set up with side cameras that would be really nice to have I think there needs to be a serious rethink with manufacturers asking/listening to customers needs/wants.

Isn't the 2MP a somewhat limiting factor here on the Thinkware F770 ?

As to the batteries, where on earth do you keep another battery which would act like a missile in the event of an accident ?
(we can't go welding to brand new cars !).
 
The "slave" rear camera of the git 3 are only inferior ( in pixel count ) to its own front camera and other high pixel count action cameras. ( daylight performance ) otherwise it are the same 1080p sensor you will see in many MID - HIGH end dashcams.
For sure a sensor we will see in cameras for some time to come.

I would focus on cameras that have the IMX 291 sensor in the front camera, while not a game changer it are the best performer in regard to low light footage, and i even think it have a wider dynamic range for daytime recording.
The IMX 291 are the new kid on the block in dashcams, but its worth are already proven and we will see it more and more i am sure.

The 0906 use this combination of sensors with the IMX291 in front and IMX 322 in the rear camera.
Sure i broke my pre-production test sample, and that made me sad indeed as i had plans for it after the testing phase.
None the less i have high hopes for MEG and their 0906 dashcam.
The Coming DC model from Street Guardian also use the same hardware combination, and i am really looking forward to see what their take on a 2017 dual channel dashcam will be able to do.
And you will find it damn hard to put a finger on the customer care and service of Street Guardian, and they already have good resellers in the EU / UK.

There are also a few "old" Dual cameras, Thinkware and so on, and others are on the way to the market too.
 
The "slave" rear camera of the git 3 are only inferior ( in pixel count ) to its own front camera and other high pixel count action cameras. ( daylight performance ) otherwise it are the same 1080p sensor you will see in many MID - HIGH end dashcams.
For sure a sensor we will see in cameras for some time to come.

I would focus on cameras that have the IMX 291 sensor in the front camera, while not a game changer it are the best performer in regard to low light footage, and i even think it have a wider dynamic range for daytime recording.
The IMX 291 are the new kid on the block in dashcams, but its worth are already proven and we will see it more and more i am sure.

The 0906 use this combination of sensors with the IMX291 in front and IMX 322 in the rear camera.
Sure i broke my pre-production test sample, and that made me sad indeed as i had plans for it after the testing phase.
None the less i have high hopes for MEG and their 0906 dashcam.
The Coming DC model from Street Guardian also use the same hardware combination, and i am really looking forward to see what their take on a 2017 dual channel dashcam will be able to do.
And you will find it damn hard to put a finger on the customer care and service of Street Guardian, and they already have good resellers in the EU / UK.

There are also a few "old" Dual cameras, Thinkware and so on, and others are on the way to the market too.

Thanks for the technical comments. It is nice to get some substance to any proposition.

From my time here last year, I know that the Steet Guardian range is very well supported and widely respected with many favouring their models.
 
Only the new SG offering seems to offer good cams on both ends having good performance though as us usual for most SG products it isn't cheap

I agree that its too expensive regardless of the time and effort in the creation of the SG DC

The camera will still sell like hot cakes but not as much at the current proposed price
 
Blacksys has a new 2ch cam out, but like the 'Mini' series cams I won't recommend it because of the history of issues with their previous models. It may or may not prove OK. The older 2ch cams still have their known issues. Of the single-channel cams Viofo has been the most prolific and their newest versions of the A119 series seem to be very good cams for the prices asked. The WR-1 us small and interesting but too new to know well yet. The G1W-S offers great low-light performance cheaply. Others like the Vico-Opia2, Thinkware F800, Chupad D501, Gokuk T3, and Garmin 55 are looking pretty good so far and some like the SJ Dash, Innov C3, Waylens, and Cobra models might prove good. Hardware limitations still afflict all the 2ch cams (mostly low bitrate) and of those I can recommend only the SG9663DC and the old F770. And I too feel better performance comes from 2 single cams.

Of the singles, the A119 series newest models offer higher-end performance at mid-level prices. They might have some QC issues but when bought from a good seller the warranty handles that, and few are the failures in service. IMHO it is the most significant dashcam of 2017. Following on it's heels is the WR-1, discreet and interesting, and their G1W-S which excels at night at the cost of being only OK daytime. The Chupad D501 looks to be a mid-price winner, The Goluk T3 has a decent parking mode, the Garmin 55 sits higher up the scale. Other than the WR-1 with it's newness, all these have shown to be reliable enough that I can recommend them. On the cheap end of things I've found the G1W-HC a bargain with vids as good as cams costing double and good reliability, however very few trustworthy reviews are out there as it seems few have been sold. The G1W-S fills a similar spot at a higher price as does the Viofo A118C. But all is not well in the dashcam world and we've seen problems.

The Mobius M2 has disappointed and is a dud design. The DR650 has given some users problems, the Opia2 is similar, the WR-1 wifi apps are still flaky but will probably get worked out, the Waylens is having some issues when ran for extended times but has features galore, the SJ Dash isn't settled yet but doesn't look like it will be more than average at best, the Innov C3 is developing too slowly, and most of the action dams have had little development toward dashcam usage.

One thing worth a separate mention is that the excellent Sony Exmor series sensor is now being seen in many more cams- even cheaper ones- and that is probably the single most significant dashcam-related event of this year so far. So now I think you'll too agree that it has been an interesting year for dashcam enthusiasts with good progress made but more progress possible. There are certainly many more cams worth your money in most price ranges than in the past so IMHO it's a good time to buy, as I don't see any signs of any thing more than the further development of existing models happening in the next year.

All this is just my thoughts and opinions based mostly on what I've seen here on DCT from members who have cam experience and seem to be reasonable and trustworthy. I won't debate any of this here as others have their own opinions. Other than the M2 it's not meant to be bashing any cam or manufacturer, and you should research any cams you're interested in and make your own decisions- that will never change.

Phil
 
Good learning info SawMaster

There is no doubt that SG and Viofo have got it sorted with the lens and processor

Having Jokiin and others as manufacturers/retailers here commenting is fantastic and is vital for future improvements
 
I think @SawMaster summed things up pretty well, dashcams are in a constant state of evolution, there's nothing revolutionary happening and I don't really expect that to change, incremental change will continue for the foreseeable future
 
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