Newbie need help buying 5 dash cams

[mshopper2]

First post but have read this forum extensively.

Requirement: Install in 5 cars. In order of importance: trouble free out of the box install, reliable, discrete - no screen, front facing, permanent mount, hardwired powered; Like to have easy install and low maintenance, such as monthly check on storage card when I check the engine oil.

I think the recommended cams are Mobius and JooVuu X - do not know why not much discussion on the JooVuu X? So I am leaning toward 5 x Mobius. The only concern with Mobius is that its been around for a while so would like to not buy into old technology unless it is the reliable solution. Time frame is by Black Friday or Xmas 2016 if there are some deals for waiting? Budget is flexible but please help me understand what higher budget x 5 will get for my pretty simple requirements, I hope. Any recommendation on vendor(s) willing to deal in quantity would be appreciated.

Thanks for your advice in advance.

 

[jokiin]

buying today the Mobius 1 is a good choice, there's some ongoing work in firmware for Mobius 2 which is not quite there yet so hard to recommend at this stage but could possibly be sorted by Christmas time, would certainly revisit it just before purchase and see where it's at then, otherwise the original Mobius while it's older tech is quite stable and very much a known quantity

 

[SawMaster]

I'll vouch for the Mobius being rock-solid reliable and as good a cam for the money as you'll find. Get the capacitor versions if you have summer days going much over 80 degrees; a puffed battery has been my only failure in Upstate SC's hot summers. Better cams exist now but this one won't be obsolete for several years to come. Nothing comes close to what it offers at such a low price.

Phil

 

[niko]

The only concern with Mobius is that its been around for a while so would like to not buy into old technology unless it is the reliable solution.

Mobius "1" being around for "a while" is big Pros. It means Mobius firmware / hardware has been polished out in-n-out. You might not get "latest" supa-dupa Ultra-Mega video resolution, but at least within fair 1080p / 30Fps Mobius "1" is on of the best choices. Same applies to many other dashcams technologies.
After getting more into electronics world business I since never buy "latest/newest" technology, because they are all untested, unpolished etc. I always try to buy 1-2 models before "the latest" which has been around at least for 1y and have firmware / hardware polished up. Yeah, I can buy "newest" model, but which is based on "older" proven tech if I want just set-n-forget.

 

[russ331]

... trouble free out of the box install, reliable, discrete - no screen, front facing, permanent mount, hardwired powered ...

Welcome to DCT.

My two Mobius cams have been faultless. The oldest is more than three years old. If I were buying today, Mobius & Mobius 2 would be contenders, but I'd also consider similarly priced (or not much more expensive) cams, including A119*, DDPai Mini 2 & Thinkware F50. They're all much more recent than Mobius, so haven't yet established a long-term track record of reliability, so buy from a USA based seller with a good reputation for after sales service.

* has a screen but just set it to switch off after a minute.

 

[2000rpm]

In my car, capacitor-powered Mobius are virtually unusable due to the way my car's electrics work and the limitations of how the cam can be configured. Mobius is too sensitive to power fluctuation when starting the engine.
Battery Mobius works fine but batteries are a major cause of problems as a cam ages - some dashcams need a new battery after just a few months while some last for several years. A failing battery won't have enough power to save the all-important last file in an accident.

There's not much discussion of the JooVuu X because there aren't many around yet and they have their own dedicated website where people discuss problems.
I prefer the JooVuu X to the Mobius because the X is mostly trouble-free in my car.

 

[Dashmellow]

In my car, capacitor-powered Mobius are virtually unusable due to the way my car's electrics work and the limitations of how the cam can be configured. Mobius is too sensitive to power fluctuation when starting the engine.
Battery Mobius works fine but batteries are a major cause of problems as a cam ages - some dashcams need a new battery after just a few months while some last for several years. A failing battery won't have enough power to save the all-important last file in an accident.

There's not much discussion of the JooVuu X because there aren't many around yet and they have their own dedicated website where people discuss problems.
I prefer the JooVuu X to the Mobius because the X is mostly trouble-free in my car.

The Mobius is not "too sensitive", per se. It has built-in overvoltage protection that is keeping it from getting fried by what is apparently a severe voltage spike when you start your vehicle. If you replace whatever sort of power adapter you are using with your Mobius with one that has adequate voltage regulation you shouldn't find yourself experiencing this problem.

 

[Dashmellow]

The Mobius may not be the latest technology on the block but it has daytime video quality that exceeds many newer cameras and is a proven workhorse that is as reliable a dash camera as you will find anywhere, period.

I have three in my vehicle that have been in service going back almost three years throughout the most extreme hot and cold conditions as well as constant shock and vibration from living in a rural environment driving on mountainous dirt and gravel roads and they have never failed me. There have been times when I go for as much as six weeks or more without ever even bothering to check the footage but when I do the cameras are always found to be ticking away, never skipping a beat.

 

[2000rpm]

The Mobius is not "too sensitive", per se. It has built-in overvoltage protection that is keeping it from getting fried by what is apparently a severe voltage spike when you start your vehicle. If you replace whatever sort of power adapter you are using with your Mobius with one that has proper voltage regulation you shouldn't experience this problem.

The voltage spike is downwards - the car cuts power to everything when cranking the engine - and that dip in power tricks the Mobius into thinking it's time to shut down only moments after it powered up.

Most dedicated dashcams work without any problems in my car - they tolerate brief electrical power dips. No other capacitor cams I've tried cause trouble in my car: JooVuu X, SGZC12RC, Panorama II S, CF-100 all work fine. It's the Mobius with capacitor conversion that's the exception, due to it being an action cam adapted to dashcam use rather than dashcam as a primary use.

The 'parent company' of the manufacturer of my car is General Motors so potentially a huge proportion of vehicles around the world may not get on well with capacitor Mobius.

 

[Dashmellow]

The voltage spike is downwards - the car cuts power to everything when cranking the engine - and that dip in power tricks the Mobius into thinking it's time to shut down only moments after it powered up.

Most dedicated dashcams work without any problems in my car - they tolerate brief electrical power dips. No other capacitor cams I've tried cause trouble in my car: JooVuu X, SGZC12RC, Panorama II S, CF-100 all work fine. It's the Mobius with capacitor conversion that's the exception, due to it being an action cam adapted to dashcam use rather than dashcam as a primary use.

The 'parent company' of the manufacturer of my car is General Motors so potentially a huge proportion of vehicles around the world may not get on well with capacitor Mobius.

I see. That's a new one I haven't heard of before. Although not the usual recommended practice for capacitors have you tried changing the standby and power-off settings?

FWIW, I'm still thinking a different power adapter "might" help your problem.

 

[2000rpm]

I see. That's a new one I haven't heard of before.

Still, a different power adapter "might" help this problem.

I've used the Mobius with different multi-sockets and different 12v-to-5v adapters but it doesn't make a noticeable difference. Mobius with capacitor (probably even the new M2) just isn't reliable in my car with its current hardware/firmware but I think it almost certainly could be made to work with minor hardware and/or firmware modifications.

 

[Dashmellow]

I've used the Mobius with different multi-sockets and different 12v-to-5v adapters but it doesn't make a noticeable difference. Mobius with capacitor (probably even the new M2) just isn't reliable in my car with its current hardware/firmware but I think it almost certainly could be made to work with minor hardware and/or firmware modifications.

Like I said, I hadn't heard of this before. Certainly sounds like it is something to be aware of if one owns a GM and is shopping for a camera.

Have you tried those alternative setting options though?

 

[2000rpm]

......Have you tried those alternative setting options though?....

I've tried various alternate settings but I'm 99% sure that a capacitor-Mobius can't be made to work satisfactorily in my car with current hardware and firmware. I also think there's a reasonable chance that some relatively minor firmware changes could solve the issue.

 

[Dashmellow]

People who have experienced start-up problems in certain vehicles have installed inexpensive delay timers. It's hardly confined to the Mobius.

 

[2000rpm]

People who have experienced start-up problems in certain vehicles have installed inexpensive delay timers. It's hardly confined to the Mobius.

I don't think a delay timer would solve my problem entirely because if the engine start-stop system of my car kicks in at junctions, at the first junction the Mobius would switch off again when the engine started (and it would switch on again at the second junction and off again at the third junction).
Also a delay would mean no recording saved for whatever the delay time (say 10s to allow glow plug heating before cranking the engine) plus camera boot time (~5s) plus cap charge time (~20s).
With the above, if I'm in a hurry to get going I could be without a cam for the first 35s of a journey.

 

[DT MI]

... if I'm in a hurry to get going I could be without a cam for the first 35s of a journey.

Just leave 40 seconds earlier...

 

[SawMaster]

Stop-start electrics aren't found in most cars. I'm sure the issue could be readily solved with some wire and a small relay- PM me if you're interested and I'll explain how.

I switched my Mobius to caps after the battery swelling issue and even when the car battery was too low to crank the engine it was still recording. Part of the problems some people encounter is with the power supply. The specs on those vary and some shut-down at a lower minimum input voltage than others. I'm using a high quality "Anker" P/S with Mobius and I believe that is why I didn't have a problem when I left my lights on. I had a G1Wc with it's factory P/S in another car and it shut down much sooner when that car battery ran down. You can't blame a cam for a P/S issue, they are two different components.

Mobius2 isn't quite as good right now, but it's development has just begun. It has more capable hardware and will be a noticeably better cam than the original Mobius in time. The Mobius developers work steadily to improve their products, seeking to get every bit of performance possible from them and they don't stop until no more can be had. I don't know of any other cam development team who constantly pushes like that; most are content to go as far as they can easily go, then they stop. Most cams get firmware upgrades once or twice in their life if that often- Mobius is frequent and regular. The original Mobius is fully developed which is what makes it so good; the M2 will be there in time and a better cam in the end. If you can accept less for now knowing you'll have more later then the M2 might be a better choice.

The JooVuu "X" cam is about the only other quality cam with this small form-factor that I'd recommend. It has some unique features and better vid quality than the original Mobius and there is some ongoing development with it. More costly but if you want it's features it's worth it. Any of these three will do what you need so take a look at the posted vids from each and see what is acceptable to you. Then consider the features and cost. At that point your choice should be clear.

Phil

 

[jokiin]

I've used the Mobius with different multi-sockets and different 12v-to-5v adapters but it doesn't make a noticeable difference. Mobius with capacitor (probably even the new M2) just isn't reliable in my car with its current hardware/firmware but I think it almost certainly could be made to work with minor hardware and/or firmware modifications.

it's a common complaint with some vehicles and the Mobius with capacitor, the G1WC does the same in the same types of vehicles, it can be worked around with hardware by adding a timer, most do this the wrong way by adding a startup delay timer which only addresses initial vehicle cranking shutdown problem and doesn't help for stop/start systems, the better way is to add a delay timer that holds power after initial power on and then interruptions are no issue, a lot of people advised of this really don't seem to understand the difference

the correct way though would be to fix it in firmware, it is firmware addressable

 

[SawMaster]

I'm not sure firmware can fix this, after all there is only limited energy in the caps which will limit how long the cam can run without power since you always have to reserve enough power to shut down properly. I don't think the small super-caps hold that much energy (especially when they age) though larger ones would.

If one took a relay and activated the coil via the ignition switch or run circuit (hot only when car is turned on) then used the contacts in the relay to switch power from the car battery to the cam, the problem is solved. Car on activates the relay connecting cam directly to car battery, car off deactivates the relay cutting power to cam. The cam has direct access to car battery power which should be enough to keep it going even with the engine starter engaged

Or one could attach larger remote super-caps in parallel with the PS output, floating them with the 5V. Diodes would direct current from the caps only toward the cam and so would be able to 'fil in the gaps'when the PS output wasn't present. A small battery could be used similarly.

Much simpler than a timer circuit and not that tough as a DIY project if one can do a bit of soldering

Phil

 

[jokiin]

I'm not sure firmware can fix this

I'm sure it can, have done the same already