USB/SSD storage dashcam

[phil6891]

Still waiting for dash cam manufacturers to release an e dash cam with an external/internal SSD/USB storage model.

MSD cards are just not designed to be written too 24/7, no matter how much you market them.

 

[kamkar]

Welcome to the forum phil.

you can actually get that now, but in hard to recommend brands.
Gnet for one support a external storage ( M2 drive in a dock ) for a few of their models.

I have myself requested this for many years now, not least as a 2 TB SSD or for that matter M2 drive, are cheaper then the same in micro SD cards.
Accompanying such storage i would of course need some smart monitoring, so when i plug in a USB thumb drive to get footage or connect phone via WIFI, well i will just get what i want, which could be all new footage since last DL of footage, or maybe just what is in the event folder.

You of course do not have to buy the newest or fastest M2 drive or SSD, old cheap ones should still be able to handle even pretty substantial systems and what they offload.

 

[Dashmellow]

This is a request that's come up fairly often here on the forum. Perhaps as SSD prices continue to fall. When this idea first arose prices for SSDs were astronomical but now you can buy a 500TB (GB) unit for less than $100 USD and a 1TB model for about $120 - $150 USD. At the same time, they are getting smaller and smaller. You can even buy a SSD on a PCB, kind of like a plug in RAM module which would be perfect if we had dash cams with a slot you could plug them into. A tiny external SSD on a remote cable would be cool too!

 

[DT MI]

...a 500TB unit for less than $100 USD...

I WANT one of those. Never have to delete footage - ever.

Sorry, slow day here.

 

[Dashmellow]

I WANT one of those. Never have to delete footage - ever.

Sorry, slow day here.

I want one too! Twice this winter I found myself hunting around for microSD cards that unexpectedly went shooting off into the ozone when I went to remove or insert them. One ended up in the back seat area of my truck and the other, from a side cam, in the ice and snow in my driveway. Fortunately, I found both of them. So, aside from having tons of file storage I would like having bigger memory that would be harder to lose and wouldn't have the nasty habit of accidentally shooting off into the dark.

 

[kamkar]

Thats my current C: drive, though i just have the 512GB model.
I am hankering for getting a 1 TB 980 PRO model, even if it can not be fully utilized on my current machine as it is a PCI-e gen 3 / 3 machine anf the 980 PRO is a gen 4/4 card.

Also want to get into encryption on my computer, as police here, well Denmark now is like N - Korea and Russias love child, or at least heading that way, things like having a warrant for arrest and search of homes, well not used that much these days.
I know a guy that got his PC taken,,,,,, well must be over 5 years ago now, and he have still not gotten it back, though he have been sentenced for the reasons the police raided his place and took his computer.

 

[Kremmen]

I've heard similar. That's why I take my whole unit indoors and offload straight to the PC using the Viofo as a card reader.

Card goes in once and apart from any firmware upgrades when I use a small card, it stays there.

 

[kamkar]

The cheapest 2 TB SSD here is the Samsung 870QVO that have R/W speeds of 550 MB/s ( 256 USD )
The cheapest 2 TB M2 drive is the Adata swordfish that have R/W speeds of 1200 MB/s ( 288 USD )

Cheapest 1TB micro SD card is the sandisk ultra A1 that have R/W speeds of 120 MB/s ( 170 USD )
Cheapest 1TB M2 drive is the kioxia ( OMG modelname ) that have R/W speeds of 1600 MB/s and it only cost ( 108 USD ) cheapest 1TB SSD are priced around the same as the sandisk A1 memory card.

I launched a days old SD card too last summer, but its also been a couple of years since the last time, you can not be too carefull with these little buggers, and it is extremely annoying when you are the " bring SD card to card reader" type of user.

 

[kamkar]

I would gladly save a little on M2 or SSD price / size versus micro SD card, and then spend those savings on the actual system.

Though as i imagine this, i would also have to get a reasonably sized thumb drive to move footage from my car and to my computer, though if there is a option to just backup RO folder i will be good with my current 64GB thumb drive.

 

[Kremmen]

I changed my HDD's for 3 x 500Gb Samsung Evo 860's. More than enough at the moment.

I keep new journeys but when I cover the same journey again the old one gets deleted from the main drive but I do keep as much as possible on a WD 4tb portable external HDD that gets backed up monthly.

Regarding backups I do a full system 'AOMEI backupper' to another 4tb external HDD that stays disconnected when not in use. Day to day scheduled backups are via Syncback so all my changed data gets backed up hourly.

You can never be too careful.

 

[phil6891]

Thanks for the welcome kamkar! I've been lurking back and forth on this site for the past few years, seeing if there was any news on a possible SSD / external USB storage cam. At the time there weren't any chipsets around that could do this, and the argument was made against the cost. Considerng even a few years ago SSD storage was expensive, you could argue the fact BlackVue charge astronomical prices for their "special" SD cards with a "special" compatibility, were near enough the market value for a decent M.2 or ext USB C SSD.

I'll take a look into those Gnet models, I've never heard of them before.

 

[kamkar]

TBH the systems that offer this, i do not think they fully utilize the options, so some of the advanced things in M2 drives and SSDs might not be used yet, like advanced wear leveling - Trim and what not it is called.
The cameras are probably just using the M2 drive as a very basic storage.

Also i have no idea how to get to the storage in those external drives, i sort of fear it can only be done via slow camera wifi, or maybe bringing the external drive to the computer, and i doubt they support blistering fast USB 3.0 or better speeds.

 

[phil6891]

Had a look at Gnets cams, but I couldn't find said accessory for M.2 drives. I may wait until a more rounded brand releases a more implemented solution. CES 2021 was dire for announcements.

 

[Dashmellow]

MSD cards are just not designed to be written too 24/7, no matter how much you market them.

In the meantime why not just use a 512 GB MicroSD card? SSDs are not designed to be written to 24/7 either! They have the same finite read/write cycle issues as memory cards.

For truly reliable, long term 24/7 data storage of video you really need an enterprise level HDD like those used in CCTV systems.

 

[phil6891]

In the meantime why not just use a 512 GB MicroSD card? SSDs are not designed to be written to 24/7 either! They have the same finite read/write cycle issues as memory cards.

For truly reliable, long term 24/7 data storage of video you really need an enterprise level HHD like those used in CCTV systems.

True, although SSD's have a greater IOP count than MicroSD cards. Sick of replacing them and BlackVue droning "please check SD card" over and over.

 

[kamkar]

Thats the camera brand, i have never gotten a please check memory card MSG with other brand cameras,,,,,, or i have if i have forgotten to insert the damn card
Most other brands are not that fussy about what memory card you put in it.

As long as your memory card are not one of the 3- 4 cheapest brands / models you can find in the stores, chance are it should work okay in a camera.
The only camera i have had memory card problems with was the zenfox T3, but i was having problems with cards that worked fine for other testers, but all other cameras i can pretty much put any of the 12 or so different memory cards i have into and have it work.

Granted some like SG still recommend a few cards, and supply those too if you buy a bundle, but others will most likely work just fine too, at least thats my experience with several older models of theirs.

ATM i am running a dirt cheap Toshiba memory card in my viofo A139, and it seem to work just fine at least for the past couple of weeks.

 

[Dashmellow]

True, although SSD's have a greater IOP count than MicroSD cards. Sick of replacing them and BlackVue droning "please check SD card" over and over.

I've owned, tested and had experience with dozens of dash cams over the last ten years and with a few exceptions I've been amazed at how long memory cards have lasted me. Tens of thousands of hours is fairly typical, although today's cameras are indeed more demanding than they were years ago. I think the problem you have might be with BlackVue more than individual cards. Every situation is different I guess.

Anyway, I was suggesting large memory cards as a stopgap until SSD based dash cams may become available. Larger memory cards tend to last longer anyway since there will usually be fewer overwrites.

As for SSDs, by coincidence it was just the other day that I read an article about how people are discovering that their SSD laptop drives are not offering the lifespan of their older mechanical drives they were familiar with. But yes, SSD should last longer than microSD cards but so far I've not heard of them being used for 24/7 surveillance video capture and it remains to be seen how long they might hold up to that compared with typical laptop useage.

 

[NARider]

Twice this winter I found myself hunting around for microSD cards that unexpectedly went shooting off into the ozone when I went to remove or insert them. One ended up in the back seat area of my truck and the other, from a side cam, in the ice and snow in my driveway. Fortunately, I found both of them.

Based on a suggestion in one of these forums I took a small piece of tape, folded it part-way in half and pressed the sticky tabs to either side of my SD card on the edge without electrical contacts to form a small handle. This makes it much easier to hold on to when removing and installing the SD card in my cam.

 

[lacibaci]

I don't think we'll see this (SSD) anytime soon. It's still just too expensive to retool everything. Remember, dashcams are still kind of a niche product. A high endurance SD cards should last fairly long - I've been using a pair for 2 years now. Also, AFAIK SD cards are much tougher as far as environment goes - more tolerant to extreme temperatures.

 

[Dashmellow]

Based on a suggestion in one of these forums I took a small piece of tape, folded it part-way in half and pressed the sticky tabs to either side of my SD card on the edge without electrical contacts to form a small handle. This makes it much easier to hold on to when removing and installing the SD card in my cam.

I've tried something like that. It kinda' works, I've done that here and there over the years but I have five cams in my vehicle and somehow over time the whole thing is sort of a pain. MIcro SD cards are meant to be micro or something like that. Maybe it's just me?