runar
New Member
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2014
- Messages
- 10
- Reaction score
- 14
- Country
- Norway
Let me start by admitting that my expectations to the SG9663DR might have been a bit too high and/or unrealistic. Nevertheless, I can't help but think there must be room for improvement, or that I'm doing something "wrong".
Last weekend I drove 1 500 km over approximately 26 hours. This gave me the perfect opportunity to test the cameras in multiple situations, such as during the night, with clouds and fog, sunrise and sunset, dark tunnels, and of course during optimal daytime conditions. All in all I'm happy with the system as a whole but less happy with the cameras. Compared to my previous setup with two Mobius cameras, the video quality feels like a downgrade in some regards, and I was probably expecting a bit more from a system that costs almost as much as four Mobiuses combined.
I'll do the return trip in a few weeks, so I'm more than interested in suggestions to other settings or things to test!
Disclaimer: I didn't use the filter, as during previous testing the filter did not really make any noticeable difference. Also, I used the same settings for the entire trip, mostly to simplify usage and because the conditions changed quite often. The following settings were used: Quality: High; Exposure: 0.0 on both cameras; WDR: On; AE Metering: Full Frame.
To conclude, the system works just fine as a dash cam system where the main job is capturing events (and great details are unnecessary), but I hope my feedback and comments will help the developer with future versions and new models.
I also have a question to the developer: Will it be possible to swap the cameras with new and improved cameras if such a thing would ever be released, or would the entire system have to be replaced?
Last weekend I drove 1 500 km over approximately 26 hours. This gave me the perfect opportunity to test the cameras in multiple situations, such as during the night, with clouds and fog, sunrise and sunset, dark tunnels, and of course during optimal daytime conditions. All in all I'm happy with the system as a whole but less happy with the cameras. Compared to my previous setup with two Mobius cameras, the video quality feels like a downgrade in some regards, and I was probably expecting a bit more from a system that costs almost as much as four Mobiuses combined.
I'll do the return trip in a few weeks, so I'm more than interested in suggestions to other settings or things to test!
Disclaimer: I didn't use the filter, as during previous testing the filter did not really make any noticeable difference. Also, I used the same settings for the entire trip, mostly to simplify usage and because the conditions changed quite often. The following settings were used: Quality: High; Exposure: 0.0 on both cameras; WDR: On; AE Metering: Full Frame.
- Burnt-out sky
This is my main concern. I feel the sky burns out too easily, even with the filter attached. Without direct sunlight, the sky burns out when slightly more than half of the picture (the upper half?) is covered by ground or trees. In fact, it's almost better with direct sunlight.
Example 1: Notice how it gets close to perfect as soon as I reach the speed limit sign (the video from the rear camera plays after the front camera, so keep watching):
Example 2: These are extreme conditions for most cameras, but notice how more of the sky turns blue when the sun hits the camera directly:
Example 3: Another example on how direct sunlight seems better:
Example 4: Imagine how good these clips would look if the sky wasn't so white:
Example 5: A short clip from earlier trips, with the filter attached and AE Metering set to Low Cut:
- Video quality
My rear window is tinted, and while I know this is not good for cameras, the Mobius handled my rear window much better than theSG9663DR. Unfortunately I didn't save any clips from my driving during the night, so I'll have to upload examples at a later time.
With that being said, there are many good clips from the trip, including these two:
- Focus
I initially had some concerns regarding the focus of the cameras. It seemed the rear camera was a bit out of focus, but I now believe this is simply due to the fact that the cameras are only 1080p. I will keep an eye on it, though, as I'm not completely convinced just yet.
- Parking mode
Parking mode works perfectly! I set mine to 5 fps, which is more than enough to capture what's happening without filling up the memory card. I also added a button to the constant power wire to be able to shut the system off completely, for when I'm in my own garage or too lazy to turn the system off manually.
To conclude, the system works just fine as a dash cam system where the main job is capturing events (and great details are unnecessary), but I hope my feedback and comments will help the developer with future versions and new models.
I also have a question to the developer: Will it be possible to swap the cameras with new and improved cameras if such a thing would ever be released, or would the entire system have to be replaced?