Hi, new member here, but long time dashcam user. I think while the USB HD feature sounds useful, Ifear it would die a quick death in the summer interior temperatures that most vehicles in moderate to hot climates would experience. Might I suggest another option which might be a good alternative to a huge in car HD? What if the unit had a wifi interface? I know other dashcams already have this, but instead of simply connecting to a smartphone, what if it was capable of connecting to a home wifi network? Then with the help of some client software on a home PC/server, the dashcam automatically uploads new videos when it senses the network is available? Or better yet, have it save the username/password and automatically upload to a specified network share. This would alleviate the need for a large HD for most normal duration trips while providing the ability to archive as much video as the owner has space for?
I had initially thought of using an eye-fi wireless SD card, but the dashcam would turn off long before the clips could finish downloading. Although now that I think of it, it might not be hard to use some sort of timer that can keep the dashcam on long enough to finish uploading. I got the idea from a very old car MP3 player I have called an Omnifi, which does almost exactly that, except in reverse with MP3 files. I save new MP3 files on the home pc and it automatically uploads to the Omnifi in the car. I would image the dashcam could be user configured to use either GPS or time of day to decide when to turn on the wifi momentarily and scan for the home network, then while leaving the screen and cameras off, proceed to upload new videos to the server.
The perfect dashcam, which I have yet to find, would have the following features:
Front + rear 1080p
Remote system module (twin SDXC)
Remote monitor or video out
Remote control (to change settings)
GPS with speed overlay
140 degree front
90-110 degree rear (better detail since most rearends are straight on)
Ploarized lenses
Good night performance
G sensor
Crash & parking modes (tied to G sensor to record who hit your parked car)
Wifi auto upload
Cost less than $300 usd
Would this really be asking for too much?
KuoH