USB to DVRXXX power adapter?

stormbind

New Member
Joined
Jul 17, 2013
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
Location
UK
Q: Does anyone know where I can get a USB-to-DVR power cable?

This the standard DVR power adapter:

$T2eC16FHJGYE9nooiLeKBRJ1uTgwKg~~60_3.JPG


To help me charge lots of different devices, I ditched the old cigarette adapter in favor of USB:

dual-usb-cigarette-car-charger-for-apple-and-tablet-devices-dual-2-1a-p31478-240.jpg


The DVR adapter looks like the old Nokia connector?

CA-70_200_2.jpg


As I have not purchased a DVR yet, can you please confirm which cable would fit? Thanks.
 
dropshadow said:
KvR said:
stormbind said:
The DVR adapter looks like the old Nokia connector?
Yes, it is the old 3.5mm Nokia connector.

In that case, would a USB-to-3.5mm power cable like this one work? http://amzn.to/1bEmGKU

Which DVR model do you plan on purchasing?

The 3.5 DC cable will definitely physically fit the DVR-207 according to my measurement (see spoiler below). I don't know what DC adapter size other DVR models use.
[spoil]
kqUau44.jpg
[/spoil]
However, the rated input for the DVR-207 is 5.5V (see the owners manual)

I don't know what will happen if you deprive the DVR-207 of 0.5V. With a reasonable error margin of +/- 0.5V, it might not matter at all. However, the worst case scenario is probably that the DVR will use more of its internal battery power than it can draw and will turn off after a few hours (I seem to have the same problem with my DVR-207 even though it's being fed a little over 5.5V).

You don't need to worry of depriving your DVR any volts if you get the DVR-027, which has a rated input of 5V (see the manual). However, I don't recommend the 027 for its gaps between videos issue. Just make sure that your USB adapter isn't supplying 12V (this is unlikely as most USB ports including those on computers deliver 5 volts); that will definitely fry your device.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I already have a DVR-207, but I actually want to figure out how to hardwire it into my car instead of using the cigarette lighter. Looks like I need to do some more reading here to figure that out.
 
dropshadow said:
I already have a DVR-207, but I actually want to figure out how to hardwire it into my car instead of using the cigarette lighter. Looks like I need to do some more reading here to figure that put.

I hardwired it to my car using the cigarette lighter adapter. That way, you could take a 12v power source from a fuse in your cabin fuse-box or some other continuous power source without buying an aftermarket item. Some of the fuses in my car's interior fuse-box supply power both when the car is on and off, I don't know if all cars have fuses that stay powered 24/7. If you power the DVR from the fusebox, you should buy an add-a-circuit. They are about the same price on amazon or most autostores (i.e. ~$6.00). In my case, I used the positive and negative of my car's stereo amp.

All you have to do to hardwire it with the cigarette lighter is (see spoiler)
[spoil]1. Unscrew the tip of the adapter.
2. Take out the metal piece that sticks out, store it in your retail box.
3. You will see a cylinder shaped fuse inside. take your positive wire, strip the end, put it against the metal of the fuse that's nearest to the tip (the positive side of the fuse), screw on the plastic tip of the adapter to hold the positive wire in place. This holds the positive wire against the fuse very well! Use some electrical tape to cover up your work to prevent a short, thought it is unlikely because the connection is recessed inside of the adapter.
4. Strip and wrap your negative wire around the metal pieces on the side of the adapter. Don't wrap it around the metal ring; that's not a ground, its only for decoration. Use electrical tape to cover up your work and keep the wire in place.
5. Disconnect your car battery and connect your positive wire to a power source the provides between 12-24 volts and connect your negative to a ground. Then reconnect the car battery.
6. Use a multimeter to make sure the cigarette lighter adapter is outputting voltage in the neighborhood of 5-6 volts (insert your positive lead into the hole of the 3.5 DC jack and press the negative on the outside metal of the DC jack).[/spoil]
The great thing is that you can reverse this process if you ever want your cigarette lighter adapter back in new condition, say if you needed to return the DVR. Just remove the electrical tape, unscrew the tip and remove the positive wire and replace the metal button you removed it step 2 and screw the tip on, and unwrap the negative wire.
 
That is incredibly helpful, thank you very much. I'll see if I can track down a fuse with constant power. Does that mean the camera will always be powered, running down the car's battery?
 
dropshadow said:
That is incredibly helpful, thank you very much. I'll see if I can track down a fuse with constant power. Does that mean the camera will always be powered, running down the car's battery?

Yes, the camera will always be powered and running down the car's battery at a slow rate. Or you could hook up the DVR to a fuse that only turns on when you turn the key; the DVR automatically turns on when power goes from off to on and automatically turns off when power goes from on to off. But like I said, I've been having trouble keeping the camera running 24/7. Sometimes if I leave my car for a few hours, it will be turned off by the time I get back. I don't know why that happens. See the UPDATE reply in my thread for details.

If you ever want to stop draining the cars battery, just unplug the camera. Otherwise, you should drive your car at most every three days to prevent the battery from dying. Besides, using your car daily is one of the best ways to prevent theft. I imagine criminals watch out for unattended cars and steal from them more often.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I'll probably just stick to keeping it on a switched fuse that powers off with the car, though I would like to find a fuse that stays on for a few minutes after the ignition has been shut off. I know that in my Audi, the MMI doesn't immediately power down unless the car has been off for about 15 minutes to shorten reboot times. I'll look into what other people have used for hardwiring. Thanks for your help, Chris.
 
dropshadow said:
I'll probably just stick to keeping it on a switched fuse that powers off with the car, though I would like to find a fuse that stays on for a few minutes after the ignition has been shut off. I know that in my Audi, the MMI doesn't immediately power down unless the car has been off for about 15 minutes to shorten reboot times. I'll look into what other people have used for hardwiring. Thanks for your help, Chris.

Your welcome dropshadow. Also, I've accidentally been calling my dashcam the DVR-207, but it is actually the DVR-207GS. I believe its the exact same camera but with the g-sensor option, even my 207GS manual looks the same as the 207 manual.

Be careful if you decide to power the camera 24/7. jokiin just reminded me that these dash cams run on lithium ion polymer (LiPo) batteries, which will die permanently if the battery is never exercised and possibly even explode/catch fire in hot environments on constant charging. Though I can't find any news on LiPo batteries causing fires in cars, I'm sure it has happened before. Realizing this, it is a better idea to use a fuse that's not constantly powered.
 
Back
Top