GoPro or similar always/instant on camera set up?

[szurszewski]

Hi All -

This is actually a for-the-cage question, but I know a lot of you run video cameras on your bikes, and that you're all pretty creative.

 

I have a company that runs a few cars for business purposes and we've decided we'd like to have dash cams (without actually having cams on the dashes). I want something that I can stick out of the line of sight (planning on back {front?} of the rearview mirror or similar location). I am thinking I'd like to wire to an accessory circuit on the car so it comes on with the car and goes off with the car. I'd like to have enough memory to get several hours of footage, but then to just record over that footage. (That's all to say, I don't want to have to mess with it unless *something* happens for which I would like to access video footage immediately or soon after.)

 

So, I'd like suggestions on which camera/package you'd suggest, and what accessories I might need as far as making it go on/off with the car.

 

If you know of a system like DriveCam or similar that you want to tell me about, that's great too, but I'm strongly leaning to a self contained system (that is, I don't want a monitoring service or anything like that).

 

thanks,

josh

 

 

[PhilipJCaputo]

I'm looking at getting a blackvue (http://www.blackvueusa.com/) for a 4x4 with liability only. The camera all setup is 300-400 depending on the model you choose. Plus the one time cost of the camera is better than year after year of super expensive premiums when liability is all I need.

 

But it does exactly what you're looking for, even has modes for parking garages, and modes to start recording with movement of the car (ie, if the vehicle is hit).

 

 

the last few accidents I've been in, I haven't had a camera, but having one would have made all the difference in helping to prove fault.

[szurszewski]

Thanks for the link - I hadn't seen that. In the time between when I first posted and when you replied, it also occurred to me to just google something like "best dash cam." Not a super helpful search, but certainly a lot of stuff to go through. Looks like the first decision I need to make will be regarding how much resolution I want.

 

I'll post back here with what I find, and I'm still up for more suggestions if anyone has them.

josh

[Camhead in STL]

Would this $25 thing do the trick? Says it does automatic cycle-recording and 720P.

[enfoman]

I have a similar one installed on my R1200C. It works just fine with an SSD card. I switch it on at the start of the ride and usually leave it on all day long until I park it back in my garage. It has been on the bike for about two years now with out an issue. When the weather changes though, I remove the unit as I am concerned about it really not being weatherproof. I have gotten it a bit wet during a bike wash though inadvertently. I leave the unit set up with the car plug in socket so that I can use it in my truck during the winter months. Quality is Okay. Sometimes there is a delay in the startup of the auto on feature so if the action is needed for proof or evidence, you may or may not get a picture. I figure that for the price and convenience of it being benign, it is a good set up.

[szurszewski]

Would this $25 thing do the trick? Says it does automatic cycle-recording and 720P.

 

I think I am going to go the cheap route to start, though I know one of my partners is really going to want something with higher resolution. I have seen several reviews of this camera, and the previous version of the same camera. The link goes to a seller with an actual store in NYC, but most of the places I've seen selling it are Chinese ebayers ... price is about the same though.

 

I'll update the thread as I progress through the process.

[CarrotNC]

After a city bus ran my Ford off the road two weeks ago, I decided enough is enough. Camera is now installed behind the rearview mirror. Went with a high definition model but to be honest a 720p would probably be just as effective and at a third the cost. I have no affiliations with any of the companies, products or vendors below -- except as a customer and product owner.

 

I went with the Lukas LK-7900 ACE and added their CPL filter and auto power cut off device. Came with an 8GB SDHC flash card but will accept up to 128GB cards; two mounting bases that are permanently stuck to the windshield(s) with 3M VHB tape; power cord to the cigarette lighter; AV out cable is 1/4" component so you can plug it into a dash display or movie player (very helpful when setting up); an instruction booklet; and a UV filter. They don't offer a suction cup mount.

http://lukashd.com/eng/product_info/blackbox_14_1.html

 

Overall am very happy with the product, once installed there's no additional action required. It starts when the car cranks up, records in 3 minute blocks as AVI files and overwrites the oldest once the card is full, and turns off when the car turns off. The 8GB card is worth about an hour, I've installed a 32GB card so it starts to overwrite at about five hours of driving.

 

With the power cut off installed it allows the camera to keep running when the car is off -- automatically enters Parking Mode. When an event occurs it will record the 10 seconds before and 20 seconds after the event. Can be triggered by motion (pedestrians, passing cars) or by impact that sets off the g-force sensors in the unit. I don't need either of those features on this vehicle, but as a guinea pig I figured why not?

 

The various modes can be turned off, and the sensors set for sensitivity. I'm still dialing in the g-forces since the ride on my F-150 is so rough it keeps triggering an emergency recording event!

 

The CPL filter is a polarized lens that really cut down on the glare from my dash, although I've since learned a standard 37mm lens will thread into the same housing so you can save a few bucks there and buy locally.

 

Ordered the unit from the authorized seller (green-sum) on Ebay, and it arrived via DHL Express from South Korea to North Carolina in three days. Cost $280 USD once I finished installing everthing, and I hard wired it to the vehicle wiring harness.

 

The second choice is a $70 camera (yep, big price difference) for a 720p resolution model called the DVR-027 by Spy Tec Inc. It has infrared (can turn it off) and is a different shape, but has an integrated view screen and can be rotated left & right unlike mine.

 

If I had a kid learning to drive, there'd be a DVR-027 on the front window and the rear window! As it is, I'm considering adding one to the back window of my truck to capture both directions; and probably should have gone with a Lukas model that has two cameras, the LK-5900 Duo.

 

There are plenty of forums about dashcams (also called "black box") and thankfully they seem to have settled on English as the common language. Most useful for me was http://forum.dashcamtalk.com/index.php