So I wanted to do two dash cams, one for my Mustang and the other for my Honda fit. Just like auto care products, there are hundreds, and all are similarly priced and all have similar features. So I ended up in a sea of confusion. I started following Vortex Radar on You Tube:
Vortex Radar - YouTube
He reviews hundreds of dashcams and radar detectors. What I learned is there are two camps in the higher end market. (not Garmin or what is sold at Best Buy or whatever). There is Korean and Chinese. The Korean makers were top notch, the Chinese were catching up in features and specifications.
Now there are different options with each camera, obviously you want something high quality, 780p, 1k, 2k and now 4k. Also each camera is going to have different nigh-vision optics and clarity. One thing I learned is there is going to be trade offs, if there are features you like about one camera that another doesn't have, the other may have slightly better features at night.
Next is the hardwiring. Parking mode was important to me. I wanted a sleek install, no wires all over the place, no lighter 12v plugs etc. Parking mode also has different modes, motion detection, fast speed with less frames per sec, and event detection. At the time I was looking some of the less expensive cameras only offered fast speed (which means it's always running, but at a fraction of the frames per second). I wanted motion with event detection.
Motion, means that for the most part the camera will be on while parked, slightest motion, lights, leaves in the trees blowing, shadows will have it run. Event detection means if the car gets bumped, it will snag that snippet and store it so it can't get overwritten.
Now there is buffering. Buffering allows event detection to grab about 30 seconds before the event and store it. Remember I said, for the most part the camera is always running, so if an event occurs, the camera can roll back, grab stuff leading up to the event and then store it in a separate folder.
Next is continuous recording - while you are driving. I also wanted "event detection" and buffering with that feature as well.
For parking mode, the camera is hard wired. It's really easy but you have to have patients. I've installed, and uninstalled cameras about 4 or 5 times now.
So once I got all my criteria, I chose between three brands BlackVue, (K), Thinkware (K) and Viofo (China). Viofo A129duo was much less in price, but had all the features except buffered event detection. However, the clarity was pretty darn good.
Oh, one other thing, you want to make sure it has stratus silicon and not lithium capacitors. The silicon can withstand extreme temps and lasts longer.
For the Honda Fit I went with the Viofo A129. For the Mustang I went with the Thinkware F800 Pro. The Thinkware was much more money than the Viofo, but I was really happy with both, and didn't care much about not having buffered recording on the Viofo.
After 6 months of testing and driving in AZ sun and heat, this is where things got flakey. The viofo had a series of issues that lead to an RMA. After much trouble shooting we RMA'd the Viofo. Then after about two weeks the same problems occurred. We did about one more RMA, and that still had issues, whereas no issues with the Thinkware.
Due to the incredible customer support at where I purchased the cameras, they went out of their way. Despite being outside their return policy, they returned the Viofo, and sold me a second Thinkware F800 at dealer cost. So far both Thinkware's have been running great.
The place I got the cameras from is out of Canada, Black Box My Car. All they do is cameras and radar detectors. They have a knowledgeable staff and provide live phone tech support and I highly recommend them.
If you opt to go that route, wiring is easy. You need to identify two fuses inside the car, one that is continuously sending power and one that is only on with AC power. For me I chose a dome light fuse and the radio. In the hardwire kit they send you a lighted tester and the appropriate adapters to "fit a fuse". The back camera is a little tricky but anyone who is a detailer on this forum knows how to pull some plastic trim, etc.. Make sure you get the plastic pullers too.
I'll try to provide some pics and some video footage later today... Hope all this helps!!!
