Agie
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 19, 2016
- Messages
- 1,882
- Reaction score
- 952
- Location
- Perth, Australia
- Country
- Australia
- Dash Cam
- 70mai S500, A229 Pro, VS1, Nexus 4 Pro, S1 Pro, A119 v3v2v1
After a six-year absence, I'm back with another dashcam review. Feels good to be back and hope all of you are doing well 
. @Jeff_Vantrue was kind enough to send through the Vantrue Nexus 4 Pro for me to put this device through it's paces. There are plenty of very well-written reviews already, you know the specs, you know Vantrue, so I'll save this first post for my perspectives setting up a new camera for the first time in aeons. I'll also try and look at the device through the lens of a first-time dashcam buyer and what they may go through when setting up for the first time.
The first thing that struck me about this dashcam was it's ease of use and friendly packaging. While the unit and box itself are large, it doesn't feel unwieldy in the hand either. Nestled in the protective foam are the units themselves, along with a separate box for the (optional) CPL filter (to reduce glare and reflections in bright conditions). I like that Vantrue has also given clear thought to possible pitfalls in the installation process with clear diagrams on the packaging and instructions. Also handy is the plastic pry tool to assist in the cabling installation process, and the extra USB port on the car-charger is also a welcome addition. All-in-all, a decent load-out when it comes to the box contents and certain to make any non-tech-savvy person comfortable with the installation of their new dash camera.
The front/cabin and rear cameras themselves feel premium in the hand, although there is one big elephant in the room and that is the inclusion of the 3.19inch IPS LCD screen on the unit. For me personally, I've welcomed screens on dash cameras as it makes the setup process a lot easier, although I can see why some users may find this a problem as it is a long screen that makes the unit seemingly bigger than it needs to be. For me though it's a non-issue, except in the usage where I need to put the sunshade up in my car on a hot day, and I'm finding that takes a bit longer to fold behind the front camera itself as it juts out a fair bit. I'm also glad that the connections of the cameras use USB-C, as we are firmly in a USB-C world and we no longer have to deal with fiddly micro or mini-USB connections.
Setting up the cameras themselves were a breeze, as the included cable was more than long enough for my neatly-tucked-away install, and connection via the Vantrue app (available on both iOS and Android) was quick and flawless. Firmware updates were prompted to me to be installed, and this took no longer than a couple of minutes to perform. After a few more minutes adjusting the angle of the dash cameras to fit my windscreens, and to change the user-configurable settings, I was on my way.
I look forward to testing the Nexus 4 Pro properly in the coming weeks, and the thing that stood out to me the most was that this was one of the fastest dashcam installs I've ever performed. This could be because I have been out of the game for so long, and dashcam technology (and features) have improved leaps and bounds, but I remember the days when getting a dashcam set-up took way longer than one would have wanted. This is my first introduction to Vantrue products, and I'm excited to see what's next.
Some close-up photos of the Vantrue N4 Pro dashcam:
. @Jeff_Vantrue was kind enough to send through the Vantrue Nexus 4 Pro for me to put this device through it's paces. There are plenty of very well-written reviews already, you know the specs, you know Vantrue, so I'll save this first post for my perspectives setting up a new camera for the first time in aeons. I'll also try and look at the device through the lens of a first-time dashcam buyer and what they may go through when setting up for the first time.The first thing that struck me about this dashcam was it's ease of use and friendly packaging. While the unit and box itself are large, it doesn't feel unwieldy in the hand either. Nestled in the protective foam are the units themselves, along with a separate box for the (optional) CPL filter (to reduce glare and reflections in bright conditions). I like that Vantrue has also given clear thought to possible pitfalls in the installation process with clear diagrams on the packaging and instructions. Also handy is the plastic pry tool to assist in the cabling installation process, and the extra USB port on the car-charger is also a welcome addition. All-in-all, a decent load-out when it comes to the box contents and certain to make any non-tech-savvy person comfortable with the installation of their new dash camera.
The front/cabin and rear cameras themselves feel premium in the hand, although there is one big elephant in the room and that is the inclusion of the 3.19inch IPS LCD screen on the unit. For me personally, I've welcomed screens on dash cameras as it makes the setup process a lot easier, although I can see why some users may find this a problem as it is a long screen that makes the unit seemingly bigger than it needs to be. For me though it's a non-issue, except in the usage where I need to put the sunshade up in my car on a hot day, and I'm finding that takes a bit longer to fold behind the front camera itself as it juts out a fair bit. I'm also glad that the connections of the cameras use USB-C, as we are firmly in a USB-C world and we no longer have to deal with fiddly micro or mini-USB connections.
Setting up the cameras themselves were a breeze, as the included cable was more than long enough for my neatly-tucked-away install, and connection via the Vantrue app (available on both iOS and Android) was quick and flawless. Firmware updates were prompted to me to be installed, and this took no longer than a couple of minutes to perform. After a few more minutes adjusting the angle of the dash cameras to fit my windscreens, and to change the user-configurable settings, I was on my way.
I look forward to testing the Nexus 4 Pro properly in the coming weeks, and the thing that stood out to me the most was that this was one of the fastest dashcam installs I've ever performed. This could be because I have been out of the game for so long, and dashcam technology (and features) have improved leaps and bounds, but I remember the days when getting a dashcam set-up took way longer than one would have wanted. This is my first introduction to Vantrue products, and I'm excited to see what's next.
Some close-up photos of the Vantrue N4 Pro dashcam:
