New dashcam [SMALL PARKING HARDWIRE]

[BAPPT]

Hello.

Need advice on a new dashcam & hardwiring kit

Need it to be:
-very small / discreet
-with parking mode. buffered would be better, working with image based motion sensor (i think it would be the best solution for me)
-mostly used at night but will have some lightning around the car
-the wider angle lens, the better
-needs to be hardwired
-budget - around 100 - 120€ max


Seen the garmin dash mini, ticks almost all the boxes, but read a lot about overheating on parking mode which is concerning me.

Thanks in advance

 

[thehank]

Imagine spending 120€ and having your car get hit from behind. Thinkware has good buffered parking and the files are all organized for you. Company claims only 128GB but you can put a 256GB card in there. That's over 72 hours (entire weekend of recording.) I have the F800 Pro but if I had to do it again, I'd consider the Viofa A129 as it has the Sony Starvis Image Sensor (Same for Rear Camera). And parking mode with g-sensor. But I'm reading different statements and don't think it captures changes in images. F800Pro doesn't have the best rear camera. Car has to be still or directly centered to read the plates.

In general even if the camera doesn't have a screen viewer on it, they should give you a view with an app. Another thing is to place it where it's out of sight, and out of mind. As high as possible. I even tinted my front side windows to help with that.

I'm a fan of the "buy once, cry once" saying. Else, have a look on the used marketplace like eBay. Consider how often you drive and if you park on busy street or not.

 

[BAPPT]

Imagine spending 120€ and having your car get hit from behind. Thinkware has good buffered parking and the files are all organized for you. Company claims only 128GB but you can put a 256GB card in there. That's over 72 hours (entire weekend of recording.) I have the F800 Pro but if I had to do it again, I'd consider the Viofa A129 as it has the Sony Starvis Image Sensor (Same for Rear Camera). And parking mode with g-sensor. But I'm reading different statements and don't think it captures changes in images. F800Pro doesn't have the best rear camera. Car has to be still or directly centered to read the plates.

In general even if the camera doesn't have a screen viewer on it, they should give you a view with an app. Another thing is to place it where it's out of sight, and out of mind. As high as possible. I even tinted my front side windows to help with that.

I'm a fan of the "buy once, cry once" saying. Else, have a look on the used marketplace like eBay. Consider how often you drive and if you park on busy street or not.

I'll be honest, my problem with the viofo a119v3 (which would be my first choice) is the size (a bit bulky) and the screen. I would like something without screen, completely discreet, very very small, even if that would sacrifice a bit of image quality.

The parking which concerns me ONY has frontal access so people would always need to appear in front of the lenses if they aproach the car. Onroad driving recording is not very important, parking is.

I already have a minor scuff on 1 side of the car, people around here doesnt deal very well with others success and 'nicer' cars

 

[kamkar]

If you have a dotted sunshade area on the toip of your windscreen, a camera like the A119V3 or similar wedge shape camera would just be the bottom 1/3 of the camera with the lens that you would see below the dotted area.
And i also would not call the camera big, this photo while it is photo shopped illustrate the size okay, maybe even a little larger than it actually are.

Also wedge shaped cameras often come off as a factory mounted sensor, so blend in very well if put in the right spot.

No matter what camera, if you intend to use parking mode in the daytime with your car parked in the sun, i am afraid you will see the camera do thermal shut downs, at least in the summer time.

Personally i would never buy a camera without a screen, even if my eyes are so bad now i can not read the little screens without my reading glasses.
The screen do not dictate the size of the camera.

 

[BAPPT]

Between this a119 v3 and an entry level thinkware (f70), which is the best option for me?

a119 pros:
-much(?) better recording quality

f70 pros:
-better parking mode
-better software
-more discreet
-cheaper and comes with hardwiring kit
-support
-reliability(?)

 

[DT MI]

which is the best option for me?

Unfortunately only you can determine that based on how important the differences are to you. Others have different priorities - as in my case I don't use parking mode so one being better than the other would have no bearing on my decision, but reliability and support are very high on my list. So, don't forget to factor in support should you ever need it.

 

[kamkar]

Yeah. i also don't use parking mode,,,,, yet, but will have to do that with test samples if people forward a HW kit too, but i intend to do that then with the absolute highest cut off voltage, or preferable on a short timer of a hour or so.
I may use parking mode longer, but it is very rare i park in a place where it would be nice, but in that case i can just make changes in the camera menu to get longer coverage.

Not least if i have a lot of cameras, i could see having maybe a dual system or two and a single camera or two, which all need to be tested in parking too, so i just hope i will be able to switch cameras over on the same HW kit, as having 2-3-4 hard wire kits installed will be somewhat problematic.

 

[SawMaster]

I'd not recommend any of these mentioned cams if you're in the hotter parts of Portugal. The Viofo's run hot because of their high-bitrate recording and the Thinkware cams usually have overheat-shutdown and somewhat limited after-sales support involved. Those of us who live in hot climates have more limited options for cams doing parking protection and if that is a high priority for you this aspect needs to be your first consideration. Although the vid quality isn't the greatest, the B1W is very discreet and handles high heats well. It doesn't have a great detection-based parking mode but it does have low-bitrate recording which I feel is a more certain method of parking protection as it is going to capture every event.

The other's are good cams for other purposes and I wouldn't hesitate recommending them for that. The A119V3 does great vids. The A119Pro is still seeing some issues which haven't been resolved yet but probably will be soon with it being something of their 'flagship' cam. I'm not a fan of any Korean cams because of their manufacturer's approach toward their buyers and their design priorities not being what I think is best for me.

Phil

 

[BAPPT]

I'd not recommend any of these mentioned cams if you're in the hotter parts of Portugal. The Viofo's run hot because of their high-bitrate recording and the Thinkware cams usually have overheat-shutdown and somewhat limited after-sales support involved. Those of us who live in hot climates have more limited options for cams doing parking protection and if that is a high priority for you this aspect needs to be your first consideration. Although the vid quality isn't the greatest, the B1W is very discreet and handles high heats well. It doesn't have a great detection-based parking mode but it does have low-bitrate recording which I feel is a more certain method of parking protection as it is going to capture every event.

The other's are good cams for other purposes and I wouldn't hesitate recommending them for that. The A119V3 does great vids. The A119Pro is still seeing some issues which haven't been resolved yet but probably will be soon with it being something of their 'flagship' cam. I'm not a fan of any Korean cams because of their manufacturer's approach toward their buyers and their design priorities not being what I think is best for me.

Phil

Thanks

How is the b1w parking mode?

 

[SawMaster]

It's original "parking mode" was g-sensor triggered, with (IIRC) just over a second delay between detection and the start of recording. It also required using a hardwire kit. It now has "low-bitrate" parking recording which IMHO is a much better method although TBH I haven't tried it because I don't use mine for parking protection. Others who have used it seem to like it a lot. There's a thread on it HERE

Phil

 

[BAPPT]

Thanks guys. I think im gonna go with the thinkware f200 (alpine dvr-f200 in europe) since i want something reliable with good support.

I live by the coast so i dont get the insane hot weather, it might be fine.

 

[kamkar]

Do update how you get on with your new camera, the one you go for we have little information about, so any news will be appreciated.