What are the best dash cams for reading numberplates?

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This is a comparison only on the ability to read numberplates on moving vehicles, in day time and night.


Other factors like cost, shape, size and features do not matter.
 
Haha...
I posted similar before.

For that purpose, you need something like this ;)

avatar_camera.jpg


Or
7D_and_SyncFocus307.jpg
 
Joking aside, what do police have that scans license plates when they drive and alerts if any match to existing warrants?
That technology is in use here but most cities have banned them due to privacy issues.

Automatic License Plate Readers in use in Long Beach, CA:



See how the faded license plates come out so clean and clear.

ALPR-system.png
 
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There are 'only' 2 problems with those solutions:

1) Getting a good weather seal on the hole in the windshield (windscreen).
2) Protecting the lens from the elements.

:D
 
There are 'only' 2 problems with those solutions:

1) Getting a good weather seal on the hole in the windshield (windscreen).
2) Protecting the lens from the elements.

:D

There's a third, actually. Telephoto lenses like that would yield so much camera shake as to render the images useless.
 
There's a third, actually. Telephoto lenses like that would yield so much camera shake as to render the images useless.
IS, or VR, or whatever the manufacturer provides...;)
 
IS, or VR, or whatever the manufacturer provides...;)

Yeah, but I was referring to the above telephoto examples. The technology can certainly help and is very effective in "certain" situations but a long telephoto lens in a dash cam would be a bit of an impractical stretch I think. VR and EIS often have severe limitations, unfortunately and they are not "magic".
 
Yeah, but I was referring to the above telephoto examples. The technology can certainly help and is very effective in "certain" situations but a long telephoto lens in a dash cam would be a bit of an impractical stretch I think. VR and EIS often have severe limitations, unfortunately and they are not "magic".
I agree. Actually, all my comments were pretty much tongue in cheek (which is what I assumed the other postings, other than the original, were).

One of my hobbies is photography so I'm very aware of the benefits and limitations of those technologies. (My favorite 'general purpose' lens is a Canon 70-200 2.8 IS.)
 
Joking aside, what do police have that scans license plates when they drive and alerts if any match to existing warrants?
That technology is in use here but most cities have banned them due to privacy issues.

ALPR cameras are mounted on the exterior of vehicles, and utilize a high power IR beam that cause the reflective coating on license plates to glow - increasing the contrast so the software can conduct the OCR properly.

The privacy issue is complicated. Technically, anything that can be viewed from the public space/domain is fair game to anyone with a camera. There are numerous court cases, and DOJ memos that explicitly permit all forms of recording in public on the basis of 1st Amendment protections. While it might not seem like a 'free speech' issue to have a camera in public, the fact that anything that is recorded might be used in publication or in some other form of speech (i.e. blog, YT, etc) means restricting your right to record is considered "prior restraint" - in essence, keeping you from getting your data for your speech issue. Ultimately, photography in public is not a crime.

So, if the police (or repo guys) want to spend their time photographing every license plate they see, they are legally justified.

Where it gets a lot more complicated is when they run every license plate through a database without probable cause or, at a minimum reasonable articulable suspicion (RAS). In Florida, for example, and officer can't just arbitrarily run someone's tag through the Driver and Vehicle Information Database (DAVID) without cause. Officers that do, violate state law, and can be prosecuted. The principle behind the restriction is protection from unreasonable searches and seizures (4th Amendment).

Having every visible license plate (and therefore vehicle owner) treated as though they might be a criminal, and their record searched without probable cause or RAS is arguably a violation of their 4th Amendment rights. Put another way, it would be like police stopping everyone exiting a mall and searching their pockets, wallets, and purses to see if they can find any contraband. Or, police entering every home on a given street (without warrant) to see if they can find any criminal activity. Sadly with TSA, and now more random 'checkpoints', we've become accustomed to surrendering more and more of our privacy, liberties, and freedoms - all in exchange for some perceived safety/security.

Separately, if a private/corporate entity invests in the technology, develops their own database of vehicles subject to repossession, and then scans every vehicle they encounter, I DO NOT take issue with that. Namely, they are not government, and their actions do not involve criminal databases, nor do they have the authority to arrest, detain, or otherwise bring down the justice system on your head.

Sorry for the political slant - but it's important to understand why these cameras (in the hands of government) are the camel's nose under the tent.
 
its a sad fact that every day that goes by we loose more of our anonymity, banks know where, when and on what we spend our money on, our mobil phones can and with government requirements/regulations, know our every move and where about’s we are at any given time, and with our car registration our government know where we drive to, then if that isn’t enough here in the UK we have more CCTC’s per population that anywhere the world, that can find out where, when and who we were with

I’ve not been stopped by the police in maybe 4 to 5 years, but the last 3 or 4 times I was stopped by a patrol car, they ask me for my name and where I live, and so far have replied “as I’ve not reported my car stolen, you’ll already know who I am and and know about my car” to which I always get a smile and then I tell them who I am and where I live/I’m heading to (if they ask )
 
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