DASH-CAMS

[gordon2]

This topic came up after a few people posted videos of trailers swaying and/or wrecking. In this thread, the point was made many truckers use dash-cams to document their driving and prove to their employers that their driving was proper, as well as defend themselves in court if need be.

I noted that is certain parts of the former USSR the cameras are in wide use, and I understand it s because there is a big problem with people “staging” accidents. Staging accidents, if you do not know, is the practice of forcing an accident or sometimes faking one, and then making an insurance claim or suing the party who appears to be a fault. Most commonly, a driver would get in front of you and force you to run into the back of them, and then claim the accident was your fault and they were injured. Obviously, a dash-cam can go a long way toward proving one’s innocence in these cases.

Another way a staged accident might occur is for someone to walk into your car in a parking lot and claim you hit them. A dash-cam that only faces front might not be of much help in this case.

I spent a number of years working in police patrol where traffic collision investigations were part of our duties and I can tell you that staged accidents are not as common in this country, but they do occur on occasion. I can also tell you that traffic collisions where there was only property damage were not high on the priority list for the police. Instead, if there was a dispute it was often considered a civil law issue with liability and payments better decided by the insurance company or the court. The investigation by the police department would be adequate for property damage collisions, but expert accident investigators (and reconstructionist) would not be called in unless there was serious injury, and even then not is all jurisdictions and not until the last decade or two.

So… what do the members here think about dash-cams? Do you use one? Do need one facing the rear also? Any experience with brand names good or bad?

Wayne (user MC1) mentioned that he is waiting for Garman to come out with a GPS with integrated dash-cam. I would like to see that also, but I find that the GPS makers seem to be going toward smart-phone / tablet apps and I wonder if the market for standalone GPS units will be very strong. I have a Tom-Tom stand alone GPS AND the Tom-Tom app on my tablet, and each has its strong points and weaknesses. Slightly off topic, but one gets traffic from HD radio and the other gets traffic from the Internet, so having both is sometimes an advantage.

Ideally, I would like a camera that has a 360 degree view mounted on the roof of my trailer, and it would run all the time with a 24 hour or more buffer (to capture incidents both on and off the road). Of course then someone would think I was working for Google Maps ; )

EDIT:
Garmin with Dash Cam (~ US $400)

[RogerDat]

I don't think most insurance companies care about the "truth" or real circumstances. Base this on my dad getting slammed by a car making a right turn on red without even slowing down. Then switching drivers.

Dad was able to provide signed notarized affidavits from at least two witnesses. One diving behind him and a lady sitting on her porch facing the intersection. Insurance company simply did not care. Judge did. Dad was pretty shook up by the accident and left by ambulance, other driver told officer on the scene a bogus version of events so officer ended up sending ticket to dad. Judge dismissed the ticket and sort of chewed out the police department for not following up on the other witnesses when names were provided.

So I guess I figure a dash cam might help in the event of a horrible accident or a swoop and squat staged accident. (officer note the car in front is stopping rapidly but no brake lights?) Seems like a slim possibility it will come in handy to me.

[stillwater]

I just installed one for mostly the reasons mentioned. I'm not paranoid but things do happen and it doesn't hurt to have it. I just bought a really cheap one off ebay to try and if I like it then maybe upgrade. I think it was only about $ 39.95. I did ensure it had a motion sensor, a G sensor or crash capture as well as what is a limited night vision and 170* view angle. The g sensor can be set to 2, 4, or 6Gs and if tripped it locks that portion of the SD card and will not overwrite that. It also has a button to manually lock a file so it's not overwritten.It is 720 or 1080p and the picture quality is excellent. The motion sensor is what has been quite interesting as we spend time hiking/walking in fairly remote areas and leave the truck parked at trailheads. It is live all the time but goes to sleep after a couple of minutes with no movement but the second there is movement it wakes up and starts recording. That's where it gets interesting to see what's happening when you are away from your vehicle. The one thing I don't like with this one in particular is that the recording is not continuous and starts a new file every 30 seconds. However the files show up on my computer with a time stamp so if you are looking for something in particular it's easy to locate. I do think that every time it starts a new file it does miss a few seconds of actual time so hopefully anything that would happen during an accident wouldn't be jeopardized by missing a few seconds. In an accidents those few seconds could be critical. One thing I've noticed, it has actually forced me to clean up some of my driving habits.

[stillwater]

RodgerDat
You are right. I once was the only witness between a tractor trailer and a car. It was clearly the fault of the car. I was told flat out by the insurance company that the truck would be held accountable. When I asked how that could be the lady just grinned and said the truck company has a $ 5000.00 deductible.

[stillwater]

And furthermore,

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/pensioner-...102520734.html

[Darwin Maring]

Been using them in each of our vehicles for years. They sell for as little as $25 and go up from there. The American companies have caught on to the trend and of course are over the $100 range.

[gordon2]

Well people, I read the reviews on the Garmin with Dash Cam (~ US $400), and while it is expensive, it is more than just a GPS and Dash-Cam combined.

Then I watched the below video and decided I was either going to have a dash-cam or I was going to quit driving altogether. It was a close call but I ordered the Garmin nuvicam today and decided I would keep driving.

Check with me in a few weeks if you want my evaluation of it.

Scary Stuff!!!!!

The amazing thing about this video is that it is an hour long, and you can skip to any point in the video and still be scared to death in 20 seconds or so, and its only part one.

[futurescamptramp]

I am a long term dash cam user, and I wish the factory would offer them as a option built into rear view mirrors....but retain the ability for owner to turn the off if desired.

I absolutely LOVE mine. It is called the G1W and available from Amazon for about 50 bucks. Make sure to get the version that uses a capacitor vice battery for super hi heat locations.

The G1W uses a removable mini SD card that can be inserted in any laptop or modern desktop to read/transfer video files. It requires NO special software to display on any Windows computer.

The G1W records automatically as soon as you start the vehicle. It records in 3-5 minute segments that are seamless. HD, and day or night. Has G sensor that will lock the wreck recording to prevent over writing.

Depending on SD card capacity, it will record up to 10 hours driving before it records over oldest sections.

It truly is a set and forget item. It is not overly complicated and once installed you simply forget about it.

You can also reach up and rotate it to record cop stops or events to either side or rear with great audio....The cop that stopped me never noticed it was recording him.

Trust me, if you EVER end up in court, it beats any and all witness statements hands down....Plus, YOU are in control of what was recorded should you decide not to reveal it.

I predict that someday auto insurance companies will lobby to have them installed in every vehicle where owner has no control over it's operation and storage.

[gordon2]

First, let me ask what the heck is a “capacitor vice battery?”

Second, I think you are right.. insurance companies don’t get too interested in property damage only claims, especially in “no-fault” US states, but when it comes to high dollar liability and injury claims, its different. One thing I noticed is that everyone drives more carefully when they know they are being recorded, even if it’s the same driver who is doing the recording. I sure watch my speed and following distance more when the camera is on. I think recording cameras in vehicles will be either a factory option or standard equipment soon. In addition, if it is an option, insurance companies may give a discount if so equipped.

It pains me so much that I have a perfectly good camera on the back of my car that could be recording tailgaters (rear-end collisions being the most common cause of vehicle accident), but the camera is only in use for the .01% of the time I am in reverse.

I am quite happy with my Garmin NuviCam LMTHD but it’s a lot of money. And some of the features are only available with a smart phone and / or added cost. And its big, and expensive looking so I can’t leave it on the windshield to be stolen. So it’s only good on out of town trips and since I am most likely to be in a collision near my home, it will probably not be recorded if I do have a wreck. Factory cams need to be front and back and built in. Too bad they will charge $1500 for something that shuld only cost $250.

[Darwin Maring]

A capacitor battery is a capacitor that is charged and supplies power to the unit for a length of time when it looses vehicle power. This is nothing new, it was used as far back as 1974 in a small Hot Wheels type of toy car.

[gordon2]

Originally Posted by Darwin Maring

A capacitor battery is a capacitor that is charged and supplies power to the unit for a length of time when it looses vehicle power. This is nothing new, it was used as far back as 1974 in a small Hot Wheels type of toy car.

Yes it also helps deal with momentary voltage drops, but what is the "VICE" part? I never heard of that and nothing showed up in Google.

[minke]

I would have expressed "capacitor vice battery" as "capacitor vs. battery" instead. I believe he or she meant that a capacitor would tolerate heat better than a battery. I've no idea of how true that may be.

[Darwin Maring]

Vice more than likely due to autocorrect software.

[futurescamptramp]

Originally Posted by Darwin Maring

Vice more than likely due to autocorrect software.

LOL, I mistyped it!...I intended to say 'VS', not 'vice'.

The thing with the capacitor is a capacitor will survive high heat much better than a battery.

The camera needs a power source to retain your program settings so that when you turn it on it remembers all your menu settings...the first G1W's had a small hard wired battery like mine...The newest have a large capacitor.

Both a capacitor and battery store power needed to keep the unit 'alive' enuff to retain menu settings...A capacitor simply is more reliable in high heat situations.

My battery equipped G1W hasn't failed YET, but prolly will based on user reviews....No big deal because I'll gladly buy another for 50 bucks....I park my truck in the sun in Louisiana most of the time and it's dark blue where it gets really hot inside, but so far this last 1.5 years the battery has held up.

If you are interested in playing with a dash cam, I strongly suggest you first try the G1W for little bucks before you fork out 5 times more. The upgraded models have more bells n whistles but they don't do near as well as the G1W when it comes to what a dash cam is all about, and that's simply automatically recording events reliably and without you even remembering it is there.....

If you need more than the date/time stamp provided by the G1W and have an installed GPS, several upgraded cams will record your exact location and your speed and posted speed limits, but they do so for much more money and much less reliability.....so far.

[Daniel A.]

I've been using one for the past year mine has two lens's that can be turned in any direction, I put a 32 gig memory card in mine it stay's on 24 /7 .

In the city with the number of cyclist on the road its good to have, in the mountains wildlife encounters the camera will be a plus.

[gordon2]

Originally Posted by futurescamptramp

...
If you need more than the date/time stamp provided by the G1W and have an installed GPS, several upgraded cams will record your exact location and your speed and posted speed limits, but they do so for much more money and much less reliability.....so far.

The G1W does seem to be good if all you want is a dash-cam. There do appears to be some cheap knock-offs around however.

Now the Garmin Nuvicam is first and foremost a GPS for driving, and BTW, the best one I have ever seen. The GPS features are extensive. The integrated dash-cam records audio (if you wish) along with speed, location and date/time. It even has a forward collision warning (about useless) and a lane assist function (not useless) which use the camera image. Reliability and attraction to thieves should both be high. Hard to say if it's worth the price, but you do get what you pay for.

I could see adding the G1W as a rear facing camera, along with my Garmin in the dash.