Low profile F/R HQ cameras?

[animerickover]

Hello all. longtime unregistered lurker, but the (almost) purchase of a new car has me once again researching dash cams, this time with the intent to buy

Basically, all I would like is a F/R dashcam setup thats relatively compact and has high quality recording. I intend on hardwiring everything, so a model with voltage sensing would be useful. Budget wise, I'd be aiming for a top unit since this is probably going to be the most expensive and least used car I'll ever buy, for now (2020 STI)

Really the only 2 things I've seen so far are the Blackvue DR900X and the Street Guardian SG9663DR. The DR900x has better front recording, and is probably going to be easier to mount/set up (no big control unit), but it seems like SG has way better reviews and customer service.

Are there any other options that anyone would recommend? I did look into the Thinkware U1000 and the Viofo A129 and A139 series. Functionally, I understand the usefulness of a front camera with a built in screen, but aesthetically, I'm not a fan.

Thanks in advance!

 

[SawMaster]

Welcome to DCT @animerickover

Seems you're already aware of the cams I'd recommend, so I'll comment on a few things. First is screens: those can be turned off after boot-up (screensaver). All cams or their hardwire kits (HWK's) will have either low-voltage cutoff, a timer function, or both to protect your car battery. Some lesser cams do not have adjustment for voltage level; you want to avoid those.

SG does great build quality and has the worlds best customer service with anythi9ng, though their cams lag a bit in resolution. For what they do there are no better. The Viofo A129 series offer excellent vid quality but some issues are present, mostly with parking modes and each cam model is different. The A139 is newish and has recently seen some issues reported which do not affect every cam and have not yet been resolved. Seems to be reliable on older FW which still allows very good vids. Thinkware and Blackvue cams are focused more on features than vid quality, and you pay a lot to get them, They don't seem to last any longer than many less expensive cams. I recommend them only if you want their advanced features- otherwise they're not a good value. That said, the DR750 series may be their overall best but at a step down in vid quality.

With the advent and popularity of 2K and 4K resolution, were now seeing some great daytime vids, but at the cost of night-time vid quality. The pixel count in the higher-res sensors is higher which means each one receives less light at a given frame rate and exposure time. Some high-res cams do OK at night, the loss is more pronounced on the rear cam with others, and some perform somewhat poorly then. If night-time performance is important to you then research that well for your cam choices. Also be aware that high-res cams run hotter, with some having an overheat-shutdown process which stops the cam from recording and could cost you a most needed video if that happens at the wrong time. Other cams overheat causing various issues like processor freeze-up video artifacts or loss, or corrupt files which can't be viewed. The SD card will also be affected by heat, narrowuing down your choices in those to only ones which can handle it.

Make a list of the specific qualities you want most in order of importance. Start at the top and apply that to each cam under consideration doing reserach of what others experience, than continue down your list of needs till you're left with one or two cams. At that point your choice will be easy. Just remember that no cam is perfect and you will not likely find one cam which is best at your every need so some compromise is always involved.

Phil

 

[animerickover]

Welcome to DCT @animerickover

Seems you're already aware of the cams I'd recommend, so I'll comment on a few things. First is screens: those can be turned off after boot-up (screensaver). All cams or their hardwire kits (HWK's) will have either low-voltage cutoff, a timer function, or both to protect your car battery. Some lesser cams do not have adjustment for voltage level; you want to avoid those.

SG does great build quality and has the worlds best customer service with anythi9ng, though their cams lag a bit in resolution. For what they do there are no better. The Viofo A129 series offer excellent vid quality but some issues are present, mostly with parking modes and each cam model is different. The A139 is newish and has recently seen some issues reported which do not affect every cam and have not yet been resolved. Seems to be reliable on older FW which still allows very good vids. Thinkware and Blackvue cams are focused more on features than vid quality, and you pay a lot to get them, They don't seem to last any longer than many less expensive cams. I recommend them only if you want their advanced features- otherwise they're not a good value. That said, the DR750 series may be their overall best but at a step down in vid quality.

With the advent and popularity of 2K and 4K resolution, were now seeing some great daytime vids, but at the cost of night-time vid quality. The pixel count in the higher-res sensors is higher which means each one receives less light at a given frame rate and exposure time. Some high-res cams do OK at night, the loss is more pronounced on the rear cam with others, and some perform somewhat poorly then. If night-time performance is important to you then research that well for your cam choices. Also be aware that high-res cams run hotter, with some having an overheat-shutdown process which stops the cam from recording and could cost you a most needed video if that happens at the wrong time. Other cams overheat causing various issues like processor freeze-up video artifacts or loss, or corrupt files which can't be viewed. The SD card will also be affected by heat, narrowuing down your choices in those to only ones which can handle it.

Make a list of the specific qualities you want most in order of importance. Start at the top and apply that to each cam under consideration doing reserach of what others experience, than continue down your list of needs till you're left with one or two cams. At that point your choice will be easy. Just remember that no cam is perfect and you will not likely find one cam which is best at your every need so some compromise is always involved.

Phil

Phil,

Thanks for the welcome!

Your comments on Blackvue and Thinkware are spot on. They hype up their cloud features a lot in any material I see, but realistically I'll only ever need to connect to the cam with my phone or just remove the SD card to look at it on my computer if theres a reason to view the footage.

I also completely forgot about the heat aspect. Right now, living in the PNW, it's not a huge issue, but I'll be moving to the east coast next year and I can see some of the temperatures becoming more of an issue.

well, time for more research.

 

[kamkar]

Welcome to the official side of the forum animerickover.

If you want to be able to use parking guard, and do so to the best of your abilities all year around, then IMO you have to look at the SG9663DR.
Granted i have not been able to verify this directly as i dont have 2 of the DR systems, but i feel sure that a main unit installed lower in the car and at least out of the sun will fare a lot better with parking guard than a similar system or comparable system where the main unit is right there on the windscreen exposed to direct sunshine too.

Of course you can park facing away from the sun and other tricks to better your chances with parking guard on a hot day, but really you should not have to think about things like that

I would just LOVE SG making a new DR model with 1440p cameras,,,,,, things like that put a big smile on my face just thinking about it, or a 4K / 1080p version.

IMO remote cameras is the best new thing in Dashcams, even if installing them mean you have to put a thinking cap on that is 1 size too large.