Dash Cam – Part 1

I’m pretty sure that if you have visited YouTube lately viewed your Facebook timeline you would have no doubt seen the viral sensation of Russian Dash Cams. A Dash Cam a camera that is mounted to your screen or dashboard and it records your journey as your drive. And some of the near misses, crashes and random events that are captured are staggering.

Why would you need such a device ? Trust me it’s not just a gimmick. There is a good reason why you should have one. You are well aware that you are liable if you hit someone else’s car from behind, you are at fault. But what if they didn’t brake? What if they deliberately wanted you to crash into them? in other words what if it were a “Crash for cash” scenario ? you would still be liable and your premiums would possibly go up. On the other hand being able to prove your innocence is always a good idea. This is where video footage of you journey will help. To add to the incentive if you tell your insurance company you have a dash cam, don’t be surprised to get a discount off your next insurance premium, I was surprised when I did !

Since I have been towing I’ve noticed other road users behavior around the caravan is just awful. Everyone feels they need to overtake. Even if I’m doing the speed limit, some other road users feel they need to get in front at any cost. The damn caravans are always in the way right ? With an upcoming adventure to north Wales, I felt now would be a good time to purchase one.

In recent weeks a YouTube Channel I follow – Andrew Ditton had a near miss with an oncoming white van, who was on the wrong side of the road. Thankfully not huge much damage was caused, but there was damage. Andrew was not able to recall the registration plate of the on-coming van., and in reality who remembers all the registration plates of all oncoming cars ? This incident only sealed the deal for me to install a dash cam in the towing car. And as I looked and researched – I realised the market is stocked full with various models, features and price ranges.

As the research carried on I quickly came across a fantastic video that summerises the features and what to look out for when purchasing a dash-cam.

From the video, I decided I should aim for a set up that has these features :

1. H264 Codec
   1. This is important. This codec means no gaps in recording when the file is written. There are lots of technical reasons for this – please review the video below for a fuller explanation.
2. No GPS
   1. I don’t really want to record where I am all the time. After all if I have an incident, I will know where I am. Plus also I don’t really want to record my speed with the GPS. This is not 100% perfect and could be used as an admission of guilt !
3. No “G” Sensor
   1. The Dash cams can save a section of footage if the G sensor is triggered by an excessive bang or jolt to the car. Again I will know when I have collided. This is perfect for fleet managers, or shared vehicles, but not for me.
4. No Night Vision
   1. Truly pointless. The “night vision” LEDs will actually reflect from the inside of the windscreen. A dash cam that can handle low light levels is far better.
5. 1080p resolution.
   1. Just for quality purposes really. The bigger the better.

So as I have mentioned here is a great video from Tech Moan. He has reviewed a lot of the dash cams that are still available. It is worth some time watching his videos. This video gives any beginners a great insight into the world of dash cams.

Next, I choose the dash cam & install it in Part 2